Close to 240 maritime leaders and professionals will gather in Singapore to identify priority areas for international action and exchange best practices in maritime technology transfer and capacity building at the Future-Ready Shipping 2017 Conference. Jointly organised by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the conference will take place from 25th to 26th September 2017 at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel.

2        Future-Ready Shipping 2017 is the second edition in the conference series which pioneered a global dialogue on maritime technology cooperation. The first, also held in Singapore in 2015, saw the launch of the GEF-UNDP-IMO^[1] Global Maritime Energy Efficiency Partnerships (GloMEEP) Project that is supporting 10 Lead Pilot Countries in addressing emissions from ships; as well as crystallised the concept of the Maritime Technology Cooperation Centre Network that has since become a reality (EU IMO GMN Project[2]).

4     A major development at this conference and in line with the theme of “Enabling Maritime Technology Collaboration: Bridging Gaps; Strengthening Partnerships”, two new members, Bureau Veritas and the Port of Rotterdam, will be welcomed to the IMO-GloMEEP Global Industry Alliance (GIA) in support of developing innovative solutions that will transit the shipping industry into a low-carbon future. Within the GIA, 16 like-minded industry players have joined hands to collectively address barriers to the uptake and implementation of energy-efficient technologies and operational measures.
 
5     “No stakeholder, alone, can deal with the complexities the planet faces in addressing the challenge of climate change. More than ever, we require collaborations at all levels. This Conference is therefore very timely in looking into ongoing and future collaborations that can drive discussions towards identifying opportunities that can have a transformational impact on the shipping industry as it moves towards decarbonisation,” said Dr Stefan Micallef, Director, Marine Environment Division, IMO.

6     Mr Andrew Tan, Chief Executive of MPA, reiterated Singapore’s commitment to the efforts of the IMO to promote greater understanding of energy efficient technologies for the shipping industry. “Both the Future-Ready Shipping Conference and UN-IMO GloMEEP Project contribute to the efforts of the IMO in building a more sustainable maritime transport system. As shipping is a global industry, close collaboration and dialogue amongst all stakeholders will help pave the way for the discussions ahead to tackle issues such as Greenhouse Gas emissions from international shipping. We will continue to support the efforts of the IMO in taking the lead on this."

7      Later this week, on 27 September 2017, Singapore and the IMO will host a workshop on the “Development and implementation of Maritime Energy-Efficiency and Emissions Strategies”. The workshop on maritime energy efficiency and emissions under the Singapore-IMO Third Country Training Programme, will be the first of its kind locally. In conjunction with the Future-Ready Shipping 2017 Conference, the inaugural workshop will provide a platform for participants to draw on the various insights shared during the conference and distill best practices and recommendations for countries seeking to embark on the development of national energy-efficiency and emissions strategies and policies. Representatives from the GloMEEP Lead Pilot Countries together with participants from other developing countries will be attending the workshop.

Dr Stefan Micallef, Director, Marine Environment Division, International Maritime Organization, exchanging handshakes with Mr Koh Yong Ping, Chief Executive, Marine Singapore, Bureau Veritas after the signing of the Global Industry Alliance (GIA) to support low carbon shipping at the Future Ready Shipping 2017 Conference. Looking on are MPA Chief Executive, Mr Andrew Tan and Mr Claes Berglund, Chair of GIA.

Group photo of Mr Andrew Tan, Dr Stefan Micallef, Mr Koh Yong Ping and Mr Claes Berglund with speakers and moderators of the Future Ready Shipping 2017 Conference