The managing director of Prominence Maritime, Ioanna Prokopiou, characterized the big issue of the green transition in shipping as a “marathon” and not a “sprint.”
Addressing the 5th Athens Triennial Meeting, Prokopiou said that the green transition takes time, while at the same time it is possible to further reduce the environmental footprint of the industry by using new technologies in ships that use conventional fuels.
“Instead of waiting for the perfect solution, we can take steps towards sustainability using the tools we have today. High-performance engines using conventional fuels provide a practical, immediate way to reduce emissions and fuel consumption – without the high costs and infrastructure limitations of alternative fuels,” she stated.
The perfect solution?
At the three-day conference co-organized by BAYES, “The Costas Grammenos Center for Shipping, Trade and Finance” (which celebrated its 40th anniversary) and the Onassis Foundation, Prokopiou described the “must’ for the ideal new green fuel.
In particular, the ideal new fuel should:
-Have a proven long-term environmental benefit.
-Come from a sustainable energy source.
-Be available worldwide.
-Be safe to manage and use (as some of the alternative fuels discussed today are toxic and very difficult to manage).
-Have a competitive price (the price gap with traditional fossil fuels must be reduced).
-Satisfy the whole spectrum of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and not just carbon dioxide.
Otherwise we risk “hiding the emissions under the carpet and this is not the strategy we should follow,” Prokopiou emphasized.
