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Twelve of Sweden’s biggest importers and exporters have signed a letter of intent to place demands on shipowners to report environmental data that will be used as input to a new index developed by the Clean Shipping Project.

The twelve companies to sign up to the project are ABB, Astra Zeneca, Ericsson, H&M, Preem Petroleum, Skanska Sweden, SKF, Stora Enso Logistics, Tetra Laval, Vattenfall, V&S Group and Volvo Logistics. Together they are now asking 77 of the world’s largest shipping operators to report environmental information through the Clean Shipping Index.

According to project organizers, the Clean Shipping Index can be used by major shipping customers during procurement to evaluate the environmental performance of shipping operators. The index addresses 20 factors that can affect the environment, including marine fuel, lubricants, bilge water, ballast water, antifouling paint, refrigerants and waste.

In an official statement, organizers of the project said "A high index ranking represents a competitive advantage and environmental gains both for the shipping operator and its customers".

The Swedish shipping industry ranks amongst one of the leading countries in the world when it comes to the implementation of environmental measures. At Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, for example, the company's fleet met the 1.5 per cent low-sulphur fuel target on a global basis two years before the IMO low-sulphur fuel limit became mandatory for the Baltic and North Sea regions.

The Clean Shipping Project is driven by public authorities in western Sweden; Göteborg Region Association of Local Authorities, the Region of Västra Götaland, Västra Götaland County Administration and Business Region Göteborg. The project is also financed by the EU Structural Fund “Objective 2”. It is a non-profit project with the goal of cleaner shipping and sustainable growth.

The deadline for shipping operators to report back with environmental data is August 31st this year.