The 10th Capital Link Maritime Leaders Summit – Greece was successfully held on Monday, June 1, 2026, as part of the Posidonia Week Conference Program. Organized by Capital Link in partnership with DNV and with the cooperation of NASDAQ and NYSE, the biennial event once again confirmed its position as one of the most prominent maritime gatherings during Posidonia Week.
A key highlight of the conference was the panel discussion entitled “TANKER MARKETS IN MOTION: ENERGY SHIFTS, TRADE REALIGNMENT, & INVESTMENT STRATEGY,” which brought together leading figures from the international shipping industry, including Mr. Antonis Kanellakis, Executive Director – Alpha Bulkers/Pantheon Tankers/ Alpha Gas, Mr. Jerry Kalogiratos, CEO – Capital Tankers Corp. (EGO:CAPT), Mr. Yiannis Procopiou, CEO – Centrofin Management Inc., Mr. Svein Moxnes Harfjeld, President & Chief Executive Officer and Member of the Board of Directors – DHT Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: DHT), Mr. Pankaj Khanna, CEO – Heidmar Maritime Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: HMR). The discussion was moderated by Mr. Keith Billotti, Partner – Seward & Kissel LLP.
Opening the discussion, Mr. Billotti, pointed out that few shipping sectors have felt the impact of geopolitical tensions more directly than tanker operators. The conflict in Strait of Hormuz has forced oil and gas cargoes onto longer routes and has redrawed global trade patterns, adding another layer of uncertainty to an already volatile market.
In turn, Mr. Kanellakis observed that the tanker demand has softened, especially in Asia, but freight markets have remained resilient as longer voyages continue to support vessel utilization. “The Straits need to open. Otherwise we’ll be headed for long-term disruption,” he commented.
He sees fleet supply as manageable for now considering older vessels are expected to leave the market. Meanwhile, owners continue ordering technologically advanced newbuildings, favoring LNG and dual-fuel propulsion.
Expanding on the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, Mr. Kalogiratos, expects the commercial there to remain limited, forcing owners to reposition vessels and creating distortions that have so far supported freight rates. “It has been a couple of months of very limited traffic inside the Strait of Hormuz. For all intents and purposes, it is still considered to be closed,” he disclosed.
Nevertheless, higher freight rates could turn out to be temporary if cargo volumes continue to decline.
Mr. Kalogiratos warned that “in the mid and long term, the increase in prices may not make up for the loss of volumes”, adding that reopening the waterway remains essential for restoring market balance. He also stressed that crew safety has to remain the industry’s overriding priority.
“Trying to transit through the Strait, especially with no clear rules of engagement, is not a prudent move.” He also sees financial discipline as equally important, noting that Capital Tankers has fully funded its newbuilding program while maintaining low leverage, giving the company flexibility to respond quickly.
Adding to the notion that ton-mile demand has increased, Mr. Procopiou, believes that changing export patterns have strengthened the United States’ position as the world’s leading crude supplier and allowed Venezuelan exports to gradually return.
However, geopolitics have transformed shipping into something far more dangerous than a freight market. “Our ships are being targeted, as well as the crews, who feel like they’re being used as pawns in a geopolitical chess game,” Mr. Procopiou shared.
Looking beyond today’s market, he warned that the tanker orderbook has climbed to its highest level in 17 years, raising concerns that supply could eventually outpace demand.
“There will come a time, maybe not before 2028, when there are too many ships in the water,” he cautioned due to the fact that vessel recycling is too slow to prevent an oversupply cycle and downward pressure on asset values.
Shedding light on another point of view, Mr. Harfjeld supported that the current environment reinforces the importance of strong balance sheets and long-term customer relationships. Customers value reliable transportation, he said, creating opportunities for owners able to provide operational consistency and not just compete on price.
He also feared that the 1,000-vessel sanctioned fleet represents one of the industry’s most imminent environmental and safety threats.
Many of those aging tankers operate below accepted industry standards, and some recruit seafarers with promises of high wages that ultimately materialize only as cryptocurrency payments aboard poorly maintained ships.
“It is a high-risk environmental issue that could create havoc. It should be much higher on the agenda.” He added that companies generating strong cash flows have to be disciplined in allocating capital, balancing shareholder dividends, fleet investment and share buybacks according to market conditions.
Another issue that has surfaced is that, before the conflict, Japan sourced 90% of its crude imports from the Middle East, a dependency that now appears difficult to sustain. Mr. Khanna noted that as more Atlantic Basin crude finds its way into Asian markets, shipping stands to benefit from longer trading distances.
At the same time, shortages of gasoline and diesel in parts of Asia are likely to trigger inventory rebuilding. Mr. Khanna appeared to believe that if these disruptions last longer, they could eventually reshape energy consumption itself and pointed to Indonesia’s adoption of electric vehicles as an example of how sustained supply disruptions and higher energy costs could encourage consumers to seek alternatives, gradually eroding oil demand.
Capital Link Editorial
