The Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) and the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) have reached a two-year coalition agreement aimed at accelerating the decarbonization of the maritime industry. The partnership was announced at the IAPH 2025 World Ports Conference in Kobe, Japan (October 7-9).
The collaboration brings together GCMD’s expertise in closing operational, safety and technical gaps across the shipping value chain with IAPH’s clean marine fuels and port readiness level expert working groups, as part of its global port network comprising more than 200 port authorities and operators in over 85 countries.
By tackling challenges and finding opportunities in advancing alternative fuels bunkering, developing port infrastructure and shaping evolving regulatory frameworks, the partnership aims to strengthen the industry’s readiness for shipping’s fuel transition.
Professor Lynn Loo, CEO at GCMD, said, “In nearly all of GCMD’s pilots, ports have been pivotal to our success –whether in enabling the world’s first ship-to-ship ammonia transfer at the Pilbara, bunkering across six biofuel supply chains in Singapore or the Port of Rotterdam, or demonstrating the full value chain for onboard captured CO2 in China. Our collaboration with IAPH brings global reach and influence that will help us deepen our work with ports, turning pilot learnings into scalable operations essential for the energy transition.”
Dr Patrick Verhoeven, managing director at IAPH, commented, “We look forward to teaming up with GCMD’s experts, who will work with our port members to co-develop tools to help further accelerate the decarbonization of the maritime sector and to de-risk long-term investments in port infrastructure, which will be essential for the industry’s energy transition.”
Advancing the role of ports in shipping’s fuel transition
Ports are well positioned to accelerate marine decarbonization. They provide essential local expertise – including assessing navigational risks, liaising with regulators, and engaging with local communities to ensure safe pilots and trials – and enabling the eventual safe and large-scale adoption of low-carbon fuels.
To supplement this, GCMD executes pilots across the value chain, co-develops risk-mitigation strategies for deploying new fuels, and establishes operating procedures for activities, such as safe ammonia bunkering and liquid CO2 offloading. The organization also seeks to close knowledge gaps and build globally applicable practices by tailoring findings to port-specific conditions and sharing results across multiple ports.
Through its Clean Marine Fuels Working Group, IAPH has created practical tools for ports and shipping that facilitate safe and efficient bunker operations for all existing and upcoming clean marine fuels. Leveraging its global port network, IAPH will collaborate with GCMD to refine its own suite of tools and co-develop new ones to assist ports, shipowners and operators in adopting new bunkering fuels in a safe and efficient manner, as well as in the transportation of low- and zero-carbon fuels as cargo.
Building on existing collaboration
GCMD is a supporting partner in the Clean Energy Marine Hubs (CEM-Hubs) initiative, of which IAPH is a founding member. CEM-Hubs is a cross-sectoral public-private platform jointly led by an industry task force of CEOs and energy ministers under the banner of the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM).
Through this Coalition partnership, both GCMD and IAPH will further advance their shared goals of positioning shipping as a key enabler in the production, transportation and adoption of low-carbon fuels.