• Stena is active in markets that fluctuate a lot. When bad times arrive, my first reaction, has always been:
  “Have we done anything wrong? How shall we correct our operation and behavior?”
• This time no commercial people could have foreseen the vast consequences of this pandemic.
• Importantly this means we cannot blame anyone nor ourselves for being unprepared.
• We are lucky in the sense that for a long time we have worked a lot to create quality and safe procedures at work. This means that we are aware of all details of our operations and a meticulous job in organizing change facing the new situation has been done quickly. From the first day working from home has thus been possible and has served us amazingly well. Doing the necessary cost cutting and reductions that follow the substantial reduction in volumes that we are experiencing has only been possible thanks to a fantastic loyalty by everyone and the good husbandry instigated over a long previous period of time.

It’s great to see how well we’ve coped with working remotely. Despite that, innovation is taking a negative hit. Planned work is doing fine, but ideas coming by chance are less, when people do not chat at random with each other. Many of us miss the contact with our colleagues and I am grateful for all the efforts made to keep a good spirit and energy up. And on the positive side new ways of working with a mixture of being at the office and at home could attract new talents to enroll with different Stena teams. This could sharpen our communication and capacities in the long term.

By being fully occupied now, doing crisis management, must not prevent us from making efforts to understand the reality of the big long term gradual shifts that are taking place and how to accommodate ourselves to them. I am thinking among others on sustainability issues, future fuels and energy saving.

Sustainability means for me to work in an inclusive manner in everything we do. That is the real meaning of care to me. In caring for people, we shall continue being clear on expected behavior according to Stena values and take actions on deviations. Gender harassment is not a big problem for us. Women though are not well enough represented in all levels of our units. This year every business unit must therefore focus on gender diversity in all recruitments for key positions and in succession planning. In every action we must remember to explore different collaboration opportunities in order  to strengthen diversity of perspectives.

Our human relations activities will continue to focus on culture and behaviours, in order to help us being engaged and forward leaning striving for faster learning. Creativity and innovation shall be helped by advice on new modern leadership and new ways of working safeguarding wellbeing. This is complex and not easy. With hope and care we can manage and I shall come back to these issues during this year.

Our efforts to reduce our environmental foot prints are not enough to match future requirements to be put on us by a public getting more and more nervous about the effects of pollution, by miniscule spillages and the threat by CO₂ on our climate. Each business has therefore quite difficult innovation objectives for 2021.

In short for shipping they are to develop a new short sea ferry the Stena Elektra to be completely run on batteries as a pathway to zero emissions. Already today we are contemplating an investment case a for battery pack on newbuilds 7 and 8. Concepts for zero emission fuels for deep sea vessels vary, but are far from perfection. Possible but not definite avenues are methanol, hydrogen and ammoniac.

We continue our success to reduce emissions with at least 2% annually for the workloads we perform. During 2021 Stena Property aims to reduce their greenhouse footprint with 8%. By managing five pieces of property by AI algorithms Stena Property expects to start and maintain a new positive trend. The number of railway connections to our ferry terminals are increasing. This year we hope to add two new ones. Our experiments with bio fuels as a transportation fuel renders attention and we hope to conclude ten charters based on bio fuel for this year. By our digital tool Orbit we can support our charterers´ emission reductions. In everything we do we shall encourage customer centric thinking and interaction. Stena Recycling gives eight million tons of CO₂ produced content back to society in their recycled material every year. Stena Recycling is also a leader in the Scandinavian countries by recycling dangerous industrial residues in fixed and fluid forms.

The project leading to Stena Renewable electricity generating windfarms started in 2005 Stena Renewable is today the largest privately held on land windfarm operator in Sweden with 113 windfarms in operation and 88 windfarms under construction. In addition, the company has a project pipeline of another 200 windfarms. By starting Batteryloop we hope to develop a strategic pathway for a sustainable, non-asset based, repetitive business. The business idea is to reuse and recycle old batteries.

Since twenty-five years we have worked to create a safe atmosphere and environment for our tenants living in apartments owned by Stena Property. Without getting into details, we shall keep on upscaling the activities in Relation Management to maintain our leading position in this market. For good reason Stena Fastigheter has been awarded Residential Property Company of the Year.

Care is namely our motto in everything we do and on that note.

I want especially to thank all our people onboard our ships and drilling units for your efforts and patience. I realize that being away from your loved ones for longer periods must be especially tough and worrisome in these covid-times. Due to different national restrictions international crew changing is very difficult for many of you, meaning that you’ve had to be away from home much longer than normal.

Dan Sten Olsson

Göteborg February 2021

When I was a university economics student in the mid-1990s, I was deeply involved in what was then called the EC issue, whether Sweden would become a full member of the EU. My commitment arose after a year in Holland as an exchange student and during the time I lived in London. For me, it was important that Swedish citizens would also be covered by the Maastricht Treaty, that it would be easy to shop, travel and, above all, move between the countries of Europe. That we Swedes would have the same opportunities as my friends in England and Holland. And it happened! In 1995, Sweden became a full member after an exciting referendum in which 52.3% of the population voted yes to the EU.

Now, during the pandemic, we can see that the simplicity of moving between countries in Europe has become more difficult, that the impact on business is considerable, as it is for us individuals.

The maritime industry, as well as the service industry in Europe, has been dependent on migrant labor for decades. How the restrictions will affect peoples’ mobility and ability to move between countries in the future is something we do not really know, but some rough trends can be discerned.

Hygiene and protective equipment will continue to be important; we will continue to focus on health and our own well-being, both physically and mentally. We will have a higher awareness of choosing green alternatives, and the expectations of us as employers are that we will take greater ethical and more sustainable responsibilities.

