AFTER a Covid-induced hiatus, the industry descended upon Athens this week to schmooze, gossip, test the water and in some cases actually do some business in between canapes and sweaty taxi rides.

While the headlines from the events reinforced well aired views rather than setting the agenda, it was interesting to see how those owners at the coal face of the industry’s biggest issues were fully focused on the immediate, pragmatic decisions ahead of them rather than worrying too much about the looming carbon revolution of 2050 and beyond.

The fact that Posidonia fell in a week in which the IMO was debating greenhouse gases was instructive in assessing the reality of shipping’s decarbonisation plans up close and in the flesh.

Posidonia is a party but it’s also about business and a few drinks tends to strip away the veneer of the more polished greenwash that has been spun over the past few years.

It was also interesting to see Greece at the centre of the other big theme of the moment — namely sanctions risk.

The inimitable Greek shipowner George Prokopiou used his platform this week to call on politicians to at least be clearer when it comes to imposing sanctions, which he described as generally being useless or counterproductive.

The fact that two of his ships have been caught up in a sanctions stand-off while two other Greek tankers have been seized by the Iranians in a related incident, has generally meant that the Greek shipping community’s preferred position as apolitical global taxi driver was a difficult line to be pushing this week.

So to discuss all this and more we drafted in two people who were in the thick of tit this week. Wide-eyed Posidonia first-timer Declan Bush, our sustaiability editor, and the old master of Posidonias going back through the ages to a time before records began — the voice of experience from our man in Athens Mr Nigel Lowry.

We also have a small cameo appearance from George Pateras, President of the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping.