Lloyd’s List, Article by Nigel Lowry
From left: ESG Shipping Awards’ Helena Athoussaki, Ministry of Shipping’s Manolis Koutolakis, Hellenic Chamber of Shipping’s George Pateras and ESG Shipping Awards’ Katerina Stathopoulou.
One in four at conference in Athens ‘not confident’ about shipping achieving 2050 target, while just 10% ‘very’ confident.
Doubts expressed despite ‘notable progress’ on sustainability, particularly environmental measure.
MARITIME professionals are guarded about the shipping industry’s ability to meet net zero emissions targets by 2050, despite clear progress towards sustainability, an industry conference in Athens has heard.
A live electronic poll conducted during the conference found that one in every four respondents was “not confident at all” that the industry will meet its emissions goals on time.
Although the majority of respondents — 65% — was “moderately” confident that shipping could hit its targets, just 10% of the audience characterised themselves as “very confident”.
The degree of doubt was all the more striking as the event was the ESG Shipping Awards’ annual conference, which attracted speakers and delegates mostly from companies that have won environmental, social and governance awards, or at least place importance on ESG issues.
“The shipping industry has made notable progress in integrating ESG principles, particularly in the realm of environmental sustainability,” said Helena Athoussaki, principal organiser of the annual conference and awards and a longstanding industry expert on sustainability and decarbonisation.
The sector was “actively working” to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adopt cleaner technologies, with a growing focus on innovative solutions such as wind-assisted propulsion, carbon capture and sustainable fuels, she said.
Increased use of sustainable financing including green bonds was among the signs of “a shift from regulatory compliance to a strategic commitment to long-term sustainability”.
Talking to Lloyd’s List after the event, Athoussaki said that the social and governance aspects of ESG culture were also “gaining significant traction”.
Governance initiatives such as establishing dedicated committees for sustainability oversight, along with efforts to promote diversity and inclusion, “are reshaping industry norms”, she said.
“By setting clear sustainability targets and ensuring open lines of communication, the shipping sector is creating a robust foundation for operational excellence and reinforcing its commitment to stakeholders,” said Athoussaki.
In another poll of the audience, 69% identified transparency and accountability as the biggest challenge facing governance in today’s shipping industry.
When it came to the biggest challenge for adopting alternative fuels, the largest number chose “lack of global infrastructure and supply chains” as the main barrier, while 33% opted for “high costs and economic viability”.
Safety and operational concerns, uncertainty in regulations and technological barriers were seen by few as the most serious impediments.
Asked to predict the alternative fuel that would be the “primary” choice for shipping’s future, most votes went to LNG (30%) and nuclear energy (27%).
A paltry 4% saw ammonia playing the leading role, with 7% opting for hydrogen and 10% supporting methanol.
In Greece, the government was “working very closely” with the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping and the Union of Greek Shipowners to lead the industry’s green transition, “but in a way that secures our competitiveness”, said Manolis Koutoulakis, secretary-general of the ministry of Shipping and Island Policy, in remarks to the conference.
The ministry was urging shipping companies to “run faster” in planning their energy transition and setting measurable targets, Koutoulakis said.
The importance of the shipping sector was recognised in the national plan for energy and climate, he said.
