Maersk plans world’s first carbon-neutral container ship in 2023

Shipping group Maersk said  it will accelerate plans to decarbonise sea-borne container shipping by putting the world’s first carbon-neutral vessel into operation in 2023, seven years ahead of its original plan.

The shipping industry, which carries around 80% of global trade and accounts for around 3% of global carbon emissions, pledged last year to have ships and marine fuels with zero carbon emissions ready by 2030.

“Fast-tracked by advances in technology and increasing customer demand for sustainable supply chains, Maersk is accelerating the efforts to decarbonise marine operations with the launch of the world’s first carbon neutral liner vessel in 2023,” the company said in a statement.

The carbon-neutral vessel will be fuelled by methanol, it said.

“Our ambition to have a carbon neutral fleet by 2050 was a moonshot when we announced it in 2018,” Chief Executive Soren Skou said. “Today we see it as a challenging, yet achievable target to reach.”

WhatsApp to move ahead with privacy update

Facebook Inc’s WhatsApp said on Thursday that it will go ahead with its controversial privacy policy update but will allow users to read it at “their own pace” and will also display a banner providing additional information.

In January, the messaging platform informed users it was preparing a new privacy policy, under which it could share limited user data with Facebook and its group firms.

It sparked a global outcry and sent users to rival apps Telegram and Signal, among others, prompting WhatsApp to delay the new policy launch to May and to clarify the update was focused on allowing users to message with businesses and would not affect personal conversations.

In India, the messaging app’s biggest user base, Facebook executives fielded questions from a parliamentary panel on the need for the changes, days after the country’s technology ministry asked the messaging platform to withdraw them.

In its latest blog, WhatsApp said it would start reminding users to review and accept updates to keep using the messaging platform.

“We’ve also included more information to try and address concerns we’re hearing,” it added.

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