Greek shipping has a vital role to play in addressing the global energy crisis
We are currently facing the most profound global energy crisis of recent times. Household gas and electricity bills are rising as the world’s energy landscape has radically changed. With winter approaching, bringing a higher demand for heating, shipping fleets have been working non-stop to ensure vital fuels are transported across continents.
In the race for energy independence, I want to highlight the important role that Greece plays as a leader in global shipping.
The Greek-owned maritime fleet plays a dominant role in the shipping industry – it accounts for 21% of the world’s tonnage and 59% of the EU’s fleet. According to KPMG, Greece ranks 1st globally in ownership in merchandise vessels and the average size of Greek ships is almost double that of the global average, with Greek ship-owners operating in high-volume markets.
The geography of Greece has worked to our advantage for millennia, with the longest coastline in the Mediterranean and our role as a natural gateway, the place where Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa all meet.
In this modern age, shipping is systemically vital for the EU. It connects European businesses and supply chains with international markets. International trade would also not exist without an efficient and dependable shipping industry.
With disruptions to natural gas pipelines over the past year, caused by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, governments have looked to liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an alternative. This fuel can be transported on boats in liquid form rather than through fixed pipelines, enabling greater flexibility to move the gas from producing regions to other markets. This has generated a rapid increase in LNG carrier shipping demand; without supplying LNG and alternative fuels around the world, the energy shortages we are witnessing would be even more severe.
The current energy crisis has unfortunately highlighted that our world cannot suddenly move from carbon intensive energy sources to renewables overnight. Nevertheless, we must strive to limit the planet’s warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to prevent severe climate disruptions that could aggravate severe hunger and drought worldwide.
Pragmatic actions are key in our global attempt to push energy prices back down, whilst also reducing emissions and meeting climate change targets. By doing this, we must ensure that the poorest are not impacted by economic hardship from the energy crisis whilst also guaranteeing that we maintain progress to address climate change.
Shipping has a vital contribution to make, and the Union of Greek Shipowners’ (UGS) has made important commitments to ‘green shipping’, promoting cleaner practices to enforce emission control alongside port and equipment management to decarbonise maritime transport. With such a vast fleet, Greece is ideally placed when it comes to new innovations or vessels that are aimed at making shipping more sustainable, such as alternative marine fuels.
The role of my country’s shipping fleet in facilitating the flow of goods around the world, in helping to keep the lights on in this energy crisis, and in pioneering solutions to protect our planet, should not be underestimated.