Clicking cameras, tense faces, and finally beaming winners:
at this year’s Green Focus Awards presented by bremenports, the atmosphere was reminiscent of the grand stage of Hollywood. Since 2014, bremenports has honored the cleanest ships and fleets calling at Bremerhaven in the previous year with the Green Focus Awards. In addition, an award in the “Engagement” category is given to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to sustainability in the port. This year, for the first time, a special prize was also awarded for the cleanest cruise ship. The awards ceremony took place yesterday evening as part of the bremenports sustainability conference ENVOCONNECT, which continues until this afternoon.
Cleanest Ship: “Auto Advance”
The ceremony began with State Councillor Kai Stührenberg, who presented the award for the “Cleanest Ship” of the past year. With an outstanding Environmental Ship Index (ESI) score of 82.77, the car carrier Auto Advance took the prize. Equipped with battery-hybrid propulsion, LNG, and biofuel technologies, the vessel operated by United European Car Carriers (UECC) impressed the jury with innovative technology and multiple calls at Bremerhaven. “That is an exceptionally strong score,” emphasized Stührenberg to applause, before handing the trophy to Jan Voss, Head of Newbuilding at UECC, who had traveled especially for the event. The ship is no stranger to both the quay and the awards stage, having already won in this category last year. Voss highlighted that the award was an additional incentive to continue upgrading UECC’s fleet.
Cleanest Fleet: NYK Line
This year, the “Cleanest Fleet” category was won by the Japanese shipping company NYK Line. With an average ESI score of 64.6 points across eleven calls, NYK narrowly beat out UECC. In his laudation, bremenports Managing Director Robert Howe emphasized NYK’s long-standing commitment to climate protection, decarbonization, and innovative propulsion technologies – from LNG vessels to the world’s first commercially operated ammonia-powered ship. The award was accepted by Russell Layton, Deputy General Manager NYK Group Europe Ltd., and Christoph Pauli, General Manager NYK Line Deutschland. Layton noted that the company is already driving numerous further sustainability projects, such as deploying the first ammonia-powered tugboat off Tokyo on behalf of the shipping line.
Special Prize for the Cleanest Cruise Ship: “Amadea”
For the first time this year, a special prize was awarded for the “Cleanest Cruise Ship.” The winner was the Amadea – well known as the TV “Dream Ship” from the ZDF series of the same name. The 193-meter vessel, managed by Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) for Phönix Reisen, called at Bremerhavens’s ports 13 times in 2024, achieving an average ESI score of 61.8. “The Amadea shows that tradition and innovation are not mutually exclusive,” emphasized Timo Schön, Managing Director of Bremerhaven Cruise Port, in his laudation. Despite its age, continuous investment in technology and environmental standards has been made – most recently in 2022 with the installation of an SCR catalytic converter system that meets even Norway’s strict emission regulations. Michael Schulze, Director of Cruises at Phoenix Reisen, accepted the award on behalf of the company, stressing the increasing importance of sustainability in the cruise industry: “The fact that we are receiving this award for a relatively old ship demonstrates that significant progress in sustainability and climate protection can also be achieved through retrofitting. For us, it’s once again proof that these investments – and we are talking about the triple-digit million range – have been well worth it.”
Engagement Award: Dr. Alexander David
In the “Engagement” category, the jury faced a particularly difficult decision: from a double-digit pool of applicants, three individuals were ultimately nominated, each contributing to sustainability in very different ways:
- Ruth Chigbo, geoscientist and former driving force behind sustainable port development, who now promotes education, equal opportunities, and climate awareness in African countries.
- Timo F. Schindler, who focuses on energy efficiency and environmental protection within research and development projects on the digitalization of Bremen’s ports.
- Dr. Alexander David, a key driver of CO₂ neutrality in the fishing port.
“The selection was anything but easy for us,” emphasized jury representative Jana Köhler during the award presentation. Ultimately, the decision went to Dr. Alexander David, who works for Fischereihafen-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH (FBG). Together with Ralf Finck (FROSTA), he is the face of the Climate Cooperation Fischereihafen (CCF) and serves as FBG’s project lead. With his expertise, dedication, and ability to develop cooperative solutions, he is considered a unifying figure in the effort to make the fishing port CO₂-neutral by 2030. In accepting the award, Dr. David stressed that many more people should actually be standing on stage – namely all those who support him daily in his work.
Amid standing ovations, heartfelt congratulations, and a touch of Oscar glamour, the award ceremony came to a close. It became clear that the Green Focus Awards have long since become more than just an accolade: they are a powerful signal that the maritime industry in Bremen and Bremerhaven takes climate protection seriously – and that sustainability is not only a duty, but also a reason to celebrate.