Ethical leadership with a clear moral compass guiding our decisions is something that will become increasingly important. At Stena, we already have clear guidance from the White Book and the Code of Conduct.

Working remotely will remain even after the pandemic, but not for everyone and perhaps not for every working day. Our personal well-being will to a greater extent guide us in how and where we work.

This year has begun with Brexit and a pandemic that continues. It produces a feeling of melancholy and concern for the health of our loved ones. But regardless of the fact that travel has become more difficult and borders have been closed, I still see myself as a proud European. Our cultural differences enrich us and are also what makes Stena such an exciting workplace that I am proud to be a part of. Our employees who meet our guests in daily operations are my heroes.

I’m now looking forward to spring, warm weather and vaccine.

Take care and stay safe.

Margareta Jensen Dickson

Head of People, Stena Line

TRISH CRAIG, HR MANAGER, STENA DRILLING

At Stena Drilling the last year has been one of the most challenging in memory.  With the low oil price and a Global Pandemic we have seen contracts cancelled, vessels being down-manned and redundancies, flight restrictions, border closures and mandatory quarantines.  However there’s much to be positive about as the market has picked up, the oil price is on the rise and we have learned how to run our vessels COVID free by developing our own protocols.

HANNA SCHØNNEMANN, HEAD OF PEOPLE, STENA BULK

With employees in different locations across the world, the pandemic has affected us all in various/countless ways. Different countries – different measures. However, our work lives have been turned upside down as working from home, social distancing, home-schooling, split-teams and online meetings have become part of a reality which has brought both difficulties and challenges but also new ways of working and adapting. All learnings that in one way or the other will impact our ways of working once the vaccines kick in.

MARGARET MCFADZEAN, GROUP HEAD OF HR, NORTHERN MARINE GROUP

We have been in some form of lockdown for nearly one year, which is hard to believe! While the mass vaccination programme brings some light, it seems there is some way to go before we see any form of normality returning. Working in this environment has been cyclical, bringing different versions of opportunity and challenge. We have all found different ways to adapt and I think our own agility has been tested! It is imperative that we learn from this experience and even through the very dark times that the nation has experienced during the pandemic, I think we have all tried to focus on the good: the many things that this has expedited and the opportunities that we have seized, be it professional or personal. For me, this experience has cemented the importance of true collaboration and unity through our values. When this is strong, anything is possible.

IAN HAMPTON, CHIEF PEOPLE AND COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER, STENA LINE GROUP

The COVID pandemic has shown us all the importance of our relationships; whether collegial or family. For some of our employees they have now been homeworking for one year. The mental effects of the pandemic has yet to be fully understood and may well take a number of months if not years to recover from those effects.

We have however within Stena Line seen that our people have across all the countries we operate show great resolve, dedication and commitment; the organization has needed to reshape to survive the effects of the pandemic, however for those employees whom remain as colleagues they have continued to serve our customers in to the best of their abilities.

Stena Line has physical not been immune to the pandemic, vessel have suffered acute outbreaks as have our offices.

Brighter days will come, opportunities for us all and for the company are waiting for us and we must all remain positive towards the future.

KRISTIN ARBY, MANAGER HR AND BUSINESS EXCELLENCE, STENA STÅL

A lot of our co-workers are working from home, with challenges related to changed ways of working, work environment and social distancing. We also have co-workers who can’t work from home. They are affected by challenges such as an increased workload and more risk of exposure of the virus.

Our challenges today still vary from workload to social distancing and not having full control over ‘what’s going to happen tomorrow’. All managers have made a risk assessment for their team, in this way we’ve been able to work proactively and reduce the risks as much as possible. Teamwork, shared learnings and activities with a common goal has been our best way to deal with our day to day challenges.

MARIE BERGSGÅRD, HR MANAGER, STENA FASTIGHETER

This has truly been a year of great challenges and change for all of us. Our learnings and experiences has been many. We have adjusted to more digital ways of working, meeting new requests and questions from both employees and customers, and in the same time trying to predict our future work place. But also fully understood how important human connection and collaboration are to us.

However, even if we are in the middle of the pandemic,  we must keep an eye on the future and plan ahead for the new normal. I think it is important that we all need some fun, inspirational things to look forward to when we can meet again.

LINDA MICKELSON, HEAD OF HR, STENA REDERI AB

The past year has shown us how important it is to be able to handle a crisis and help and support each other during hard times.

The pandemic has forced us to find new ways of working and learn how to handle digital meetings and working from home. Although the pandemic has brought something good in the ability to turn digital.

Unfortunately I think that we will suffer from the effects of not having social interaction and physical meetings were we can discuss problems and solve them over a cup of coffee. Hopefully this may change as the vaccination is in progress and we are able to meet again.

Committed employees drive customer loyalty and create internal and external ambassadors. Following up and measuring this is therefore very important. In 2020, we procured a new tool for measuring employee satisfaction to get a clear connection to research in the area and access a large database for benchmarks.

The new supplier is called Brilliant.

We call our new employee survey “Stena Pulse – it starts with you”. This is to clarify that everyone has an important role in the work of creating the best conditions for us to do a good job. As you know, the work environment is not just a place. It is also about how we act towards each other. 

The recommendation is to respond honestly, put the areas for improvement on the agenda and work with them in your team. We use a focus process that results in an action plan where we want the activities to become concrete behaviors.

The EU made an effort to project that they have a progressive agenda with regards to protecting the environment, democratic institutions and creating a global rule-book for the digital tech industries. 37% of the EU budget is now earmarked to projects that promote “The Green Deal”. There is much focus on protecting not only the environment but also biodiversity. Hydrogen seems to be the chosen panacea. The Chinese spoke a lot about a rule based multilateral world, but also committed to 100% climate neutrality by year 2060. Putin was half an hour late, as was president Trump last year, and spoke about the dominance of US and Chinese tech giants. John Kerry, the US government’s point person on climate, has attended all previous Davos meetings that I have been to, but he has been on the fringes. Now he was center stage. My personal favorites to listen to are prime minister Suga of Japan and president Moon Jae-in of Korea who both provide slightly different perspectives.   

The World Economic Forum management further developed their concept of what they call “stakeholder capitalism”. It is a complex discussion on how we can make our democratic market based systems more inclusive, ensuring that also wider societal challenges and interests are being addressed. The ultimate purpose of the corporation is up for discussion. There is no doubt an urgency in rallying support for rule based global trading systems, global harmonization of tax regimes and general support for good governance based on democratically supervised institutions. A global carbon tax was a recurring topic for discussion, which previously has been a taboo subject. Despite several finance ministers and central bankers contributing to the meetings, macro-economic theory seems to be in a flux and the world is now in uncharted territory – but seemingly, many companies are doing very well. Interestingly Brexit was hardly mentioned at all – obviously the world just wants to get on with life.

Within the Teams format the World Economic Forum also arranged about a hundred smaller topical working groups. The fact that they managed to co-ordinate about 3,000 individual attendees is testament to how proficient we have all become in working on-line. It was striking that about 75% of the seminars had some kind of environmental angle. “Sustainability” is now what “digital” was 15 years ago.

For natural reasons, I was involved in some of the logistics seminars, where the main themes continue to be “transparency”, “optimization” and “collaboration across value chains”. Covid-19 vaccine distribution was discussed at length. It seems that we have sufficient global distribution capacity, except for cold chain availability in the remotest locations in Africa and Pacific. Administrating the vaccinations as such, however, seems to be a very different matter.

In light of corona-disruptions manufacturers are starting to take supply chains seriously, demanding much more from transport providers. The large forwarders are scrambling and seeing huge opportunities. There is a push from cargo owners to support small suppliers and a general call to just get started – rather than waiting for the larger systems, solutions or strategies. Last mile delivery is the big challenge, but also a space where it seems that nobody is making any money. Maybe a sign of the times was that there were no seminars explicitly addressing mainstream fossil energy and fuels.

In previous years the most valuable aspect of the Davos-meetings has been the one-on-ones with customers, suppliers and other players in our markets. These interactions did not take place this year, which made the week very different. Previous years the week in Davos has meant an intensive program from the very early morning to well past midnight for five strait days. The week has been packed with new views, perspectives and relationships – but not this year. The organizers are planning for a physical meeting in Singapore in August  instead.

We have to be humble to the fact that the world is both diverse and dynamic. There is no general consensus as to what the solutions are, sometimes not even on what the challenges are. Especially in these days the importance of forums that gather initiated conversations and are fact-based and genuine can’t be overestimated. Let us hope and pray that Covid-19 will lose its grip of the world, now that the vaccines are on their way.

Increased oil consumption, which entails greater demand for tanker transports, is the most important factor, which according to Concordia Maritime’s President Kim Ullman is reason for optimism in the months ahead. “With oil consumption increasing more than oil production, oil stocks in the world are constantly declining and when a certain level of inventory is reached, production and export of new oil must come up to speed again. At today’s pace, this will occur sometime later in the spring.”

“What we have been through during the latter half of 2020 and the beginning of 2021 has been a true acid test for the tanker market, but it is also a prerequisite for the market lifting in the short term – we have to attain balance in the markets,” says Kim Ullman.  

ANOTHER POSITIVE FACTOR IS LOW FLEET GROWTH

“During 2021 and 2022, net growth in the global tanker fleet is expected to be around 2 percent, which is historically low,” says Kim Ullman. “At present, virtually no new orders have been placed for ships, which means an extension of the low growth rate. In addition, we are seeing a continued trend towards longer transport distances as emerging countries in Asia are expected to account for a growing share of increased oil consumption. This entails increased distances and thus increased transport needs as well.”

Despite the fact that the market is weak at the moment, all vessels have fairly continuous jobs, and no vessels are in lay-up.  Consequently, even small increases in demand for tankers will have a big impact on cargo rates.

Concordia Maritime has set its sights on optimal preparation for the expected upswing.

“During the spring, we will continue the work with periodic maintenance and upgrades of vessels, including installation of systems required by law for purification of ballast water. Once the market turns, we will be able to put full focus on serving our customers – and thereby actually start making money again,” says Kim Ullman in conclusion.

“We are very happy for this prize,” says Cecilia Fasth, Managing Director and CEO of Stena Property. “That we’ve received recognition for our continuous efforts in our neighborhoods during the pandemic year in particular, warms my heart a little extra. I would like to thank all our colleagues, partners and customers who have given that little extra in 2020.”

Stena Property, Wallenstam and SKB were the finalists and the competition was tough, but it was Stena Property that took home the prize. The prize was awarded during the Fastighetsgalan event, which was broadcast digitally this year. The organizer of the event was World in Property in collaboration with Lokalguiden, with New Property Group, PwC and Heba as partners.

Jury’s statement: This year, the prize for the property management company of year goes to a company that despite the pandemic, had a particularly good year with continued strong demand for both tenancies and condominiums, entailing that the company sold homes at a higher rate than expected. The company has also been able to keep pace with new production and invested in upgrading the company’s existing properties. They work for the long-term and continue to improve the neighborhoods in which the company operates. This with a clear and strengthened work with sustainability, something that has attracted attention and been praised a number of times during the year, and also shows that sustainability and business acumen go hand in hand.

