Editorial of Ship&Offshore 7/2020: Vision of the future

By the time this issue of Ship&Offshore is published, the world most likely knows whether it has to put up with Donald Trump for another four years. As if Covid-19 and all the challenges, losses and restrictions it entails – both in our professional and private life – were not enough, we would then have to prepare ourselves for another autocratic presidency of the “largest democracy in the world”.

We are surrounded by uncertainty; nobody can tell how long it’s going to take until scientists find an effective, lasting vaccine or whether some sort of herd immunity can be established. Current handling of the pandemic shows how different countries and their governments react and adapt to the circumstances. And the United States is by no means a prime example of how to deal with it.

With his isolationist policy, Trump has shown in the past four years that he is not interested in any form of constructive cooperation, whatever the sector. What’s more, his opinion on global warming would pose a serious threat to the further expansion of renewable energy and the development of alternative fuels. And unless the US agrees to work towards stopping climate change, the efforts of other countries and continents will become obsolete.

Joe Biden, on the other hand, wants a collaborative approach and, thankfully, does at least not deny climate change. In fact, the Democrats acknowledge that potential renewable energy, notably offshore wind, could bring great opportunities, not only with regard to mitigating the impact of fossil fuels on the climate but also for the country’s economy and labour market.

The announced offshore wind expansion target of 25 GW by 2030 would still fall (relatively) far short of the German target of 20 GW in the same period, given the length of the two countries’ coastlines. However, the need for installation and supply ships associated with the expansion would probably also benefit the US shipbuilding industry.

But at the moment this is still a vision of the future.

Meanwhile, Covid-19 figures reach alarming proportions in Europe. The so-called second wave continues to keep the population and not least the maritime industry on its toes. I know that we have said this before, but the past few months have once again shown that our business does not lose sight of what is essential despite all the hurdles.

The decarbonisation of shipping and the elimination of emissions harmful to health and the environment still has to be – and is – the main focus of numerous R&D activities within the sector. This is of course also associated with the further expansion of renewable energy, such as offshore wind, among other things to produce the green hydrogen needed for the development of Power-to-X technologies.

The exchange and transfer of knowledge that is needed for the successful progress of new technologies is largely uninterrupted – even if it can often only take place digitally. At the recent Global Maritime Forum meeting, which was of course held virtually, its chairman Peter Stokes underlined that transparency, cross-value chain collaboration and public-private partnerships will be crucial to rebuilding the world economy post Covid-19 while addressing long-term challenges such as the climate crisis.

Fortunately, in 2020, we have the technology to connect the world, to have meetings with people on other continents, to continue business almost as usual. But of course, the players also need the will to interact and share their knowledge in order to make visions of the future a reality. Not only in Europe, or the United States, but worldwide.