Last week, the shipping ministers of the EU member states gathered in Szczecin, Poland, to develop a strategy to increase the competitiveness of European shipbuilding and shipping in the face of ever-increasing competition from Asia.
During the “informal” meeting, ministers discussed the options for a future EU maritime industrial strategy, taking into account political and market factors. The conference concluded with a joint declaration of the Member States, which was warmly welcomed by EU shipbuilders and shipowners.
“The Szczecin Declaration is a key moment for the European maritime industry, especially the maritime manufacturing sector, which has for too long lacked political support and effective action, despite unfair competition from Asia,” said Alberto Maestrini, President of the shipbuilders’ association SEA Europe. “Europe must protect its maritime industrial base and cannot do without commercial shipbuilding if it wants to secure its naval potential, cross-fertilisation between commercial and naval industries and sovereignty.”
The European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), the voice of EU shipping, stressed that, unlike similar efforts in the United States, the Szczecin Declaration is not protectionist. Instead, it focuses on investment in innovation and competitiveness, and emphasizes a “level playing field” for global (rather than European) shipping rules.
According to ECSA, the declaration contains much of interest for EU shipowners, including endorsement of some of the association’s key priorities:
- a call for regulatory measures to stimulate the production of green fuel, which will be necessary to comply but is currently difficult to find
- measures to secure the value of expensive clean fuel through ETS revenues
“We welcome the support for key priorities for European shipowners, such as the need to de-risk investments in clean fuels and technologies, and to support an appropriate regulatory and fiscal framework,” said ECSA Secretary General Sotiris Raptis.
SEA Europe welcomed the focus of the declaration on key issues for European shipbuilding. The association thanked EU ministers for recognising the strategic role of EU shipyards in the security and defence sector; the key role of decarbonisation technologies in positioning EU maritime manufacturing as a leader; the disruptive impact of non-EU shipbuilding subsidy programmes; the total dependence of EU shipowners on Asian shipyards for tonnage; and the restrictive impact of EU banking rules on EU ship financing.