Greener Maritime Future Takes Center Stage at Shanghai's North Bund Forum

The 2025 North Bund Forum kicked off in Shanghai on Sunday, bringing together guests from home and broad to discuss how ports can collaborate to make shipping more sustainable and eco-friendly.

The three-day event unveiled 30 outcomes, including new agreements on Green Shipping Corridors linking Shanghai with major global ports such as Los Angeles, Antwerp-Bruges, and Melbourne.

Standing out among these corridors is the Shanghai-Los Angeles route – the first of its kind across the Pacific. Unveiled at the 2023 forum, the project has already hit its first-phase goals, including full shore power for container vessels, deployment of low- or zero-lifecycle-carbon ships, and expanded access to green marine fuels.

"If we can cut emissions from ships traveling between Shanghai and LA by just 10 percent, that would equal all the pollution generated at the Port of LA in one year," said Eugene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles.

He also highlighted a 2024 milestone for green shipping: the arrival of Danish shipping giant Maersk's first zero-carbon vessel at the Port of LA in August.

"It was a 16,000-TEU workhorse vessel that sailed from China and crossed the Pacific in 16 days," Seroka said. "Running on methanol, it proved that large ships can operate safely and efficiently on cleaner fuels under real-world conditions."

Shanghai is also developing an international hub for green marine fuels. A 100,000-ton green methanol project, certified under the ISCC EU and ISCC PLUS standards, will start production later this year.

The plant will supply low-carbon fuel for ships along Shanghai's green shipping corridors and cut emissions by more than 80 percent compared with fossil-based methanol.

Shanghai International Port Group said the city now offers regular liquified natural gas (LNG) and methanol bunkering services, making it one of the few ports worldwide with both clean-fuel options.

At Yangshan Port, China's first domestically produced green methanol has already been received, stored, and bunkered, marking a milestone in the country's clean-fuel transition.

The forum also shone a light on green shipbuilding. COSCO Shipping showcased the MV Libra methanol dual-fuel retrofit project, the world's first large container ship refitted in Shanghai with methanol dual-fuel engines.

In addition to green shipping, sub-forums are diving into topics such as maritime safety, finance and insurance, digital and smart technologies, as well as law and arbitration.

More than 4,000 delegates from 50 countries and regions are attending this year's event, including senior representatives from the Baltic and International Maritime Council and other global shipping associations.

Over the past five years, the North Bund Forum has evolved into a key platform for policy dialogue and rule-setting in global shipping, according to Yu Fulin, director of the Shanghai Municipal Transportation Commission.