Transforming Trade Hubs: ADB Pushes $1B Fund for Greener, Climate-Ready Ports

The Asian Development Bank and Royal HaskoningDHV propose a $1 billion Sustainable and Resilient Maritime Fund to help Asia-Pacific ports cut emissions, adopt clean energy, and boost climate resilience. Without urgent investment, ports risk worsening environmental damage while remaining highly vulnerable to climate change.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB), together with consultancy Royal HaskoningDHV and with input from its in-house specialists, has released a new brief calling for urgent action to green and decarbonize Asia-Pacific ports. The study, supported by the ADB’s knowledge and support technical assistance program, highlights both the enormous role ports play in trade and the equally large risks they pose to the climate. As critical gateways for goods and services, ports have long underpinned regional prosperity, especially for island nations dependent on imports of essentials like fuel, food, and building materials. Yet these same hubs are among the most carbon-intensive parts of global logistics, consuming energy, emitting greenhouse gases, and straining natural resources, while at the same time being acutely vulnerable to sea-level rise, storms, and extreme weather disruptions. The brief presents the case for a new $1 billion Sustainable and Resilient Maritime Fund (SRMF) to bridge the investment gap and help developing countries reimagine their ports as sustainable, climate-ready assets.

A Multi-Trillion-Dollar Transition

The scale of the problem is stark. According to global industry assessments, halving shipping emissions by 2050 will require investments of between $1 trillion and $1.4 trillion. To reach full decarbonization by the same date, an additional $400 billion will be needed, bringing the total cost to nearly $2 trillion. Ports themselves face a funding gap estimated at over $10 billion in the decade spanning 2029–2034, with costs arising from the need for upgraded energy systems, low-carbon fuels, resilient infrastructure, and better waste and water management. Yet investment has been slow, hindered by high upfront costs, long payback periods, weak policy environments, and limited technical know-how among port authorities and operators. The ADB argues that without a coordinated mechanism like the SRMF, these barriers will continue to delay meaningful change, putting trade flows and local communities at risk.

What Does a Green Port Look Like?

A central theme of the brief is defining what constitutes a “green port.” The authors stress that there is no single fixed standard, but rather a process of transition that involves progressively reducing environmental impacts and strengthening climate resilience. Green ports employ a life-cycle approach, embedding sustainability into planning, design, construction, and operations. Interventions range from energy efficiency measures such as switching to LED lighting or electrifying tugboats to deploying clean fuels like liquefied natural gas, ammonia, hydrogen, and methanol. Ports are also urged to explore nature-based solutions, including ecological corridors and reforestation, which can reduce pollution and restore biodiversity. Climate resilience measures, such as flood defenses, elevated infrastructure, and predictive technologies, are essential to minimize disruption from storms and sea-level rise. Other components include integrated water management, better waste and resource recovery systems, cleaner hinterland connectivity through rail and waterways, and curbs on nuisances such as noise, dust, and light spill.

Global Leaders Show the Way

The report points to international examples to demonstrate what is possible. The Port of Rotterdam and Port of Hamburg have cut energy consumption significantly by adopting LED lighting, while the Port of Antwerp piloted a hydroturbine that exceeded its expected energy output, opening opportunities for clean onsite generation. In Singapore, port authorities have teamed up with Rotterdam to develop the world’s longest “green and digital corridor” for low- and zero-carbon shipping. In Australia, the Port of Newcastle is planning a 40-megawatt hydrogen hub supported by government grants. Across the Caribbean, large-scale solar parks are already reducing dependence on imported diesel, while ports in New York and New Jersey have invested heavily in flood barriers following the devastation of Hurricane Sandy. These cases illustrate that while the upfront investments are significant, the returns in resilience, emissions reduction, and efficiency can be transformative.

Breaking Barriers with the SRMF

Still, barriers loom large. A survey of port stakeholders highlighted insufficient funding, poor policy frameworks, lack of technical capacity, and low stakeholder awareness as the main obstacles to green port development. Even where financing mechanisms exist, such as global climate funds or national clean energy programs, few are directly targeted at port infrastructure. To address this, the SRMF is designed as a multidonor trust fund that can act as a provider, arranger, and facilitator of finance. Its toolkit would include concessional loans, grants, guarantees, and equity participation, with an emphasis on non-sovereign financing to catalyze private-sector participation. The SRMF would also support sustainability-linked loans, tying borrowing terms to measurable environmental performance.

The fund’s design envisions a three-level approach. Upstream activities would focus on policy reform, regulatory frameworks, and capacity building to create enabling environments for port greening. Midstream support would tackle feasibility studies, project design, and de-risking, helping ports overcome market and regulatory barriers. Downstream interventions would finance actual infrastructure upgrades, from shore power facilities to hydrogen hubs and flood defenses. Beyond decarbonization, the SRMF would also consider projects that strengthen ports’ social and governance roles, including gender equality, inclusivity, and health.

Building the Ports of Tomorrow

To maximize impact, the SRMF could be placed under the existing Ocean Resilience and Coastal Adaptation Financing Partnership Facility, provided it allows for direct beneficiary access, flexible governance, and tailored investment decisions. If successful, the fund could start with $1 billion, depending on donor appetite, and operate for at least a decade. Its ultimate goal is to create a pipeline of bankable projects that attract larger pools of capital, ensuring that Asia-Pacific ports are not left behind in the global transition to sustainable maritime trade.

The brief ends with clear next steps: initiate internal ADB discussions to anchor the fund under ORCA-FPF, engage potential donors to define priorities and size, build awareness among ports through seminars and consultancy, and pilot sustainability-linked loan instruments tailored to maritime needs. By positioning ports as both economic engines and environmental stewards, ADB and its partners argue that the SRMF can dismantle long-standing barriers to financing, mobilize innovation, and help safeguard the region’s trading arteries against the rising tides of climate change.