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Bridging Seas Sustainably: Adopting Norway’s Green Maritime Innovations in Greece
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Abstract: The transition to sustainable maritime transport is imperative for Greece’s coastal ferry sector, which faces environmental, economic, and operational challenges. Drawing insights from Norway’s pioneering experience in adopting electric and hybrid ferries, this study proposes a strategic roadmap for Greece to modernize its aging fleet. Norway’s success stems from robust government policies, extensive infrastructure development, and public–private partnerships. Greece’s fragmented ferry sector must address key issues such as seasonality, network complexity, and a lack of environmental incentives. The proposed roadmap emphasizes feasibility studies, pilot projects, and the establishment of charging infrastructure to facilitate the transition. Two pilot initiatives are highlighted: a hybrid vessel retrofit for the Perama–Salamina route and a fully electric vessel for the Chios‐Oinousses route. These initiatives aim to demonstrate scalable solutions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions while ensuring economic viability. This research underscores the importance of strategic collaboration, regulatory frameworks, and targeted investments in achieving Greece’s maritime decarbonization goals. By leveraging lessons from Norway’s success, Greece can develop a sustainable, resilient, and efficient coastal shipping network that aligns with broader climate objectives and social cohesion goals.
Keywords: coastal ferry sector; decarbonization; electric ferries; environmental regulations; green shipping; hybrid vessels; sustainable maritime transport
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Vol 3 (2026): Ocean Climate Governance: Eclectic Viewpoints of a Μulti-dimensional Nexus (In Progress)
© Dimitris Gavalas, Ioannis Katsounis, Maria Lekakou, Georgios Remoundos, George Stergiopoulos, Markella Gota, and Stamatios Choulis. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits any use, distribution, and reproduction of the work without further permission provided the original author(s) and source are credited.