Aegean Bulk was established in Athens in 2000 with a clear objective: ‘To provide the safe transportation of cargoes worldwide with respect to the environment’. The company has today a fleet of five bulk carriers and a newbuilding programme for another eight ships: four Kamsarmax vessels with STX and four geared Supramax bulk carriers with SPP. These ships will be delivered in 2010 and 2011 respectively.
The DNV-classed Aegean Bulk fleet trades worldwide, and typical cargoes include iron, coal, grain and wheat. "We have initiated a programme with DNV to analyse our energy use and the results of this programme have been a positive learning experience for us, in which we have concluded that substantial energy savings are achievable through minor adjustments to our operations," says Haris B. Giantzikis, the Technical Manager of Aegean Bulk.
Captain Dimitris Mattheou, the Quality, Training and Environmental Manager, states that the Energy Efficiency and Fuel Management programme provided by DNV’s consulting arm is successful in achieving Arcadia’s goals of caring for the environment while also improving the fleet’s performance. "We have experienced the programme to be based on mutual respect, and the DNV experts have provided us with some very useful insights into how to improve our efficiency. The results of this will reduce considerably our overall CO2 emissions," says Mr Mattheou.
Phase one of the Energy Efficiency and Fuel Management programme had the following three main objectives: Assessment of the current company performance; Identification of potential improvements and Provision of decision material for further actions. In more detail, the following operational aspects were covered: Voyage Performance, Vessel Performance, Fuel Management, Main and Aux Engines Performance, Energy-Consumers, and Organisation & Strategy. Following the completion of the project, the company will produce an Energy Efficient and Fuel Management Plan with the aim of maximising energy efficiency by minimising the fleet’s CO2 emissions.
"The changes we have seen in global shipping over the last three quarters of a year have been rather dramatic, especially in the bulk carrier market. Examining all our operations is, of course, a good driver to get the process going, but is not the only driver. We are also concerned about the global environment, and we see that legislation will be adopted to curb emissions. One of the key challenges for us will be to maintain our sound reputation in the market by vigorously pursuing a policy of continuous improvements in safety, quality and the environment. Our ongoing work to achieve fuel savings and reduce atmospheric emissions is important in this respect," says Mr Mattheou.
"We are certified by DNV as being in compliance with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 for quality and environmental protection respectively. We have the OHSAS 18001 certification for occupational health and safety, certification for Risk Management Assessment and finally the Green Award – our vessel the M/V Afovos was the first ever bulk carrier to be given the Green Award for having met the stringent requirements related to quality, safety, environment, management and technical aspects. This means a lot to us, as all of this clearly demonstrates that we not only talk about these matters but also take them seriously and act accordingly," says Mr Mattheou.
Most Aegean Bulk Co Inc vessels are Greek flagged, with Greek officers and crew members from the Philippines. "We have developed our own training facility certified by DNV as a Maritime Training Center and this has really helped us to improve our performance and retain our crew members," concludes Captain Dimitris Mattheou.