CEO’s welcome to IBIA’s March newsletter

CEO’s welcome to IBIA’s March newsletter

It has been over a month now since I first met many of you at the IBIA annual dinner. What an enjoyable evening that was. We have pictures to prove it!

Time has flown by since I took up the post as Chief Executive in February. What’s caught my attention is the vast range of issues that IBIA tackles on a daily basis. This is a reflection of the fact that we are engaged in every aspect of the bunker industry value chain and with all stakeholders.

The other aspect that is a recurring theme is the quality and value of the personal relationships among IBIA’s vast network.

This is my first CE’s introduction to the monthly member newsletter. Welcome!

My predecessor, Peter Hall, has now officially retired from IBIA, and we are also seeing some changes to the board as of April 1 with two members stepping down and two joining. We are grateful to them all for their services to IBIA. 

This month’s newsletter is heavily dominated by events as IBIA’s secretariat and IBIA board members have been extraordinarily active during March.

IBIA’s IMO Representative and Communication manager, Unni Einemo, was invited to speak at the 9th Chemical & Product Tanker Conference about the challenges associated with the global sulphur cap in 2020. She has written a comprehensive report about discussions that took place about upcoming emission regulations for shipping, and on other issues affecting this sector. 

IBIA’s chairman Robin Meech and board member Eugenia Benavides spoke at the Panama Maritime XIII World Conference & Exhibition, which included a bunker session organised by IBIA. Eugenia reports from this event.

Our Singapore office, meanwhile, held a joint event with Lloyd’s Register and the Methanol Institute exploring alternative fuels and technology for 2020. 

We also have a snapshot from FUJCON 2017 from board member Nigel Draffin, who spoke at this well-attended event on behalf of IBIA.

We all know that 2020 will bring major changes, but what will those changes be? With less than three years to go, it’s important that we provide our members with all the advice they need to get prepared. This is the subject of a forum co-hosted by IBIA and the UK Chamber of Shipping next month, on April 19, and we hope to see you there. 

One thing we will see much speculation about is just how much the 2020 sulphur regulation will cost the industry. We all agree it will be costly, but how should it be quantified? We have been provided with an analysis based on modelling undertaken by Marine and Energy Consulting Limited, which you can read here.

Returning to the here and now, there have been two significant developments during March. News emerged that the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore had temporarily suspended the harbour craft licences of five bunker tankers while investigating irregularities that may have compromised the integrity of their mass flow meter systems. Some saw this as evidence that making MFMs mandatory isn’t working. We’d say it is working, but it also demonstrates that no regulation can be successful without effective enforcement, and it is reassuring to see that the MPA is making that effort. 

March also saw the publication of the sixth edition of the ISO 8217 marine fuel standard, which has been amended to addresses current industry trends. We take a look at what’s new and the reasons behind it. 

I hope you enjoy this ‘eventful’ newsletter. Do let us know if there are any particular subjects you’d like to see covered in future newsletter, not to mention what you, as a member, want from IBIA.

Justin Murphy
Chief Executive, International Bunker Industry Association
Justin.murphy@ibia.net

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