Ports Embrace Green Technology and AI for Smarter, Sustainable Operations

The global port industry is rapidly advancing towards more sustainable and intelligent operations, with recent initiatives showcasing a dual focus on environmental responsibility and technological innovation. DP World, in collaboration with its partners at the Port of Prince Rupert, successfully displaced nearly 24% of conventional diesel use in 2025, shifting over 2 million litres to renewable fuel. This initiative, reported by GLOBE NEWSWIRE via DP World, avoided approximately 5,400 metric tonnes of CO₂, equivalent to removing about 1,100 passenger vehicles from the road for a year.

The renewable diesel was deployed across a range of equipment and services, including cargo handling equipment, drayage trucks, locomotives, and marine vessels. The Port of Prince Rupert was notably the first port in North America to integrate hydrotreated renewable diesel into regular operations in 2024. DP World aims to further increase this displacement to 2.7 million litres in 2026 and has already expanded renewable diesel use across its other Canadian operations, including its Fraser Surrey, Vancouver, and Nanaimo terminals. Doug Smith, CEO of DP World in Canada, emphasized the collaborative success, stating, “Displacing more than 2 million litres of conventional diesel across multiple partners at a gateway port like Prince Rupert shows what’s possible when the entire supply chain takes action together. We’ve helped create a model that can be scaled across ports in the region and globally.”

Parallel to these green initiatives, ports are also leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance operational efficiency. AD Ports Group and NYU Abu Dhabi have announced a multi-year partnership to develop and pilot a high-fidelity intelligence engine. DredgeWire reports that this engine, based on stochastic models and spatial intelligence, will serve as a sophisticated decision-support layer for human operators. It integrates vessel arrival time predictions, berth allocation optimization suggestions, and environmental impact considerations with high precision.

The primary goal of this intelligence engine is to improve planning precision, reduce global berth waiting times, enhance port operations fluidity, and unlock more capacity without the need for physical expansion. By aligning arrival times with berth allocation, the initiative aims to reduce idle time and fuel burn, thereby minimizing environmental harm. Mohamed Jamal-Eddine, Group Chief Digital & Information Officer – AD Ports Group, highlighted the strategic importance, stating, “As we continue to reimagine logistics ecosystems to advance the frontiers of global trade, pioneering research and strategic partnerships remain key pillars of our digitally-led approach. By integrating our deep expertise in port operations and trade facilitation with advanced predictive arrival intelligence and resilient operational modelling, we are accelerating the pace towards a future of autonomous decision-support.” The initiative will be piloted at select terminals and trade lanes, with plans for global scaling.

These advancements reflect a broader industry trend towards sustainability and innovation, a key theme for upcoming industry gatherings. MundoMaritimo reports that TOC Europe 2026 in Hamburg will bring together the global containerized trade community to address the impact of global tensions on containerized trade and port operations, with a particular focus on sustainability, resilience, and innovation. The event will feature sessions on trade outlooks, maritime sourcing strategies, and supply chain management, alongside an exhibition showcasing over 200 companies presenting equipment, services, and solutions for port and logistics chain operations.