South Africa can become Africa’s first zero-carbon bunkering hub - report

South Africa is well positioned to become Africa’s first zero-carbon bunkering hub due to its substantial renewable energy potential and proximity to the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, according to a new report from P4G and the Getting to Zero Coalition.

PHOTO: Several small ships and a sunken boat at sunset at a pier in Saldanha Bay, a town in South Africa's Western Cape Province. Getty Images

Situated near busy shipping routes, the country can reap benefits from both its domestic and the international maritime decarbonisation agenda, the report says.

It adds that Saldanha Bay and Boegoebaai on South Africa's Atlantic coast are ideal locations for carrying out bunkering and exporting zero emission fuels.

However, to achieve its full potential, the country needs to define its climate objectives and have a policy framework to facilitate smooth transition to zero-emission shipping, the report's authors argue.

They stress that South Africa needs to rein in its greenhouse emissions as it is the 16th largest contributor to global emissions.