Lloyd’s Greek Shipping Awards 2023: Honoring the best Greek shipping companies and personalities – Economy Post

Greek shipowners and shipping company executives attended the 20th Lloyd’s List-Greek Shipping Awards 2023, sending a message that Greek shipping will continue to play a leading role on the world’s seas in the future.

The 20th Greek Shipping Awards event was held on the evening of Friday 1st December in one of the central hotels in Athens.

Two of the awards were particularly significant this year as they are given every 10 and 20 years respectively. These are the “Deal of the Decade (2014-2023)” and “Twenty Achievement Award (2004-2023)” awards.

The ‘Deal of the Decade 2014-2023’ award was given to Capital Product Partners LP (CPLP) and its founder Vangelis Marinakis because, as the evening’s presenters Andriana Paraskevopoulou and Nigel Lowry said, it achieved the most impressive deal in Greek shipping in the last 10 years. By separating the crude oil and product tanker industries, Vangelis Marinakis created one of the largest US-listed oil tanker companies in the world with 68 crude oil and product tankers.

At the same time, significant value was unlocked for its shareholders, with its fleet trading at a significant premium. This major $1.65 billion merger not only positioned the new entity as a market leader, but also ensured the continued growth of the CPLP Group with stable cash flows in the LNG and container sectors, demonstrating an intelligent understanding of the market and a strong economic strategy. Notably, the new entity, Diamond S Shipping Inc., has become a market leader with a large fleet and is well positioned in the market for another major merger with International Seaways, which today has a market capitalization of US$2.3 billion. CPLP investors increased by more than 110%.

Upon receiving the award, Vangelis Marinakis said: “What always makes me happy and excited is the journey and this journey began in 2007 on the Nasdaq stock exchange. In 2011 we had the first merger, and the agreement that we are talking about at the moment took place in 2019 and then we had another merger in… “2021. And all of these mergers have been very successful and have created tremendous value for our shareholders. So it’s not just about the journey, it’s also about sharing the success and sharing the wealth with our shareholders and of course with all the people in our offices and on our ships who have contributed so much to making all of these successful deals happen.” .

-L “20 Year Achievement Award” Sponsored by LPC it was awarded to the heads of Greek shipping companies with LNG carriers. In this way, Greek shipping has been honoured, which in 20 years, with almost zero existence in this specific sector, has managed to occupy a leading global presence in the field of LNG transportation. The awards were given to companies representing 90% of the Greek-owned LNG transportation fleet, namely TEN, TMS Cardif Gas, Alpha Gas, Dynagas, GasLog, Maran Gas and Capital Gas.

Representatives of Greek shipping companies with a fleet of LNG tankers

Annual awards by category

-Dry Shipping Company of the Year: Sponsored by Marichem Marigases, to Diana Shipping for steady growth in the dry bulk market and expansion in the wind farm sector. Simeon Palios, the award-winning founder of the company, confirmed that he organized the company in 1969. The award belongs to Diana Shipping and not to him. He estimated that the Greeks would also respond to the green transition and emerge victorious.

Matthew Moore, Simon Palius

– Tanker Company of the Year: Sponsored by Bureau Veritas, the award was presented to Tsakos Energy Navigation. Celebrating 30 years this year, TEN was also awarded for its longevity, the $800 million in profits it has distributed over the years and for its first dual fuel tanker on the water. Nikos Tsakos received the award and shared it with Captain Christina Tzoganato, who was next to him. “We need diversity,” said Nikos Tsakos, who described the previous year as bittersweet because it was a record year for his company but also the year he lost his mother.

Paget Palaiologou, Nikos Tsakos, Christina Tzoganato

– Passenger line for this year: The SWS-sponsored award was given to cruise company Celestyal Cruises, which was well-deserved as it successfully overcame the coronavirus crisis, while also bringing a new ship to Greece. The cost of its reconstruction amounted to a total of 26 million euros, of which $16 million was spent in Greece. Through its cruises, the company supports local companies and provides €136 million to the Greek economy. The award was received by the company’s general manager, Chris Theophilidis.

Chris Theophilidis

-Best Ship Broker of the Year: It was awarded by the sponsor Tsakos Group to Cass Technava Maritime, for its active and significant contribution to new construction orders from the Greeks. It participated in 66 ship orders out of a total of 260 orders from Greek shipowners. He also participated in 30 second-hand transactions. Receiving the award, Phaidon Toumazos stressed the need for the unity of the Greek naval family to triumph together.

Panagiotis N. Tsakos, Phaidon Tomasos

– Shipping Financier of the Year Award: The award, sponsored by Tototheo Maritime, was awarded to Alfa Bank, which has a portfolio of $3.5 billion. Dollars in shipping, including $1 billion in new financing in 2023. The award was received by Konstantinos Sotirio, Head of the Bank’s Shipping Department. Our mission is simple. We help our clients by financing their projects and supporting their cash flows in difficult times and challenging projects. We’ve been doing this for 25 years. “Thank you for your support and trust,” Mr. Soteriou said upon accepting the award.

