Maritime Risk & Resilience Forum 2026

25 November - 25 November

Watson Farley & Williams, London, UK

Understanding, Managing and Mitigating Risk Across the Shipping and Bunkering Value Chain

ship.energy is delighted to introduce a new event to the global marine fuels industry calendar, the Maritime Risk & Resilience Forum. This important and timely one-day event will bring together leading experts from across the bunker industry to examine today’s most significant commercial, legal, operational and financial risks, while providing practical strategies to build resilience across the Shipping and Bunkering Value Chain.

Maritime Risk & Resilience Forum Programme

Wednesday 25 November

Understanding, Managing and Mitigating Risk Across the Shipping and Bunkering Value Chain

Programme details are updated regularly and are subject to change as new speakers are confirmed and themes developed.

If you feel you could make a significant contribution to the programme, please email Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes at [email protected] or call +44 1295 814455 to discuss this further.

Forum Speakers:

Alexis Martinez, Partner, Watson Farley & Williams
Angela Freeth, Product Marketing Manager, Windward
Anthony Mollet, CEO, Marine Fuels Alliance; Commercial Manager, Bridge Markets
Can Besev, CEO, Suzun Marine Fuels
Can Ertem, Head of Trading (East Med), ElbOil
Dennis Andersen, Director of Conventional Energy Sales, Global Risk Management
Georges Panaghoulis, Head of Price Risk & Hedging, Island Oil (Holding) Ltd
Hugo Crosthwaite, Vice President, Credit Specialties, Marsh
James Dauris, Senior Advisor, The Risk Advisory Group / Former UK Ambassador to Panama
James Kennedy, Partner, Preston Turnbull LLP
James Wilkes, Managing Director, Gray Page
John Phillips FICS, Director, Awyr Las Ltd (UK)
Jonathan Graham, Director, Shipping, Offshore & Logistics, Banking, Capital Markets & Advisory, Citi
Kavita Shah, Partner and Maritime Sector Head, Europe & Americas, Watson Farley & Williams (WFW)
Kieran Michael Brown, Group Credit Manager & Head of Compliance, Island Oil (Holding) Ltd
Lesley Bankes-Hughes, Managing Director, ship.energy
Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes, CEO, ship.energy Ltd
Marina Lebedeva, Manager, Infospectrum Hamburg
Mark Smith, Director – Decarbonisation, North Standard
Martin Crawford-Brunt, CEO, Lookout Maritime
Michael Green, Senior Quality Manager Marine Technical, Global Physical Operations, World Fuel Services
Rowan Staden-Coats, Global Crude & Fuel Oil Methodology Partner, S&P Global
Sean Moloney, CEO, Elaborate Communications
SW Burger, Partner, Preston Turnbull LLP
Timothy Mulligan, Commodity Trader, Attara

Delegate Price: £449

(Premium members: log in to unlock your 5% discount to £426.55)

Register

8:30 am

Registration & Networking Coffee

9:00 am

Opening Keynote: The Risk Landscape in Global Bunkering

An executive overview of the evolving risk environment facing the bunker industry, including geopolitical disruption, sanctions, contractual disputes, counterparty exposure, insurance challenges, fuel quality concerns, and market volatility.

Discussion themes:

How the bunker risk landscape has evolved
Emerging threats and opportunities
Building resilience across the supply chain
Priorities for risk management in 2026 and beyond

Moderator:
Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes, CEO, ship.energy

Panelists:
Kavita Shah, Partner and Maritime Sector Head, Europe & Americas, Watson Farley & Williams (WFW)
James Dauris, Senior Advisor, The Risk Advisory Group / Former UK Ambassador to Panama
James Wilkes, Managing Director, Gray Page
Martin Crawford-Brunt, CEO, Lookout Maritime

Moderator

Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes

Speaker Information

James Dauris

Martin Crawford-Brunt

10:00 am

Panel 1: Geopolitical Risk, Sanctions & Trade Disruption

The impact of geopolitical tensions, sanctions regimes, conflict zones, and shifting trade flows on bunker procurement, compliance, and operational decision-making.

