Sustainable shipping without the spin in International Shipping News 25/05/2026 W hile the maritime sector often expresses its commitment to the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO’s) Net Zero ambitions and 2030/2050 targets, rhetoric and reality also frequently diverge. In many respects, our sector is a laggard among global industries where emissions are concerned and needs to take a hard, honest look at itself – or risk falling even further behind by clinging to outdated concepts, strategies and technologies. Conventionally, ship ‘efficiency’ has been measured in fuel cost per tonne-mile. However, although many have yet to grasp the fact, this metric is becoming obsolete. Today, the true efficiency of a ship is measured in multiple parameters, which encompass fuel cost and emissions from the stack but also include lifecycle emissions (plus upstream fuel production and vessel disposal), real-time carbon transparency, and the social and regulatory requirements for navigating relationships with ports, financial institutions and cargo owners. At Aderco, we see this transformation daily. Five years ago, operators primarily spoke to us about fuel savings; today, they demand proven emissions reduction solutions, compatibility with future fuels and verifiable contributions to ESG performance. Companies still measuring efficiency on a single axis are already falling behind. The future is multi-fuel Let’s dispel another outdated misperception causing more harm than good: the belief that a single, specific alt-fuel will deliver Net Zero for maritime within the next two decades. The future is multi-fuel, and shipowners must accept and plan for that, ensuring a high degree of flexibility when assessing their options. Accepting this proposition, it is still fair to ask what the point is of investing in a specific fuel if the ship may operate in regions where the portside infrastructure for that fuel is lacking. The truth is, the availability of green methanol, bio-LNG an