Maritime Regulation and Compliance Expert, Dr Dakuku Peterside, on Monday said decarbonisation and the wider green maritime concept represented not only a regulatory imperative but a significant competitive advantage for the global shipping industry.
Peterside made the declaration as a keynote speaker at a high-level webinar organised by Naturehedge in collaboration with the West Africa Green Economic Development Institute (WAGEDI), Gregory University, SSA Hub, and the Sustainable Energy Practitioners Association of Nigeria (SEPAN).
Peterside, a former Director General/CEO of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), addressed a virtual room of ship owners, operators, port authorities, financiers, regulators, and energy partners.
He laid out a compelling vision for an industry at crossroads.
“Green maritime is about environmentally sustainable practices, technologies, and policies that reduce impact on the environment,” Peterside stated during his presentation on the topic: “Green Maritime: Strategy and Operations Beyond Optics”.
However, he was quick to move beyond mere definitions, emphasising that green maritime was a multidimensional lever that affected cost of operations, access to capital, profitability, and the very license to operate.
With 2026 bringing tighter International Maritime Organisation (IMO) carbon-intensity rules and expanded EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) exposure for shipping, Peterside stressed that the future belonged to organisations that combined decarbonisation, digitalisation, innovation, and operational excellence.
He framed green maritime as a source of measurable operational advantage and resilience, not just environmental branding.
The webinar delivered a practical, operations-led roadmap to help stakeholders navigate the new terrain.
The strategies discussed included voyage optimisation, just-in-time port arrivals, the transition to alternative fuels (methanol, ammonia, and LNG), the deployment of digital tools, and safety-aligned training.
According to the meeting, compliance is merely the floor; true competitive advantage comes from embedding sustainability into daily operations, data, and finance.
Prof. Magnus Onuoha, President of the Governing Council of REEEAA and BOT Chairman of SEPAN, said the webinar served as a precursor to a major strategic pan-regional workshop to be held in Accra, Ghana.
“This workshop aims to consolidate the gains of the webinar and drive tangible action in Africa’s maritime sector”.
Also, adding an international perspective on operational efficiency, Madam Hermione Manuel, Managing Director of Damen Shipyards in South Africa, highlighted green maritime as a confluence of competitive advantage, sustainability, and compliance.
She cited hybrid vessel initiatives at her shipyard as a testament to the viability and necessity of this approach.
Organisers announced that the webinar series would continue, with the Accra workshop featuring Dr Felicia Mogo, the first African woman appointed to the United Nations group of experts on Marine Environment and Socio-Economics.
Mogo would be speaking on “Navigating Sustainable Growth: Business Model Innovation and ESG in the Maritime Sector and Blue Economy.”
The initiative aims to strengthen Africa’s strategic and operational capacity for maritime decarbonisation and sustainable shipping development.
The webinar concluded with a confirmation that the series would continue periodically, leading up to the physical workshop in Accra.
This sustained engagement is designed to ensure increased strategic and operational expertise in Africa’s maritime industry decarbonisation, positioning the continent to lead in the global green transition.
Organisers announced that the series would continue while the Accra workshop would featured Dr Felicia Mogo, first African woman appointed to UN experts on Marine Environment and also for Director in NIMASA.
Mogo would speak on Navigating Sustainable Growth: Business Model Innovation and ESG in the Maritime Sector and Blue Economy for African stakeholders.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the initiative seeks to build Africa’s strategic and operational capacity for maritime decarbonization, positioning the continent to lead in the global green transition.(NAN).
