AAL Shipping (AAL) was named ‘Ship Operator of the Year’ at the Heavy Lift and Project Forwarding International (HLPFI) Awards last night (25th October), held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London.

AAL transported 2.6 million tonnes of cargo for more than 400 customers in 2022, carried on over 140 voyages to 819 different ports.

“In 2022, AAL engineers painstakingly penned competitive cargo solutions to maximise space, minimise emissions, and deliver economies of scale to our customers,” said Kyriacos Panayides, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), AAL Shipping.

The AAL Shipping team with host Lucy Porter as they were presented with the Ship Operator of the Year award.

“To have been recognised as Ship Operator of the Year by the judges for the second consecutive year speaks to the commitment and ingenuity of our teams globally, who work round-the-clock to ensure a first-rate, reliable service that is unmatched in our sector.

“We would like to thank the award’s organisers for putting on this event which showcases our specialist shipping sector, as well as everyone at AAL for their hard work and dedication, and our customers around the world for their continued support.”

The achievement marks the second year in a row that the project heavy lift carrier has taken home the award, and its third win in the same category since the inaugural HLPFI Awards in 2019.

The judges highlighted AAL for its unique parcelling of diverse MPP cargoes, engineering complex solutions for more than 30 shippers simultaneously to transport over 50 cargoes on a single sailing.

The last 12 months have also seen the steel cutting of the first of AAL’s fleet of six 32,000dwt dual-fuel-ready newbuild vessels, which break new ground in MPV ship design to optimise cargo intake and security.

The Super B Class, the first of which will be in the water by June 2024, will feature AAL’s revolutionary extendable stowage system, the ‘ECO-DECK', capable of accommodating an additional 720m2 of cargo on each sailing to bring economies of scale and improve sustainability of sailings.

AAL is further driving sustainability through its leading role in an ongoing green fuel study with the European Union, which aims to develop a method to store and transport high volumes of ammonia as fuel on-board ships.