PRESS RELEASE

RINA Hellenic Technical Committee Highlights Innovation, Growth, and Decarbonization at Athens Meeting

Athens, 16 June 2025 – The recent meeting of the RINA Hellenic Technical Committee (HTC) convened maritime leaders in Vouliagmeni, Athens, to discuss the future of the shipping industry amid evolving environmental regulations and digital transformation. Key themes included the impact of MEPC 83, RINA’s continued global growth, advancements in sustainable fuel technology, and a strong emphasis on innovation and collaboration.

“Shipping must be viewed as an ecosystem where knowledge sharing is vital,” said Spyros Zolotas, Vice President for RINA’s Marine South Europe Region. “Meetings like HTC allow us to exchange perspectives, address real challenges, and collectively shape the future of our industry.”

Continued Global Growth and Local Strength

Chaired by Theo Baltatzis, General Manager of Technomar Shipping, and Akis Tsirigakis, CEO of Nautilus Energy Management Corp., the session celebrated RINA’s fourth consecutive year as the fastest-growing classification society. In 2024, RINA saw a 12% year-on-year increase in fleet size, now overseeing nearly 8,700 vessels—82.9 million GT—including 780 Greek-controlled ships representing 30% of its total tonnage.

Regulatory Focus: MEPC 83 and Beyond

Michael Markogiannis, Head of Greece Plan Approval, and Antonis Trakakis, Energy Transition Solutions Technical Director, of RINA shared insights into the anticipated impact of MEPC 83 outcomes, including draft amendments to MARPOL Annex VI, CII targets for 2027–2030, and the SEEMP 2024 revisions. They also outlined the IMO’s roadmap toward 2029 and beyond.

Driving Decarbonization through Technology

Pieter Van Den Ouden of the RINA Marine Excellence Center discussed fuel cell developments compatible with methanol and LNG, achieving climate neutrality through sustainable production. “The fuel cell systems offer long-lasting, high-efficiency performance, whether powered by hydrogen, methanol, or LNG,” he noted.

Digital solutions were also in focus. Olga Dratsia, Performance Manager of Alberta Shipmanagement showcased the benefits of integrating RINA’s SERTICA platform fleetwide, enabling real-time monitoring to meet regulatory requirements and boost efficiency. “Chosen for its accuracy, flexibility, and expert support, SERTICA helps us enhance operational insight and compliance,” she said.

Strategic Insights

RINA experts Marinos Anastasiou,Key Account Manager New Buildings, and Nikos Michas, Tanker Segment Manager, highlighted the company’s growing role in the newbuilding market, particularly in bulk, tanker, and gas segments. The strategy emphasizes full-lifecycle services, innovation, and regulatory compliance.

Innovation and Collaboration

The meeting also spotlighted RINA’s involvement in SEASTARS, a €9.85M Horizon Europe project to deliver optimized vessel designs and decarbonization strategies using model-based systems engineering. “RINA being a forward-thinking organization, it’s the only classification society in this ambitious initiative. RINA has an extensive knowledge on the related field and extensive involvement on the R&D projects” said Dr. Stefanos Chatzinikolaou of the University of Piraeus.

Finally, Michael Vrettos, RINA Marine Cyber Security Expert, introduced RINA Open Innovation Hubs—a global network of innovation spaces where maritime companies, startups, research institutions, and academia can collaborate, explore and invest in transformative ideas. The initiative focuses on various domains such as digital technologies, alternative fuels, blue economy, fleet optimization, and decarbonization, aiming to drive marine innovation and sustainable transformation in partnership with RINA.

RINA, leading certification and engineering company, provides a wide range of services across the Energy, Marine, Infrastructure & Mobility, Certification, Industry and Real Estate sectors. In December 2023, alongside the majority shareholder Registro Italiano Navale, Fondo Italiano d'Investimento SGR entered the shareholding structure guiding a pool of co-investors. With revenues in 2024 of 915 million euros, 6,200 employees and 200 offices in 70 countries worldwide, RINA is a member of key international organizations and an important contributor to the development of new legislative standards. www.rina.org   

Contatti 

Giulia Faravelli   

Global Communication Executive Director RINA  

+39 348 6805876 

giulia.faravelli@rina.org   

Paolo Ghiggini   

Global Media Relations, Social Media & Content Director RINA  

+39 340 3322618paolo.ghiggini@rina.org   

Victoria Silvestri    

International Media Relations Manager RINA    

+39 334 6539600    

+44 7825 842731    

victoria.silvestri@rina.org   

Angeliki Xylaki    

Europe Communication Manager RINA

+30 210 4292144    

+30 6974104996   

Angeliki.xylaki@rina.org