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The Port of Rotterdam Authority has revealed that it will be rewarding the 25 cleanest ocean-going vessels arriving at the port in 2011 and 2012 with a discount on port dues.

Last year, the World Port Climate Initiative introduced the Environmental Ship Index (ESI), under the auspices of the International Association of Ports and Harbors, in London. The Port of Rotterdam Authority, a co-initiator of the index, is working with this new international benchmark for ship air emissions and will be awarding points to those ships performing better than the statutory norm.

In total, 375 ocean-going ships have now been recorded in the ESI, meaning that all score better than the statutory norm. However, the score required to qualify for the discount, 31 points, appears to be on the high side. Up until now, only six ships have reached this level, and only one of these, the Morning Carol, has called at the Port of Rotterdam. This vessel is therefore eligible for a discount of some five per cent on port dues, the port said.

Although the number of vessels reaching the 31-point level is low, the port says it does not want to change the trigger mark. It will, however, reward the 25 ships that are the most sustainable, according to the ESI, and these ships will be required to score over 20 points.

The ESI was introduced on 1 January 2011. In addition to Dutch ports, the ports of Antwerp, Hamburg, Oslo, Kiel, Bremen and the Green Award Foundation are using the ESI as a benchmark to reward clean ships.