Fortescue’s Green Pioneer, the world’s first duel-fuelled ammonia-powered vessel, has arrived in London as part of a global tour promoting the transition to green fuels in international shipping.
The 75m vessel departed from Singapore in January and docked at Canary Wharf after spending six days in the Port of Southampton, where it demonstrated the use of ammonia in its converted engines.
It also became the first ammonia-fuelled vessel in the UK to undergo and pass a port state control inspection.
The vessel’s arrival coincides with a pivotal moment for global shipping, as the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO) considers major regulatory changes.
Key IMO meetings to be held in April will determine whether a global carbon levy is adopted, shaping the future of emissions reduction in the sector.
“Fortescue Green Pioneer embodies the innovative spirit, courage and leadership that is taking Fortescue to ‘real zero’ by 2030,” Fortescue executive chairman and founder Andrew Forrest said.
“The International Maritime Organisation must call on that same spirit, courage and leadership to fast-track shipping’s transition to green fuels.”
Forrest and other Fortescue executives hosted leading chief executive officers and dignitaries aboard the Green Pioneer as part of the Terra Carta Roundtable and Exhibition, a five-year anniversary event for His Majesty The King’s Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI), held at Hampton Court Palace on March 10 and 11.
The IMO’s mid-term measures will impose legally binding regulations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships, with key interim emission reduction targets to be met for 2030 and 2040 on the way to shipping’s complete decarbonisation by 2050.
Fortescue is urging the shipping industry to skip transitional fuels like biofuels and liquefied natural gas and move directly to zero-emission alternatives like green ammonia.
“There is no time to waste on so-called transitional fuels that will only serve to slow our progress towards a world no longer reliant on fossil fuels,” Forrest said.
“This will not only deliver a better future for the planet but accelerate a reduction in shipping costs through the widespread adoption and scaling of renewable energy.”
Having made history in March 2024 by completing the world’s first dual-fuelled ammonia trial in Singapore, the Green Pioneer is expected to visit multiple ports worldwide, advocating for faster adoption of ammonia infrastructure to scale its use as a marine fuel.
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