On 25^th January, EBI, together with its partner boot Düsseldorf, held the 7^th edition of the International Breakfast Meeting (IBM) online due to the cancellation of boot Düsseldorf 2022. Despite being held online for the second consecutive year, it showed itself, once again, as an outstanding platform offering trade visitors, industry, and journalists the opportunity to exchange information on the latest market trends, regulations, and innovation, as well as to develop new contacts and networks.

The IBM tackled a crucial topic for the boating industry under the theme of “International trade opportunities and supply chain challenges”. The event was moderated by EBI’s Secretary General Philip Easthill.

Petros Michelidakis (Director, boot Düsseldorf), and Robert Marx (President, boot Düsseldorf & BVWW) introduced the webinar and welcomed speakers and participants. They both stressed the importance of the themes of international trade and supply chains as important challenges to tackle for the future of the boating industry. Both extended their welcome for the 2023 edition of boot Düsseldorf.

The keynote speaker was Cristina Rueda-Catry (Cabinet Expert, European Commission Executive Vice-President and Commissioner for Trade Valdis Dombrovskis). She pointed out the relevance of extra-EU trade which accounts for 38 million jobs, meaning that nearly one in five jobs is linked to EU’s trade. Trade will be fundamental to recover from the pandemic. The new EU Strategy on Trade was published in February 2021 and is based on three main objectives: openness, sustainability and assertiveness.

Openness refers to the capability of EU to continue building reliable trade relationships with partners. The US still represent the most important partner for trade and European recreational boating industry presence in the American market is an example of this consolidated relationship. Long-term disputes have been resolved with favourable terms for the EU, such as the Steel and Aluminium dispute. Moreover, the Trade and Technology Council is laying the foundations for a promising collaboration on the field of digitalisation transition and technology with the US. Sustainability will also be at the heart of EU trade policy in a number of initiatives. The assertiveness element means that the EU will continue being open but defend its interests when trade partners do not abide by the rules. This principle has led to the appointment of the EU’s first Chief Trade Enforcement Officer. The EU is putting forward several tools to help companies to enforce rights and grasp opportunities such as the Single-Entry Points and Access to Markets tool, complemented by tools for the access to procurement and a tool on rules of origins, as well as the European Chips Act to increase European production of semiconductors.

Marc Diening (CEO, Bavaria Yachts) focused on the current supply chain situation for the boating industry. The industry is in an unprecedented situation with great opportunities coming from a strong demand for boats driven by the pandemic while there are threats coming from supply chain bottlenecks and raw materials price increases. Companies are facing difficulties to match the higher demand and lead times of several months are becoming the new norm. The issues are exacerbated by the small size of many suppliers that are lacking the transparency and communication level which leads to a great uncertainty for all industry operators. The tendency of many companies to stockpile and purchase more than needed creates a vicious cycle. Bavaria has reacted by storing more material than usual to keep production stable. Two years since the start of the first supply chain issues, Bavaria has adopted adequate restructuring and rescheduling measures and increased transparency across the supply chain to avoid inefficiencies leading to a more stabilised situation.

He maintained that it is important for all operators across the supply chains to think long-term, being aware of the historical cycles in the industry, thus keeping trust among partners as the final goal. In the next 6 to 12 months no changes to the current issues are expected. Price increases are an additional challenge that affect margins and prices of boats.  At the political level it is essential to make sure that international movements of goods are protected. Dependency on a single supplier, country or region is not a productive approach in this unique environment. The direction for the industry and policy-makers is to build industrial competencies and technologies in more countries and preferably in Europe. He concluded by encouraging the creation of a transparent framework to handle the supply chain and raw material challenges, while increasing the attractiveness of the sector to customers and improve the competitiveness of the industry long term.

Alessandro Gianneschi (CEO of Gianneschi Pumps and Blowers & Vice President of Confindustria Nautica) presented the current situation of the global supply chain for raw materials and components. He reported the results from a survey conducted by Confindustria Nautica on a sample of Italian companies in the equipment and engine manufacturing sectors. The main countries for the supply of raw materials and components were shown to be Italy, China, USA, Germany, and Japan. The delivery times of raw materials from major suppliers in 2021 were significantly longer than previously. While previously 45% of the companies already required the scheduling of orders for raw materials and components to their main suppliers, in 2021 a further 28% of companies were required to do so by their main suppliers, 20% of by only a few suppliers, and only 7% of the companies in the sample did not receive requests to schedule orders by their suppliers. It also appears that for 93% of the sample, many of the major suppliers have increased their prices compared to the previous year. On top of the raw materials and delivery time issues, the survey identified the microprocessor shortage as an additional challenge. Mr Gianneschi also highlighted the importance of a better transparency in the value chains and a greater collaboration between yards and suppliers as critical solutions for the industry to successfully address these challenges in the coming years.

