DNV GL’s business director Catrine Vestereng welcomed delegates to the opening session of the Tanker Shipping & Trade conference in London with one word: strategising
Ms Vestereng addressed the tanker owners and operators at the Tanker Shipping & Trade conference with the theme that they were facing a challenging future and need a plan to cope not only with IMO 2020, but the myriad other regulatory and non-regulatory pressures heading their way.
Ms Vestereng described this process as "strategising for profitable and compliant tanker operations" and noted that changing attitudes are adding pressure to regulate and IMO is responding with the clear intention to reduce greenhouse gases and the industry’s carbon footprint.
DNV GL’s focus, she said, is advising clients that today’s plans must react to today’s markets, standards, fuels and operations but be prepared for tomorrow’s issues. Short-term solutions for the deepsea sector include dual-fuel combustion engines and alternative fuels, she said.
On the markets, Ms Vestereng pointed to the last quarter as a good example of the volatility of the tanker market, saying that volatility may have been masking some emerging long-term trends.
Ms Vestereng noted that artificial intelligence and digitalisation is creating new levels of efficiency and reducing costs. But there have been retrograde steps, such as EEDI’s introduction, which led to the derating of engines and could lead to shaft damage in vessels that take longer to cross the critical speed range.
Ms Vestereng called for a holistic approach to be applied. Some delegates took up the topic in the first session of the Tanker Shipping & Trade conference, saying that this approach should be taken further and that tanker industry stakeholders should consider a higher degree of co-operation in developing the technologies and systems required to meet future regulations and public expectations. Delegates were told that this approach would require less protection of their own market and more strategic thinking.
© 2023 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.