Global leader in smart technologies Wärtsilä has announced ‘An Oceanic Awakening’, an initiative focused on making the marine and energy industry more efficient and environmentally friendly.
The project will establish the SEA20 forum, to which industry figures from the world’s most important marine cities have been invited to participate in cross-border dialogue and a series of events and workshops.
It will focus on key areas within the supply chain – including port-to-port fuel efficiency, port congestion and communication between stakeholders – as part of creating a fully-integrated smart ecosystem.
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The company’s ambition is to connect 20 of the most influential marine cities by 2020 in a network that embraces digitisation and green legislation. Rotterdam, Hamburg and Helsinki are claimed by Wärtsilä to have already expressed support for the initiative.
Speaking about ‘An Oceanic Awakening’, Kari Hietanen, Wärtsilä’s Executive Vice President of Corporate Relations and Legal Affairs, said: “Our solutions have already been addressing sustainability needs in the maritime industries for years.
“But ‘An Oceanic Awakening’ demands change on a far wider scale. It’s time for the world to wake up to the genuinely transformative potential of the marine sector, and the role its rapid development will play in each of our lives.”
Jaakko Eskola, President of Wärtsilä, commented: “The calls for greater efficiency, sustainability, and connectivity are simply too strong to be ignored.
“Rapid acceleration to benefit the entire sector, as well as society at large, is urgently required, and ‘An Oceanic Awakening’ is our wake-up call to everyone, heralding the beginning of our journey to making the future of shipping and energy a reality.”