The European Union will announce 22 new commitments for better governance of the oceans, on the sidelines of the 2019 Our Ocean conference. The EU is also launching ‘The Ocean Tracker’, an interactive map to follow the over 10 billion euros commitments already made.
During a green inland shipping event that took place on 16 October, five innovative vessels called at the Port of Brussels to show technological solutions for cutting CO2 and air emissions to a minimum. These included zero-emission technologies, such as battery-electric, gas-electric, ultra clean biofuel power drive-trains and hydrogen.
A global network of maritime technology cooperation centres has completed an array of pilot projects over the last three years, aiming to drive forward the changes which are necessary to reduce GHG emissions from shipping.
The UK and EU struck a deal on Brexit, on Thursday morning, October 17, now waiting for the British parliament’s vote, with the UK Chamber of Shipping welcoming the agreement and ensuring that they will continue to trade freely with its European partners.
After the US imposed sanctions on subsidiaries of Cosco, European refiners have received an unexpected boost, as less crude oil from the North Sea and West Africa heads east, Reuters reports. What is more freight rates have risen as oil producers seek non-blacklisted vessels.
WindEurope’s newly-launched ‘Wind Energy Outlook to 2023′ highlights that there is an uncertainty on how EU’s wind energy will develop in the following five years, something that will be primarily impacted by the Governments’ moves and results to the fact that the UK will hold the 35% of offshore wind in this timeframe.
The Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez announced that Yavuz, the Turkish drillship, was planned to start drilling for oil and gas, on Monday 7 or Tuesday 8 October in the southwest of Cyprus, an announcement that would further intensify the friction between the countries.
In view of the challenges facing the Arctic due to global warming, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Ann Linde, and European Commissioner Karmenu Vella, stated that the EU is strongly committed to helping the region adapt to climate change.
In a letter to the EU’s Chief Negotiator for the exit of the UK from the EU, Michel Barnier, ECSA and its member the UK Chamber of Shipping, strongly urged for a negotiated settlement that includes a transition period. The letter underlines the economic repercussions on both the EU and the UK, in case of a no-deal scenario at this late stage.
The Iranian tanker Adrian Darya 1, which has been at the center of a diplomatic dispute between Iran and the West over the summer, has offloaded oil in Syria, said US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday, calling on the EU to condemn Iran and hold Tehran accountable.
