The funding is being made as part of the fourth round of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition (CMDC), which seeks to help develop new, sustainable technologies that can connect people, goods, and services in a greener manner.

The competition itself is funded by the UK Government’s Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE), and is delivered by Innovate UK.

The latest round of funding will be open for applications from 2 August until 27 September. The projects must develop, test, and deploy green maritime technologies focused on either on-vessel technologies or offshore/shoreside infrastructure at locations such as ports and wind farms.

With the fourth round of funding, the total amount of investment provided through the CMDC has reached £129m. The first three rounds of the CMDC have awarded more than £95m to 105 maritime sector greening projects across the UK.

One example of a project that’s had its proposal succeed is the Lifecycle Energy Solutions for Clean Scotland/UK Maritime Economy project. Delivered by the University of Strathclyde and Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited, the project is a lifecycle feasibility study for Scottish Enterprise by evaluating the technical and commercial possibilities of using hydrogen for zero emission ferries.

Another example is the NEPTUNE project from the Shetland Islands Council, the University of Strathclyde, Ricardo, and Rosyth Royal Dockyard Limited. The project aims to prove the feasibility of developing a desk-based Decision Modelling and Support System (DEMOSS) digital tool to help analyse, scope, and develop plans for supporting the maritime eco-system’s transition to zero emission.

Speaking on the CMDC’s fourth round, the Maritime Minister Baroness Charlotte Vere said: “Pushing the boundaries of possibility is integral to the UK’s global ambition of a greener maritime sector.

“That’s why today’s new round of funding continues to set that course, not only keeping our climate goals on track but also boosting opportunities for private investment, new jobs and growing the economy.

“The UK’s maritime sector is one of the most competitive and innovative in the world and today’s latest clean maritime demonstration competition funding is testament to that.”

Further, the UK Chamber of Shipping Chief Executive, Sarah Treseder, added: “Instilling confidence in the UK shipping industry to invest in new technologies and fuels is central to reaching net zero.

“This funding, with a focus on real world demonstrations, will help to do that and unlock investment from across the shipping community to deliver the technologies that will reduce emissions while ensuring shipping remains at the heart of the UK’s economy.”

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With the UK Government’s net zero target, the UK is legally required to have reduced its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 100% from 1990 levels by 2050.

According to the Department for Transport’s UK Domestic Maritime Decarbonisation Consultation: Plotting the Course to Zero paper, UK domestic maritime vessels represented around 5% of the UK’s domestic transport GHG emissions, and emitted around 5.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2020, which the paper notes is the latest year for which data is available.

Meanwhile, in Scotland, the Scottish Government has its own net zero target of 2045, as well as maritime-focused targets such as having 30% of state-owned ferries to be low emission by 2032 and, by the same year, for low emission solutions to be widely adopted at Scottish ports.