» EUROPEAN TRANSPORT POLICY PORTS AND PORT SERVICES Liberalisation of port services essential for Europe Following the Commission Communication “Reinforcing quality service in sea ports: A key for European transport” of February 2001 important steps forward have been made towards the liberalisation of port services in both the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers. In the First Reading procedure, the European Parliament voted in November 2001 in favour of the proposed Directive on market access to port services. ECSA was pleased to note that the Directive remained to a large extent intact but regretted that the issue of pilotage was left open. The Spanish Presidency of the Council spared no efforts to develop a Council position on the proposed Directive. At the June Council meeting of Transport Ministers a common position was reached creating the basis for the liberalisation of port services. Under the common position the Directive applies the principle of free market access to port services, notably cargo handling, towage, pilotage and mooring services and confirms the right of self handling and employing personnel of own choice. The specificities of the port service sector have thereby been taken into account. In case of substantiated limitations on market access, tenders will have to be issued resulting in concessions that are limited in duration. Duration periods are set at 10 years for non significant investments, 15 years for significant investments in movable assets and 36 years for significant investments in immovable assets (or for movable assets considered expensive by the competent authority). In case of additional significant investments in the category of significant investments during the last 10 years of the concession, an extension of 10 years may be granted. The common position will now have to go through a Second Reading procedure in the European Parliament. It is expected that discussions will start in the fourth quarter of 2002. Once adopted the Directive will enter into force on the 20th day following publication and be implemented by Member States not later than 2 years as from entry into force. At the ECSA Board meeting held in Madrid in June, the ECSA Membership welcomed the progress made on the proposed Directive at Council level. The ECSA Board felt that, while not ideal since some amendments have weakened the Directive, the common position is a step in the right direction. Liberalisation of port services is a necessary element in the efforts to increase the efficiency of the transport chain and to optimise the use of maritime services to the benefit of society, trade, shippers, transport providers and ports themselves, as key nodal points. The Commission’s “bottleneck” exercise made in the context of the promotion of short sea transport confirms that more efforts have to be undertaken in this field. The importance of reaching an agreement on the proposed Directive as soon as possible is shared by important professional associations, notably UNICE, ESC, CLECAT and ECASBA. Together with ECSA, they represent the producers and logistic providers of European trade. The co-operation between these associations has been very helpful in the process. ECSA hopes that constructive discussions in the European Parliament in the Second Reading procedure will lead smoothly to final adoption of the Directive in full strength. PROMOTION OF SHORT SEA SHIPPING High on the political agenda and growing The promotion of short sea shipping remained high on the political agenda in the past year. Most recently, the informal Council of Transport Ministers, held in Gijon beginning of June, also had short sea shipping as the main point on the agenda. Transport Ministers confirmed the important role of short sea shipping for the alleviation of road transport by contributing particularly to reducing traffic congestion, accidents, noise and air pollution. The priority action points, as made by the Council Presidency, very much support the ongoing action to reduce the bottlenecks in short sea shipping. It is also encouraging to note that short sea shipping has now reached a market share of more than 42 % versus other transport modes. A practical approach The Commission, Member States (National Focal Points), the Promotion Centres and the industry (Maritime Industries Forum) are meanwhile heavily involved in a practical approach in the promotion exercise. In February 2002 the Transport Council approved the proposed Directive requiring the use of FAL forms. End May 2002 the Commission services issued an internal working document as a guide to customs procedures for short sea shipping. This guidance document will be very helpful in the work of the maritime industries through the MIF on an overall simplification of administrative procedures in short sea shipping. On the basis of the recommendations made at the workshop on documentary procedures held under the Belgian Presidency in November 2001, the MIF is working on measures to reduce the administrative bottlenecks as identified in the Commission study of May 2000. Priority will be given to further improvements in customs’ procedures. This will be done in close co-operation with the relevant Commission services DG TREN/TAXUD, the National Focal Points and the Promotion Centres. Short Sea Promotion Centres Short Sea Promotion Centres have now been established all over Europe, the most recent being in the UK. They are at the basis of the promotion efforts in the most direct and practical way. The creation of an electronic network between them, enabling an ongoing exchange of information and virtual meetings, has also proved to be helpful. The next step is the creation of a data bank, accessible to the public, and providing the sailing possibilities of European short sea services all over Europe. A start was made with the data banks of the promotion centres of