Japan's MOL conducts carbon-offset voyage with car carrier

Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL) on June 15 said one of its car carriers completed a carbon-offset voyage carrying completed cars from Japan to Europe by using voluntary carbon credits.

“This initiative was conducted as a pilot case to study the specific use of carbon credits in ocean shipping to compensate CO₂ emissions, which are difficult to reduce using currently available technology,” the Japanese shipping company said.

Completed cars from Mazda Motor Corp were loaded on the MOL-operated Beluga Ace, and the vessel departed the Port of Hiroshima on April 18, and arrived at the Port of Bristol in the UK on May 28.

CO₂ emissions during the voyage between Japan and Europe reached about 4,000 metric tons including all processes from production through consumption of fuel oil. The calculation method of the volume was properly verified by the third-party verification body Bureau Veritas.

The entire process, from calculating CO₂ emissions including the verification process to compensating all CO₂ emissions with carbon credits, was also certified by the third-party certification body Climate Neutral Commodity, MOL said.

MOL used carbon credits generated from afforestation and reforestation projects in Ghana and China for this initiative. Both projects are certified by the international carbon credit standard management body Verra, and the credits were generated within the past five years, the company added.