THE SMM Hamburg trade fair was dominated by all things decarbonisation — whether green fuels, new optimisation technologies, innovative design concepts, seafarer training for greater safety.

The timeline to 2030 and 2050 is much shorter than it was the last time industry experts gathered in Hamburg.

Now there is real expectation that the markers placed in the sand by the International Maritime Organization will slowly be brought closer at the upcoming meeting in June 2023.

There will be a significant cost to shipping’s push for cleaner, greener operations.

Alternative fuels are likely to be twice the price of conventional fuels, and the cost of a new global infrastructure network to ensure availability — although a bill not to be picked up by ship owners — will go into trillions of dollars.

It is more than possible that ship owners lacking real scale will be unable to compete.

However, the push towards decarbonisation has sparked an excitement in the maritime tech community. SMM’s many halls were filled with a buzz of excitement, not with a pall of dread for difficult times ahead.

The next decade is expected to offer more opportunities for maritime companies of all shapes and sizes than at any time since the early days of containerisation.

If IMO revises the environmental target timeline from 2050 to 2040, with interim targets for 2028 rather than 2030, we can expect an even stronger flood of innovation.

In its Maritime Forecast to 2050, DNV looked at a series of scenarios that attempted to build some certainty into the uncertainty. This is one way to look at the task ahead.

No one yet knows what IMO will agree next year, and until then shipping is waiting. Nevertheless, there’s much that can already be done to make the industry cleaner and greener without waiting for the perfect fuel.

What opportunities will make the greatest impact over the coming decade, in vessel operations, in fuel supply, in training for safety? How will decarbonisation lead to a restructure of the industry?

What skills are expected to be recruited, and how does senior leadership view the years ahead?

Join the Lloyd’s List webinar on September 15 to hear the views from class, technology, vessel operations, insurance, and ship registry.

The event, sponsored by Lloyd’s Register and AXA XL, will hear from:

• Charles Haskell, Decarbonisation Programme Manager at Lloyd’s Register;
• Sundeep Khera, Global head of Hull and Head of Marine, UK and Lloyd’s at AXA XL;
• Eleni Polychronopoulou, President of METIS Cyberspace Technology;
• Bill Liddell, Senior Surveyor at Isle of Man Ship Register; and
• Himanshu Chopra, Managing Director of Anglo-Eastern (UK) Ship Management.

The coming decade will be one of certainty emerging out of the fog of uncertainty, likewise opportunity will emerge from the dread of cost.

This webinar carries a positive message for the industry: fortune favours the prepared.