Making Asian shipowners’ voices heard

AS READERS of this weekly column will be aware, I think it is difficult to overestimate the value to Singapore of gathering top shipping representatives from around the world to discuss the challenges facing the global shipping industry and the opportunities that are opening up.

Among the many significant meetings held at Singapore Maritime Week 2023 last month was the first International Shipping Forum (ISF) of the Asian Shipowners’ Association (ASA).

This was held at the Marina Bay Sands to a full house of 150 participants, more than half of whom came from overseas. In a nod to the rise of the “Blue Economy” – which recognises the importance of oceans and their resources to the global economy and society – the theme of the forum was “Blue and Safe Shipping”.

Indeed, the word “blue” rather than “green” is being used when referring to environmentally friendly shipping. There’s nothing wrong with that. Mind you, as with “greenwashing”, we need to look out for “bluewashing”, so we do need to assess claims that certain policies or technologies are beneficial to the environment and, specifically, contribute to decarbonisation.

The chief executive of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, Teo Eng Dih, kicked off the forum by emphasising the importance of achieving common prosperity, mutual trust and cooperation in shipping.

Appropriately, he was followed by the secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Kitack Lim, who reiterated the urgency for the shipping industry to move towards decarbonisation.

The urgency comes from a crunch IMO meeting just weeks away. There will be a lot at stake in July, when the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) meets in London at the UN specialist agency’s headquarters for its 80th session. Shipping in general, and the IMO in particular, are under intense political pressure to come up with a credible decarbonisation plan. It will have to be seen as effective if the IMO is to stave off regional regulation, as exemplified by the European Union’s recently announced package to bring shipping into the bloc’s emissions trading scheme.

Lim was not the only one with a laser focus on the outcome of the upcoming MEPC meeting. His concerns were shared by Guy Platten, the secretary-general of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), who emphasised the “three-pillar approach” to net-zero carbon emissions that ICS has been pushing for:

The organisation has been advocating for its “Fund and Reward” proposal to provide incentives for the use of zero-carbon fuels. It has also supported the Clean Energy Marine Hubs Initiative, and argued strongly for a just and equitable transition to decarbonisation for seafarers.

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Also discussing decarbonisation, Koh Eng Kiong, director of the research and projects division at the Singapore-based Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation, highlighted the organisation’s mission to help the maritime industry eliminate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by shaping standards, deploying solutions, financing projects and fostering collaboration across sectors.

Focusing on the “blue and safe” theme, Eng Rafael Cigarruista, general director of the Panama Maritime Authority, spoke on the organisation’s expectations as a port and flag state, and how it is moving towards creating a blue maritime industry. He also noted that Panama was among the first countries to designate seafarers as essential workers at the onset of the pandemic, and that it was committed to ensuring the safety of shipboard operations and life at sea.

The forum’s sixth speaker was Song Kanghyun, senior vice-president at the Korean Register and representative of the Association of Asian Classification Societies (ACS). Switching back to the topic of decarbonisation, he shared his insights on how to respond to the IMO’s GHG regulations from ACS’ perspective.

Keiji Tomoda, vice-president of the Japanese Shipowners’ Association and chairman of ASA’s Shipping Policy Committee, stressed the importance and value of ASA and shared his insights on the challenges of moving towards the next phase of the circular economy and sustainable supply chain practices in Asia. He reiterated the importance of human resources and asserted that people could never be replaced by artificial intelligence.

The ISF also included two panel discussions held under Chatham House Rules, which are enforced during certain meetings to ensure exclusive and open dialogue; those who want to share the information received at such meetings are free to do so, but cannot identify who said what.

The first session was on the IMO’s Carbon Intensity Indicator, a controversial subject. It was moderated by Caroline Yang, chairperson of ASA’s Safe Navigation and Environment Committee and president of the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA). The panellists included ACS’ Dr Song, Soren Larsen, deputy-secretary-general of international shipping association Bimco, and Wong Kai Cheong, senior technical manager at the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (Intertanko).

The second panel discussion was on “Safe Shipping”, and discussed how the shipping industry can enhance mutual relationships with government agencies in terms of sharing information for safety at sea. It was moderated by Captain Geoffrey John Pearson, general manager of maritime company BW Group. The panellists included Krishnaswamy Natarajan, executive director of ReCAAP ISC, Lieutenant-Colonel Daniel Ng, deputy head of the Information Fusion Centre, and Captain Peng Chu Xing, deputy general manager of Pacific International Lines. The investigation of incidents and their reporting are also controversial issues, not to mention the criminalisation of seafarers.

By the time the forum ended, the top international industry leaders should have come away with a clear idea of Asian shipowners’ views – a very good thing, given that ASA shipowners and managers control and operate an estimated half of the world’s cargo-carrying fleet.