The extent to which shippers can influence the level of carbon emissions from the deep-sea container supply chain is examined in this article. Data collected in an online questionnaire survey of 34 large United Kingdom (UK) shippers is used and supplemented by the results of focus group discussions and interviews with a range of key stakeholders that includes shipping lines, freight forwarders, logistics companies and port operators. The online sample consists of shippers responsible for inbound and/or outbound deep-sea containers flows and the amount of leverage that they can exert on ‘carbon-sensitive’ decisions depends partly on the Incoterms that they employ and their use of freight forwarders. The article discusses how shippers responsible for inbound flows reported high levels of container fill, though opportunities exist for improving the weight utilization of outbound containers, possibly by moving to a port-centric logistics model. Around 40% of the shippers consulted currently measure CO₂ emissions from their deep-sea container supply chains with only 6% explicitly implementing carbon reduction initiatives. The research presented in this article shows the importance of adopting a broader supply chain approach to decarbonize the maritime sector. The article also emphasizes the need for a multi-stakeholder perspective that recognizes the important role of the shipper in the process of decarbonizing the maritime sector. Many large shippers still retain significant influence over the choice of carriers currently being used for deep-sea and port feeder services, consignment routing and scheduling the choice of port.

http://www.palgrave-journals.com/mel/journal/v16/n1/full/mel201325a.html#close

« List
all items in current category