(NEWS) WMU Hosts Green Sea Faroe Project Meeting on Zero-emission Ferries and Maritime Decarbonization

September

2025

WMU Hosts Green Sea Faroe Project Meeting on Zero-emission Ferries and Maritime Decarbonization

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The World Maritime University (WMU), Maritime Energy Management group hosted the Green Sea Faroe project meeting on 23–24 September 2025. The two-day event gathered project partners from academia and industry to advance collaboration on sustainable solutions for the decarbonization of the Faroese maritime sector. The consortium includes Lund University (Coordinator), WMU, MEST Shipyard, Faroe Environmental Agency, SEV, Brunvoll, and the Port of Tórshavn.

The project focuses on three primary objectives: (i) designing two zero-emission passenger ferries with advanced propulsion systems, (ii) developing sustainable port energy infrastructure to support future propulsion technologies, and (iii) establishing a roadmap for achieving net-zero maritime emissions in the Faroe Islands by 2050. The outcomes are expected to provide guidance not only for the Faroe Islands but also for other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) pursuing maritime decarbonization. The project is funded by Nordic Energy Research under the Nordic Maritime Transport and Energy Research Programme.

As part of the programme, the consortium visited Oceanbird in Landskrona, where the recently inaugurated Wing 560, the world’s first large-scale rigid wing sail, was presented. The group also held a session at Lund University, gaining insights into the university’s latest research on battery technologies and their potential applications for sustainable shipping.

About Maritime Energy Management at WMU

The philosophy behind Maritime Energy Management (MEM) at WMU is that the inevitable maritime energy transition is an opportunity for the industry. WMU’s MEM educational offerings include the groundbreaking MEM MSc specialization that was introduced in 2015, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Energy delivered by distance learning. WMU’s Maritime Energy Management Research Priority Area focuses on the fundamental understanding of energy in a maritime context and the application of evidence-based knowledge across the field from ships to ports, and from oceans to shipyards, to ensure the cost-effective, safe and environmentally friendly use of resources. The book Trends and Challenges in Maritime Energy Management, was published in 2018 as an outcome of the International Conference on Maritime Energy Management (MARENER 2017) hosted at WMU in 2017. It was one of the most downloaded books in its category in 2018. WMU also offers a Summer Academy course focused on maritime decarbonization.

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