Maritime Week Las Palmas 2022, International Showcase For The Port Of La Luz
by Puertocanarias Tue, 06/14/2022
The private initiative, with the backing of the public administration, promotes in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria one of the reference appointments in the global port sector when it comes to accessing relevant information on the current market, and facilitating direct contact between its main actors. The independent firm Petrospot, specialized in the dissemination of specialized content in the maritime, energy and transport industries, and the organization of conferences and training events in these areas, organizes in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, between the 20th and 22nd of June, at the Hotel Santa Catalina, at the Royal Hideaway Hotel, the Maritime Week Las Palmas 2022 (MWLPA): an event also promoted by the business organization Oneport and PROEXCA,
Oneport's involvement
José Mayor, president of Oneport, highlighted that the preparation of the conference in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria has its origin in previous relations with Petrospot: “We are old acquaintances due to the many meetings we have had in international maritime events, and we had that longing common to organize a Maritime Week in the Canary Islands”, he explained. In addition, he announced that the event "is a reissue with the same format as those that have been organized in the most important maritime traffic ports in the world, in a sector and a model of conferences in which Petrospot has proven experience: London, Lisbon, Piraeus, Gibraltar, Panama...”. “In our case”, he added, “from Oneport we have acted as local coordinator, since these events involve a lot of work and a lot of local participation is also necessary.
Mayor stressed that “ports are living and active markets and the Port of La Luz and Las Palmas have these two conditions that make it worthy of hosting a conference of this type. It is very convenient for large operators to get to know us and check our port logistics. The Port is logistically robust and has to prove it”.
The president of Oneport thanked the support of the public administrations, which have given “incredible support, it is only necessary to see that no institution has been left without collaborating and with admirable speed, since we had little time to organize due to insecurity that caused covid-19. All public administrations have made themselves available to the organization: the Protuary Authority, the Government of the Canary Islands, the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, the SPEGC, Tourism of the City Council of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, PROEXCA... I have to say that there are very good professionals in the administration to promote this type of project”.
José Mayor stressed that the original idea that is reinforced with the sessions is to “consolidate and attract more and different types of traffic: we have to adapt and prepare ourselves. Our strategic position requires us to take this step, because situations and markets change. History has taught us that." To insist that “we want as many attendees as possible to attend, because we want this event to be consolidated in the Canary Islands and return in 2024. We are still receiving registrations. We hope for a good event. And top-tier companies sponsor and want to be here."
The conference will bring together the firms that lead international maritime transport, shipowners and shipping companies, supply and assistance companies, shipyards and naval repair companies, cruise and ferry operators, leading bunkering firms, maritime lawyers, insurers, representatives of the financial sector, suppliers, public entities, significant players in the field of energy and the commercialization of LNG, non-governmental organizations and experts in the maritime environment of recognized prestige.
Before all of them, the organization presents the Port of Las Palmas as the main maritime and fuel supply center in the Middle Atlantic, with a strategic service for the West African region; as a prominent location for the offshore sector, with proven experience in repair and assistance to its operators; as a port with consolidated logistics services and guarantees; and as a port area that has carried out an important automation and digitization program.
The Maritime Week Las Palmas 2022 program includes the delivery of a high-level course for professionals in the sector, and the presence of a panel of experts and speakers who will address issues of special relevance in connection with the current problems in international maritime transport. and the maritime industry. The main objective of the event is the creation of collaboration networks and the development of new relationships in the commercial actors that attend the event. And provide the different companies represented with a window of access to the activities of the Port of Las Palmas and its main private and public agents.
In fact, from Petrospot it is anticipated that the MWLPA "offers the perfect opportunity to meet the key people active in this extraordinary port, from suppliers of petroleum products and bunkering to terminal operators, ship suppliers and agents, companies specialized in the repair of ships and maritime equipment and representatives of the Port Authority”.
The program of talks
The presentations have been scheduled to start on Tuesday, June 21, in the morning session, at the Hotel Santa Catalina, with an opening in which the president of the Port Authority of Las Palmas, Luis Ibarra, the president of the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, Antonio Morales and the director of Petrospot, Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes.
During the morning there will be talks by Sebastian Grisaleña Sánchez (businessman and former president of the Canarian employers' association), Lourdes Trujillo (professor of Economics at the ULPGC), Matilde Asian González (former Secretary of State) and Guillermo Quintana Ramos (SPEGC), in a first Welcome panel to the Port of Las Palmas. Juan Francisco Martín (commercial director of the Port Authority of Las Palmas), Stanislas Violet (Senior Trader of Oryx Energies), Pablo Sansó (head of sales of EMEA, Minerva Bunkering) and Alexis X. Rodríguez (specialist in environmental protection of the Authority of the Panama Canal) make up the second panel, under the heading Doing business in Las Palmas.
In the afternoon, on the same date, presentations are scheduled by Carlos Giner Monleón (Head of Products Trading of Cepsa), the consultant Nigel Draffin, Claudia Beumer (Global Account Manager of VT Group), Mads Bjørnebye, (Manager of Teekay Shipping ) and Alejandro Romero-Filgueira (Project Manager of the Canary Islands Ocean Platform), in a monographic panel on The energy transition. The day will close with a fourth session on the role of women in the maritime sector.
On Wednesday, June 22, Iryna Krasnikava (Commercial Manager of Alfaship), José Mayor (Manager of Atlansea and president of Oneport), Germán Suárez Calvo (CEO of Astilleros Canarios, Astican) and Roberto Hernández de La Iglesia ( Business Development Director of Zamakona Yards), in a monographic panel on Maritime Services. José Segura Clavel (director of Casa Africa) and Germán Acevedo Vinoly (Operations Manager of
Wilhelmsen Ships Service Canarias) make up a final session on Supplying in West Africa.
On the same Wednesday afternoon, a tour of the Port is contemplated with the attendees, with stops at the facilities of Minerva, TESS, the terminal and Addax, SGS, Astican and Zamakona Yards.
The sessions include three spectacular evening receptions, sponsored by Oryx Energies, Minerva Bunkering and Cepsa, which seek effective networking among those attending the event at the Santa Catalina, a Royal Hideaway Hotel.
Training course
Before the presentations, on Monday, June 20, Petrospot organizes a training course aimed at professionals in the sector, given by Nigel Draffin, former Head of Operational Economics, responsible for all the fuel purchased for the Shell fleet. Draffin has been involved in shipping for over 50 years, and bunkering for over 25 years. He also served for LQM Petroleum Services, where he was a senior broker and technical manager. He has written a dozen books on bunkering and shipping and is director of the Petrospot Academy. He is also a member of IMarEST and Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Fuellers.