PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Diversified miner BHP will invest S$10-million to support the establishment of a maritime decarbonisation centre in Singapore.

The miner this week reported that it had signed a memorandum of cooperation (MoC) with Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) to become one of the founding members of the maritime decarbonisation centre.

Under the MoC, BHP together with BW Group, Eastern Pacific Shipping, Ocean Network Express, Sembcorp Marine Ltd and The Foundation Det Norske Veritas have pledged to contribute S$10-million each to support the establishment of the centre and fund research and technology development projects in areas relating to decarbonisation in the maritime industry.

MPA will add S$60-million research and development funding to these contributions, bringing the fund to a total of S$120-million. 

The maritime decarbonisation centre will be a focal point for the global maritime industry’s efforts in both decarbonisation and innovation, bringing together experts and the industry, including startups, to develop technologies and co-create innovative solutions.

The centre will collaborate with other maritime technology centres based in Singapore as well as decarbonisation centres around the world to share knowledge and build capabilities.  

The centre will support trials of new fuels and technologies. It will include facilities for corporate labs, research facilities and house research offices and space for maritime tech startups. 

BHP is the only resources company that is part of the alliance and BHP chief commercial officer Vandita Pant said the MoC was another step forward for industry leaders in taking action on decarbonisation and climate change.

“The pathway to decarbonisation in the maritime sector will accelerate with the innovation centre and the spirit of collaboration with which MPA and its partners are approaching and investing in new technology. The opportunity to achieve real reductions in industry footprint with this collaboration is great. It builds on a number of partnerships that BHP has struck across our value chain to seek to accelerate decarbonisation,” Pant said.

BHP VP of maritime and supply chain excellence Rashpal Bhatti said the company had a long and trusted relationship with MPA which had a strong commitment to bringing industry together to create a cleaner and greener industry.

“We are proud to join as a founding member of the maritime decarbonisation centre in Singapore, a key maritime hub of the world. The MoC with MPA forms an integral component of BHP’s four pillars in our strategy for supporting decarbonisation of our maritime supply chain – data democratisation, onboard innovations, future fuels and chartering choices.”

BHP earlier this year successfully completed the first trial of sustainable biofuel on an ocean-going vessel bunkered in Singapore, in a partnership with German shipping company Oldendorff Carriers and advanced biofuels pioneer GoodFuels.