APL, the world’s seventh largest container shipping carrier, won the liner owner/operator and environment protection awards at the fourth Seatrade Asia Awards held June 17, 2011 in Hong Kong.
The liner owner/operator award went to the shipping line in Asia judged best in class in schedule reliability, network development and innovative customer service. The environment protection award recognized the organization that had taken significant steps to reduce its environmental footprint, invest in green technology and promote environmental awareness.
The environmental award came two months following efforts by APL to reduce emissions from its ships. In May, it became the first carrier to cold-iron ships at the Port of Oakland, eliminating vessel exhaust at berth. In April, it became the first carrier to switch vessels to cleaner-burning low-sulfur fuel at the Port of Singapore.
APL, a unit of Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines (NOL), edged out contenders that included Maersk Line and OOCL. It was also a finalist in the technical innovation category of the Seatrade Asia Awards.
