CUS NEWS REPORT FOR WEEK 7 OF 2024

10^th February 2024 – 16^th February 2024

LOCAL NEWS

1. Four Leading Charterers at the 7^th Capital Link Cyprus Shipping Forum

After the great success of the International Maritime Conference “Maritime Cyprus 2023”, in the presence of prominent figures of the shipping community and the participation of high-ranking executives of two of the leading charterers in the field Cargill and Louis Dreyfus, this year’s Capital Link Conference’s Agenda is extremely interesting as includes panels and discussions with reputable speakers and moderators prominent figures of the maritime sector.

Having been established as a permanent meeting point of the global maritime community, this year’s Conference will provide a comprehensive overview of critical developments, contemporary challenges and prospects of the maritime industry worldwide. With a number of distinguished speakers, the Conference will host shipowners, such as Petros Pappas (Star Bulk), Semiramis Paliou (Diana Shipping), Andreas Hadjiyiannis (Cyprus Sea Lines), George Mouskas (Olympia Ocean Carriers) and Polys V. Hajioannou (Safe Bulkers), as well as the senior executives of four major charterers with a leading position in global shipping.

In particular, representatives from Viterra Chartering B.V., Olam International, Mercuria and EP Resources AG, will participate in a panel titled “Charterers' Perspective – Navigating Through Industry Transformation”, to discuss and elaborate from their perspective the market conditions and the evolving situation in light of current geopolitical and economic developments, shifts in global trade routes and supply chains, as well as to share their knowledge and views on the impact of upcoming environmental regulations, new technologies and alternative fuels for decarbonising shipping. Their participation will provide a significant perspective to the Conference’s audience, as they represent the sector that controls cargoes and international trade, and their opinion is of great importance.

The Conference is held under the auspices of the Republic of Cyprus and the Shipping Deputy Ministry with the Main Sponsor being the Cyprus Union of Shipowners. With a longstanding presence and qualitative dynamism in Cyprus maritime industry, the Cyprus Union of Shipowners contributes significantly to the further strengthening of the Cyprus Registry highlighting the quality characteristics of the Cypriot flag, which has emerged as a dominant and reliable choice of high-quality standards and strong performance among the leading registries worldwide, ranking 8th worldwide in the updated Paris MoU White List.

Attachment 1: Four Leading Charterers at the 7th Capital link Cyprus Shipping Forum

CAPITAL LINK: 7th Annual Capital Link Cyprus Shipping Forum - Agenda

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

2. Council Decision formally establishes Operation Aspides

On Thursday 8 February 2024, the EU Council published its Council Decision formally establishing “European Union maritime security operation to safeguard freedom of navigation in relation to the Red Sea crisis”. The EU stated that the operation dubbed “Aspides” will contribute to maritime security along the main sea lanes in an area including the Straits of Bab el-Madab and the Straits of Hormuz, as well as international waters in the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf.

The strategic objective will be to escort ships in the area of operations, provide situational awareness and protect ships from multi-dimensional attacks at sea, “in full respect of international law, including the principles of necessity and proportionality”, in a sub-area of the area of operations.

Greece assumed command of Operation Aspides. According to the Official Journal of the European Union issued on Monday, 12^th February 2024, Commodore Vasileios Gryparis has been appointed EU Operation Commander of the European Union’s naval mission in the Red Sea.

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3. NGOs pressure EU to include CII in its Port State Control Directive

On Monday, 12^th February 2024 five environmental NGOs have issued an open letter to the European Commission, to include the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) in the EU Port State Control Directive.

The open letter to mobility and transport commissioner Adina Valean, the EU Council and European Parliament rapporteur Vera Tax by environmental groups Environmental Defense Fund, NABU, Seas at Risk, Opportunity Green, and Transport & Environment, emphasises the importance of including climate pollution performance in the Union’s ship inspection risk framework using the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII), a global measure in force globally since 2023 under the MARPOL Convention of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

The European Commission also wants to include CII scores in how a ship risk profile is determined from 2026, with this decision being backed by the European Parliament.

A low rating of D or E would increase this risk and raise the likelihood of a port state inspection.

However, in December 2023, the ruling EU Council failed to endorse the move.

The EU legislators will have their final negotiations on the EU’s Port State Control Directive on the 19^th February 2024.

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