Page 178 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - ΜΑΙΟΣ 2024

EUROPEAN SHIPYARDS

Asia. To reinforce Europe’s industrial high-level jobs requiring advanced
sovereignty and strategic autonomy, skills. With the twin green and digital
European shipyards must increase transitions, they need to retain, upskill,
their orders from shipowners, includ- and reskill their workforce while simul-
ing European ones, on top of the cur- taneously facing severe competition
rent orders for complex ship types. from other industries in Europe and a
More specifically, European shipyards fast retiring workforce in the coming
must regain leadership in the strategic five to ten years. Moreover, the cyclical
sectors of the Blue Economy, notably nature of shipbuilding and ship repair-
cabotage, short-sea shipping, passen- ing requires a high level of workforce
ger transport, fishing, aquaculture, off- mobility across Europe to match work-
shore renewable energy, and carriers ers’ availability with production needs.
of alternative fuels. With these framework conditions in
place, Europe can both consolidate
• Supportive regulatory framework and strengthen its position as a global
While the European Green Deal, the leader in complex shipbuilding and
Building on EU’s flagship for a climate-neutral maritime equipment manufacturing,
Europe’s global continent by 2050, and the related Net regain strategic markets, and lead in
technological Zero Industry Act, the EU’s legislation sustainable and digitalised ships and
leadership to help industrial sectors in Europe maritime technologies, thus achieving
and innovative achieve net-zero carbon emissions, the objectives of the European Green
maritime offer promising opportunities, they Deal and the EU Digital Agenda.
know-how while currently lack the necessary frame- In doing so, Europe can also safeguard
taking advantage work conditions to make a business the economic security of its Blue Econ-
of the promising case for building competitive and omy and waterborne value chains,
opportunities sustainable ships in Europe. Moreover, eliminating its current dependency
arising from they do not address any market fail- on Asia. In addition, by developing and
the twin green ures in shipbuilding or marine equip- building state-of-the-art naval military
and digital ment manufacturing, nor do they offer assets for both surface and underwa-
transitions, the conditions to de-risk investments ter operations, Europe can strengthen
Europe has the in such ships. its strategic autonomy and defence.
potential and a
unique political • Technological leadership The time for political action is now!
momentum to While promising innovative solutions The current geopolitical landscape, coupled
turn the tide by for sustainable and digitalised ship- with the lessons learned from the pandemic and
issuing a ping and ship production are available, the energy crisis, have highlighted the serious
much-needed the EU needs to do more in research, economic and security risks inherent in Europe’s
sectoral development, innovation, and the dependency on foreign, particularly Asian, ship-
maritime upscaling of sustainable and digital building nations. Therefore, contrary to the past,
industrial technologies and solutions. The suc- political inaction is no longer an option.
strategy. cess of the co-programmed Partner- Building on Europe’s global technological lead-
ship on Zero-Emission Waterborne ership and innovative maritime know-how while
Transport, an EU initiative fostering taking advantage of the promising opportunities
collaborative research and innovation arising from the twin green and digital transi-
to develop and implement zero-emis- tions, Europe has the potential and a unique
sion technologies and solutions for political momentum to turn the tide by issuing
waterborne transport, must continue a much-needed sectoral maritime industrial
under Horizon Europe’s successor, strategy. Such a strategy should introduce the
the EU Framework for Research and framework conditions to enable European ship-
Development. Moreover, a similar yards to consolidate and strengthen their cur-
co-programmed Partnership should rent leadership position while also reclaiming
be established for digitalised maritime dominance in strategic markets and leading in
solutions. sustainable and digitalised shipping. Therefore,
the new European Commission must prioritise
• Skilled workforce this initiative upon taking office in December
European shipyards and maritime 2024. Delay or lack of political action will be
equipment manufacturers provide detrimental to Europe on many fronts.

172