International Chamber of Shipping elects new chairman
The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has elected Masamichi Morooka of Japan as its new chairman at the body’s agm held this week in Australia. He replaces Spyros Polemis of Greece, who stood down after six years as chairman, Seatrade Asia online reports.
“My primary task will be to ensure that ICS continues to represent the considered views of the entire industry,” announced the new chairman, a longstanding NYK executive and former president of NYK Europe. “This means reflecting and reconciling the opinions of different ship types and trades, different national viewpoints, and the interests of shipping companies big and small.”
“Within ICS there are perhaps three big challenges on which we will need to focus this year,' he continued: 'the elimination of piracy, the challenge of reducing CO2 emissions, and our response to proposals that must be expected from governments following the ‘Costa Concordia’ cruise ship tragedy. More generally, ICS will continue to fight for the maintenance of global rules for our global industry, and continuous improvement with respect to our safety record and environmental performance, bearing in mind always our ultimate goal of zero accidents and zero negative impact on the environment.”