AP Moller Maersk’s chief executive Nils Smedegaard Andersen took part in an open forum in the Bella Centre last night looking at the business vision for 2020.
Along with the Danish minister for economic and business affairs Lene Espersen and the award winning US author and columnist Thomas Friedman he gave his vision for 2020 and beyond.
“At the moment I have difficulties envisioning a world beyond 2020 where ships do not consume fossil fuels,” he said before an audience of hundreds of NGO representatives and mainstream press. ”They may be supplemented by other things, but the main fuel will still be fossil fuels.”
He then went on to say the best way to eradicate inefficient ships from the global fleet would be an increase in bunker fuel price. This he said would act globally and maintain a level playing field by putting an economic pressure on shipowners to economise fuel consumption and so reduce emissions.
While saying that Maersk will take the lead in developing environmentally sound shipping he said the company would not do it alone. If there is no level playing field Maersk would be forced to flag out to remain competitive.
Luckily for the Danish flag, Ms Espersen was on Maersk’s side. “”You can ask the big companies to lead the way, but you can not make them pay the whole bill,” she said.
Friedman pointed the finger at the USA. “The biggest problem is the USA without its innovation and then China hiding behind us.” He also pointed out the differences between China’s one party autocracy and USA’s one party democracy with its senate filled with denial of the problem.
One Comment
Smedegaard talking about outflagging is not a clever strategy if he truly wants a COP15 deal for shipping … it will only give the non Annex I countries another strong economic incentive for blocking an agreement on shipping in Copenhagen, thereby, as a result of the announced regional EU measures, boosting their flagstate earnings from EU-shippers escaping an european climate tax on bunkers.