Evaluation of sustainable development of shipping companies under the ESG framework

Under the ESG framework, accurately evaluating the sustainable development performance of shipping companies across environmental, social, and governance dimensions remains a critical challenge. This study develops an ESG-based sustainability evaluation model for shipping companies by integrating the PSR framework with indicator screening methods and multiple weighting techniques, and conducts an empirical analysis using data from Chinese listed shipping companies. The results indicate that the proposed model effectively captures differences in sustainability performance under ESG requirements, with environmental investment intensity, total greenhouse gas emissions, and deadweight of green vessels identified as key determinants. Among the sampled firms, China Merchants Energy Shipping and Zhonggu Logistics demonstrate the highest levels of sustainable development performance. This study provides a systematic and operational framework for assessing ESG-driven sustainability in the shipping industry, offering practical implications for corporate management and ESG-oriented decision-making.