Executive committee

Executive Committee members Lars Mossberg and Stephen Van Dyck have completed their maximum term on the Committee; Hans Jørgen Firing and Michio Tamiya have resigned from the Committee as they pursue other business interests.

We are delighted to welcome three new Executive Committee members as confirmed by Council:
Herbjørn Hansson – Chairman & CEO, Nordic American Tanker Shipping, Bermuda
Costis Kertisikoff – CEO, Eletson Corporation, Greece
Kristian Morch - Group Senior Vice President, Maersk Tankers, Denmark

The following Executive Committee members were re-elected for a term of up to 2 years:
Amir H. Azizan, AET Inc.
Bengt Hermelin, Samco Services (as Vice-Chairman)
David C. C. Koo, Valles Steamship (as Vice-Chairman)
Emmanuel Vordonis, Thenamaris Ships Management
Graham Westgarth, Teekay Shipping (Canada)
J. H. Lee, SK Shipping
Patrick Decavele, Brostrom Tankers (as Vice-Chairman)
Robert E. Johnston, OSG Ship Management
Stefano Rosina, Premuda

New members

INTERTANKO welcomes twelve new members with 71 tankers of 7.1m dwt, giving it around 80% of the independent tanker fleet.

Aksay Denizcilik Ve Tic,  Delta Tankers,    Exmar Shipmanagement,   Hyundai Merchant Marine,   Rederi AB Gotland,   General National Maritime Transport Co,    Makro Shipping & Ship Management,   Atlas Maritime,          Portunato & Cie,          Vietnam Ocean Shipping Co,         Grupo TMM,        YaSa Tankercilik Ve Tasimacilik, Unigas Kosan

INTERTANKO also welcomes thirteen new Associate Members, taking the total up to 330.

Conoco Phillips,   Consilium Marine Group,   Ecopetrol,    Fidena, Gallagher Marine Systems,              Inchcape Shipping Services,      Kalmar Maritime Academy,     Norwegian School of Mercantile Studies,    Singapore Polytechnic,   Sonatrach,    Spectec Holdings,   Sumitomo Heavy Industries Marine & Engineering,     Survival Craft Inspectorate

New Regional Panels

INTERTANKO has confirmed an expansion of its Regional Panel structure. The Hellenic Forum is   extended to include Mediterranean membership, and there a new Northern European Regional Panel is being formed.

Proud of our performance …

We have a great record of improvement over the last 35 years. It is not just the ships and their equipment that have evolved, but the people on board those ships and the people ashore have changed too. We are as an industry increasingly determined to strive for perfection. And we have a record that we are proud of.

Oil tankers are cleaner than ever before. Today’s tankers are more efficient than ever before.

The tanker fleet is younger than it has been for 30 years - by 2010 over 85% of the tanker fleet will be double hulled, and operating with the latest environmentally-friendly machinery and systems.

We are proud of our performance – but lest we should feel complacent, we do not forget that we are striving towards the Poseidon Challenge zero goals - zero fatalities, zero pollution, zero detentions.

… but misgivings over tanker incidents
It is with increasing misgivings that we note the upturn in reported tanker incidents since 2004 – although oil pollution figures have not followed this upturn they are still higher than last year. From an all-time low in 2003, incidents have climbed back up to the levels not see since the late 1990s – still well below the levels seen in the 1980s and early 1990s, but nevertheless too high for comfort.
The number of tanker incidents increased in 2007 to 326 incidents, an increase of 22% over 2006’s 266 incidents. This compares to an increase of 65% in 2006 over 2005’s 161 incidents. Unfortunately both the number of fatalities and the amount of pollution increased in 2007 (61 fatalities and 17,250 tonnes pollution) over 2006 (40 fatalities and 10,000 tonnes pollution), but the overall pollution trend has not followed the overall incident trend.
The cause? Fingers are pointing towards increased transparency and more reporting, towards hard-worked ships and crews in a succession of strong markets, towards the manpower shortage that has meant some taking shortcuts in training and recruitment. We are determined to work with the rest of the shipping industry, in particular with the P&I and hull insurance sectors, to find out the cause of this unacceptable rise in incidents and to develop appropriate responses.