BACKGROUND TO THE QUARANTINE REQUIREMENT

In order to support the continuity of our international contracts, we agreed together with our clients  to put in place arrangements to ensure that both our personnel and those of their contractors and subcontractors underwent time in a managed isolation facility.  By doing this and ensuring that all of those concerned worked to strict protocols, the exposure of personnel to Covid-19 would be minimised, thus allowing them to continue to mobilise for their offshore working rotation. 

WHO IS REQUIRED TO ISOLATE?

Anyone who is transiting to one of our offshore drilling units working internationally is required to complete the appropriate quarantine regime according to their end destination. Broadly, the same process applies for each of our clients but each one is set up slightly differently according to each client’s specific requirements. In addition, the personnel from the clients’ other contractors who are also mobilising to the same drilling unit are required to undergo the same quarantine as our personnel. For certain contracts, this can also include onshore personnel who are mobilising internationally in support of that contract. 

HOW DO THE ARRANGEMENTS WORK?

We have set up contracts with a number of hotels in order to support the agreed quarantine arrangements with our various clients. Access to the facilities is strictly controlled by our Staging Team onsite who are responsible for managing the day to day arrangements at each location. The team is key to the success of the whole quarantine setup and primary duties include maintaining the live register of personnel isolating, managing day to day protocol issues to ensure adherence to these and arranging PCR sample testing. The Staging Team is also responsible for investigating any protocol breaches as well as any Covid-19 positive cases along with who these personnel may have been in contact with. 

The Staging Team also prevents unauthorised personnel from accessing the hotel without the proper approvals first being in place and this includes security guards and cameras to assist.

All costs associated with the quarantine at each hotel are carefully recorded in order that these can be recovered from the client in line with the agreed terms.

QUARANTINE – WHAT’S IT LIKE?

Prior to mobilising for their typical offshore rotation, our crews are required to isolate at the quarantine facility for a minimum of fourteen days. During this period,  each quarantining individual is required to have two negative PCR tests and to undergo two daily temperature checks and are required to stay within the hotel complex to maintain the integrity of their quarantine bubble. Any individual with a positive result is further isolated and our medical provider is involved and the individual is either sent home if possible or isolated off-site immediately.

It is important to emphasise that the bubble integrity is critical. Personnel are only allowed out of their rooms to either pick up their meals or attend the exercise / smoking area.  Meal times are strictly controlled with meals scheduled to be picked in ten-minute intervals so as to limit the number of personnel collecting their food at one time and the meals must be consumed in their rooms. As you might imagine, being in quarantine can be quite boring and to help to relieve the boredom, some individuals have brought gaming consoles from home.

While in quarantine, the ‘traditional’ hotel housekeeping services are not available so cleaning products are provided within the hotel room, together with spare linen, towels and toiletries for use as and when required.

DEPARTURE FROM THE FACILITY

On their departure from the quarantine hotel, only personnel who have been Covid screened (2 x negative PCR test results) and who have completed the full staging process with required immigration clearance will be allowed to travel on the charter flight. For travelling to the airport, the individuals go by coach from the hotel to the airport, with all coaches being deep cleaned prior to each journey and with the coach driver having no direct contact with passengers at any stage of the journey. On arrival at their departure airport, a staggered check-in is conducted.

During this whole process, all personnel who are involved need to ensure PPE is worn until they are seated aboard the aircraft. All flight crew have been Covid-19 screened prior to flight (negative PCR) and on the plane, the aircraft’s crew use a separate lavatory from the passengers in order to minimize the risk of exposure.

CHALLENGES

There have been a couple of instances where the arrangements haven’t run as smoothly as anticipated. These have included one flight where the pilot who had been scheduled to fly the quarantined crew to their work location tested positive and a suitable replacement had to be found at very short notice. On another occasion, the outgoing flight with the departing drilling crew was in the air on the way to the work location when a call came in that they would be unable to complete their mobilisation to the drilling unit as a result of poor weather at their destination. In this instance, the plane had to return to London and our crews had to return to the quarantine hotel in the middle of the night and the logistics of this had to be managed in conjunction with the ‘replacement’ crew who were arriving to begin their isolation that day.

To conclude, we can only hope that the measures which individuals, the industry as a whole and the governments have in place to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 virus have the desired effect and we can get back to ‘normal’ sooner rather than later.  One thing is for sure – no-one could describe being in quarantine ‘on their way to work’ as being anything like a traditional hotel stay!

1.

I thought I knew what to expect.  14 days in a hotel, with my meals provided and snacks too! I downloaded some movies and sorted out some work to do and headed to London to begin my big adventure. So we arrived and wondered why they couldn’t just let us in to the reception area. Why leave us out there… and then we got in! WOW a lot of hard work has gone into this… from the minute you had your name taken it was like a military operation.

2.

Full bag search to ensure I hadn’t tried to sneak in a bottle of gin or some wine. Then through into the room to fill in the forms and get the first of our tests. Then passport check, weights done, room key issued and through to another socially distanced room for the induction, it worked like a well-oiled machine, very well organised.

3.

The induction was really good – really explained everything you needed to know and let you know why it is so important to follow the rules. The guys who set this up did a fantastic job!

4.

Rooms are a decent size and a desk and good WIFI, so I managed to get some work done and then I headed out to get my bearings.

5.

A few freezing circuits of the car park and then back inside for a few circuits of the inside of the hotel…. well the bit we can use. It turns out there are two groups, who are kept separate (they’re already a week in!).

6.

