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Manufacturers are looking at ways to mitigate the environmental impact of big ships.
Shipping is key to the smooth running of the global economy. With about 50,000 merchant ships trading across the seas, the shipping industry is responsible "for the carriage of around 90 percent of world trade," according to the International Chamber of Shipping.
However, the industry's environmental impact is not insignificant. In 2012, international shipping was responsible for 796 million tonnes of CO2 emissions – around 2.2 percent of global emissions – according to the International Maritime Organization.
"Shipping impacts the world in many positive ways by enabling trade around the world," Mads Stensen, global sustainability manager at Maersk, told CNBC's Sustainable Energy.
"But despite… all the positive impacts, you also have negative impacts, especially environmental impacts," he added.
ne idea being looked at is adding a "scrubber" – an exhaust gas cleaning system – to the huge engines that power the vessels. "The system can remove, for example, sulphur emissions from the exhaust gas," Stensen said.
Stensen went on to add that Maersk was looking to modify and update its fleet to help boost its efficiency and sustainability.
These include upgrading engines, propellers that are more fuel efficient, and increasing the capacity of the vessel so more containers can be carried on board.
At Maersk, cutting edge technology is also helping the company to improve efficiency. Its Eco Voyage Tracker (EVT) was developed internally and allows the company to monitor its fleet across the world's oceans at all times.
"It's also a tool that helps the vessel plan the most optimal voyage… that's the 'eco-voyage' part of it," Niels Bruus, head of fleet performance at Maersk, said.
Other innovations taking place in the industry are looking to the past for inspiration. Last year CNBC spoke to SkySails, a German company that says it has developed a "kite wind propulsion" system for large cargo ships.
According to SkySails, one kilowatt hour of their wind power costs only six cents for ships to use, "about half as much as one kilowatt hour from the main engine." Read more
Source: CNBC
