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Energy: Moving it & Using it EDITOR’S DESK E nergy. We start 2014 with great energy and optimism for a robust and prosperous year in this, the most international of all businesses. That en- thusiasm, however, should be tempered with the knowledge of what is in store for maritime stakeholders in terms of regulatory, fi nancial and operational pressures; all lurking just over the proverbial horizon. These are curious times. For example, consider that for the fi rst time in decades, the North American part of the global shipping equation fi nds itself in arguably better position than its foreign fl ag cousins. Energy, of course, has a lot to do with that metric. When it comes to energy, no one perhaps has more of it than Tom Crowley, Chair- man and CEO of Crowley Maritime. If you want to keep up with him these days, then you better strap on some high end waterjets. Central to the theme of this edi- tion, Crowley’s business plan calls for robust expansion that takes its roots, in part, from the energy boom now permeating every sector of the domestic waterfront. That it embraces a Jones Act model to do so, says even more. What comes next for the privately held $2B plus per year U.S.-based transport and logistics organization with a fl eet of more than 200 U.S.-fl agged vessels is therefore one of the year’s top stories. The discussion begins on page 32. Apart from the energy that literally fuels the world of shipping – both in terms of business planning and what goes inside the engines of world’s waterborne com- merce – the interaction of IACS classifi cation societies, quality open ship regis- tries, global and local regulators and the cutting-edge technology that links them all combine in 2014 to shape the way forward shipowners and energy producers everywhere. IRI President Bill Gallagher tells MarPro this month that the success of the Marshall Islands fl ag has a lot to do with IACS members and, in the same breath, says that shipowners, caught in a time of stagnant freight rates and regula- tory pressures, increasingly look to the fl ag state for help when solving those tricky technical problems. That symbiotic relationship can be applied to a dozen more maritime stakeholder relationships. Turn the page and fi nd out how, why and when it will come to pass for you. This edition – and your business model – wouldn’t be complete without including technology in our discussions. And, it doesn’t matter what sector of global shipping in which you fi nd yourself slow-steaming across the seven seas. The rapid infusion of technology into newbuild and existing hulls alike is no longer a pricey luxury add-on to consider. Those who fail to incorporate at least some aspect of remote monitoring, management tools or other analytical assistance will eventually fi nd themselves going the way of the T-2 tanker. All of which brings us full circle to a red hot U.S. shipbuilding cycle that includes as many as a dozen newbuild tank vessels on domestic order books. It’ll take energy to get all of that done. Who saw that coming? Joseph Keefe, Editor | keefe@marinelink.com 8 I Maritime Professional I 1Q 2014 MP Q1 2014 1-17.indd 8 2/26/2014 1:16:15 PM
