Environmental Initiatives

At V.Group, the Environmental Steering Group responsible for realising our commitment to improving environmental practice is set by our Environmental Committee, whose three main goals are reducing harmful emissions, being more eco-friendly on board and in our offices, and enhancing corporate awareness of our environmental responsibilities. We are committed to a number of initiatives that will prevent pollution, decarbonise deep-sea shipping in line with the most ambitious interpretation of the IMO, decrease GHG emissions and ensure environmentally sound practices on shore and at sea.

Getting to Zero Coalition

V.Group is a proud member of the Getting to Zero Coalition, a powerful alliance of more than 90 companies committed to getting commercially viable deep-sea zero emission vessels powered by zero emission fuels into operation by 2030. Members of the Getting to Zero Coalition have the breadth and power to fast-track maritime shipping’s transition to zero carbon energy sources. Bold ambition serves as a leading example for others to follow.

Single Use Plastic Charter

According to UNESCO, it is estimated that every square mile of ocean contains 46,000 pieces of floating plastic, and directly contributes to the deaths of millions of marine mammals per year. Given the importance of reducing plastic pollution, V.Group is prioritising the reduction of single use plastics on board. V.Group has adopted the single use plastics policy proposed by the UK Chamber of Shipping which is supported by fully trained fleet cells to improve day-to-day environmental practice on board.

Onboard Drinking Water Solutions

Oceanic has been introducing water solutions aimed at eliminating plastic water bottles on board vessels, while ensuring the provision of safe drinking water for crew. Following customer feedback, which emphasised the need for simple-to-install durable solutions that can provide safe water within a short return on investment period, we have identified suitable solutions which we are looking to roll out across our fleet. Our solutions provide practical water treatments on board, catering for all types and sizes of vessels with the correct approval certificates.

OceansFirst Series

V.Group launched OceansFirst, an initiative which brings together V.Group’s environmental and sustainability initiatives under one banner. V.Group’s first OceansFirst series, aimed at highlighting the challenges facing our industry and discussing potential solutions, ran in November 2021 and coincided with COP26 at a time when the world’s focus was on environment and sustainability issues. The objective of this initiative is to demonstrate V.Group’s commitment to sustainability and decarbonisation through our partnerships across the shipping industry.

IMPA SAVE Partnership

V.Group and Oceanic have committed to join IMPA SAVE. The IMPA SAVE Council for Maritime Supply Chain Sustainability, is a group of individuals representing global ship owners and maritime suppliers who are responding to the United Nations’ universal call for action to promote prosperity while protecting the environment.

Internal Training

One big part of improving our environmental practice is by driving a culture of the shared value that protecting the environment is everyone’s responsibility. To help develop this, we have committed to robust training of staff both on board and on shore to raise awareness of their environmental responsibilities.