Preparing the region’s marine and offshore industries to prosper through the clean energy transition was the focus at the ABS Southeast Asia Regional Committee Meeting.

The Chief Executive of the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singapore joined leaders of Asia’s shipping industry to discuss decarbonisation strategies, cutting edge technologies and the evolving regulatory landscape.

ABS Chairman, President and CEO Christopher J. Wiernicki announced the appointment of Panos Koutsourakis to Vice President, Global Sustainability, who is based in Singapore, to the committee.

“Our industry stands on the cusp of a decade or more of truly disruptive change. As we look to navigate the clean energy transition, the scale of the challenge before us is daunting. But, as we heard from this influential group of industry leaders, change is also an opportunity and by working together we can deliver a cleaner, more sustainable industry. As a leader in Singapore’s marine and offshore industries, ABS is supporting our clients and members in the region with advanced solutions in technology, strategy and compliance,” said Wiernicki.

Teo Eng Dih, Chief Executive of the MPA delivered an update on the MPA’s decarbonisation and green transition initiatives.

“There is an urgent need to accelerate the pace of decarbonisation to meet consumer and investor demand and to enhance the IMO 2050 target for greenhouse gas reduction. To meet these challenges, strong partnerships among the public sector, the private sector and the research community can help reduce the energy demand of vessels, help ship owners adopt energy-efficiency measures and renewables, and test the efficacy of new maritime fuels such as biofuels, ammonia and hydrogen. MPA will continue to work closely with our partners, including classification societies such as ABS, to address the challenges and seize new opportunities to shape the future of shipping,” said Teo.

The head of the global simulation center, Dr. Gu Hai, ABS Vice President, shared a demonstration with the committee members of the new ABS green corridor simulation tool, which allows stakeholders to accurately evaluate the performance of potential green corridors.

The committee also heard about ABS’ industry leading safety performance, the latest regulatory developments and market trends.

“Maritime is an impressive industry, doing amazing things every day from keeping global trade flowing to exploring new technologies that improve efficiency, HSE and advance the energy transition. I am pleased to be associated with the committee, comprised of experienced leaders and, together with ABS, putting our skills together to keep operations safe and shape the services of the future,” said Captain Rajalingam Subramaniam, President and Group CEO of MISC Berhad, and Chairman of the ABS Southeast Asia Regional Committee.

The Committee meetings are a forum for ABS members, including owners, operators, charterers, and industry representatives from flag Administrations, owner associations, and the shipbuilding and insurance sectors, to come together with ABS leaders and discuss industry issues and developments.  These forums are an important part of an ongoing dialogue with the industry to address technical, operational and regulatory challenges.

In a social media post on the meeting, Mr. Teo, said: “MPA and ABS are collaborating in a number of modelling studies for digital twins, and as part of the SABRE consortium that has received ABS' approval-in-principle for ammonia bunkering vessel design.”

“We will work on new maritime testbeds of shipboard operational technology systems for cybersecurity together with Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and the Centre of Excellence in Maritime Safety, Singapore Polytechnic. There is also much scope for ABS and other class societies to work on standards for maritime electrification and new maritime fuels.”

Manifold Times previously reported MPA entering into three Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) agreements with two green shipping consortiums on the ammonia value-chain – signalling its support for the consumption of ammonia, amongst other material, as a bunker fuel.

One of the MoUs was with the SABRE consortium, comprising ABS, Fleet Management Limited, Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (“K-Line”), Keppel O&M, A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S, Maersk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping, and Sumitomo Corporation, will work on development works to establish an integrated ammonia supply chain, with the goal to commence ammonia bunkering within this decade.

Related: SMW 2022: MPA inks collaborations to accelerate maritime decarbonisation

Photo credit: ABS
Published: 1 March, 2023