DNV has been contributing to the amplification of safety and quality in the shipping business since 1864.
In 2021 DNV celebrated 100 years of operations in Greece. Given this milestone and heading towards Posidonia 2022, we discuss with Mr. George Teriakidis, Area Manager East Mediterranean & Black Sea, the past, the present and the future of the company and the industry.
Let’s start with the fact that you are operating for more than a century in Greece. What is the idea behind this anniversary?
For more than 100 years, we are sailing together with our people- customers, and employees, and helping to build the maritime landscape from Greece both local and internationally. This anniversary is an occasion to pay tribute to the past, to highlight the present achievements and to look forward to an even brighter future for Greek shipping – all these, through the accomplishments of our customers and partners with whom we are joining efforts to take the maritime market a step further.
Our Piraeus office has been continuously expanding, reaching almost 100 people strong Regional hub. The importance of Piraeus within DNV is given having been announced as the “third home country” after Norway and Germany, as well as having the control for a large geographical region: Black Sea, Balkans, East Med, Africa and Middle East are all controlled from Piraeus, under our Regional Manager, Mr. Ioannis Chiotopoulos.
During these years, especially in Greece, we have worked to build trust between industry stakeholders, suppliers and customers, systems, and technologies. DNV has been contributing to the intensification of safety and quality standards in the global and local shipping industry. And that’s a good reason to celebrate...
Posidonia is back and DNV takes part in it once again...
DNV has been participating and supporting Posidonia since forever! We are very happy to be associated once again with this top-tier maritime event as an exhibitor. We look forward to the opportunity to meet with our customers and other stakeholders personally,
face to face, and discuss upcoming transformations in the maritime industry. We at DNV also look forward to collaborating with our customers to help them turn uncertainty into confidence. The exhibition’s supporting programme – conferences, seminars and more
– is also a great opportunity to connect with the industry’s finest and share experiences and know-how. Posidonia is the meeting point of thought-leaders, experts, and influential personalities and DNV will again capitalise on the benefits of such an important event. We look forward to another successful Posidonia!
Speaking of transformations in the maritime industry, we all think about decarbonization as the biggest and hottest among all. What are DNV’s position on this critical issue?
Previous energy transitions were comparatively straightforward. Vessels moved from wind to coal, to steam and finally oil, with a uniformity driven by the easily available fuel everywhere. Now we are moving from a one-fuel-fits-all to a much more complex fuel picture. We believe that the future will be multi-fuel, where ships will be utilizing more than one energy sources. The technology and energy sources used will depend heavily on the type of vessel, size and operational profile.
The pressure for lower emissions and improve efficiency has become one of the big drivers over the next 30 years - especially from existing, tightening and future regulations. We need action if we are to stand any chance of attaining our goals. Refreshingly, we are already under way. A new development in 2021 was the number of vessels ordered with alternative fuel systems. DNV’s “Alternative Fuel Insight” portal closely monitored this trend throughout
the year, and alternative fuel vessels made up 17% of all vessels ordered in 2021, but more than 36% by gross tonnage, demonstrating the strong uptake of alternative fuels in larger vessels. This included over 240 ships fuelled by liquefied natural gas (LNG), 48 by liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), 22 by methanol, and four by hydrogen. In addition to this, significant numbers of new pure electric, hybrid, and plug in hybrid vessels were ordered in 2021, mainly in the car/passenger ferry segment.
Ordering for LNG vessels continued into 2022, with 70 newbuildings already in the books as of April 1st.
We at DNV think that the pathway to decarbonization is long, but it cannot be a lonely one – we need partnerships with stakeholders in shipping and up the value chain, including the fuel producers,
the engine manufacturers, and the shipyards. We are all part of the wider movement towards carbon neutrality and must be treated that way. Sufficient capital must be allocated to develop alternative fuel infrastructure and supply chains on land, in tandem with the onboard technology necessary to decarbonise. Cross-sector, regulatory
and international collaboration are a prerequisite for broad-based success, with the industrial world coming together to safeguard the natural one. With the right assistance, owners can turn uncertainty into confidence and win back clarity from the confusion, addressing a variety of future fuel scenarios and greenhouse gas target trajectories to unlock cost efficient, commercially attractive vessel designs that will not get stranded in tomorrow’s markets.
New fuels bear safety risks. How can we tackle them?
As shipping follows a route towards decarbonization, this will require a rethink of risk management to ensure safety remains at the core of the development of new fuel systems as well the new digitalized ways of working.
Earlier this year, DNV alerted of a developing “safety gap” as the dual forces of decarbonization and digitalization present new hazards from alternative fuel technologies, such as fire and explosion risk, and issues like data security and complex digital systems.
New safety risks are presented by alternative fuel technologies required for decarbonization – for example, ammonia is highly toxic, and hydrogen is easily ignitable – and it is therefore necessary to develop new class rules and safety regulations to mitigate these hazards.
DNV has already issued classification rules for the use of LNG, ammonia, fuel cells, methanol, ethanol and LPG to safeguard against fire and the release of toxic gases. The new “Fuel ready” notation is applicable for ammonia, LNG, LPG and LFL (methanol) as a ship fuel – either individually or for more than one fuel at the same time to stay safe and flexible in the future. DNV has also taken the lead in joint industry projects to develop safety guidelines for the use of hydrogen and batteries.
DNV sees a requirement for renewed risk controls and a new regulatory approach based on individual fuel assessments, as well as greater industry knowledge and experience of these potential safety risks – with class set to play a vital role in this regard.
* Area Manager East Mediterranean & Black Sea, DNV