London port halves CO2 emissions three years ahead of its 2025 target

The Port of London Authority (PLA) has cut its carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by half last year by using hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO)-based biofuels to power its fleet of more than 20 vessels.

PHOTO: Port of London Authority covers 95 miles of the river Thames, from the Thames estuary in the North Sea to Teddington in London. Getty Images

Before switching to biofuels, these vessels contributed 75% of the port's total carbon emissions, the port authority says.

The PLA had set a target of a “50% reduction in the 2,054 mt of carbon emitted across its entire operations in its 2014 baseline year” by 2025 and achieve net-zero emissions by 2040.

The switch to biofuels is an “interim measure” to reduce CO2 emissions, it says.

Meanwhile, the port authority is exploring use of other alternative fuels as a “long-term solution,” PLA 's chief executive Robin Mortimer says.

The port has also upgraded its primary vessel base Barrier Gardens Pier with shore power and installed steel tanks for storing biofuel at three of its riverside bases. 

By Konica Bhatt

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