Bunker Industry at the Forefront of Shipping Transformation, Says IMO's Lim

IMO Secretary General Kitack Lim. Image Credit: IMO

IBIA today wrapped up its two-day annual convention, delivering it online for a second year while COVID-19 restrictions make travel difficult for some of its members.

The convention kicked off on Tuesday with a welcome address from IBIA Director Unni Einemo and Chairman Henrik Zederkof, as well as a keynote speech from IMO Secretary General Kitack Lim.

"There can be no doubt that we are in the process of evolution," Lim said in his speech.

"Future low- and zero-carbon fuels will need to be supplied to ships which are already themselves undergoing innovation in design and operation to meet mandatory IMO efficiency measures.

"To achieve this, new marine fuels will need to be developed and the infrastructure built to deliver these fuels to the ships.

"The bunker industry will be at the forefront of this transformation."

Over the course of the conference from November 2-4, IBIA arranged eleven panels with speakers from across the world discussing the key issues facing the industry, as well as two live workshops.

In the first day the panels covered the regulatory environment at the IMO and in the European Union, a conversation among top bunker executives about the state of the industry, shipping's difficult past decade and the energy transition over the next twenty years. The day ended with a workshop debating the future fuels the industry will be trading in before too long.

On the second day, panels focused on prospects for the industry across IBIA's five key regions, how marine fuels are priced, the current situation with bunker quality and the supply chain challenges in today's market. The day ended with a workshop discussing IBIA's changing role and how the organisation can better help its members and the industry more widely.

On the third day, panel discussions centred around the enforcement of emissions regulations, bunker licensing systems and mass flow meters and the increasing digitalisation of the bunker industry.

The 2021 Convention's full agenda can be found here: https://www.ibiaconvention.com/agenda-2021