ABS Sustainability Summit 2023
Virtual Airing

Event Date: Wednesday, 27 September ,2023

Location: Online

Whether exploring new technologies or implementing alternative fuel options, lessons learned and insights gained across industries will help drive collaboration among key stakeholders within the maritime community and lead to smarter and more sustainable operations.

In this year’s Sustainability Summit, ABS and other leading voices will explore the emerging fuel value chains and the impact they will have on the evolving green shipping ecosystem and the global energy transition. ABS will present the findings from its soon-to-be released outlook which examines the latest regulations and technologies as well as the current state of the carbon, ammonia and hydrogen value chains.

• Remarks
  • Dr. Eamonn Beirne, Deputy Director, UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) at Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom
• Welcome and Introduction
  • • Christopher J. Wiernicki, ABS Chairman and CEO
• Keynote Speaker
  • Emanuele Grimaldi, International Chamber of Shipping Chair, President & MD Grimaldi Euromed SpA, & ICS Board Member ITALY
    
• Fireside Chat – Behind the Scenes of the Low Carbon Shipping Outlook
  • Panos Koutsourakis, ABS Vice President, Global Sustainability
  • Neville Smith, Director, Mariner Communications
• Panel Discussion
  • Mette Asmussen, Lead for Maritime Sector Initiatives, The World Economic Forum
  • Christopher Fee , Director Global Engagement and Sustainability Oldendorff Carriers
  • Bud Darr, Executive Vice President, Maritime Policy and Government Affairs, MSC Group
  • Sophie Parker, Transport Economist, The World Bank
  • Moderator - Julian Bray, Editor-in-Chief, TradeWinds

Speakers

Emanuele Grimaldi
President & MD Grimaldi, Euromed SpA, & ICS Board Member ITALY, International Chamber of Shipping Chair 

Emanuele Grimaldi  has covered top managerial positions within the Grimaldi Group, both in Italy and abroad.

Within the Group’s organigram, he has gradually taken the helm of the Euro-Mediterranean short sea services and motorways of the sea network, thus heavily contributing to their remarkable development over the last 20 years. Being currently President & Managing Director of Grimaldi Euromed SpA, Managing Director of Grimaldi Group SpA and Board Member of Grimaldi Deepsea SpA, President and CEO of Finnlines Plc, President of Minoan Lines and Malta Motorways of the Sea and Board Member of ACL.

Mette Asmussen
Lead for Maritime Sector Initiatives, The World Economic Forum

Mette Asmussen is the Lead for Maritime Sector Initiatives at the World Economic Forum covering industry decarbonization for the shipping sector as part of the Center for Nature and Climate. The World Economic Forum has incubated a number of specific initiatives and is ongoingly exploring how to leverage industry action to create impact. She has previously worked in the maritime sector five years in A.P. Moller Maersk and has experience from the public sector through roles in the Danish Ministry for Business and as Maritime Advisor for the Danish Foreign Affairs covering North America based at the Danish Embassy in Washington, D.C. She holds a master in Economics from the University of Southern Denmark.

Christopher Fee 
Director Global Engagement and Sustainability Oldendorff Carriers

Christopher Fee is currently Director Global Engagement and Sustainability at Oldendorff Carriers, where he has been working for the dry bulk owner and operator since 2013.

Christopher moved to the company’s Fleet Department in 2015 to establish a Green Ship Desk and is now engaged in Oldendorff’s sustainability and industry engagement activities.

He has been a Member of BIMCO’s Marine Environment Committee since inception, and presently chairs their Sub-Group on Alternative Fuels. He recently joined the Board of the Liberian Shipowners’ Council and was on the Executive Committee of the Clean Shipping Alliance from its inception in 2018, resigning as Vice Chair in 2022.

Bud Darr
Executive Vice President, Maritime Policy and Government Affairs, MSC Group

An experienced global maritime leader in the areas of policy, government, and related law, Bud Darr is Executive Vice President, Maritime Policy and Government Affairs of MSC Group which operates in 155 countries.

Having served in the US Navy, Merchant Marine, and Coast Guard, as well as being an accomplished ocean yacht racer, Bud's longstanding connection with the sea and ships is both personal and professional.

Bud began his education in Submarine Nuclear Engineering and later obtained his formal undergraduate education at the US Merchant Marine Academy, where he was trained as a Deck Officer. During his service with the US Coast Guard, he studied law at the George Washington University Law School. He most recently led the Maritime Policy efforts of the Cruise Lines International Association prior to joining the MSC Group in 2017.

Today, Bud is engaged across MSC's Cargo and Passenger divisions, continuing to develop and refine the company's central Government Affairs function, based at the Group's headquarters in Geneva. He is closely involved in MSC's response to developments in environmental public policy and regulation and other industry-wide issues such as greenhouse gas emissions, maritime security, safety at sea, and international shipping policy. He serves on the Boards for the UK Chamber of Shipping, BIMCO, International Chamber of Shipping, Liberian Shipowners' Council, and Society for Gas as a Marine Fuel. 

Sophie Parker
Transport Economist, The World Bank

Sophie Parker is a Transport Economist at The World Bank. She leads the group’s work on energy efficiency within the World Bank’s program on decarbonizing maritime transport. She is a lead author of the Poseidon Principles, Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance and SBTi’s Maritime Guidance and served as technical advisor to the Poseidon Principles and Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance while at UMAS. Sophie has a PhD from UCL in Energy and Economics, where she studied the spatial nature and role of energy efficiency in tanker markets.

Dr. Eamonn Beirne
Deputy Director, UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emissions (UK SHORE) at Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom

Eamonn has worked in the UK Department for Transport for 20 years. Much of his career has been dedicated to the decarbonisation of the transport sector and supporting new emerging technologies, including: delivery of the UK’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure, building the case for high speed rail development, the safe growth of the unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) and autonomous aircraft UK markets, R&D into low and zero emission aircraft, and the delivery of legislation for commercial spaceflight in the UK. Eamonn has also been Private Secretary to several previous Transport Ministers.

Eamonn is currently the Deputy Director for UK SHORE, a Department for Transport (DfT) R&D programme accelerating the technology necessary to decarbonise the sector. He also responsible for policy and regulations to decarbonise the domestic maritime sector and is currently working on delivering the update to the Clean Maritime Plan. 

Julian Bray
Editor-in-Chief, TradeWinds

Julian Bray is Editor-in-Chief of TradeWinds, the shipping business news publisher which since its launch 25 years ago has become a reference point for decision makers in the industry. During a career in business journalism, he has won awards for both reporting and editing and built a track record of product innovation having lead numerous newspaper, magazine and website launches and relaunches. In addition to his specialist knowledge of maritime commerce, he has also been a Correspondent for the Reuters news agency, written for national newspapers and magazines, and made television and radio appearances. Away from the office, a love of the natural work often takes him to wild and mountainous regions to walk, cycle, climb and watch wildlife with family and friends. He also has a passionate interest in politics, culture and music.