The role of transport buyers for sustainable and increased shipping
Transport contributes considerable to emissions to air in Sweden. Despite a political will to move goods from land to sea transport, no major changes have yet been seen. Therefore, this project studies the role of the transport buyer for (1) a modal shift from land to sea transport, and (2) the development of environmentally sustainable shipping.
- 3 partners, IVL Svenska miljöinstitutet, Maritimt Forum and SSPA
- Budget: 1,7 MSEK
- Financed by: the Swedish Transport Administration
- Starting April 2018 and running to August 2019
Transport buyers can have a large impact on how transports are carried out, which transport mode is chosen and the service requirements (e.g. time and environmental requirements) set on the transport operations. However, purchasing of transports has had little focus in previous studies on market conditions of shipping. The purpose of this project is to provide new knowledge regarding the role of transport buyers in achieving increased share of and more sustainable sea transport. The focus is on understanding opportunities and barriers for companies to increase their sea transport, but also on how companies set demands on environmental aspects for their transports and how this has changed over time.
The benefits of an increased share of sea transport are for example less congestion, reduced environmental impact, lower cost for shippers and improved road safety. However, to achieve a sustainable transport system increasing the share of sea transport is not sufficient; the industry also needs to meet increased demands for fossil free transports and reduced emissions to air and water. These demands are relevant to all transport modes, and will become increasingly important in the future. For this reason, the project also studies the role of transport buyers in the development towards more sustainable freight transports.
Contacts
Strategies for coping with slow-steaming, new paper
The trend of reduced sailing speed, or slow-steaming, presents shippers with new, complex challenges. SSPA has together with Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg studied how the Swedish industry has met and managed these challenges. The study has recently been published in Journal of Shipping and Trade.
New study: Logistic consequences of the Gothenburg container port conflict
The conflict in APM Terminals in Port of Gothenburg has led to a large reduction in volumes handled in the port. SSPA and the University of Gothenburg will jointly investigate the consequences of the conflict from a national perspective.