For the first time in 10 years, the IVR congress was once again held in the Netherlands. Around 215 members from 10 different European countries traveled to Amsterdam from Wednesday 24 to Friday 26 May to meet at the beautiful Hotel Jakarta Amsterdam, one of the first energy-neutral hotels in the Netherlands.

The conference started with the meetings of the Executive Committee, the Board of Management and Advisory Council, and the Loss Prevention Committee on Wednesday afternoon 24 May. In the evening, the board and committee members were welcomed at the atmospheric Restaurant Johannes for the Executive Dinner.

On Thursday morning 25 May, the meeting of the Legal Committee took place, after which all members and other participants were welcomed at the registration desk in the lobby of Hotel Jakarta Amsterdam. After an Indonesian-inspired lunch at Café Jakarta, participants were escorted through the subtropical indoor garden to the Java Room for the “Changing Landscapes” workshop.

The first speaker of the workshop was Daisy Rycquart, director of CITBO and secretary of the Innovation & Greening Committee of the European Inland Waterway Transport Platform. Her presentation included policy frameworks, challenges and solutions for greening and innovation in inland waterway transport. Antoon van Coillie, director of ZULU Associates, then shared his views on 3 challenges in the inland waterway sector: sustainability, modal shift and staff shortages. Almar van Herk, Senior Business Development manager at KOTUG and also the third speaker of the workshop, gave a presentation on the development and innovation of a modular electric pusher tug as an answer to the energy transition for inland navigation.

After a short coffee break, Ton Mol, Barge Adviser at OCIMF, spoke about the different inland navigation regions worldwide in the field of tanker inspections, among others. During the workshop, Joël Kuiper, freelance developer of data-driven applications and also co-developer of the IVR Emission Calculation Tool, presented his thesis findings on the hydrogen transition in the Dutch inland navigation sector. Secretary General of IVR, Frouwke Klootwijk-de Vries, concluded the workshop with a presentation on and demonstration of the IVR Emission Calculation Tool.

Dinner Koepelkerk
After the workshop, while enjoying an aperitif and the Amsterdam sun, members were taken to the dinner location by traditional Amsterdam canal boat. Arriving at the 17th-century Koepelkerk, after an aperitif, guests were escorted to the tasteful dining room for a 4-course dinner, ending the second day of the conference in style.

The third and final day of the congress, Friday 26 May, started with the General Assembly in the Queen Máxima room of the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT).

Secretary General Frouwke Klootwijk-de Vries looked back at IVR’s activities over the past year. These included the cooperation with international organisations and institutions such as the CCNR and the European Commission, IVR’s strategy and tasks, the vessel database and the increased focus on emissions and climate change. The upcoming 150th anniversary in 2024 was also mentioned, as well as the essential role of members to act as ambassadors for IVR.

By tradition, the chairs of the Loss Prevention Committee, Ronald Koops, and the Legal Committee, Dr. Martin Fischer, informed the members about the numerous activities in their respective fields. The venue for the IVR Congress 2024 was also announced. From 14 to 17 May 2024, the IVR Congress will take place in Frankfurt am Main, the city where it all began for IVR 150 years ago (then still under the name “Rheinschiffsregisterverband”).

The General Assembly concluded with a presentation by Mr. Jon Kuiper from the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, who gave a presentation on the ministry’s digital transport strategy in the European context.

After the General Assembly, a closing lunch was served in the beautiful marble hall of KIT, where members and partners were able to chat about the congress. IVR is grateful to the participating members, guests, speakers and sponsors who all came to Amsterdam, and we therefore look back on a very successful event.

Photos by Sandro Sklepić

Next year, which will also be IVR’s 150th anniversary, the congress will take place in Frankfurt am Main, the place where IVR was originally founded (then still under the name “Rheinschiffsregisterverband”).

We would like to ask you to already mark 14 to 17 May 2024 in your calendars. More information about the IVR Congress 2024 will follow in the upcoming months.

We hope to see you (again) next year!