The last speaker was Michael Heinemann (CEO, Phoenix Contact), presented his company’s long experience in providing sustainable charging solutions to the automotive sector. He also showcased the company’s recent advancements in the development of charging infrastructure with potential for boating. He explained the logistic difficulties that Phoenix contact is currently facing to supply key components for their products, such as microelectronics. The session was followed by a lively Q&A were participants asked about transparency within the EU single market, the European response to the shortage of microprocessors and the impact of Brexit on boatbuilders and suppliers.

The 7^th edition of the International Breakfast was concluded by EBI President Jean-Pierre Goudant, who thanked speakers and participants and announced the new strategy for the period 2022-2025 about to be launched by EBI.

The full recording of the International Breakfast Meeting can be found on EBI’s YouTube page.

Advancing and representing a sustainable boating and nautical tourism industry #MadeInEurope

European Boating Industry takes major leap in representing and advancing the recreational boating industry in Europe at General Assembly. It launches a strategy for the period 2022-2025 and a new branding. Approved by the General Assembly, it is built on a strong set of core actions and new initiatives that EBI will lead. The association will stand strong for all boating companies in Europe, giving them a powerful voice towards the EU Institutions and stakeholders. Approved as new members of the association by the General Assembly were the Irish Boat Rental Association as full member and the Electric Boat Association of Greece as sustaining member.

At the General Assembly of European Boating Industry (EBI) on 25^th January, several major decisions for the future of association were taken. Foremost is the new strategy spanning the period 2022-2025 that is based on a mission statement of “Advancing and representing a sustainable boating and nautical tourism industry #MadeInEurope”. With clear objectives, EBI will focus its actions on the core area of active interest representation at European level while introducing several complementary initiatives that will offer added value to EBI’s members and the industry. More information on the strategy, objectives and policy priorities can be found on the EBI website.

The new strategy is accompanied by a new logo and branding, the first update since EBI’s foundation in 2009, that showcases its status as an effective, modern, and member-driven association. This rebranding effort marks EBI commitment to further improving its value in support of the industry.

On the new strategy and rebranding, EBI President Jean-Pierre Goudant commented “We are proud of the launch of our strategy, and we invite all associations and partners to work with us to implement it over the next three years. We will be focusing on policy areas that we have identified as crucial for the future of our industry together with our members.

At the core of our new strategy is the element of competitiveness and keeping Europe at the forefront of manufacturing, services, and nautical tourism. We have therefore chosen to prominently include the Made in Europe element. This is also crucial for the exciting new developments around sustainability and digitalisation that will transform our sector in the next years and decades.

We also very much welcome the Irish Boat Rental Association and Electric Boat Association of Greece as new members of our growing network across Europe. The enlargement of our membership represents a strengthening of our role at European level.”

Joining EBI as full member is the Irish Boat Rental Association (IBRA). It is now in its 50^th year of operation and is the representative body for the cruise hire industry in Ireland. It is involved in marine tourism development and are council members of the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation. Stephen Conlon, Director of the IBRA commented “The Irish Boat Rental Association looks forward to building new relationships with the members of European Boating Industry. IBRA sees the membership of EBI as significant as we enter a period of new product development in relation to all aspects of sustainable tourism.”

More information about the Irish Boat Rental Association can be found on its website.

Accepted as sustaining member is the Electric Boat Association of Greece (EBA Greece). It was founded in 2016 to promote the development of electric boating and to serve the needs of all who have an interest in electric boating, manufacturers, boat owners or business members. On joining EBI, Andreas Apostolopoulos, President of EBA Greece says “By joining the EBI, our Greek Association's links with other Greek maritime business but also Electric Boat Associations around the world, will enable a better exchange of the latest technologies for the urgently required swift transition to zero emission.”

More information about the EBA Greece can be found on its website.

