Shipping at the centre of dialogue with European Parliament

On Wednesday 19 February, the European Parliament's Transport and Tourism Committee met in Brussels for a dialogue with European Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas. The European Commissioner for Transport and Tourism presented the European Commission's work programme for 2025, focusing on his two themes: Transport and Tourism.

In his opening speech, Tzitzikostas stressed that the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan, scheduled for publication after the summer, will focus on promoting investments in making maritime shipping more sustainable. The commissioner stressed that the focus is on scaling up clean fuels and further rolling out shore power in European ports. In the context of sustainability, Tzitzikostas echoed the message of Mario Draghi, who indicated in his report on the competitiveness of the European Union that €39 billion of investment is needed annually between 2031 and 2050 to make maritime shipping more sustainable. According to the Greek euro commissioner, it is therefore necessary to mobilise private investment with public investment and guarantees, for example through contracts-for-difference.

Tzitzikostas also spoke about the importance of European leadership in the production of clean fuels for seagoing vessels. However, he did stress the importance of international cooperation to secure these alternative fuels.

Finally, in his opening speech, the European Commissioner for Transport and Tourism highlighted the European Industrial Maritime Strategy, for which the European Commission is gathering input and which may be published by the end of this year. He stressed that Europe must show global leadership with regard to technological developments in maritime shipping, such as in the areas of digitalisation and sustainability.

According to the KVNR, in doing so, it is essential to strengthen the international competitiveness of European shipping as a precondition for a thriving European maritime industrial cluster.

After Tzitzikostas' opening speech, MEPs responded by asking questions and making comments. Several MEPs further highlighted the importance of scaling up clean alternative marine fuels, stating that they expect concrete measures from the European Commission. These concrete measures will be included in the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan, according to the euro commissioner. However, the Greek Eurocommissioner did indicate that in this plan, there will be a strong focus on reducing investment risks and attracting private investment.

German MEP Jens Gieseke, a member of the European People's Party (EPP), which includes the Dutch CDA, asked about the European Commission's plans on military mobility. Tzitzikostas replied that military mobility will be an important part in the white paper on the future of European defence announced in the first quarter of this year. In addition, he indicated that he would like to earmark 70 billion euros for military mobility in the upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework 2028-2034. To illustrate, €70 billion amounts to about 1/13th of the current MFF. Military mobility will thus play a crucial role in the coming years, partly due to rising global tensions.

Finally, Dutch MEP for the CDA, Tom Berendsen, asked when the European Ports Strategy can be expected and what elements the Commission intends to focus on. Tzitzikostas clarified that this strategy can be expected by the end of 2025, in which aspects such as security, foreign interference, resilience and sustainability will play an important role.

It is positive that both the Greek Eurocommissioner and the members of the Transport and Tourism Committee have the importance of maritime shipping at heart. It will be all the more interesting to see how Tzitzikostas and his team will translate these priorities into concrete measures. The KVNR will continue to provide input to the Commission, where possible in cooperation with maritime stakeholders. Of course we will keep you informed of all these developments, please sign up for our news alerts