Business

WISTA: ‘Education and awareness’ key towards narrowing gender gap in bunkering, shipping and trading sectors

‘Bunker barges operate in very local areas so these vessels call at port very often which means it will be a good fit for women with families,’ states Elpi Petraki, President of WISTA International.

Published

2 years ago

March 14, 2023

Admin

Minimising the existing gender gap in the bunkering, maritime, trading and logistics sectors can be made possible through education and awareness, believes the President of Women's International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA).

“There is already a challenge of attracting talent into the maritime industry and we need to educate young people in schools on shipping industries,” Elpi Petraki told bunkering publication Manifold Times during an interview in London.

“Parents want their kids to be working in high paying jobs and the shipping industry also offers this possibility.

“You can be a maritime lawyer or a doctor or engineer supporting crew on board ships out at sea; these are also well-paying jobs which can be very interesting with the added benefit of travel around the world.

“The younger generation don’t see the gender gap we currently see so we must build on this to give opportunities for everybody.

“We have to talk outside the industry by heading to a wider audience including the mothers and fathers through raising awareness.”

A survey ‘Women in Maritime Survey 2021’ conducted between WISTA and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) highlighted the share of women on company boards within shipping’s subsectors – including the bunkering sector.

“We know there are several women especially in later times in their careers employed within the bunkering sector where they form part of the management,” Petraki pointed out.

“However, we would like to see more ladies operating with the marine refuelling sector especially on [bunker] barges where it is currently almost non-existent,” she stated.

Petraki, who is also the Second Vice President of the Hellenic Short Sea Shipowners Association and Operations, Chartering & Business Development Manager of her family shipowner business ENEA Management, stressed working on bunker barges should firstly be safe for everybody.

“If it is dangerous for everybody why should it be a different danger for women or for men?,” she questioned.

“In fact, the introduction of technology on bunker barges/tankers means less manual labour is now required from its crew thereby benefitting ladies.

“Further, bunker barges operate in very local areas so these vessels call at port very often which means it will be a good fit for women with families.

“This is also the reason why coastal shipping, where vessels ply between regular routes, is also more attractive to ladies especially in Europe.

“The more women we have involved in shipping the more equal and diverse it can be.”

The ‘Women in Maritime Survey 2021’ launched on the first IMO International Day for Women in Maritime (18 May, 2021), was the first time real figures of gender diversity were collected for the shipping industry, noted Petraki.

“Before that, there were no real numbers for women working in the maritime sector,” she revealed.

“Data demonstrated women accounting for only 29% of the overall workforce in the general industry and 20% of the workforce of national maritime authorities in IMO Member States.

“It showed women being involved in many sectors of the shipping industry; especially working within ship owning companies and the legal sectors while contributing to the environmental sensitive side (i.e. ESG) of the maritime business.”

“At WISTA, we aim to empower women to have better possibilities for growing their career through progressing into senior positions of every field of shipping and logistics,” shared Petraki.

“We want to do that by changing behaviours and educating people through continuous learning and acquisition of leadership skills.

“We have presence in 56 countries around the world with a growing membership of 4,000 people comprising not only women but also men as well.

“Shipping is widely known to be a very male dominated industry. To level the field and bring much-needed diversity to the sector, we want to attract women and support them to cover more managerial and board level positions.”

Note: The full 20-page Women in Maritime Survey 2021 is available for download through the WISTA website here.

Photo credit: WISTA, Women in Maritime Survey 2021
Published: 14 March, 2023

Legal

Shell MGO bunker heist: Bunker clerk gets jail time for helping Sentek acquire misappropriated fuel

Wong Wai Meng was sentenced to seven years, four months and two weeks’ jail on 10 January for helping the company acquire more than 28,000 mt of the misappropriated fuel worth USD 13.58 million.

Published

14 hours ago

January 13, 2025

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A bunker clerk, who was previously employed by Sentek Marine & Trading (Sentek), was sentenced to seven years, four months and two weeks’ jail for helping the company acquire more than 28,000 metric tonnes (mt) of the misappropriated fuel worth USD 13.58 million (SGD 18.26 million), The Straits Times reported on Friday (10 January).

Wong Wai Meng, was working for Singapore-based firm Sentek at the time of the offences.

Wong, who received more than USD 286,000 from the company for his assistance, pleaded guilty in November 2024 to 12 counts of intentionally helping the company acquire the misappropriated fuel.

He committed the offences over 46 occasions between August 2014 and December 2017.

Wong is among the three bunker clerks previously employed by Sentek, who were charged for offences under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA) and the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA).

Another bunker clerk among the three charged, Wong Kuin Wah, 61, was sentenced to seven years and six months’ jail on 18 November for his role in misappropriating more than 27,000 tonnes of gas oil worth around USD 12.8 million (SGD 17.2 million).

The third individual who was charged, Boo Pu Wen, reportedly passed away in July 2023 and had his charges abated following his death, meaning Boo’s court proceedings over his 19 charges at the time came to an end.

Former Shell employees, who were key members of a group who dishonestly misappropriated fuel from Shell Pulau Bukom, were sentenced to jail in court earlier.