Then back to the room to wait for our dinner slot… mmm I wonder what it will be? What a lovely dinner, tasted great – Day one and so far, I’m loving it…

7.

Day two in the staging hotel and first thing on the agenda is a hearty breakfast… Served hot and tasty and with the reminder to order food for tomorrow! You do it via an app and get to choose some snacks too!

8.

Breakfast done and checked-in with the office, it seemed like a good time to put the kettle on for a coffee and do my housekeeping (using the specially provided supplies). Almost time for the first temperature check of the day.  We get our temperature done at 10am and 2pm.  It’s weird how quickly somewhere becomes your home for a while.  I’m finding it quite easy to work from here. Second temperature check done and I think its time to get some fresh air and wave at some of the other inmates… I mean quarantined people.

9.

I’m managing to fill my days here with work, and the food is really good.  My goal from now on has to be to walk off some of those lovely calories.  I’m wondering how the weekend will be… A lovely start to the weekend with a nice breakfast and it looks like I’m not the only one who wants some socially distanced exercise. At least the weather has warmed a little.

10.

Whilst on the walk I saw my first sign of the other group… there is a double fence to make sure we can’t get too close to each other.  I saw some of the guys chatting through the fence…

11.

It’s Monday and it feels good that I got through the first weekend, next weekend will be the last weekend in here. It’s not really that bad, but I do have to cut back on the snacks and up the steps.

12.

My next milestone is tomorrow morning when I get the first of my two PCR tests…  I went for a walk this afternoon and saw the chairs all set out for us.

13.

There’s so much goes on behind the scenes. The medics are pulling together a pack with the negative PCR test results for the other group. They take this with them to the airport. They got their mobilisation brief this morning. (I was emailed these pics taken by the Safety Officers attached to the other group)

14.

It’s amazing how they managed to split a hotel in half. I’m in the green group and we have to follow the green arrows to get around…valthough they’ve done such a good job I’ve never seen an orange arrow yet!

What I have seen are the cheery Safety Officers who sit at their desk answering all sorts of questions and sorting us all out.

It’s not such a bad life in here, yes we can’t leave the facility, and yes there are security guards watching us, but it’s all done for the right reasons, to keep us all safe and Covid free.     

Tomorrow will be my first week in here complete and the orange group will head off to the rig, healthy and Covid free!

15.

First week done and first PCR of the trip done, another at day 12 before we head off on day 14. Again, military operation, done in groups, very organised, quick and painless…bring on the negative result!

16.

Got my first negative result just as the other group were heading off to the airport. So many buses as there are limited people on each bus, and it is all done in relation to the helicopter group you will be in… so organised and all under the eagle eye of security to ensure no breaches in protocol.

Despite significant issues caused by the pandemic, such as crew change operations, Northern Marine Management reported a steady operational performance in 2020.

In the past year, the fleet has achieved above industry standard safety and vessel vetting results with another year free of environmental incident.

Due to strict Covid safety protocol, fewer vessel visits from onshore superintendents and fleet managers have taken place, however conversely day-to-day communication between shoreside operations and vessel crews has increased.

Thomas Muir, Fleet Manager for Stena Bulk IMOIIMAX tanker vessels explains.

He said: “Communication has obviously always been of major importance in ship management. We must be able to have clear channels of communication between vessel and onshore management.

“Over the past year, as onshore ship managers in the UK have been forced to work remotely from their homes, we have vastly increased the usage of digital face to face communications and other additional communication channels, such as corporate instant messaging. This has also been replicated on the ships.

“Add in the recent critical improvement of internet bandwidth on these deep-sea vessels and you have the right environment to accelerate the implementation of more modern digital communication.

“Consequently, we are finding that our routine communication with the vessels has improved and increased.”

The Company’s overarching priority is the health and safety of all employees, both onshore and offshore, therefore routine travel to vessels by onshore operatives has been significantly reduced to minimize the risk of contracting or spreading Covid-19.

Thomas added: “We are having to think creatively while maintaining the high standards expected by our ship owner clients.

“Protocol and procedures for both shoreside and vessel operations were adapted at the very beginning of the pandemic to let us do our jobs as effectively as possible while putting a ring of safety around our colleagues at sea.

“Fortunately, Northern Marine has an extensive global network of operational hubs in major port locations such as Singapore, Houston, Mumbai and Shanghai, so we are able to utilize experienced, technically minded colleagues from those offices. They may not be designated managers for the vessels, but when the ships are in those regions, they have the knowledge of operations protocol and the crews to assist if required.

Sean McCormack, Ship Management Director, added: “When we reflect on 2020, it was a year of adaptation, resilience, and determination from everyone in Ship Management whether afloat or ashore, coping with the challenges of Covid-19. 

“Whilst some of our annual targets were not achieved in 2020 as a consequence of the pandemic, we did achieve the major milestones of keeping our ships trading commercially, keeping Covid-19 almost completely off our fleet of vessels, and ensuring our clients’ needs were met.” 

“As we move into 2021 there will be little respite from the pandemic, and we therefore need to ensure we do our very best to remain vigilant and maintain both onshore and onboard standards.”

There are many reasons for merging operations, but one of the main ones is to complement one another’s commercial patterns in Asia. Golden Stena is strong between Southeast Asia and the Middle East, while Bay Crest has a strong position between Southeast Asia and the Far East (China/Japan/Korea). These have now joined forces and 1 + 1 was definitely more than 2 in this case. GSB Tankers can now offer am improved and more flexible complete solution to customers in these regions.

Stena Bulk and GSB Tankers already share offices in Dubai and this has worked out really well.

