INTERCARGO affirms leadership role in representing dry bulk shipping
INTERCARGO re-iterated its commitment to a safe, efficient, high quality and environmentally sound dry bulk shipping industry at its semi-annual meetings which were held last week. The Executive Committee and the Technical Committee convened over two days via videoconference, and the meetings were presided over by Chairman Dimitris Fafalios, Vice Chairman Spyros Tarasis, Vice Chairman Uttam Kumar
Jaiswal, and Technical Committee Chairman Tom Keenan.
The agenda focused on the need to urgently resolve the humanitarian crisis faced by seafarers under
COVID-19 and other associated crewing issues; DryBMS as a quality standard for the dry bulk sector;
initiatives for the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; the safe carriage of cargoes; bulk carrier
design standards; the investigation of bulk carrier casualties; ballast water management; implications of
the sulphur limit on fuels; and piracy threats.
Key outcomes of the meetings were:
Crew changes and vaccinations: Top of the agenda was the continued lack of universal recognition of
seafarers as key workers. Despite the industry’s efforts, and the active support of INTERCARGO, seafarers
continue to be overlooked by world governments, facing a lack of both access to medical services and an
efficient and prioritised worldwide vaccination programme.
Dimitris Fafalios, INTERCARGO Chairman, reiterated: “While the UN IMO and global maritime
organisations’ efforts must permeate every area of the shipping industry, urgent action outside the
maritime sphere is needed by government leaders at the highest level. Universal commitments for
collective action are imperative to resolve the seafarers’ humanitarian crisis and to keep global trade
moving. Coordinating a worldwide vaccination programme for seafarers is an urgent priority.”
DryBMS – a quality standard for the dry bulk sector: The Association reviewed the progress of the
scheme, following the public consultation which was launched earlier this year. A historic milestone for
the dry bulk sector, INTERCARGO and RightShip are founding partners of DryBMS, under which safety,
environmental and operational excellence are promoted through company self-assessment.
GHG: INTERCARGO discussed its active engagement in the IMO deliberations regarding the finalisation of
short-term measures, comprising the Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) and Carbon Intensity
Indicators’ frameworks. Following an initial version, INTERCARGO has also co-sponsored, the updated
proposal for the $5 billion R&D industry programme to catalyse the vital research and development
needed to help shipping meet the UN decarbonisation goals.
In the context of measures designated as medium-term ones, INTERCARGO has been since long a leading
proponent within industry organisations of the reopening of the Market Based Measures discussion at
IMO, and affirmed it will maintain a leadership role for its membership and the dry bulk sector.
www.intercargo.org | info@intercargo.org
Quality & operational excellence of INTERCARGO membership: The Association shared with its members
its latest annual Benchmarking Report for dry bulk carriers, which again demonstrated that vessels
registered with INTERCARGO continue to significantly outperform industry averages in respect of both
detentions and deficiencies per inspection.
Membership of INTERCARGO is widely recognised by the shipping industry as a marker of excellence, and
this exceptional record is a testament to the quality of the Association’s membership, which continues at
the historic high levels of 2020, a doubling since 2017.
As the current circumstances have allowed virtual hosting only, with social/networking events postponed
until more opportune times, the Association has created , a special electronic compilation of promotional
material from our Members, which is available on a dedicated webpage here 1 and and which will be
continually updated with further contributions.
The Association will hold its next semi-annual meetings in October 2021. A face-to-face event is planned
to run alongside these meetings, in celebration of its 40 year anniversary (1980-2020), following the
virtual celebration earlier this year, and complementing the previously published anniversary publication
“INTERCARGO – The First 40 Years” (please refer here 2 )
About INTERCARGO: International shipping is vital for the global economy and prosperity as it transports
approximately 90% of world trade. The dry bulk sector is the largest shipping sector in terms of number of ships and deadweight. Dry bulk carriers account for 43% of the world fleet (in tonnage) and carry an estimated 55% of the global transport work. You are invited to view our video Dry Bulk Shipping: Sustainably serving the world’s essential needs3 .
The International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO) unites and promotes quality dry bulk shipping, bringing together some 220 forward thinking companies from 30 countries and representing close to 25% by deadweight of the global dry bulk fleet. INTERCARGO convened for the first time in 1980 in London and has been participating with consultative status at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) since 1993. INTERCARGO provides the forum where dry bulk shipowners, managers and operators are informed about, discuss, and share concerns on key topics and regulatory challenges, especially in relation to safety, the environment, and operational excellence. The Association takes forward its Members’ positions to IMO, as well as to other shipping and international industry fora, having free and fair competition as a principle.
1 https://www.intercargo.org/electronic-compilation-of-promotional-material
2 www.intercargo.org/webinar-40yrs & www.intercargo.org/first-forty-years
3 www.intercargo.org/video-2020