Flanders, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands and France. The data bank, accessible on http://www.shortsea.info, has been launched in July 2002. Completion and refining of the data bank will be an ongoing and long term exercise. It is also envisaged to include bulk shipping services in due time. ECSA looks forward to a further and enhanced co-operation with the promotion centres, with Member States and the Commission services. This is a sound basis to continue the growing trend in the use of short sea services. WHITE PAPER ON TRANSPORT POLICY In September 2001, the Commission adopted its long awaited White Paper on European Transport Policy. Having been instrumental in the promotion of short sea shipping in the last decennium it is evident that ECSA supports in principle the modal shift from road transport to alternative modes as suggested in the Paper. In its initial comments (which are available on the ECSA website http://www.ecsa.be/publicationsinfo.asp), ECSA also stressed the importance of European shipping as an industry in its own right, being by far the main carrier of European and global trade. ECSA also reiterated the de facto international character of shipping that is a key element on all fronts, including maritime safety. Enhancement of multimodal transport is fully supported. It should, however, be realised that multimodal transport exists already today to a very large extent. The example of maritime multimodal transport, the main intermodal European carrier today, speaks for itself. It is therefore recommended to build on the experience gained over the years and to avoid strictly regional initiatives that are counterproductive for global trade in which Europe is one of the main players. The many suggestions made in the White Paper are complex, sometimes controversial and may have far-reaching consequences. In this respect it is clear that a further exchange of views between all parties involved is essential. ECSA will contribute to this process and looks forward to the further discussions in this respect. THE MARITIME INDUSTRIES FORUM (MIF) Ongoing action on issues of substance While the plenary meeting of the MIF in Valencia on 29/30 October 2001 lacked, through unavoidable circumstances, top level participation from the Commission, the discussions were substantive and created the basis for the further work of the MIF during the year. This is particularly so for transport. As mentioned under the item Short Sea Shipping, the MIF Group Transport is giving a practical follow up to the bottleneck exercise on short sea shipping with as priority documentary procedures and port services. This is undertaken in close co-operation with the Commission, the National Focal Points and the Promotion Centres. Within the Group Transport, maritime industries are also exchanging views on other issues such as the harmonisation and standardisation of intermodal units (vide White Paper on Transport Policy), distortion of competition, security and statistical information. Of the other Groups in the MIF the agenda on shipbuilding has evidently been dominated by the discussions between Korea and the EU. Other issues dealt with are recycling, market analysis and EDI. The ad hoc Group on R&D has produced a master plan for the maritime sector. The Group on Human Resources has mainly concentrated on the career planning of qualified seafarers in the maritime cluster. This will be a key item for the next plenary meeting. Other issues dealt with are enlargement of the EU, and the human element in maritime safety. The next MIF plenary meeting will be held in Naples on 28/29 October. Top level participation of the European Commission has been confirmed. APPLICATION OF COMPETITION RULES ON LINER SHIPPING The controversial OECD Liner Shipping Competition Policy Report was discussed at a workshop held in Paris in December 2001. ECSA participated together with the World Shipping Council and CENSA. Many shipowner associations and shipping companies also attended. The data in the report were criticised by the shipping industry and a large number of OECD Member States and it was consequently felt difficult to base any conclusions on the report as it stood. The only agreement reached at the workshop was a recognition of the factual situation, notably the concept of individually negotiated rates and conditions on a confidential basis as existing under OSRA and in practice applied under the EU competition rules. For the shipping industry it is clear that, whilst competition regimes on a global basis are developing in the spirit of individual confidential agreements, the rate immunity valid under these regimes is maintained. Key players such as the US, Canada, Australia and Japan as well as some EU Member States declared that they had no intention to change existing regimes at this stage. The EU Commission advised in March 2002 that it would launch a three-stage process to review Regulation 4056/86 and the justifications for the EU liner conference block exemption. The first stage would consist of a technical working paper outlining the key issues and establishing a list of questions to be addressed. In the second stage an in depth study would be made of the relevant data, including the replies received to the technical paper. The results of the study and any preliminary conclusions would be published in the form of a Green or White Paper. Parties involved would be consulted in the process. If the Commission were to conclude that some changes appeared to be called for, a third stage might consist of a proposal for an amendment of the existing EC liner shipping legislation. The existing uncertainty has recently been removed by the announcement of the Commission that guidelines would be issued soonest on the regime for liner shipping on the main trades (TACA 2). Meanwhile, the shipping industry is fully prepared to co-operate with the Commission services in the review exercise.