“Customers can, for example, more easily be offered cargo space on both larger and smaller vessels, and with their fleet we can provide additional tonnage with vessels equipped with stainless steel tanks,” says Erik Hånell, President of Stena Bulk. “The flexibility has been appreciated by many and we strongly believe that there will be many more synergies for both companies by having the same arrangement in Singapore.”

Jacob Enersen, the office manager at Stena Bulk’s office in Singapore, comments on the upcoming move as follows: “We see many advantages with this solution. We already share a lot of information with GSB Tankers, and since we will now also share offices, this is naturally even easier. We can be more flexible with our customers and, with our joint fleet of about 70 vessels, offer a greater variety of shipping options. To be completely honest, we Westerners cannot communicate the Japanese, for example, in the Japanese way, but our friends from Bay Crest can.”

“Before the move, there were twelve of us in the office, but now we are 25 with all of ten different nationalities,” Jacob adds. “We will become even more diversified office with a good mix of different national origins, ages and genders, which not only makes for a pleasant workplace but is also a prerequisite for success here in Asia.”

Jacob Enersen has lived in Singapore for seven years with his wife and two children, with the oldest nearly four years old and the youngest one.

“We are thriving here and the whole family has adapted extremely well,” he says. “My eldest son is learning Mandarin in school now, so for my children it is really a big difference in upbringing compared to my own in the far north of Sweden, born and raised in Luleå.”

The picture at the top:

Björn Stignor, Golden Agri, GSB Tankers, Shinsuke Togawa, GSB Tankers and Jacob Enersen, Stena Bulk.

“This is a festive event for the shipyard of course, but for us as well, as it is the first step in the shipbuilding process with our new partner Proman Shipping,” says Erik Hånell, President & CEO of Stena Bulk.

In attendance were representatives from GSI, Det Norse Veritas (DNV) and Stena, of course.

Christine Wang, who has been the site team secretary during the IMOIIMAX project, and has now also joined the Stena Proman project, represented Stena and had the honor of pushing the button to start the cutting process.

The investment is estimated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions while on the road by around 19.6 tonnes per year.

On Wednesday, NTEX received the company’s first electric truck, a Volvo FL Electric, from Volvo Trucks’ electric vehicle program. The truck is one of the first privately owned of its kind in western Sweden. Participating in the delivery was NTEX CEO Thomas Ström, together with driver Krister Skogbäck and NTEX Inrikes’ CEO Anette Yngvesson.

“I know there has been tremendous demand for these vehicles and we at NTEX are very pleased to be able to make take this initiative,” says NTEX founder and CEO, Thomas Ström. “The electric truck is an important part of our environmental commitment. The goal is for us to use fossil-free vehicles as soon as possible, and electric propulsion is one of several interesting alternatives.”

NTEX is a leading transport company striving to reduce its environmental impact by, among other things, using more climate-smart fuels. The company’s trucks have been running HVO diesel for a number of years and they are also looking at alternatives, such as hydrogen and electrification.

“We are very happy and proud that NTEX is also choosing our all-electric truck,” says Ebba Bergbom Wallin, business area manager for electric mobility, Volvo Trucks Sweden. “The Volvo FL Electric, which is replacing today’s diesel-powered truck, reduces emissions to zero from the exhaust pipe and provides significantly lower noise levels. This means positive effects not only for drivers, but for everyone in the urban environment where trucks transport their goods.”

The truck, which is a Volvo FL, will soon be put in service and replace one of the company’s existing vehicles that transports goods in and around Gothenburg. The electric truck’s specifications are based on NTEX’s needs for the intended transport undertakings and the battery capacity is adapted accordingly, in order to be able to ensure that load capacity is as high as possible. The electric truck is ideal for the intended service, which entails driving around 120 km each day. The vehicle will be charged at night at the newly built charging station at one of the NTEX terminals on Hisingen.

In addition to reduced environmental impact, electric operation also means lower noise levels which, together with a good working environment in the cab, can contribute to improved working conditions for drivers and others working nearby.

Originally from Norway, Torild Stokes is an executive assistant with Stena UK Ltd in London. Before the pandemic, her days were spent organizing meetings and events for overseas and UK-based visitors and ensuring the smooth running of the office. During the lockdown, she has been carrying out her tasks from home.

In 2018, Torild completed her yoga teacher training and, since then, has taught yoga part time, during evenings and weekends. Her practice is based on Vinyasa Flow style Yoga, a style of yoga that seeks to co-ordinate the movement of the body with the breath.

“It is a breath-led, mindful practice that helps us reconnect body and mind, through syncing movement and breath. One of the main benefits is calming the nervous system – which a lot of people might feel is ‘out of sync’ during the pandemic. Yoga is excellent for managing stress and anxieties,” she explains.

There is plenty of evidence surrounding the benefits of exercise, both curative and preventive, impacting both our physical and mental health.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say that, “Regular physical activity is one of the most important things you can do for your health,” – a statement that has never rung truer.

“Moving and spending time outside in nature to release those feel-good hormones and boost our energy and immune systems is always important, but even more so now that we’re living through a pandemic,” continues Torild, adding: “I’m happy to work for a company like Stena that invests in the wellbeing of its employees.”

Since January, Torild has been leading a weekly online yoga class for her colleagues in Business Administration team in Gothenburg. The response has been overwhelmingly positive.

“Practicing yoga offers great benefits to people of any age. It builds bone density, strength and flexibility,” says Torild, whose classes can be adapted with modifications both for beginners and options for more advanced yogis.

“One thing’s for sure, you’ll never regret even ten minutes of your time spent practicing yoga,” she adds.

