Initiatives
> 50
Founded
2021
Green corridors have quickly become central to the shipping industry’s decarbonisation plans. Green corridors, which are specific trade routes where the feasibility of zero-emission shipping is catalysed by public and private action, can accelerate shipping’s transition to zero emissions by testing and deploying fuels, vessels, and infrastructure in a coordinated way, generating the knowledge required to unlock the rest of the sector’s energy transition.
Decarbonising shipping is difficult, but some trade routes offer relative advantages either because they are near potentially attractive fuel supply hubs, have comparatively simple operational profiles, or are likely to have favourable economics. The idea behind green corridors is to identify and leverage these advantageous routes to kickstart shipping’s transition to new fuels. Plans for the first green corridor were announced in 2021 and there are now well over 50 initiatives in various stages of development.
Shipping companies, ports, cargo owners, fuel producers, and the civic sector are among the nearly 200 stakeholders involved in green corridors. Some 30 governments facilitate green corridor development, helping to trigger a race to the top as they explore multiple policy pathways to increase the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of their support. The Global Maritime Forum supports several green corridor initiatives through the Getting to Zero Coalition.
Green corridors can help the shipping industry rapidly decarbonise in the 2030s by providing the conditions for ambitious companies to test zero-emission technologies and infrastructure at scale this decade. In the process, they will offer opportunities for forward-looking governments to future-proof their trade, become green technology and climate leaders, and support economic development.