Hello QueSeanians!
Have you ever heard of the Environmental Ship Index (ESI)?
If you already know about the Environmental Ship Index (ESI), there are some updates coming with ESI 2.0 (starting from 2027). If you are new to it, here’s a quick overview.
What it is
The Environmental Ship Index is a voluntary, industry-led scoring system that ports use to identify and reward ships whose environmental performance exceeds the minimum standards set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Ships register once, get scored centrally on their emissions performance, and ports use those scores to grant incentives, most commonly discounts on port dues, to vessels that score above whatever threshold the port chooses to set.
It’s now the dominant scheme of its kind globally. Per OceanScore (the current administrator), it’s offered by more than 100 ports worldwide with over 6,800 vessels registered, and it’s recognized by the IMO as the standard basis for port incentives for low- and zero-carbon ships. oceanscore
Why it was created
ESI was launched in 2011 by a group of ports working with the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH). The thinking IMO regulations set a floor on shipping emissions, but ports as the gatekeepers of where ships actually call are well-placed to push performance above that floor through commercial nudges. Rather than each port building its own bespoke green-ship scheme, ESI offered a single, neutral, comparable scoring framework that any port could plug into.
The aim, as the IAPH white paper puts it, is a genuine reduction in NOx, SOx, and particulates, with CO2 reductions as a longer-term goal, by changing the behavior of both shipowners and ports.
How it works
The mechanics are straightforward and split cleanly between three parties:
-
Ships (Incentive Receivers) pay a per-vessel subscription and submit emissions data. Their average performance over a rolling six-month window is converted into a score out of 100.
-
The administrator (Green Award Foundation historically; OceanScore now operates the technical administration) verifies the data, computes scores quarterly, and publishes them to participating ports. About 100 onboard verifications are conducted per quarter to keep the scheme honest.
-
Ports (Incentive Providers) decide their own qualifying threshold and their own incentive.
What gets scored
The current scoring covers NOx, SOx, energy efficiency reporting (a CO2 proxy), and a bonus for vessels equipped to use onshore power supply (OPS) at berth. A separate ESI Noise module scores at-berth noise emissions using the NEPTUNES methodology which has become a serious operational tool in places like New Zealand, where 13 ports co-signed a low-frequency vessel noise specification that, from June 2024, can refuse entry to non-compliant container ships.
What’s coming (ESI 2.0)
On 1 January 2027 the new ESI Core (2.0) will start. The scheme is undergoing its biggest revision since launch. Four main additions: a fully integrated GHG calculation, rewards for zero-emission technologies beyond OPS (batteries, fuel cells, wind sails), the addition of underwater noise, and a new at-berth module that evaluates the emissions performance of individual port calls, piloting first with cruise vessels.
Why it matters
Two things make ESI distinctive. First, it’s port-led rather than regulator-imposed, which gives it commercial legitimacy with shipowners. Second, since 2023 it’s free for IAPH-member ports to participate as incentive providers, which has accelerated uptake. A 2017 European Commission study cited in the white paper found ESI was already by far the most used environmental charging initiative in EU ports, attributing its success to simplicity, transparency, and the flexibility ports retain in tailoring it to local conditions.
The practical case shipowners make for it (e.g., MSC, with 760+ enrolled vessels) is straightforward, efficiency improvements pay back in fuel savings and port-due discounts simultaneously, and the index gives a single global yardstick to demonstrate environmental performance to every port at once.
Here is a list of current ESI Module Ports:
| PORT | COUNTRY | DESCRIPTION | TYPE | START DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyogo Prefectural Government | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2026 |
| Port of Oslo | Norway | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2026 |
| Port and Harbor Bureau, Kobe City | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2025 |
| Copenhagen Malmö Port AB | Sweden | CMP Environment Incentive Scheme - 5% rebate on Sh | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| Groningen Seaports NV | Netherlands | Port dues incentives starting from 20 ESI points. | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| Taiwan International Port Corp., LTD. | China | Port due incentives starting from 40 ESI points. | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| Port of Rotterdam | Netherlands | Port due incentives from ESI Air points | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| Milford Haven Port Authority | United Kingdom | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| SEMOP Port-La Nouvelle | France | Port dues incentive starting over 35 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2025 |
| Mormugao Port Authority | India | HARIT SHREY | Financial | 1/12/2024 |
| The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey | United States | Port due incentives starting from 40 ESI points | Financial | 1/10/2024 |
| Yokkaichi Port Authority | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2024 |
| Port of Gdansk Authority SA | Poland | Port due incentives starting from 40 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2024 |
| Osaka Ports and Harbors Bureau (Osaka Prefecture) | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI score | Financial | 1/1/2024 |
| Osaka Ports and Harbors Bureau(Osaka-city) | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/1/2024 |
| Porto de São Sebastião | Brazil | Incentives starting from 40 ESI points | Financial | 14-11-2023 |
| NAGOYA PORT AUTHORITY | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2023 |
| Port of Koper | Slovenia | Incentive for ships in port of Koper | Financial | 1/1/2023 |
| Autoritat Portuaria de Barcelona | Spain | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2023 |
| Port Saint John | Canada | Green Incentive Discount | Financial | 1/1/2023 |
| Halifax Port Authority | Canada | Port dues incentives starting from 20 ESI points | Financial | 30-03-2022 |
| Porto do Itaqui | Brazil | Incentives starting from 40 ESI points | Financial | 30-10-2021 |
| Port of Long Beach | United States | Green Ship Incentive Program | Financial | 1/7/2021 |
| Tomakomai Port Authority | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points. | Financial | 1/4/2021 |
| Porto do Açu | Brazil | Incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/3/2021 |
| Porto de SUAPE | Brazil | Incentives starting from 31 ESI points | Financial | 20-01-2021 |
| Port Nelson Limited | New Zealand (Aotearoa) | Discount on Marine Tariff starting > 40 ESI points | Financial | 1/7/2020 |
| Port of Pecém | Brazil | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 10/3/2020 |
| Port of Aarhus | Denmark | ESI score | Financial | 1/1/2020 |
| Ports of Stockholm | Sweden | Port due incentives starting from 50 ESI points. | Financial | 1/1/2020 |
| Dunkerque-Port | France | Port due incentives starting from 35 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2019 |
| Port of Tallinn | Estonia | Tonnage charge discount starting from 65 ESI point | Financial | 1/1/2019 |
| NSW Ports | Australia | Port due incentives starting from 20 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2019 |
| Port of Yokohama | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/4/2017 |
| Port of London Authority | United Kingdom | Vessel Conservancy Charges discount > 30 ESI point | Financial | 1/1/2017 |
| Karmsund Port Authority | Norway | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 4/2/2016 |
| Port of Los Angeles | United States | Port due incentives starting from 40 ESI points | Financial | 10/1/2016 |
| Port of Drammen | Norway | Kay charges incentives starting from 25 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2016 |
| Port of Florø (Alden) | Norway | Port due incentives starting from 25 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2016 |
| Port of Kristiansand | Norway | Port due incentives starting from 25 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2016 |
| Port of Tokyo | Japan | Port due incentives starting from 20 ESI points | Financial | 1/4/2015 |
| Port of Zeebrugge | Belgium | Port due incentives starting from 35 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2015 |
| Port of Gothenburg | Sweden | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2015 |
| Vancouver Fraser Port Authority (Port of Vancouver) | Canada | Port due incentives starting from 35 ESI points | Financial | 31-12-2014 |
| Norwegian Coastal Administration (Kystverket) | Norway | Pilotage readiness fee rebate > 50 ESI points | Financial | 1/12/2014 |
| Niedersachsen Ports | Germany | Port due incentives starting from 20 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2014 |
| Green Award Foundation | Netherlands | Additional points for every vessel with ESI score | Non Financial | 1/10/2013 |
| Prince Rupert Port Authority | Canada | Port dues incentives starting from 25 ESI points | Financial | 1/6/2013 |
| Port of Rostock | Germany | Port due incentives starting from 40 ESI points | Financial | 1/4/2013 |
| North Sea Port Flanders | Belgium | Port due incentives starting from 30 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2013 |
| JadeWeserPort | Germany | Port due incentives starting from 31 ESI points | Financial | 21-09-2012 |
| Brunsbüttel Ports GmbH | Germany | Port due incentives starting from 20 ESI points | Financial | 1/4/2012 |
| Ports of Bremen/Bremerhaven | Germany | Incentives for the best 25 vessels > 45 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2012 |
| HAROPA PORT | France | Port due incentives starting from 44 ESI points | Financial | 1/1/2012 |
| Port of Amsterdam | Netherlands | Port due incentives starting from 25 ESI points | Financial | 23-11-2011 |
| Port of Antwerp-Bruges | Belgium | Port due incentives starting from 31 ESI points | Financial | 1/7/2011 |
| Hamburg Port Authority | Germany | Port fee incentive | Financial | 1/7/2011 |
References:
https://www.environmentalshipindex.org/
IAPH-White-paper-about-ESI_2023_11.pdf (1.9 MB)
Feel free to ask me for more information.