The Port of Antwerp Becomes Greener: Environment-Friendly Ships get Financial Encouragement

ANTWERP, Belgium, June 8, 2011 -

In order to further reduce emissions of pollutants such as NOx and SOx,
the Port Authority is to reward "clean ships" calling at the port of Antwerp.
As of 1 July the most environment-friendly ships will be granted a discount
of 10% on the tonnage dues[1]. This measure follows on from an initiative by
the International Association of Ports and Harbours (IAPH), in which the port
authorities of Le Havre, Bremen, Hamburg, Rotterdam, Amsterdam and Antwerp
introduced the Environmental Ship Index (ESI). Shipping companies can
register their ships for this index at www.environmentalshipindex.org.
On the basis of the data entered, such as fuel consumption and emissions,
each ship is given a score on a scale from 0 to 100 (from highly polluting to
emission-free). So far more than 250 ships have been given a score. The ports
themselves decide what advantages to offer participating ships.

In the case of Antwerp, seagoing ships with a score of 31 or more will be
granted a discount of 10% on the tonnage dues. The Port Authority will
guarantee this discount for a period of at least three years, so offering
continuity for shipping companies that invest in improving the ESI score of
their ships.

If fewer than 25 seagoing ships qualify for the discount, then the Port
Authority will reward the 25 vessels with the highest ESI score. This latter
measure applies until the end of 2011 and has been introduced to encourage
shipping companies to register their vessels for the index. The ships that
qualify for a discount will be determined every three months on the basis of
an update of the ESI. The Port Authority will then make the discount
available retroactively for the past quarter. For example, the ESI for
seagoing ships calling at Antwerp during the period 1 April to 30 June will
be determined on 1 July.

The introduction of the ESI forms part of the Port Authority's policy of
sustainable development of the port. This new international standard is a
useful tool for port authorities to promote investments in more
environment-friendly ships. Antwerp Port Authority uses low-sulphur fuel for
its own fleet. In addition, ships and barges are able to use onshore power
supplies at various locations in the port, so they do not have to run their
engines while at berth.

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[1] Tonnage dues are the fee that a shipping company has to pay the
Port Authority for each ship that enters the port, calculated on the basis
of the gross tonnage.

Annik Dirkx, Annik.Dirkx at haven.antwerpen.be, +32-3-205-23-09