“All Stena employees can attend Torild’s yoga classes via Microsoft Teams. There is a maximum number of 20 attendees per class, so please book your spot in order to secure your place. A Teams link will automatically be added to your calendar,” says Sara Billing, wellness coordinator, Stena AB.

“It’s been a purposeful, sometimes difficult task, but we have always had the goal in mind and continuously monitored our results, which has contributed to us now reaching the goal we set ten years ago,” says Jonas Larsson, Energy and Environmental Manager in Malmö. “It’s gratifying to work with initiatives that benefit the environment and at the same time are financially profitable.”

Between 2010 and 2020, the company has on average reduced its use of heat by 30 percent, building electricity by 38 percent and water by 21 percent.

FROM MANUAL OPERATIONS TO AUTOMATION AND DIGITALIZATION

Once the goal was set, Stena Property needed to review its organization, and hire the right people for working with energy efficiency and environmental issues. At the time, in 2010, there were almost no digitally connected properties. All checks and adjustments had to made done manually on site, including reading of data, which was only carried out once a month. Today, all properties are connected to automated systems that can be accessed via a special technology network.

“Meter reading is instantaneous, every fifteen seconds, enabling data to be analyzed in real-time as events unfold,” says Jonas Larsson. “This makes it easier to control and optimize energy use.”

Major investments in technical equipment have been made during the ten-year period to achieve the energy goal. Investments include presence-controlled LED lighting, ventilation with recovery capabilities and a technology network to which all properties can be connected, thus ensuring the collection of data.

SUCCESS FACTORS

Over the years, Stena Property has expanded its staff working with energy and sustain-ability issues, where the energy is one of several important pieces of the puzzle in the company’s wide-scale work with sustainability and halving its climate footprint by 2030. But what are the success factors for succeeding in reducing energy use?

“We have had a dedicated and well-trained staff who have kept our efforts focused, at the same time as there has been financial space to conduct projects for reducing energy use,” says Jonas Larsson. “By openly presenting our results in the organization on a quarterly basis, commitment and a winning culture have been established for achieving the goal.”

In continued efforts to reduce the use of energy, Stena Property will begin a project in 2021 in which six properties will be administered using an artificial intelligence solution, a solution that can be gradually scaled up.

Stena Group IT wanted to find a good way of attracting new talent from colleges and universities. The solution was a separate, 16-month trainee programme – the Stena Group IT Graduate Programme.

“Actually, we had planned to wait until the autumn, but then we met Lina and Thimmy who had applied for another job with us,” says Denijel Becevic, lead product manager and responsible for the trainee programme at Stena Group IT. “That position required someone more senior, but because we wanted to keep them, it became a natural start of the programme.”

The results have exceeded all expectations. The programme is set up so that the trainees can spend three months at each of Stena Group IT’s five departments. At the same time as they have familiarized themselves with Stena’s operations, they have also been involved both in further developing the departments and conducting several projects in addition to regular duties.

“We’re noticing that it has produced enormous improvements for the entire organization,” says Denijel Becevic. “It’s partly due to their willingness and ability to deliver, but there is also a culture-enhancing aspect that elevates the entire organization.”

Right now, they are working together on a process for software development. Alongside this, they are developing training material for ordinary users, which concerns visualized data based on big data.

“For Stena Lines, it can be, for example, about passenger behavior and fuel consumption; for Stena Fastigheter about temperatures in the apartments,” says Thimmy Bernvåg.

Thus far, he has also been involved in the procurement of an IT system, worked with licenses and helped in creating and implementing a new intranet.

“The variation has been really exciting when it comes to the various subject areas, being able to lead certain smaller projects from start to finish and being involved in major procurements,” says Thimmy Bernvåg, who studied economics and law at Handels, and business creation at Chalmers.

Lina Asadi has worked with consulting agreements, led a project in access management and participated in a project for issuing each onboard employee a unique ID, much like the Swedish Bank ID. She previously studied economics at Handels.

“It’s been great fun, as well as educational, to gain insight into the various activities and being involved and contributing in various ways,” Lina Asadi. “It’s also really nice how everyone has been so generous in sharing their knowledge, making me feel that I am member of the team.”

As a part of the programme, they were also each assigned a mentor whom they meet with regularly. The idea is for them to be able to serve as mentors themselves for the next round of trainees, beginning in the autumn. In this next round, the plan is to interweave a more structured educational aspect into the programme, with subject areas such as agile development and project management.

“We’re looking for people both with a background in technology and in business, with attitude being at least as important as exact experience,” says Denijel Becevic.

Both Lina and Thimmy warmly recommend that other newly graduated students apply for the autumn programme.

“At Stena, there are tremendous opportunities if you’re looking to broaden your skills and work at a place where you’ll feel at home,” says Lina Asadi.

Thimmy Bernvåg agrees. “Here you’re always getting to learn new things and feeling that you belong. Another strength is that the company is so large and diversified. Moreover, the atmosphere is very free and friendly, which is extremely important,” he points out.

Stena Recycling Jönköping’s customer Husqvarna casts with magnesium and aluminum alloys in its foundry in Huskvarna. The process gives rise to 125 tonnes of magnesium skim each year, which is a complex waste material that corresponds to 5.8 percent of Huskvarnasiten’s total waste for destruction. 

“Previously, Stena Recycling Jönköping received the magnesium skim, which has then been destroyed by incineration. The residue powder has then gone to landfill. This has entailed both high costs and a non-circular solution as the material is lost,” says Joacim Dahlström, local customer manager at Stena Recycling in Jönköping, who therefore began to consider whether it would be possible to extract magnesium from the skim.

