ATHENS, June 6 (Xinhua) -- The international shipping industry will take the decarbonization in its stride and move on from COVID, European Commissioner for Transport Adina Valean said on Monday in Athens.
The sector will continue to thrive in the future, holding a key role in the global economy, supplying chains and trade, as highlighted by the latest crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine-Russia conflict, she told a press conference here before attending the opening of Posidonia, a major international shipping exhibition.
According to organizers, the exhibition, which will run from June 6 to 10, has attracted nearly 2,000 exhibitors from 88 countries and 18,000 international visitors.
"Greece, the world's largest ship owning nation, is well placed to act as a tugboat, guiding the European shipping into a new era of more sustainable and more digital shipping," Valean added.
Greek shipowners today control 21 percent of global deadweight tonnage and 59 percent of the European deadweight tonnage, according to data from the Union of Greek Shipowners.
During the exhibition among others more than 30 tech startups will be showcasing their technological innovations designed to provide digital solutions to various challenges and problems facing the industry, Posidonia's organizers noted in an e-mailed press release.
The European Union is supporting the transition to a green and digital shipping, supporting research and investment for equipment manufacturers, ship builders, logistics and transport, the fuel industry, ports and service industry, Valean said.
Over 90 percent of traded goods are carried over the waves, according to the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
Shipping is also an industry leading the decarbonization drive. Under a regulatory framework adopted by IMO last year, the industry's carbon intensity must be reduced by 40 percent by 2030 compared with 2008 levels. ■