March 20 2014

March 20 2014

 GREEK   SECTION:   REPORT ON THE MARCH 20th, 2014, TECHNICAL MEETING

by Lambros Kaiktsis and Sofia Iliogrammenou

Topic: “The financials of LNG”

On March 20th, 2014, the Greek Section had its 7th Technical Meeting for the 2013-2014 season. In the presence of a good audience of 46 members and 15 non-members, including a good number of students of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) and of the Technological Educational Institute of Athens (TEIA), Dr. Panayiotis Zacharioudakis, Senior Researcher at the School of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering of NTUA, presented the above topic.

The speaker initially underlined the substantial increase in the number of LNG fuelled ships over the past decade, the excellent safety record of the LNG industry, as well as the necessity of further development of the LNG bunkering network. He then presented several aspects of the EU co-funded project “COSTA”, which aims at the development of a Master plan for the adoption of LNG in the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea and the Ultra-peripheral zone of the Atlantic Ocean. In particular, he emphasized on issues related to demand and supply analysis, and on technical and logistics solutions and their sustainability. A major part of the presentation focused on the prospects of the Piraeus Port as an LNG bunkering point, as well as on the retrofitting potential of the Greek short sea shipping fleet. The speaker also referred to the uncertainties regarding the future price of LNG, and to the corresponding implications for investments. The presentation was concluded with a reference to the financial and environmental benefits for the Greek state from the adoption of LNG, which are nonetheless associated with high initial investment costs.       

The seminar was followed by questions to the speaker and an interesting discussion on the topics addressed by the presentation. Main issues discussed were: (a) the currents status and prospects of utilizing shale gas, (b) whether the adoption of LNG as fuel is a transient or a long-term prospective for the maritime industry, and (c) the potential of other alternative fuels for the maritime sector. The meeting was concluded with the traditional reception of the local section in an adjacent hall of the MARAN & ALPHA Tankers Management building.

 

 in the photo ( from left to right ): A.Papanikolaou, Chairman; P. Zacharioudakis, Author; P. Lalangas, Secretary/Treasurer; L. Kaiksis, Papers Com.Chairman;G. Tzabiras, Vice Chairman in the new upcoming Exec. Committee.


the presentation can be found below
Presentation, Zacharioudakis, 20 March 2014.pdf