Seventeen vessels with International Paint’s Intersleek hull coating have become the first to earn tradeable carbon credits as part of a joint scheme between the AzkoNobel subsidiary and the Gold Standard Foundation.
The vessels, whose owner(s) was not named, have collectively earned 130,000 carbon credits after being painted with the low-resistance hull coating, preventing an estimated 130,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere, compared with emissions from vessels with traditional antifouling hull coatings containing biocides.
Some 40,000 tonnes of bunker fuel have been saved by using the biocide-free coating, saving an estimated $12m, International Paint’s Trevor Solomon told the Shipping Efficiency Conference at London International Shipping Week today.
The vessels are awaiting issuance of the credits, which is expected at the end of October. The value of the credits is hard to estimate as it varies from project to project, Solomon said, but is around $0.75m ($5.77 per credit).
Carbon credits were created to promote the use of technologies that reduce the volume of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.
International Paint and its partner the Gold Standard Foundation last year released their methodology for the carbon credits scheme for the Intersleek coating.
The Gold Standard Foundation is an accredited agency that verifies carbon credits against known emission levels. Companies can therefore use carbon credits as a way of demonstrating and quantifying their environmental performance, as well as trade them in the same way as stocks and shares.
International Paint’s methodology has been accredited in accordance with ISO standard 14044 (environmental management – life-cycle assessment), but Solomon said it will also be compliant with standard 19030, ISO’s new standard for hull performance, which is currently being drafted.
