Thursday 20 May is European Maritime Day and is aimed at raising the importance of the sea and how it used. With an increasing environmental lobby pressuring the maritime sector and the world still slowly recovering from the global pandemic, this is a good opportunity to recognise how important the sea is to our industry.

As part of the day’s celebrations there will be an annual stakeholder conference co-organised by the European Commission which instigated the first European Maritime Day in 2008 as part of the EU maritime policy along with the European Council and Parliament.

This has been a difficult 18 months for the global economy but as in previous crises, the global maritime world – and shipping in particular – has sailed to the rescue of the world’s economy and in 2021, this is proving to be the case. The dedication and determination of seafarers; the commitment from ship owners, managers, operators and charterers; the diligence of the maritime authorities, all this has resulted in the shipping world fighting back and proving it remains the cornerstone of global trade.

Despite the ongoing pressures, the commitment of ship owners towards compliance with the latest greenhouse gas emissions reductions is commendable. Although welcome and much commended by the environmental lobby, the new low sulphur regulations from the IMO have placed real commitments, both financial and operational, on ship owners and managers. PISR has been assisting ship owners and operators over the past 18 months in dealing with the new regulations, finding the right services and helping them remain operational.

Our commitment to being the leading digital ship registry, the SMART registry that brings tomorrow’s technology to today’s ships, has given us a strong platform that will see PISR elevated to the Paris MoU Grey List in June this year. It is also a good time for us to remind ourselves that we have had five years of continued growth since our Piraeus office opened.

As we approach the European summer it promises to be an important period for ship owners. As the economic global recovery increases, we can expect greater demand for shipping. The maritime industry has risen out the storm and now is the time to play a united part in the battle to consolidate the growth of the past few months.