TEESPORT bosses say new pollution rules for shipping could drive up prices of freight and lead to job losses.
Laws on sulphur emissions due before 2015 will have an impact on everyone, they say, by pushing up the cost of goods – and global warming could also be worsened if cargo is forced back onto the UK’s roads.
Shipping trade bodies say Annex VI controls could cost shipping thousands of jobs – P&O Ferries says its fuel costs would rise by about £60m a year, changing marginal routes into heavily loss-making routes and making job losses inevitable.
Maritime UK, which represents shipping and ports, estimates the additional cost to the industry at £3.6bn as the regulations take hold.
Jerry Hopkinson, managing director for bulks, ports and logistics at PD Ports said: “This applies to ships that are plying their trade principally on the North Sea, Baltic region and around US coastal waters.
“It will limit emissions on ships and will force vessel operators to take engineering measures to install what’s known in the industry as scrubbers to remove particulates.
