DANZICA – The General Assembly of ESPO, the European Sea Ports Organisation, the body representing European seaports vis-à-vis the European Union institutions in Brussels, met today in Poland, in Gdańsk, under the chairmanship of Ansis Zeltiņš.
During the meeting, the Secretary General of ESPO, Isabelle Ryckbost, focused on the state of progress of EU policies, on the activities carried out by the organisation and on the strategic priorities that will guide the sector in the coming years. The Assembly also approved a series of technical documents intended for European institutions, with the aim of contributing to the definition of future port policies.
Italian ports were represented by Assoporti, with a delegation led by Annalisa Tardino, President of the Western Sicilian Sea Port System Authority, present in Gdańsk on behalf of the President of Assoporti, Roberto Petri.
“Participating in all the challenges related to the European Union requires constant presence, expertise and the ability to engage in dialogue,” commented Petri. “Assoporti has resumed continuous dialogue with ESPO and the main European institutions to contribute to the decision-making processes that directly affect national ports. Thanks to this work, we are seeing growing attention from the European Commission towards our requests in the drafting of the European port strategy, which forms the basis of future sector regulations. We have also given a clear mandate to a president who, as a former MEP, knows the EU institutions well.”
In her speech, Tardino highlighted the strategic value of the Italian presence in European decision-making tables, underlining the central role of the national port system in the continental context: “Since my appointment, I have considered it essential to be on the front line where European policies are defined and to bring the demands of our port system, which is strategic for the country. Italy is consistently among the top three European countries in terms of cargo volumes handled and maintains continental leadership in cruise and passenger traffic. I thank President Petri for the trust he has shown in me.”
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Particular attention was paid to the issue of the ETS, considered one of the main critical issues for the European port system.
“The concrete risk is a loss of traffic to non-EU ports, which are subject to fewer environmental constraints. A situation that would have direct effects on transhipment ports, such as Gioia Tauro, on short sea shipping, on supply chains and on the overall competitiveness of the European system. This is why we are working very intensively at national, European and, above all, through ESPO.”
During the assembly, the growing complexity of the international scenario in which European ports operate also emerged, amid geopolitical tensions, energy crises, disruptions to value chains and green and digital transition processes.
“This Assembly,” added Tardino, “confirmed the complexity of the challenges that the port system is facing today: geopolitical tensions, disruptions to value chains, energy crises, hybrid threats, in addition to the green and digital transition processes.”
In this scenario, ports assume an increasingly central role.”
According to Tardino, the issues of port security, energy transition, digitalization, and administrative simplification represent today the fundamental guidelines for the future of the sector. “Ports must be ready to operate in an increasingly unstable international context. European policies can, and must, represent an opportunity to strengthen the infrastructure, operational standards, and response capacity of the entire European port system.”
