Mr John Denholm takes over BIMCO Presidency
The new president of BIMCO Mr John Denholm has identified environmental pressures facing the shippingindustry as some of its most significant current challenges as he embarks upon his two year term.
Speakingin Paris, as he took over the presidency of the shipping organisation from Mr Yudhishthir Khatau, MrDenholm said “environment”, with the many diverse challenges it raises, will be his theme for his period inoffice, with emissions and ballast water issues high on his agenda for action.
The third BIMCO President from the Glasgow family shipping company, Mr Denholm said that thechallenges currently being faced by the industry are “more difficult and more complex” than those of thepast.
While an oversupply of tonnage might be nothing new, the consequences of this, he said, wereovershadowed by owners buying energy-efficient designs which will undoubtedly delay the return to amore balanced market.
The situation was not improved by the growing regulatory burden, which, he suggested, was driven by a “huge, politically inspired environmental agenda” which would impose significant costs on the industry at atime when it could least afford them.
Emphasising that the shipping industry remained the most environmentally friendly mode of industrialtransport, Mr Denholm suggested that the pressures the industry was under to reduce its impact on seaand air amounted to an “environmental siege”.
And while it was impossible to stop environmentallegislation, BIMCO, he said, was in a good position to ensure that it was “workable and affordable” and wasimplemented on a global basis, with the International Maritime Organisation pre-eminent.
The President said that the requirement for low sulphur fuels in both emission control areas and eventuallyon the high seas will be a “game changer” for many owners, who will be forced to burn low sulphur fuel orLNG, in the absence of some spectacular advance in exhaust scrubbing technology.
The availability ofdistillate fuel in sufficient quantities remains far from sure, and BIMCO, he emphasised, will be using itsinfluence to have the implementation of the legislation deferred.A further major challenge for owners, said Mr Denholm, is the IMO Ballast Water Convention, whereowners are at “huge risk” of investing in equipment that subsequently may not meet approval.
BIMCO willwork hard at IMO to see the timetable for this regulation loosened. On carbon emissions, the industry haddone what it can to reduce these through slow steaming and technical development and BIMCO continuesto argue that there is nothing to be gained by imposing artificial mechanisms to achieve targets.
Theseenvironmental issues, he emphasised, required solutions and he believed that BIMCO “could win both thepractical and moral arguments”.The incoming President said that the organisation would continue to ensure that the fight against piracywould remain a high priority as the problem had not gone away.
The BIMCO events in Paris also included the 100th anniversary of the BIMCO Documentary Committee andthe President paid a tribute to all those individuals down the years who had contributed to thedevelopment of standard documents and clauses and maintained BIMCO’s leadership role in this importantfield.
The BIMCO AGM also elected as President Designate Mr. Philippe Louis-Dreyfus, President of his familyshipping company Louis Dreyfus Armateurs. Members also elected as Vice-Presidents of BIMCO Ms.SadanKaptanoglu of Turkey and Mr. Young Min Kim of South Korea. Ms. Kaptanoglu is the first female to becomea vice-president in the organisation.
Tributes were also paid to the Secretary-General of BIMCO Mr TorbenSkaanild, who will be retiring from the organisation in the autumn.
Earlier at the BIMCO AGM 2013, members were given an exclusive presentation by the Deputy ExecutiveDirector of the International Energy Agency Ambassador Richard Jones.
The incoming President of BIMCO, Mr John Denholm is the Chairman of the old established Scottishshipping company J&J Denholm, and is the third member of his family to be President of BIMCO.
His greatgrandfather, also called John, was a founder member of BIMCO and President in 1927, while thePresident’s father Sir Ian Denholm, was BIMCO President from 1991 to 1993. A much diversifiedorganisation, the Denholm Group today is heavily involved in maritime and energy services.
Source: BIMCO