Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance
ZEMBA 101 – REDUCING SCOPE 3 EMISSIONS AND KICKSTARTING A MARKET FOR ZE FUELS AND TECHNOLOGY
ABOUT ZEMBA
The Zero Emission Maritime Buyers Alliance (ZEMBA) is a first-of-its-kind buyers group within the maritime sector with the mission to accelerate commercial deployment of zero-emission (ZE) shipping solutions, enable economies of scale for freight buyers and suppliers, and help cargo owners maximize emissions reduction potential beyond what any one freight buyer could accomplish alone.
ZEMBA is an initiative of Cargo Owners for Zero Emission Vessels (coZEV) and facilitated by the Aspen Institute Energy & Environment Program.
Successful Completion of ZEMBA's Inaugural Tender
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In April 2024, ZEMBA announced that it successfully completed its first collective tender for zero-emission shipping solutions. Over a dozen companies have committed to purchase the environmental attributes associated with over 1 billion twenty-foot equivalent container unit (TEU)/miles of zero-emission shipping on a route from Singapore to Rotterdam, Netherlands in 2025-2026.
Global container line Hapag-Lloyd won ZEMBA's first tender. Their certified, exclusively waste-based biomethane service will provide members with an over 90% emissions reduction on a lifecycle basis on their volume committed through the ZEMBA tender.
Climate-leading cargo owner members have demonstrated willingness to pay for zero-emission shipping solutions above and beyond what current regulation requires. Looking ahead, ZEMBA will focus subsequent tenders on further developing the e-fuels market. The next tender is expected to launch in 2024. Revisit the first tender's timeline and learn more about ZEMBA's first tender at the links below:
ZEMBA’s Biomethane Value Chain
Prospective Members - Join Now
ZEMBA is recruiting members for our next tender, focused on aggregating demand for e-fuel shipping services.
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ZEMBA membership is open to any company that purchases ocean-going, container freight services. Together, members will:
- Gain access to to purchase cost-competitive environmental attributes associated ZE shipping services through a tested, low-risk mechanism
- Lower their Scope 3 emissions
- Catalyze ZE investments across the maritime sector
- Effectively demonstrate climate leadership
When considering ZEMBA membership for our Round 2 Tender, please remember:
- There is no membership fee
- Contracting is bilateral with no impact to your current logistics or procurement practices
- By acting ahead of regulation, your company can show demonstrable climate leadership and avoid the costs of delayed action
- There is no obligation to participate in future tenders
To join ZEMBA as a member, please email zemba@aspeninstitute.org.
Round 1 Tender Basics
In September 2023, ZEMBA launched a tender for the environmental attributes associated with up to 3.5 billion twenty-foot containers (TEU)-miles of zero-emission shipping services over a three-year period.
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The tender was the first major buyer-led initiative to accelerate the transition to zero-emission maritime fuels, helping ZEMBA members considerably reduce GHG emissions in the near term while sending a demand signal for the further development of ZE fuels and technologies.
For the tender, ZEMBA developed a multifaceted ZE fuels criteria and in depth lifecycle analysis (LCA) guidelines which helped guide bidders in their submission of bids.
For the first tender, ZEMBA was seeking bids that met the following criteria:
- Sufficient capacity to move 1.15 bn TEU-nm/year on a transoceanic route over three years.
- Fuels/technologies that achieve at least 90% GHG emission reductions compared to low-sulfur fuel oil on a lifecycle basis.
- Transparent fuel lifecycle emissions and certification to validate emission reduction claims.
ZEMBA’s ZE fuels definition and LCA guidelines used in the first-round tender can be found below. ZEMBA plans to update the ZE fuel definition and LCA guidelines for subsequent tenders.
For potential bidders interested in gaining more information specifically about ZEMBA's next tender focused on e-fuels, please email rfp.zemba@aspeninstitute.org.
Zemba Members
