April 10, 2015 —Â At the end of March, ARES Security signed the Green Port Contract between China Waterborne Transportation Research Institute (CWTRI) and ARES Security. CWTRI is the recipient of a Grant from the US Trade and Development Agency for $841,720 which funds ARES Security work with CWTRI to develop a Green Port Pilot Project and Feasibility Study for a port in China. This project has been identified by the commercial office of the US Embassy, Beijing, as of great interest to both the US and Chinese Governments at the US Department of Transportation and Chinese Ministry of Transportation levels. It has also been recommended for presentation at the Pacific Ports Clean Air Collaborative Meeting and Green Ports and Sustainable Goods Movement Seminar sponsored by US EPA, US Maritime Administration, Port of Los Angeles and Port of Shanghai this Fall by the US Government and ARES has been invited by the US Embassy Commercial Office to attend and present at a seminar in April hosted by the US Embassy, US DOT, and China MOT for potential users of the technology.
The purpose and objective are as follows:
The Green Port Communications Pilot Project and Feasibility Study will examine the applicability of installing advanced port management and environmental monitoring systems in order to reduce the environmental impact of port operations. In particular, it will examine the suitability of software developed by ARES Security Corporation (Contractor) and environmental monitoring systems from its partner, Triad Engineering Applications. The Project will consist of two components: (i) a study which will analyze the current environmental impacts at the port (including performance against international standards established by the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), an international environmental convention designed to minimize pollution from maritime activities), and (ii) a pilot project to highlight the capabilities of the ARES/Triad system in terms of improving the environment the port. The study will also examine the technical, economic, financial, environmental issues associated with implementing the system, with the intent of establishing the basis for a broader rollout of up to six additional port facilities. ARES and its partners contribute to the effort with ‘cost share’, in terms of software and hardware for this project.
The plan is to install an operational pilot in the first port for testing, evaluation and demonstration purposes by September and evaluate the performance of the system. This project will be highlighted at several government exchanges and championed by CWTRI as a part of the solution for port emissions. Port emissions in China are a significant problem with very high levels of unsafe contaminants and air quality, which has significant national and international attention. CWTRI has been tasked by the MOT to develop solutions for this issue rapidly.
For the USTDA Grant, ARES was required to estimate the total job creation market for US industry and found a range from $43M to $97M. USTDA independently calculated a value of $48M by their outside consultant.