Past Event
The Future of the European Shipbuilding Industry
Andrea Cozzolino (Italy) & Ville Itälä (Finland)
June 24, 2010
European Parliament
Brussels, Belgium
Co-organisers:
CESA Community of European Shipbuilders Association
www.cesa.eu
EMF European Metalworkers Federation
www.emf-fem.org
European Parliament - freefall lifeboat for the European shipbuilding and equipment industry
Two Members of the European Parliament - Italian Andrea Cozzolino and Ville Itälä from Finland - were hosting a conference on the future of the European Shipbuilding Industry in Brussels on June 24, 2010. Although protagonists of different political camps - Andrea Cozzolino member of the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats and Ville Itälä from the European Peoples Party were united in their well founded and serious concern about the future of Europe’s shipbuilding industry.
Andrea Cozzolino’s election district is Naples in the South of Italy, almost a synonym for the omnipresent Italian Shipowner and liner operator Emanuele Grimaldi and Fincantieri’s Castellammare di Stabia shipyard.
Ville Itälä’s political and private roots are in Turku, in the South of Finland famous for the yard where the world largest and most sophisticated cruise ships were built in the past.
Shipyard workers not only in these two economically weak regions fear for their jobs, as new orders are picking up slowly and a total of 500.000 highly experienced workers all over Europe are facing greater uncertainties than ever before.
Plenty of words have been written and much more have been said in the context of the crisis in European shipbuilding before and during the Conference without considering the basic rules of shipping, financing and contracting of new shipbuilding orders.
The audience was left with a conclusion of serious consequences. The message was that neither the Council, nor the European Commission will support this industry in its fight for survival, last but not least because of the fact that the European Commission is not a party to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). There is only one European institution that has the strong will, the uncompromising commitment and the firm decisiveness to actively support the European shipbuilding and equipment manufacturing industry - the European Parliament!
Members of the European Parliament are fully aware of their enormous responsibilities towards their electorate particularly in social and regional matters. It’s only a step from there to the Flag States / Member States and their recognized organisations which are - in close cooperation with the ship owners - the key decision makers in a single international forum namely IMO.
An emergency plan for the European shipbuilding and equipment industry will have to focus not only on the Flag States / Member States, but also on the ship owners and their financiers in a customer-is-king mentality while the European Parliament will be supporting the industry like an offshore safety and stand-by vessel.
The fundamentals for a survival strategy will be dealt with in a separate AMEM Communication.
Andrea Cozzolino, MEP S&D
Ville Itälä, MEP EPP
Heino Bade, EMF European Metalworkers Federation, Chairman of EMF Shipbuilding Committee, www.emf-fem.org
Paolo Lotti, Fincantieri Headquarters, Trieste, www.fincantieri.it
Willem Laros, CESA, www.cesa.eu
Werner Lüken, Lloyd Werft, Bremerhaven
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
Marian Krzaklewski, Shipbuilding Rapporteur of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), www.eesc.europa.eu
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
Christian Girard, Converteam (ex Alstom), Marine and Defence adviser
NN
John Kuehmayer, AMEM
Paolo Lotti, Fincantieri, www.fincantieri.it
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
Alfons Guinier, ECSA, Secretary General, www.ecsa.be
Heino Bade, EMF European Metalworkers Federation, Chairman of EMF Shipbuilding Committee, www.emf-fem.org
John Kuehmayer, AMEM
Thorkil Christensen, Danish Maritime, Director
Nick Granger, CESA Ship Maintenance, Repair and Conversion
NN
John Kuehmayer, AMEM
Ronald Vopel, DG MARE
Caroline Jacobsson, EMF shipbuilding committee, www.emf-fem.org
Andrea Husen-Bradley, EMF shipbuilding committee, www.emf-fem.org
Nicolas Rode, EMF shipbuilding committee, www.emf-fem.org
Andrea Cozzolino, MEP S&D
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
Bernhard Meyer, Meyer Werft
Erwin Sellering, Prime Minister Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
Marian Krzaklewski, Shipbuilding Rapporteur of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), www.eesc.europa.eu
Heino Bade, EMF European Metalworkers Federation, Chairman of EMF Shipbuilding Committee, www.emf-fem.org
Christian Girard, Converteam (ex Alstom), Marine and Defence adviser
Heino Bade, EMF European Metalworkers Federation, Chairman of EMF Shipbuilding Committee, www.emf-fem.org
Auditorium
Auditorium
Ruth Paserman, European Commission Cabinet Vice-President Antonio Tajani
Questioner:
Emilio Lonati
CISL Confederazione Italiana Sindacati Lavoratori
FIM Federazione Italiana Metalmeccanici
www.fim.cisl.it
Erwin Sellering, Prime Minister Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
Dr. Reinhard Lüken, CESA, Secretary General, www.cesa.eu
The panel