10161717Technical and Economic Feasibility Study to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Trailing Suction Hopper DredgersClosedCollaborative R&DInnovate UKThe maritime sector must rapidly decarbonise, with 30% reduction in greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions by 2030 and 80% by 2040 (DfT,2025). Vessel propulsion is a significant contributor, with 3% of global emissions due to associated combustion of GHG-intensive options such as Marine Gas Oil (MGO). But while decarbonisation pathways are emerging for standard vessels such as ferries and cargo ships, the route to net zero for specialised vessels is less clear. No pathway exists for trailing suction hopper dredgers. These are specialised vessels that extract sand/gravel from the seabed, which are key ingredients in concrete production (8% of global CO2 emissions). Tarmac Marine operates a fleet of four vessels built for aggregate dredging, supplying high quality natural sand and gravel to major UK construction projects. Current vessels exhibit high fuel consumption, maintenance costs and significant CO2 emissions (average 10.01 kg CO2-eq/aggregate land), contributing to Scope 1 for Tarmac Marine, and Scope 3 emissions for their customers in the building materials industry. In this project, Tarmac Marine will partner with Wartsila to define an innovative, new propulsion system that can withstand variable and intensive power loads unique to dredging. This will accelerate industry adoption of low-carbon maritime technology.