Despina Panagiotou, Konstantinos Sotirio

– Artistic Achievement Award: Sponsored by DNV, the award was presented to Erma First for its new carbon capture storage (CCS) system. Eleni Polykhronopoulou received the award. We look to the future with more confidence than ever before. “We support decarbonization with solutions such as alternative marine fuels, energy saving devices and innovative carbon capture and storage solutions, for which we received this important award,” the woman said. Polychronopoulou.

Giorgos Triakidis, Eleni Polychronopoulou, Konstantinos Stampedakis

– Safety Award: The award, which was sponsored by Seajets, was won by Black Rope, which manufactures ropes and focuses on the safety of ships while anchoring, with a special scientific application that gives information in real time. Accepting the award, Aristides Deligiannis, the company’s founder, said: “We promise that we will continue to do our best to ensure the maximum possible safety on board.”

Marius Eliopoulos, Aristides Delegiannis

-Ship year: Sponsored by ABS, the award was presented to Antonis I. Angelicoussis of Maran Tankers, the first dual-fuel VLCC in the Greek-owned fleet, which emits 45% fewer pollutants. The award was received by Maria Angelikosi, who highlighted, among other things, that she is one of the first dual-fuel VLCCs, represents three generations of our shipping family, and flies the Greek flag, as do the majority of our 154 ships. We are a Greek-managed company and will remain so, because this is in the DNA of our company and represents our belief in Greece.

Vassilis Crostaalis, Maria Angelikosi

– Piraeus International Center Award: Sponsored by ClassNK, the award went to ship management company V.Ships, which in 2023 increased the number of ships under management by 15% while also investing in a new 3,500 square meter building. The award was received by Kostas Kontis who confirmed that V.Ships has achieved remarkable growth for 10 years, after the first decade with Costamare. This award is dedicated to our team who work hard with passion and dedication to ensure we provide quality service to our customers.

Kostas Countis

-International Personality of the Year: Sponsored by Capital Ship Management. The award was given to Emanuele Grimaldi, CEO of the Grimaldi Group, who is being awarded for the second time. He received the award for his successful leadership of ICS and the growth of his company, which has 26 ships under construction. Meanwhile, the Grimaldi Group acquired two Greek ports this year, the ports of Igoumenitsa and Heraklion. Accepting the award, Emanuele Grimaldi thanked the Hellenic Shipowners Association for its support of ICS while speaking about the two ports, pledging to do his best to keep costs low and develop them in the coming years with new environmentally friendly rules.

Gerasimos Kalogeratos, Emanuele Grimaldi

– Sailor of the Year: Sponsored by Safe Bulkers, Inc. The award was given to Captain Kyriakos Mouzakis, who started in sea shipping and then switched to coastal shipping, specifically in the Ionian Sea where he captained Adamantios Kourai of Zante Ferries. I have always been proud of my profession. “I could not be prouder tonight in particular, and it is a great honor to be with so many famous names, Greek shipping executives, and friends as they and the Greek crews continue to transport this great fleet,” Captain Mouzakis said.

Kyriakos Mouzakis

– Achievement Award in Education or Training: Sponsored by the Agency of the Cyprus Ministry of Shipping, the award was given to Helmipa Academy, for its educational platform that aims to train seafarers in matters of environmental protection. The award was received by Board Member, Mr. Georgios Karageorgiou, who stressed that Helmepa is working to improve safety conditions on board the ship by continuously providing new services.

Deputy Minister of Shipping of Cyprus Marina Chatzimanoli, George Karageorgiou

Lloyd’s List Intelligence Award for Big Data: Sponsored by the Panama Maritime Authority, the award went to Procureship, an online shopping platform for the shipping sector.

Julie Limberopoulos, Aris Manassakis

-Sustainability Award: The award, sponsored by Lloyd’s Register, was presented to Star Bulk Carriers, which is considered a pioneer in transporting dry bulk cargo, applying ESG principles and continuously and seriously modernizing its fleet. The award was received by Harris Plakantonaki, who stressed that we want to be among the companies that make this world a better place.

Harris Plakantonakis

-Next Generation Shipping Award: The award was presented to Petros Panagiotidis of Castor Maritime, sponsored by IRI/The Marshall Island Registry. “This award is a celebration of the achievements of my generation, but also a reminder of the amazing heritage we have,” Mr Panagiotidis said.

Theophilos Xanakoudis, Petros Panagiotidis

– Lloyd’s List/Propeller Club Lifetime Achievement Award: The award, sponsored by Franman, was presented to Nicholas J. Mondrea from NGM Energy, who indicated that it was an honor and a pleasure to receive this award and thanked the committee.

Kostis Frangoulis, Nikos Mundias

– Greek Shipping Personality of the Year: Sponsored by Eurobank, the award was given to Giorgos Prokopiou for the Group’s extensive shipping activity (62 ship orders, chartered FSRU in Germany) but also for investment in the Skaramangas shipyards.

Christina Margiulo, Giorgos Procopio