Multi-lateral ocean voyage optimization for cargo vessels as a decarbonization method

To address the operational inefficiency in maritime cargo transport caused by the traditional Sail Fast Then Wait (SFTW) practice, we propose a systemic optimization approach that organizes vessels sailing towards the same port so that their arrival at the anchorage is synchronized with the capacity of the port to receive vessels at berth from the anchorage. A solution procedure with a quadratic program is implemented and tested using a sample of about 14,000 voyages from Automatic Identification System (AIS) data in 2018. From the analysis, the proposed approach produces 9% of fuel savings per voyage, on average, while minimizing the demand–supply imbalance levels at the ports. The proposed approach also keeps the arrival order of vessels at ports as if they had sailed with SFTW practice, which is necessary so as to encourage agreement on the proposed approach from the stakeholders in the maritime industry. •Mathematical aspects of multilateral ocean voyage optimization are studied.•A system optimization approach improves the maritime operational efficiency.•Substantial fuel savings and GHG reductions are expected by the proposed approach.•Average 9% of fuel saving per voyage is reported from the experiments.