IAPH has signed an agreement with the Rotterdam-based Green Award Foundation to administer and expand the formula-based Environmental Ship Index (ESI), which allows port authorities and maritime administrations to reward vessels for improved energy efficiency and reduced emissions. The agreement is to take the popular Index to the next level in terms of full-time administrative support, governance and further expansion. Since its creation ten years ago, the ESI has become the established standard upon which port authorities and maritime administrations incentivise ship owners and operators to continuously improve the environmental performance of their fleets. The partnership with Green Award aims to increase the reliability of the index through on-board verifications and to professionalise its administration. The aim is also to expand the range of potential emissions in the calculation, to diversify the fleet currently contained in the database and to increase the number of incentive providers, especially in Asia, Africa and the Americas. As of this month, owners and owner-operators with ships registered on ESI will be approached directly by the Green Award team for certification updates and will also be informed about the new subscription fee scheme that will be implemented to finance further user improvements and the further development of the Index. Established in 1994, the Green Award Foundation is a global, independent, non-profit quality assurance organisation with the primary task of certifying ship managers and vessels that go beyond the industry standards in terms of safety, quality and environmental performance. Green Award has been an active member and incentive provider to the IAPH Environmental Ship Index, having collaborated since the index’ foundation back in 2011.
