This report was prepared by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) and Washington Maritime Blue (WMB) in collaboration with the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Glosten, and Noise Control Engineering, LLC (NCE). The project report compiles findings captured through a workshop that supported a larger META Program research project and direct interviews that aimed to investigate and understand the challenges that U.S. shipyards, specifically Pacific Northwest yards, are encountering in meeting the demand for increased vessel production in an ever-changing fuel, energy, and technology landscape across the maritime sector.

The study was prepared by RMI, with contributions from CHARGE, Northwest Seaport Alliance, the Port of Seattle, Washington Maritime Blue, and the Washington State Department of Commerce. This roadmap study, Advancing Zero-Emission Fuels in Washington’s Shipping Sector, was conducted to provide insights for policymakers, industry stakeholders, and other relevant partners into feasible pathways for catalyzing deployment of zero-emissions shipping fuels by 2030 and fully decarbonizing shipping fuel for ocean going vessels calling at Washington ports by 2050, in accordance with IMO targets. This study focuses on fuel demand for all ocean-going vessels, including cruise ships. The analysis provides insights into the feasibility of several ZEFs, derived from green electrolytic hydrogen (e-fuels) or sustainable biomass feedstocks (biofuels), by assessing the fuels based on emissions reductions, delivered cost, scalability, and technological readiness between now and 2050. 

This report provides an update to the 2017 Washington State Maritime Sector Economic Impact Study, using the most recent data from federal and state sources. Additionally, this study discusses differing green economy definitions from existing literature, lays out the definition used for this report, and discusses the economic impact of green economy investment, and growth opportunities that the maritime and green industries present for each other. The study was produced by Community Attributes.

The Tacoma Tideflats area is uniquely poised to insert itself as an early adopter of private, enterprise scale 5G network and edge computing technology and set itself as a trailblazer on the path to innovation and sustainability to foster a growing maritime economy. The study shows both the business value and the technology pathway to build and use a private 5G network across the Tacoma Tideflats to modernize the ecosystem, and become a global leader in advancing port operations, advanced manufacturing, and environmental services. The study was produced by Avanade and Amdocs.

The Maritime Electrification for Utilities Workshop was held on September 15, 2021, to bring together maritime and electric utility stakeholders to discuss how to work together more effectively towards greater greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions via electrification of maritime activities. The workshop was organized by representatives from the U.S. Department of Energy, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, U.S. Maritime Administration, Washington Maritime Blue, and DNV.

Maritime Blue, along with partners in Federal Government, PNNL, and DNV hosted the Blue Forum Workshop in Seattle. This workshop provided an opportunity for the maritime industry and R&D institutions to come together with federal organizations to identify maritime energy needs for decarbonization and cross agency/industry collaboration opportunities.

This work focused on research of potential funding structures to provide investment capital to support economic growth of the maritime sector in Washington State. The study, completed by Next Street and partner TILT Investments for Washington Maritime Blue, researched potential funding structures to provide investment capital to support growth of the maritime sector throughout Washington state. The study includes a regional maritime capital landscape scan to better understand the nature of demand for capital in the maritime sector. It also analyzed whether the supply of capital currently meets these demands, and seeks to understand key gaps in this sector. This work was sponsored by the Washington State Department of Commerce and Impact Washington.