Our world has clearly changed since the last Maritime Cyprus Conference in 2019 and considering the even more changes we have ahead of us, it’s about time to get together and talk about the recent past and the lessons learnt, the present and - most importantly - the future of shipping.
Once again, Maritime Cyprus Conference is opening its doors to the international shipping community, and we in DNV are looking forward to meeting customers, partners, and colleagues from around the world in person again.
The theme of this year’s conference is a provocative one: “Shipping’s Response to the 3 C’s – Crises – Challenges – Competitiveness”, and for our industry these are critical questions.
For the past decades shipping was mainly focused on one and only type of crisis - the financial one. Nowadays, we have more topics on our plates to deal with: the global COVID pandemic, the climate crisis, especially shipping’s impact on it, the 4th industrial revolution of digitalization, and even lately, a war, which effects worldwide trade. In other words, we are talking about a crisis of crises.
And as every crisis comes with challenges, in the case of shipping, these challenges are targeting our industry’s foundations. The seafarers that navigate the ships, the fuel that powers their engines, and the trading routes between countries.
Decarbonization, is perhaps the greatest challenge our industry has ever faced, bringing tectonic transformations in operations, investments, safety, and most of all, the mentality in the global shipping market.
But beyond simply reacting and adapting into all these changes, the shipping industry has a unique opportunity to evolve and develop. IMO’s decarbonization goals are accelerating the research and development on ship energy efficiency, engine types, alternative fuels, as well as vessel operations and voyage planning.
Digitalization is gaining more and more ground in the industry, with applications that change traditional ways of operating, monitoring, communicating, and surveying ships. And of course, one should not forget that, triggered by the COVID pandemic outbreak, the physical -and mental- health of seafarers has been brought to the spotlight. This is a real change in mentality.
The challenges and opportunities ahead will increase competition in the industry. And this is how it should be. However, we are not ready for a sprint race yet. Especially when it comes to decarbonization, we are just preparing for a marathon. And before we reach the starting line, we should all first share a real willingness to change and to decarbonize our industry together. This will trigger joint efforts to develop the knowledge and tools needed to move forward towards the next decades.
The pathway to decarbonization is long, but it should not be a lonely one - we will need partnerships with stakeholders in shipping and all through the value chain, including fuel producers, engine manufacturers, and shipyards. We will need the joined-up infrastructure, energy, technology, understanding, regulations, and financial support that is only possible when everyone leans in, striving towards the same goal. When we do that, we will all capitalize on the knowledge of these players. After all, we don’t have all the answers ourselves.
An African proverb says that “If You Want to Go Fast, Go Alone. If You Want to Go Far, Go Together”. In the case of decarbonization of shipping, going alone is not an option. We in DNV believe that shipping must and can decarbonize fully by 2050. At DNV we are committed to playing our part. And by working together as an industry, embracing flexibility and consulting with expert partners, we ‘ll get there.
Coming back to our task to respond to the 3 Cs: Crises – Challenges – Competitiveness, we in DNV propose a 4th C - Collaboration. And there is no better start for a good collaboration than meeting each other at the ‘Maritime Cyprus’ Conference from 9 to 12 October.
* Cyprus Operations Manager, DNV Maritime