As the maritime industry moves towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions, there is a critical need to explore alternative fuels.

The Maritime Just Transition Task Force (MJTTF), in collaboration with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Secretariat with support from Lloyd’s Register Foundation, has initiated a project to develop the training materials necessary for seafarers to safely use the new zero and near-zero GHG emission fuels and draft associated competency standards, as current competencies under the Seafarers’ Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) Code do not yet cover these areas specifically. The project is titled ‘Baseline Training Framework for Seafarers in Decarbonization’.

To achieve this, a series of workshops were conducted focusing on the safe use of ammonia, methanol and hydrogen as marine fuels. These workshops aimed to gather industry perceptions on the necessary changes for seafarers transitioning from conventional fuels to alternative fuels, and to identify the possible new or modified competencies and training required to enable such a transition.

This consolidated report provides a distilled summary of the objectives, methodology, findings and conclusions acquired from 12 hybrid workshops that engaged 116 participants and produced substantial considerations for each fuel. Successful completion of the first part of the MJTTF training project marks the beginning of a new chapter in the upskilling and reskilling of seafarers to stand up to the decarbonization challenges of shipping. In essence, the output of the workshops will serve as the foundation for work in progress to be completed on proposing new training frameworks and competency standards for seafarers handling these three alternative fuels.

The workshops with experts underscored a broad consensus on the need for significant updates in training and competencies for seafarers as the industry transitions to alternative fuels. Each fuel – ammonia, methanol and hydrogen – presents unique challenges and hazards that require specialized knowledge and safety measures. The maritime industry, along with regulators like the IMO, will need to address these requirements thoroughly to ensure the safe and efficient adoption of these cleaner fuel technologies.

Continued collaboration between industry stakeholders is crucial as advances in ship design and fuel technologies evolve. Developing standardized training materials and certification programmes, reflecting the latest safety protocols and operational procedures, will be key to a successful transition.