ABS Hosts EU ETS Conference in Athens
ABS hosted a high-level conference on EU ETS, in Athens, Greece, attracting 170 participants. The conference brought together senior maritime leaders, policy makers, government representatives, shipowners and financiers to explore EU requirements as well as discuss what owners and operators should consider for the transition into more sustainable operations.
Elias Kariambas, ABS Vice President, Business Development, delivered the introductory keynote speech and highlighted that if shipowners and operators have vessels which trade to and from or within Europe, then the inclusion of shipping within the EU ETS will have an impact on them.
The conference started with a regulatory update where Matthieu Moulonguet, Policy Officer at the European Commission provided attendees with an overview of the current and developing regulatory framework, as well as the compliance cycle for maritime transport.
The second presentation “The Banking Approach on the Green” Transition” delivered by Kostas Economou, Head of Shipping Finance at Pancreta Bank, focused on the role of banks in financing the transition to a green economy while considering the entire spectrum of risks and evaluating projects from both an economic and environmental perspective. George Laios, Deputy CEO at Intermodal, shared his insights on EUA’s price volatility and highlighted that it is vital to closely monitor changes in EU policy & sentiment and if the EU introduces more stringent emission reduction targets or introduces policies that affect the level of emissions covered by the EU ETS, this can increase demand for EUAs, and lead to higher prices.
ABS specialists, Maria Kyratsoudi, ABS Manager, Business Development, and Antony Vourdachas, ABS Principal Engineer, Global Sustainability, provided presentations on ABS services and solutions to improve operational and environmental performance.
Stamatis Fradelos, ABS Vice President, Regulatory Affairs, moderated the panel discussion “Inclusion of Shipping in the EU-ETS – Addressing the Challenges” bringing together senior industry executives Georgios Poularas, CEO at ENESEL S.A, Kostas Polydakis, CEO at MM Marine Inc., Kostas Economou, Head of Shipping Finance, Pancreta Bank & General Secretary of the ‘Association of Banking and Financial Executives of Hellenic Shipping, Matthieu Moulonguet, Policy Officer, European Commission, Nektarios Mamitsas, Directorate of Climate Change and Air Quality, Section for Market Mechanisms and GHG Emissions Registry, Hellenic Ministry of Environment and Energy to assess the changing regulatory landscape as well as address the financial challenges which will arise.
