Posted on March 5, 2025
The Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance (ZEMBA) has announced that it is now accepting bids for its e-fuel-focused tender.
Through this tender, ZEMBA intends to aggregate approximately 86 billion tonne nautical miles of demand for the emissions abatement associated with e-fuel-powered shipping to be deployed starting in 2027.
This equates to 1.5 million TEUs transported across the Pacific Ocean by e-fuels, assuming a benchmark distance of Shanghai to Los Angeles.
Through this tender, ZEMBA – facilitated by the Aspen Institute – will enable its over 40 member companies to abate approximately 500,000 metric tonnes of GHG emissions, subject to final commercial details.
A qualifying bid for ZEMBA’s tender will be a proposal from a containership carrier or consortium for e-fuel-powered shipping for 3-5 years, starting around 2027. All bids must demonstrate at least a 90 per cent lifecycle emission reduction for the primary propulsion of the vessel(s) compared to a high-emission fuel baseline.
After thorough vetting and commercial negotiation, ZEMBA will select the best proposal, and members will enter bilateral contracts with the winners. For this tender, ZEMBA is open to the potential of multiple winners. Results of the second tender are expected to be announced by the end of 2025.
ZEMBA’s e-fuel focus for the tender builds off lessons learned during its successful inaugural tender, completed in April 2024, member feedback, and a request for information conducted in 2025 in collaboration with the Lloyd’s Register Maritime Decarbonisation Hub. Global carrier Hapag-Lloyd won ZEMBA’s first tender and supports members to collectively abate at least 82,000 metric tonnes of CO2e in 2025 and 2026.
“Getting e-fuel-powered shipping on the water for the first time through this collaborative forward procurement will be a huge technical and commercial innovation milestone for the sector,” said Ingrid Irigoyen, President and CEO of ZEMBA.
“We look forward to receiving bids from container carriers ready to partner with ZEMBA and our freight buyer members to make maritime history.”