Earlier coverage of developments by Manifold Times regarding the Shell MGO bunker heist can be found below:

Photo credit: Katrin Bolovtsova
Published: 13 January, 2025

Winding up

Singapore: Liquidator issue notice of intended dividend for Parakou Shipping

Creditors will need to produce proofs of debt to liquidator of Parakou Shipping by 24 January, according to Government Gazette notice.

Published

14 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Admin

A notice to declare intended dividend of Parakou Shipping Pte Ltd to its creditors has been posted on the Government Gazette on Friday (10 January).

The following are the details of the notice of intended dividend for the first dividend:

Name of Company : Parakou Shipping Pte Ltd (In Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation)

Address of Registered Office : c/o KordaMentha, 16 Collyer Quay, #30-01, Singapore 049318

Last Day of Receiving Proofs : 24 January 2025 (if not already lodged)

Name of Liquidator : Cameron Duncan

Address : c/o KordaMentha, 16 Collyer Quay, #30-01, Singapore 049318

Photo credit: steve pb from Pixabay
Published: 13 January, 2025

Alternative Fuels

DNV: LNG dominates alternative-fuel vessel orderbook for 2024

According to DNV, LNG was the industry’s alternative fuel of choice by year-end; 264 LNG vessel orders were placed in 2024, over double that of 2023 which was 130 orders.

Published

14 hours ago

January 13, 2025

Admin

The maritime industry’s exceptional newbuilding year 2024 drove a significant rise in orders for alternative-fuelled vessels, according to the latest data from DNV’s Alternative Fuels Insights (AFI) platform.

A total of 515 such ships were ordered, representing a 38% year-on-year increase compared to 2023, underscoring the industry's growing commitment to decarbonization.

The growth in alternative-fuelled vessel orders has been heavily driven by the container and car carrier newbuild boom over the last three years. In 2024, 69% of all container ship orders were for ships capable of being powered by alternative fuels, driven by cargo owners responding to consumer demands for more sustainable practices and liner companies preparing to replace older tonnage. The preferred fuel choice for this segment was LNG (67%). In total the container and car carrier segments made up 62% of all alternative fuel orders in 2024.

Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, CEO Maritime at DNV, said: “As we work towards decarbonizing the industry, we are encouraged by the growth in alternative fuel vessels over the past few years. While recent figures are promising, we must keep pushing forward.”

“The technological transition is underway, but supply of alternative fuel is still low. As an industry we need to work with fuel suppliers and other stakeholders to ensure that shipping has access to its share of alternative fuels in the future. It is also important that the safety of seafarers is ensured as we make this transition. This will require investment in upskilling and training.”

LNG was not the only fuel on shipowners’ minds as 2024 saw them betting on multiple alternative fuels. 166 methanol orders were added (32% of the AFI orderbook), reflecting shipping’s growing interest in a diverse fuel pool as it strives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Most of these methanol orders (85) were in the container segment.

While methanol drove newbuilding orders for alternative-fuelled vessels at the beginning of the year, LNG was the industry’s alternative fuel of choice by year-end. The number of LNG vessel orders placed in 2024 was 264, over double that of 2023 (130).

Ammonia saw promising momentum in the earliest months of the year and continued to grow throughout 2024. A total of 27 orders were placed for ammonia-fueled vessels. The first non-gas carrier ammonia-fuelled vessels orders were placed in 2024 (10), mainly in the bulk carrier segment (5). While still in its early stages, this provides further evidence of ammonia's emergence in the alternative fuel market.

Deliveries and bunkering

The number of LNG-fuelled ships in operation doubled between 2021 and 2024, with a record number of deliveries (169) in 2024. By the end of 2024, 641 LNG-powered ships were in operation. According to the AFI orderbook, this number is expected to double by the end of the decade.

While the bunkering infrastructure for some alternative fuels remains underdeveloped, LNG bunkering is maturing. The number of LNG bunker vessels in operation grew from 52 to 64 over the last year, with continued growth expected in 2025. The significant gap between LNG bunkering supply and demand is expected to widen over the next five years based on the AFI orderbook.

Addressing this challenge by developing the appropriate infrastructure for alternative fuels – both for vessels and bunkering - can create demand signals to stimulate long-term fuel production. With the EU regulatory package, Fit for 55, setting requirements on a large network of ports to have LNG bunkering infrastructure, it is expected that the availability of LNG in ports will increase.

Jason Stefanatos, Global Decarbonization Director at DNV, said: “Market conditions, infrastructure development, fuel production updates, and cargo owners' needs are all shaping the demand for different fuels, both in the short and long term.”

“The shifting trends in LNG and methanol orders this year might be due to the slow development of green methanol production. In the long run, green methanol has potential to be part of the energy mix along with ammonia.”

“In parallel, LNG offers a vital bridging fuel option benefiting from existing infrastructure and short-term emissions reductions while being capable of acting as a long-term solution as well, assuming RNG (Renewable Natural Gas) will be available and provided at a competitive price.”

Photo credit: DNV
Published: 13 January, 2024