The EU reverses its course – the Commission surprised Finland in the right direction

On Wednesday, the European Commission presented the EU’s new industrial maritime strategy and port strategy. It is not yet a bill, but guidelines for the direction in which the EU will develop in terms of ports, shipping and shipbuilding.

In terms of Finland’s goals, the EU is now moving in the right direction, as ports and shipping have been elevated to the center of the EU’s competitiveness. The defense dimension of ports and shipping has also been taken into account in the commission better than before.

Finland’s goal is that the reforms carried out in the EU would genuinely promote the opportunities for growth, renewal and innovation in the maritime industry.

According to the Commission, the aim of the EU’s industrial maritime strategy and port strategy is to strengthen competitiveness and safety and to enhance emission reductions in the maritime transport sector.

The Commission is strengthening the global position of Europe’s maritime sector with, among other things, the new EU Industrial Maritime Cluster Alliance, which aims to promote European state-of-the-art shipbuilding, offshore wind power support vessels, underwater drone systems and advanced port equipment.

The strategy also includes the “Future Shipyards” flagship project, where innovative shipbuilding technologies are tested.

Controlling overregulation

The Finnish Ports Association has demanded from the Commission to clarify and speed up the licensing processes, so that the ports could invest in, for example, green energy and circular economy industrial operations.

On Wednesday, the commission promised that it will try to reduce the regulation and administrative burden of the industry. The measures are related to, among other things, the emissions trading system (ETS) for maritime transport and the greenhouse gas intensity of the energy used by ships.

The Commission also intends to consider an emissions trading mechanism to accelerate the deployment of sustainable marine fuels. In addition, member states are encouraged to use part of their national emissions trading revenues for maritime transport emission reductions.

The Commission wants to speed up innovation, renewal of fleets and emission reductions by also reforming the principles of public procurement.

In addition, the Commission is planning its own trade policy tool for the maritime sector, with which it aims to secure equal global competition for EU shipyards and equipment manufacturers. Export financing is also intended to be strengthened.

Ports as hubs

The Commission’s strategy also takes into account the defense dimension of ports and sea traffic, which is important for Finland.

The Ports Association has emphasized that European ports face various threats that should be taken into account and evaluated regionally. In the Baltic Sea, for example, the challenges are shadow ships transporting Russian oil and ship signal interference.

According to the commission, the purpose is to enhance the security and cyber security of the ports. The purpose is also to intervene in the activities of the shadow fleet.

The commission now also considers ports as vital hubs in terms of energy security and military mobility.

From Finland’s point of view, it might be interesting that the Commission promises support for dual-use car ferries being built in Europe, which operate on strategic routes.

The Commission’s new strategy also identifies the special challenges of smaller ports in the more remote regions of the EU. This also applies to Finland, located in the far north. However, there is little concreteness, as small and medium-sized ports in remote areas are only promised to draw up a road map that collects the available EU funding.

To speed up the implementation of the strategies announced on Wednesday, the Commission plans to set up a high-level Maritime Industry and Ports Council to monitor the measures and collect feedback from the market.

We found out how Finland’s largest ports are doing – here is the list