University of Strathclyde and London Offshore Consultants Limited KTP 23_24 R6

The maritime industry needs a practical way to choose which fuels, technologies, and operational changes will actually cut its carbon emissions. Shipping accounts for a significant share of global greenhouse gases, but shipowners and operators face a bewildering array of potential decarbonisation options—from alternative fuels to hull modifications to slow-steaming—with no straightforward way to compare their costs, feasibility, and real-world impact. This project will build a versatile decision-making software tool that lets maritime companies model different decarbonisation strategies and see which ones work best for their specific vessels, routes, and budgets. If the software succeeds, it could help shipping firms move from vague sustainability pledges to concrete, costed action plans. The tool would sit quietly behind the scenes of global supply chains—the container ships, tankers, and bulk carriers that move most of the world's goods—enabling operators to make informed choices without needing in-house modelling expertise. For a sector under mounting regulatory pressure to decarbonise, a practical, accessible decision-support system could accelerate the shift away from heavy fuel oil and toward genuinely lower-emission operations.