Senior shipping figures to debate emerging trends
Challenging issues pertaining to the global shipping industry will be tabled and debated during a series of conferences, panel discussions and seminars at this year’s Posidonia Exhibition.
Government officials, industry analysts, financiers, shipowners and exhibitors attending the Posidonia Conferences & Seminars Programme, will be discussing the future trends and projected developments in various shipping sectors as exhibitors and visitors will be mingling on the exhibition floor of the 50,000 square metre Athens Metropolitan Expo in search of new business and partnership opportunities.
“While networking and deal-making is a key Posidonia feature, the exchange of knowledge and ideas about the future of our industry is an important pillar of our event, providing a significant added value to some 1,870 exhibitors from an all time record 93 countries, and some 18,000 expected visitors,” said Theodore Vokos, Executive Director, Posidonia Exhibitions S.A.
The conferences programme kicks off on June 3rd, a day after the official opening of Posidonia 2014, with the Business Briefing’ of the TradeWinds Shipowners Forum.
Scheduled for an 11.00 start, the briefing will discuss a wide range of issues from the entry, exit and influence of private equity to the buoyancy of public markets, niche lenders and alternative sources of finance, trends and challenges in chartering, newbuilding and second hand activity, the future for Futures, vessel design, life-span and construction and the question of fuel efficiency going forward.
Future trends in vessel design and technology will be in the spotlight. There has already been much discussion over the value of today’s so-called eco ships. Panelists will offer their opinions on whether and when the eco ships of today – still simple steel boxes – might become truly high-tech; what the future role of composites and the next leap in bridge technology may be; And no discussion on vessel design would be complete without a fuel/emissions debate and an attempt to identify the main stumbling block to LNG as a fuel.
Of vital importance to many of the companies exhibiting at Posidonia is the market appetite for newbuildings and the conference programme will explore various issues pertaining to the sector.
The 2nd session of the Tradewinds Shipowners Forum will be opened by Militiadis Varvitsiotis, Minister of Shipping, Maritime Affairs and the Aegean, and will afterwards debate the impact of Chinese financing to support Greek newbuildings, protection against unreliable charterers, investment risks of dual fuel and of course the big question of tonnage overcapacity.
Other highlights of the Posidonia Conferences and Seminars programme during the Posidonia week include press conferences, workshops, roundtable discussions and seminars on issues ranging from maritime risk management to injury and illness at sea and from energy savings and eco-ship technologies to maritime communication.
Future developments in vessel design, composite materials, fuel emissions and technological breakthroughs will also be some of the main topics to be discussed at Posidonia 2014, and will be addressed in the following conferences and seminars, amongst others:
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“Ever since we introduced the Posidonia Conferences and Seminars Programme, we have seen the industry welcome and support such events and we are delighted with the final programme, the quality of our speakers and the diversity of topics to be debated,” said Vokos.
“We look forward to welcoming all delegates to an exciting few days of debates and deliberations as Posidonia is once again about to set the global agenda for the maritime industry,” he added.
Source: Posidonia Events
