Identifying industry-related opinions on shore power from a survey in China

Abstract

Shore power is a green technology used by the shipping industry to abate emissions from vessels berthing in ports. This paper aims to identify industry-related opinions on shore power based on a set of collected data by means of a questionnaire in China. A four-pronged approach is used for this investigation. First, a questionnaire based on more than 50 items of related literature was designed. Second, factor analysis, including exploratory factor analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, was carried out. Third, a structural equation model was used to test specified hypotheses and identify connections among varied factors, such as technology, application, etc. Finally, other related questions, such as development trends and the influence on shore power of new regulations on use of sulphur, were investigated. The results show that motivation, application, incentive, technology, and recognition all have positive influences on the promotion of shore power with 0.452, 0.398, 0.239, 0.216, and 0.194 standardised factor loadings, respectively. Meanwhile, a unified standard, subsidy/incentive, and implementation/enforcement are considered three urgent measures that can be employed to improve the uptake of shore power. Moreover, in upcoming years, digitalisation of application and payment and decarbonisation are predicted to be two major development trends in the industrial use of shore power. Three-quarters of the respondents thought that a new/lower limit of sulphur emission would boost the use of shore power. The findings from this investigation provide a decision-making tool for policymakers and the developed method can be used to promote the wide use of green technology.