Arkas Line has taken important steps in reducing its carbon footprint, while reducing its carbon dioxide emissions beyond its target. On the one hand, it has signed various projects and on the other hand, determined within the framework of the regulations; The company, which continues to use low sulfur fuel on its ships, is the silver medalist in the ECOVADIS Corporate Social Responsibility rating.
The dangerous extent of global climate change necessitates the protection of natural resources on the one hand, and on the other hand, it requires attention to sustainable development. Arkas Line, one of the Arkas companies, which carries out regular ship transportation with container ships in the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Northern Europe and West Africa, takes steps beyond the regulations in this regard.
Arkas Line exceeded its target
Arkas Line, which has been the first and only member of the CCWG working group consisting of 85 shipping companies that hold 16 percent of the world's container transportation and more than 85 global customers and forwarders, in Turkey since 2013, has continued its operational activities between 2011 and 2020. With the improvements, it decreased its CO2 emissions by 26,2 percent and exceeded the 25 percent target. In line with the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) practice of reducing the sulfur content of the fuel used in ships from 3,5 percent to 0,5 percent in accordance with the MARPOL convention, Arkas Line switched to VLSFO fuel use in all ships and reduced its sulfur emissions by 82,8 percent. dropped it.
Silver medal in sustainability
ArkasLine, which has been a member of EcoVadis, the world's most reliable business sustainability rating agency for global supply chains, since 2015, has a silver medal according to the 2021 CSR rating. The EcoVadis CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) assessment, which consists of four main headings: environment, employee rights, ethical values in business life and sustainability, and 21 criteria under them, measures how well a company integrates CSR principles into business and management systems.
Reduced fuel consumption with MINI-CHIP
The “Mini-Chip (Minimizing Carbon Footprint)” project, initiated by Arkas Line in cooperation with PROMATECH Maritime Technologies and Brunel University in London, was successfully completed after four years. As a simulation setup, the project offers an innovative “Decision Support System” for freight carriers to reduce fuel consumption, minimize carbon footprint and reduce costs without sacrificing quality in transportation operations. As a result of the tests, it was observed that the correct fuel and refueling timing reduced the total fuel consumption by 5 to 10 percent. Mini-Chip, which is the first study in the maritime industry to measure carbon footprint with service and cost targets, also has analytical methods to determine the complex relationships between ship speed decisions, refueling point selection decisions, fuel prices, delay penalties and port uncertainties.
“Blues for Green”
While the European Union (EU) draws a new roadmap for the green economy with the “Green Agreement”, the agreement signed at the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) includes the gradual reduction of fossil fuels for the first time.
Arkas, on the other hand, will take the necessary steps in this regard and monitor its sustainability efforts and long-term transformation strategies under the "European Green Consensus Working Committee", which was formed with the joint participation of companies under the umbrella of the holding. It will share its currently implemented environmentally friendly projects and new action plans to be developed with Arkas employees on the “Blues for Green” platform. The purpose of the working group is to inform all Arkas employees on sustainability issues, to create training content, to measure and monitor the carbon footprint, and to determine the ways to be followed within the framework of harmonization with the EU Green Deal.
Arkas TURMEPA II waste collection boat, which started its operations within the scope of the project initiated in cooperation with Arkas and TURMEPA, which attaches great importance to the seas in terms of social responsibility as well as business lines, completed its 15th season. Since 2006, the amount of wastewater collected by the Arkas TURMEPA II waste collection vessel has reached 2 million liters. With the project, it was ensured that 15,3 million liters of sea water remained clean.
Continuing to take steps towards the protection of the marine ecosystem today, as in the past, Arkas Shipping Fleet's number of ships with ballast water treatment systems installed in the last four years has increased to 75 percent in the entire fleet.
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