Emanuele Grimaldi was officially elected president by the assembly of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which met in London. The Italian owner had already been appointed for one year (June 2021) as the next chairman of the organization that represents, on a global level, the national shipping associations and over 80% of the world fleet.
Now the official status of the assignment has arrived, with the end of the mandate of his predecessor, Esben Poulsson. Grimaldi is the first Italian to take over the leadership of the World Shipowners’ Association, having held the position of Vice President since 2016.
Moreover, the CEO of the Grimaldi group has already held various positions in national and international associations in the shipping world: from 2001 to 2003 he represented European shipowners as president of Ecsa – European community shipowners’ associations; and from 2013 to 2018 he was at the helm of the Italian shipowners, as president of Confitarma.
Goal net zero
Among the priorities that will characterize his mandate, he explained, there will be the reduction of emissions and the well-being of the crews. “The decisions we will make – he said after the election – in particular regarding the achievement of the net zero goal, could change the structure of the sector in the decades to come”.
Addressing the representatives of the national shipping associations present at the ICS assembly, he added: “I will rely heavily on your support to continue to be a strong voice of reason and common sense and, above all, of a common point of view for the ‘entire global industry, not just that of a particular sector or a dominant national interest’.