He placed the question to Kristoffer Johansson (Totte) who works at Stena Aluminum’s reception site in Älmhult. After several tests in different furnaces, Kristoffer had determined that the skim works well in the melting process and that it is possible to extract 16 percent magnesium from it. This is higher than expected as magnesium skim is a relatively low-quality material from the beginning, with about 40 percent debris in the form of dust and oxides. It is also flammable, which makes it difficult to handle.

“At the smelter, we use magnesium as an additive to produce aluminum alloys for Husqvarna and other customers. With more circular additives in our own aluminum production, we at Stena Aluminum can buy smaller volumes of primary magnesium, which is expensive and needs to be imported from abroad,” Kristoffer explains.

For Husqvarna, the waste solution means reduced destruction costs and reduced environmental impact.

“It also reduces the risk that in the future, the customer being without a solution for a complex process waste, as the possibility may be closed for destruction for this type of waste and Husqvarna would then need to ship the waste abroad. This gives us a strengthened and long-term business relationship with our customer,” says Tony Lidberg, sales representative at Stena Aluminum.

Through Stena Aluminum’s and Stena Recycling’s collaboration in the region, a unique circular solution to a complex waste challenge is now in place.

“We are working in a fun but challenging industry. Here we can benefit from each other as sister companies by working together to find solutions that are good for both our customers and the company, and at the same time help to reduce the use of resources for a more sustainable future,” Kristoffer Johansson concludes.

For quite some time now, there has been a small ReUse facility at Stena Nordic Recycling Center in Halmstad. It has now been supplemented with the capability to delete content on computers and phones, as well as to perform function tests.

“There is already plenty of business in the sector,” says Pär Håkansson from the Elektronik business area at Stena Recycling. “A start is to collect electronics from all our customers. Our survey shows, for example, that 40 percent of the company’s A-customers do not deliver electronics. We’re naturally going to change that.”

The range of services will be expanded with a type of cabinet that in principle looks like a larger variant of the food and beverage carts used by airlines. These cabinets are placed at customer sites and the employees receive instructions on how to sort their old devices. At present, Stena can receive mobile phones, desktop computers, servers and tablets as well as laptops.

The concept has been tested at Stena Rederi, which was just starting their scheduled replacement of computers, which takes place approximately every three years. The reuse initiative was well received, and electrical products valued at SEK 80,000 were collected. The business model is based on sharing value with the customer, but also on providing customers with a report that describes, among other things, the level of CO₂ savings the collection of electronics has produced.

“One kilo of recycled electronics creates CO₂ savings of two kilos, while 1 kilo of recycled mobile phones creates CO₂ savings of about 400 kilos,” says Pär Håkansson. “Which corresponds to what would be consumed in driving a car 1,500 km. That we can help our customers with these kinds of numbers means a lot in their sustainability reporting.”

In February, the ReUse concept will be launched on a broader front, starting in Region West, which was also involved in the collection of devices at Stena Rederi through Stena Recycling’s branch at Tingstad in Gothenburg.

On March 22, Maria Lindqvist will take over as CHRO and will have overall strategic responsibility for the group’s HR activities. Maria most recently comes to us from Zenseact (formerly Zenuity) as Senior Vice-President, People and Culture.

On August 16, Sofia Svensson will begin her duties as Head of Strategic Business Development at Stena Metall. The role is newly established, and she will be responsible for new, future investments outside the current business areas. She is presently President and CEO of Lammhults Design Group.

In an effort to speed up the transition to fossil-free fuels in the transport sector, Stena Line together with Volvo Group, Scania and the Port of Gothenburg have joined forces in the Tranzero Initiative collaboration project to bring about a significant reduction in carbon emissions linked to the largest port in the Scandinavia. The aim is to cut emissions by 70 percent by 2030 in the Port of Gothenburg. 

During a press conference about the Tranzero Initiative on Thursday 4 February, Stena Line CEO Niclas Mårtensson announced the company’s plans to launch two fossil free vessels on the Gothenburg-Frederikshavn route before 2030.  

“We now move from vision to vessel with the battery powered vessel Stena Elektra. Within a year we and Stena Teknik will present the outline specifications and at the latest by 2025 we plan to order the first vessel. This will be a huge step towards fossil free shipping”, said Niclas
Mårtensson, CEO Stena Line Group and member of the Swedish Government
Electrification Commission. 

The Stena Elektra vessel vision is currently that she will be the world’s first fossil free RoPax vessel of her size and will measure approximately 200 metres and combine a passenger capacity of 1,000 with 3,000 lane metres freight capacity. The vessel will probably be built in high tensile steel to lower the weight and increase efficiency and it is estimated the vessel will run on battery power for approximately 50 nautical miles, the distance between Gothenburg and Frederikshavn. The battery capacity will need to be approximately 60-70 MWh and the vessel will be charged in port. Stena Line is also looking into combining the electrifi-cation with other alternative fossil free fuels such as fuel cells, hydrogen and bio methanol for longer reach of the vessels. 

“The electrification of shipping has only just began. We see a great potential for both battery hybrids and battery powered vessels on several of our short-sea shipping routes in the future. But, it takes more than the electrical ships, we also need to develop the infrastructure and charging possibilities in the ports and terminals in the same pace and that is a reason why collaborations projects like this are so important, said Niclas Mårtensson, CEO Stena Line.  

BATTERY HYBRID ALREADY OPERATING

Since 2018 Stena Line is operating the battery hybrid vessel Stena Jutlandica on the Gothenburg-Frederikshavn route, using battery power for manoeuvring and powering the bow thrusters when the ship is in port. The batteries are charged with green shore power in port of Gothenburg as well as during operation and in total the CO₂ emissions are lowered by 1,500 tonnes per year, equal to the emissions from 600 cars per year.