Abstract
Maritime transport stands out as a strategic sector; the increasing trend in maritime traffic makes it essential to reduce energy consumption and emissions through investment in energy efficiency. However, investments can be hindered by barriers, and drivers are necessary to reduce or overcome them and promote investment. Consequently, the purpose of this study is to analyze what factors influence investment decisions—and how they do so—when there are principal-agent problems in the shipowner–charterer relationship. The methodology is based on the following process: model and hypotheses formulation, variable definition, the creation of a study sample and statistical treatment through a descriptive analysis of variables and a binomial logistic regression model, all based on a state-of-the-art application. The results corroborate the hypotheses and indicate that principal-agent problems and split incentives, especially in time charter contracts, and a lack of verified information make the shipowners less likely to invest. Moreover, energy efficiency measures are less likely to be implemented in older vessels, possibly due to the difficulty associated with recovering the investment; they are more likely in larger and newer vessels, and regulation encourage their adoption. Furthermore, investment is more likely in vessels with verified information and high levels of both activity and harmful emissions. Improved knowledge in this field could help businesses and governments to act in a more sustainable manner, without detriment to an innovative and competitive sector.
Highlights
Maritime shipping is a key sector in the economy, accounting for 90% of global economic trade [1,2,3]
It was decided to use a combination of both types of variables, as described in Sections 3.2 and 3.3 and Tables 5 and 7, since, due to their particularities, some variables required using the data collected, while others had to be subjected to some sort of transformation, and because their interpretation seemed more appropriate in terms of the reviewed literature
Our model gives us evidence that supports the ideas found in the reviewed literature, in such a way that all the considered factors are significant and the direction of their influence on EE investment decisions or the probability of investing is coherent with the hypothesis
Summary
Maritime shipping is a key sector in the economy, accounting for 90% of global economic trade [1,2,3]. Despite being one of the most environmentally-friendly modes of transport [2,4], the progressive increase in seaborne trade implies higher emissions and greater energy consumption. The need arises to ensure more efficient and environmentally-friendly maritime activity. This positions the promotion of energy efficiency (EE) as one of the main objectives in services such as transport [7,8]. Investing in energy efficiency measures (EEMs) can play an important role, as they will help to manage and reduce energy consumption and harmful emissions [9,10,11], and it is a highly relevant issue that becomes a key point for business and political decisions, oriented towards environmental protection and greater energy savings
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