Human element

At the forefront of INTERTANKO’s activities this year will remain the human element, with a focus on tanker officer training standards (TOTS), cadet berths, seafarer recruitment, education and training,  STCW revision, and habitability and accomodation standards. We continue to encourage members to increase the number of filled cadet berths, to provide education and training on board ship as well as ashore, and to help make the tanker industry something that today’s good young people really want to be part of.

Our Human Element in Shipping Committee (HEiSC) is looking at how best to identify incentives to attract more people to go to sea; at creating initiatives to enhance the time onboard for serving seafarers; at identifying new sources of potential sea staff.

HEiSC is in touch with a number of major maritime universities worldwide. This has led to renewed interest in these maritime centres becoming associate members of INTERTANKO, and thus strengthening the working relationship with us. It is apparent that many of these maritime training centres have a surplus of both sea staff and further educated ex-sea staff. We are working closely with these establishments to bring ‘supply’ into contact with ‘demand.

TOTS - Tanker Officer Training Standards – is intended to provide the tanker industry with a standard that ensures tanker officer competence through onboard and shore training, evaluating time in rank and time with company and also easing the problems and difficulties that tanker owners are encountering with the different officer matrix requirements of certain charterers.  Importantly, TOTS also aims to address the current increasing trends in tanker accidents. (See separate press release).

Air emissions

INTERTANKO has welcomed the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environmental Protection Committee’s (MEPC 57) agreement on its package of amendments and revisions to MARPOL Annex VI (Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships) which, subject to formal adoption at MEPC 58 in October 2008, will enter into force through the tacit amendment procedure in February 2010.

Addressing regional and global concerns on sulphur oxide (SOx), nitrogen oxide (NOx) and Particulate Matter (PM) emissions from both new and existing ships in an integrated manner, these measures bring shipping into line with the rest of the transportation industry, protect our environment, and improve the living conditions of those who live and work on ships or near ports.

INTERTANKO is satisfied that the goals set by its Council have been fully achieved, with realistic and feasible revisions ensuring a solid platform of requirements to provide a global, long-term and positive reduction of air emissions from ships, and to contribute to a long-term and predictable global regulatory regime.

Air emissions will remain high on the agenda throughout 2008 – with GHG issues remaining a top priority. INTERTANKO’s Council has endorsed an extensive work programme covering further development of a matrix of GHG reduction options for new and existing ships, an evaluation of CO2 measurement indices for new ships and ships in service, continuing assessment of market mechanisms – such as emission trading, carbon levies and other incentivisation schemes - ,as well as other issues including carbon capture and shared research programmes.

We will also be working with the IMO and with a wide coalition of industry partners to support an ambitious schedule of work to reduce GHG emissions from shipping.

Brussels representative office

INTERTANKO has established a representative office in Brussels. This will broaden and strengthen the Association’s links with inter alia the European Commission, Parliament and Member States; Representatives; and also with the Association’s long-standing Brussels consultant ADS Insight.

The international shipping community realises the significance of Brussels to its business and sees value in being there and working together. Although the institutions of the European Union have finalised a number of regulatory measures of relevance for the tanker industry, there are no indications that it will cease its interest in maritime issues. INTERTANKO has since the 1990s played a progressively constructive part in the European Union’s development of its maritime policy. An enhanced presence in Brussels is a natural development of this.

Annual Review and Report 2007/2008

We commend  to you INTERTANKO’s Annual Review & Report 2007/2008, with a theme of Proud of our People, Proud of our Ships. it includes a review of our activity from our Chairman and Managing Director. It also contains market comment, and it looks at the pride some of our members take in their environmental achievements and their ship construction. It shows the variety of active services that the Association can offer its members and it showcases the winner and runners up from our Heavy Weather photo competition. It demonstrates the breadth and depth of our Committees and Regional Panels and provides up to date listings of the Association’s Officers and Secretariat, its Council members, Members and Associate Members.

23 April, 2008

Contact:

Bill Box, INTERTANKO Communications and Public Relations Manager,
Phone: +44 20 7977 7023    Mobile: +44 774 380 1487
E-mail : bill.box@intertanko.com