Topics include:

Sanctions screening and compliance
Shadow fleets and associated risks
Trade route disruption and supply security
Regulatory developments and enforcement trends
Managing geopolitical uncertainty

Moderator:
James Wilkes, Managing Director, Gray Page

Panelists:
John Phillips FICS, Director, Awyr Las Ltd (UK)
Jonathan Graham, Director, Citi N.A.
Angela Freeth, Product Marketing Manager, Windward
Alexis Martinez, Partner, Watson Farley & Williams

Speaker Information

John Phillips

11:00 am

Networking Coffee Break

11:30 am

Panel 2: Contractual and Credit Risk

Examining the contractual frameworks that underpin bunker procurement, trading and supply, and the disputes that can arise when things go wrong, along with strategies for assessing financial exposure and protecting businesses from defaults, insolvencies, and payment failures.

Topics include:

Key contractual protections
Claims management and dispute resolution
Documentary requirements and evidence
Credit assessment and monitoring
Managing exposure limits
Security instruments and guarantees
Insolvency lessons learned
Market intelligence and early warning indicators

Moderator:
Marina Lebedva, Manager, Infospectrum Hamburg

Panelists:

James Kennedy, Partner, Preston Turnbull LLP
Can Besev, CEO, Suzun Marine Fuels
Kieran Michael Brown, Group Credit Manager & Head of Compliance, Island Oil (Holding) Ltd
John Phillips FICS, Director, Awyr Las Ltd (UK)

Speaker Information

James Kennedy

Kieran Michael Brown

John Phillips

12:30 pm

Networking Lunch

1:30 pm

Panel 3: Insurance Solutions

Understanding the role of insurance in mitigating commercial and operational risks across the shipping and bunkering value chain.

Topics include:

Credit insurance
Professional indemnity and liability cover
Cargo and transit risks
Claims trends and emerging exposures
Safe bunkering and burning of alternative fuels
Insurance market outlook

Moderator:
Martin Crawford-Brunt, CEO, Lookout Maritime

Panelists:
Can Ertem, Head of Trading (East Med), ElbOil
Anthony Mollet, CEO, Marine Fuels Alliance; Commercial Manager, Bridge Markets
Hugo Crosthwaite, Vice President, Credit Specialties, Marsh
Sean Moloney, CEO, Elaborate Communications
SW Burger, Partner, Preston Turnbull LLP

Moderator

Martin Crawford-Brunt

Speaker Information

Kieran Michael Brown

John Phillips

2:30 pm

Panel 4: Fuel Quality Risk & Claims Management

Addressing the persistent challenges associated with fuel quality, contamination incidents, specification disputes, and operational consequences.

Topics include:

Fuel testing and verification
Contamination events and lessons learned
ISO standards and compliance
Managing quality-related claims
Best practices for risk prevention

Moderator:
Anthony Mollet, CEO, Marine Fuels Alliance; Commercial Manager, Bridge Markets

Panelists:
Mark Smith, Director – Decarbonisation, North Standard
Michael Green, Senior Quality Manager Marine Technical, Global Physical Operations, World Fuel Services

Moderator

Anthony Mollet,

Speaker Information

Martin Crawford-Brunt

3:30 pm

Networking Coffee Break

4:00 pm

Panel 5: Price Hedging, Market Volatility & Risk Management

How market participants can manage exposure to volatile fuel prices through hedging strategies and risk management frameworks.

Topics include:

Understanding bunker price risk
Hedging instruments and strategies
Managing basis risk
Volatility drivers in energy markets
Practical lessons from hedging programmes

Moderator:
Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes, CEO, ship.energy

Panelists:

Georges Panaghoulis, Head of Price Risk and Hedging, Island Oil Ltd
Timothy Mulligan, Commodity Trader, Attara
Dennis Andersen – Director of Conventional Energy Sales, Global Risk Management
Rowan Staden-Coats, Global Crude & Fuel Oil Methodology Partner, S&P Global

Moderator

Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes

5:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Closing Forum Discussion: Building End-to-End Resilience Across the Value Chain

A moderated wrap-up session bringing together key takeaways from the day and examining how companies can build more resilient risk management frameworks in an increasingly complex market. It will also look at the increasing relevance and growing applications of AI in shipping and bunkering.

Key outcomes: