A study of the potential of shore power for the port of Kaohsiung, Taiwan: To introduce or not to introduce?

To reduce ship emissions in port and city environments, cold ironing, or shore power has been suggested and implemented in many global advanced ports. Shore power is a land-to-ship electricity connection that allows ships to switch off onboard diesel-powered generators while docked. However, numerous challenges have prevented its implementation in many parts of the world. This paper explores these challenges as they have been experienced in the port of Kaohsiung (Taiwan). First, the comparisons of fiscal and environmental emission (NOx and CO2) benefits when introducing shore power are quantitatively calculated for the future. Against the backdrop of these quantitative calculations, the results from qualitative, in-depth interviews with key stakeholders are presented and discussed. The quantitative calculations show that there are indeed significant fiscal, environmental and socio-economic emission benefits to be gained from introducing shore power in the long term; but that the implementation cost is high. Furthermore, the qualitative interview data show that perceptions of the current political and global economic climate, despite recognizing these benefits, arguably prevent such an introduction at the current time. Suggestions for future research and conclusions regarding considerations for the introduction of shore power for port authorities and governments to consider are made

Evaluating the key factors of green port policies in Taiwan through quantitative and qualitative approaches

This paper presents a holistic picture of the factors that affect green port policies through the use of both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Quantitatively, fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) method with 25 questionnaires was used to identify key factors. Questionnaire participants included 13 ocean carriers and 12 governmental officials, all of whom were senior port experts with a minimum of 10 years working experience. Qualitatively, in-depth interviews based on grounded theory with ocean carriers (5) and governmental officials (4) in three ports were conducted in Taiwan. The quantitative FAHP analysis found the key factors to be environmental policy and regulation, followed by economic leverage, human and technical leverage. The qualitative interviews contextualise and enhance these FAHP results by illustrating the complexities and subtleties of these key factors for different stakeholders. Theoretical and practical implications are considered and suggestions are made for future policy approaches and to help develop green port approaches

Assessing the shipping in the Northern Sea Route: a qualitative approach

Purpose?The Northern Sea Route (NSR) could become viable in the near future. If this happens it will radically reducey impact upon sailing times and distances current routes and have huge implications for shipping worldwide, and particularly on routes from Asia to Northern Europe. However, although much has been written about the feasibility of the NSR, about the issues involved, and about the possible opening of the route, the views of key stakeholders from companies who would potentially benefit from the route have been little explored. In this paper we complement existing literature by presenting the results from in-depth qualitative interviews with nine key stakeholders based in Shanghai and Taiwan, with extensive research, knowledge and practical experience of NSR. Design/methodology/approach?Based on a grounded theory analysis, a total of nine (9) key stakeholders knowledgeable about NSR, and the majority with sailing experience of NSR, are interviewed, including one government official, two professors, shipping experts in six liner and one bulk shipping companies. Findings?We present interviewees' thoughts regarding the feasibility of NSR at the current time in terms of practicalities, ships, costs, information and wider issues. Practical implications?These thoughts show that whilst the potential of the NSR is huge in theory, in practice the overall perception of it in terms of current feasibility from a company perspective is one of challenges and unknown issues. issues. Shipping companies can benefit from our findings when considering the feasibility of NSR as a shipping route. Ultimately, the picture emerges that without one country, probably Russia, taking the lead on the route, it will remain only a theoretical one. Originality/value ? In-depth interviews with grounded theory are used to investigate current and actual thoughts on NSR. This paper highlight correlations and additions to show a fuller picture of current knowledge, and adds views from Shanghai and Taiwan

Maintaining and researching port safety: a case study of the port of Kaohsiung

Maintaining port safety in full conformity with IMO standards is a requisite for every port and country. To do this, understanding the challenges and human factors involved is key. To date, much research has shed valuable light on these factors and considered how to address them. One aspect that is often noted is that both maintaining port safety and researching port safety presents numerous challenges. This paper considers both these aspects in the context of a case study of port safety in Kaohsiung port, Taiwan.Methods: Historical data and data from in-depth interviews with port operators and government officials are presented, analysed, and discussed alongside the literature. Results and Conclusion: In the spirit of case study research, discussion and conclusions of the data are used to generate theory for consideration in ways to approach research in the field. Specifically, more holistic large scale research is recommended into how port safety is maintained, to explore the interdependencies of the factors involved to help improve port safety and complement and sit alongside our current understandings of it. Suggestions for how this research can be approached are made

Exploring the viability of an emission tax policy for ships at berth in Taiwanese ports

This paper considers an emissions tax to help limit external air pollution from ships in Taiwanese ports through a mixed methods research (MMR) approach. Through an empirical bottom-up activity-based model, external air pollution costs are estimated for 7 types of ships at berth during 2012 in the three largest Taiwanese container ports. Results show pollutants are both measurable and serious in scale, i.e. that such a tax is theoretically valuable and viable. To investigate introducing such a tax at a practical policy level, qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with fifteen experts: port operators and government officials. Their perceptions reveal many significant tensions regarding the practicality of an emissions tax, such as a need to introduce it globally, and the idea that it may be unnecessary given other initiatives can create port sustainability. Based on these results, possibilities and considerations for the implementation and study of sustainable port operation are made

Political and technical complexities of electronic toll collection: Lessons from Taiwan

Traditional manual toll collection (MTC) imposes a significant queue length near toll plazas and results in road users delay (travel time loss), administration, fuel consumption, accidents, and other societal costs. Many countries (e.g. the U.S., Japan, Taiwan) have introduced and are continually upgrading Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) systems, thereby achieving key efficiencies and reduction in social costs. ETC systems worldwide have different toll collections technologies, for example, by road usage or Vignette, by peak or non-peak travel, or by distance travelled. Consequently, countries are faced with many technical and political complexities both at the initial consideration of whether to introduce ETC, and in any subsequent development. Taiwan has much experience of both toll collection and also ETC and has a long history in relation to its introduction. This paper presents historical and qualitative interview data with highly experienced ETC operators and government officials in Taiwan. Results are presented and discussed along four major axes: practical applicability, technological development, political variation and publicity and marketing. It also provides a retrospective and current consideration along these axes of technical and political complexities involved with introducing ETC. The paper is intended to inform transportation agencies considering introducing or developing their own ETC systems. Areas of future research for ETC are also suggested

Port governance in Taiwan: How hypocrisy helps meet aspirations of change

In Taiwan, significant port reform commenced in 2012 that aspired to enhance port performance and competitiveness. Previously managed by four units, the ports are now managed by only two: the Maritime and Port Bureau (MPB) (a port regulator) and the Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) (a full state-owned company). In this article, we consider the rationale for this reform, the degree of its success and impact, and the challenges of introducing it. We first outline Taiwan's main international ports and some basic trends regarding cargoes, containers, ship numbers and port operation efficiency from 2001 to 2015. Then, drawing on the literature, and on Nils Brunsson's organisation of hypocrisy, we describe Taiwan's pre-2012 approach to port governance and its reforms of 2012. We then detail how we conducted in-depth expert interviews with eight port governance officials, before presenting their thoughts on the hopes, challenges, and future of Taiwan's port governance. We draw on Brunsson's organisation of hypocrisy to view how Taiwan's port reform has considered numerous differing stakeholders and perspectives. We discuss how such an approach has allowed Taiwan to aspire to greater competitiveness, but generated challenges such as the need to adjust workforces, and of assessing the impact of reform in Taiwan

A Safety Assessment Model for Handling Dangerous Goods in Port Operations: The Key Role of Detection Capability

Recently, resilience studies have been emphasized in the port field, recognizing that many high-risk and unsafe factors in ports might bring serious disasters and economic losses. One major cause of significant losses is accidents from fires, explosions, and the resultant adverse impacts from dangerous goods. Whilst the occurrence of major events related to dangerous goods is relatively low in occurrence, their impact on the environment and economic and social loss, and on human casualties, can be extremely high when they do occur. In order to prevent potential risks and reduce losses, based on a literature review, a safety assessment model was developed with four criteria and 15 sub-criteria of dangerous goods in ports using a fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) approach. This model formed the basis for a subsequent stage involving questionnaires with 25 experts. The results of these questionnaires found that the key criteria are detection capability, followed by recovery capability, rescue capability, and resistance capability. Sensitivity analysis is used to identify the criteria’s weight value changes under various scenarios. These findings concern dangerous goods operations management in ports. Critically, these findings emphasize the key role played in the initial stages of determining precisely and exactly what specific goods are in fact dangerous goods, thereby avoiding a domino effect of adverse consequences later. Suggestions are made for policymakers regarding funding and supporting processes for handling dangerous goods, as well as for future research

Estimating the emissions potential of marine transportation using the Kra Canal

The Panama and Suez canals greatly reduced pollutant emissions from shipping through much reduced sailing distances. Another possible future canal is across the Kra isthmus in Thailand, reducing sailing distances for ships travelling from East Asia to Europe that sail around the Malacca straits. Much literature considers the economic and political viability of the Kra Canal and notes the adverse environmental impact of the canal's construction. Yet, this literature also highlights the decarbonizing potential of the canal through reduced sailing distances and emissions. In this paper we critically consider this potential through the specific type of calculations in the study (ship emissions, etc.) and qualitative data consisting of the perspectives of experts (n = 20) from China (n = 5); Thailand (n = 5); Singapore (n = 5) and Taiwan (n = 5) gathered through semi-structured interviews. This data shows that, in fact, the canal might offer negative decarbonizing and emissions potential. This is due to a number of factors: the shorter reductions in sailing distances it affords compared to the Suez and Panama Canals; the economic models and political requirements to finance it, and; the currently available technologies. Nevertheless, the canal does offer potential for reducing distances and traffic in the Malacca straits if these factors change, and we outline and discuss these changes here

Exploring Ship Emissions Mitigation Strategies for the Port of Shanghai

曾柏兴，台湾逢甲大学运输科技与管理学系助理教授。【中文摘要】在过去20年里，中国已发展成为全球进出口贸易大国。作为中国最重要的外贸门户之一，上海港集装箱吞吐量巨大，港口腹地经济发达。近年来，港口作业日益增多，大量航运公司、装卸公司和港务局也应运而生，但其大气排放也造成了负面的影响。本文采用初步定性方法，探究减少上海港排放量的管理策略。即基于扎根理论研究方法，从政策角度对港口营运商和港口官员进行深入的采访，提出并讨论了3个减排策略：接用岸电、制定有关燃料的规定和船舶减速。最后，得出具有政策意义的结论。 【Abstract】Over the last two decades, China has developed into a global export/import powerhouse. As one of China’s most important gateways for foreign trade,the Port of Shanghai handles huge container throughput and serves the economy of its hinterland. The increasing port operations in recent years have called for the establishment of more shipping lines, stevedore firms and port authorities, which,in turn, has resulted in negative atmospheric emissions. This paper adopts an initial qualitative approach to explore managerial strategies to mitigate emissions in the Port of Shanghai. From the policy perspective, this paper conducts indepth interviews with port operators and port officials based on grounded theory.Three mitigation strategies, namely, shore power, fuel regulation and ship speed reduction, are provided and discussed. Finally, conclusions with policy implications are drawn