Greek Shipper Bets $1 Billion on Fuel Rule Upending World Trade

Changes to take effect in 2020 limit vessel sulfur emissions
Shipowner says thousands of vessels won’t be able to operate

A dock worker holds security bolts during shipping container loading operations at the container terminal in the Port of Piraeus, operated by Piraeus Port Authority SA, in Piraeus, Greece, on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2015. Greece is aiming to lease 14 regional airports and line up the sale of a majority stake in the port of Piraeus before the end of the year as the government attempts to rev up asset sales that have consistently failed to live up to expectations through successive bailouts.
Photographer: Kostas Tsironis/Bloomberg

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By Firat Kayakiran

December 21, 2017 at 12:01 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

A Greek shipowner is predicting new rules for marine fuel will put thousands of the world’s merchant vessels out of business in the next two years, roiling global trade. In fact, he’s wagering $1.1 billion on it.

Evangelos Marinakis, chairman of Capital Maritime & Trading Corp., based near Athens, says his company has invested that much in the last 18 months to upgrade its 71 ships spanning from oil tankers to container carriers. The rules, designed to clean up vessel emissions, will benefit more modern vessels and contribute to sending many older ones to the scrapyard, Marinakis said.