International Breakfast Meeting and BlueInvest workshop go ahead online

The cancellation of boot Düsseldorf leads to postponement of the full launch of the Blue Innovation Dock to January 2023. Two key events are still going ahead at the end of January to support the sector and kick off a successful 2022. The International Breakfast Meeting will discuss the boating’ industry’s supply chain challenges and the EU’s future approach to trade. The BlueInvest workshop on green Nautical Technologies features investors and entrepreneurs to discuss innovation and public and private investment.

The Blue Innovation Dock will launch at the next edition of boot Düsseldorf in 2023 (21 – 29 January). The co-organisers, boot Düsseldorf and European Boating Industry, will continue to focus on the aim to put sustainability at the heart of the boating and water sports industry and promote innovation. Exciting events in line with these goals are being planned for the coming year.

Despite the cancellation of boot Düsseldorf 2022, there is a strong commitment to supporting the recreational boating industry with business intelligence, contacts to the EU institutions, and provide practical support. With this spirit in mind, two key events are going ahead and moving online in the last week of January.

The BlueInvest Workshop on Green Nautical Technologies will take place on 24 January from 10:30 to 13:00 CET. In a first for the boating industry, the thematic workshop, offers an opportunity to network and start conversations with investors, entrepreneurs, and market experts.
This event is co-hosted by the European Commission’s BlueInvest initiative that promotes blue growth. It is enabled by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, and its features are designed to facilitate access to finance and investment readiness for start-ups, SMEs and scale-ups in the blue economy. The event will feature blue economy investors, industry experts, panel discussions and pitch sessions by high-potential start-ups, as well as B2B sessions to connect SMEs, investors, and other stakeholders. Registration, livestreaming, live chat and B2B matchmaking are available here.

The International Breakfast Meeting, already in its 7^th edition, will take place on 25^th January from 10:00 – 11:30 CET. It will tackle the topic of “International trade opportunities and supply chain challenges”. The aim is to help businesses navigate the EU’s future approach to trade, discuss solutions to supply chain challenges and identify new trade opportunities for the boating sector. It boasts the participation of Cristina Rueda-Catry (Cabinet Expert, European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis), Marc Diening (CEO, Bavaria Yachts), Alessandro Gianneschi (CEO, Gianneschi Pumps and Blowers & Vice-President, Confindustria Nautica), and Michael Heinemann (CEO, Phoenix Contact). Registration is open here.

EBI and boot Düsseldorf look forward to kicking off a successful year for the industry through organising these events on key topics and providing a valuable platform. The next edition of boot Düsseldorf will open its doors from 21 to 29 January 2023.

On 21 December 2021, leading superyacht multimedia, events and intelligence company BOAT International Media (BOAT) announced its acquisition of data, digital and B2B media organisation Boating Communications, publisher of International Boat Industry (IBI) magazine.

The acquisition sees BOAT strengthen its position in the B2B market. Founded in 1968, IBI is the most established and respected magazine serving the volume boat industry. The deal also includes IBI’s market intelligence platform, IBI Plus, its digital channels and the company’s events. Three of Boating Communications’ directors, Ed Slack, Philippa Drysdale and Philip Pereira will continue with the company as will all the staff, while its CEO Nick Hopkinson, who has been associated with IBI since 1968, will act as a consultant to BOAT. BOAT will maintain the B2B services IBI provides to the global boating industry and will develop its print and digital offering. IBI Plus, meanwhile, will complement BOAT’s existing and market-leading BOAT Pro market intelligence platform, which serves the superyacht industry.

ARGOS (Anti-theft Robust Galileo-based Operational System) is an EU-funded project with the aim to implement the new Galileo satellite navigation system and develop an innovative board/device for vehicle tracking, including recreational boats.

The use of ARGOS, that can be considered as a sort of “Blackbox”, aims to give evidence of the navigation route and improve the availability of the position information. The ARGOS Solution should respond to user needs and requirements, collected from the users that have been contacted. Two situations are considered: vessel anchored in a natural harbour and vessel anchored in a pier.

For the two situations, the following protections shall be foreseen:

• The Vessel shall be protected both from the potential movement outside the Mooring at Anchor Radius – MAR (potential risk of both theft attempt or anchor sliding) and from the potential movement outside a Safe Distance (SD) determined by the distance from rocks or dangerous elements.
• The Vessel shall be protected against theft attempts determined by movements outside a Safe Distance (SD).

The ARGOS project has contacted EBI to receive feedback from industry and boat users to improve its services. To fill out the survey of EU-funded ARGOS project for anti-theft devices, please download the document here.  Responses can be sent to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

On 8 December 2021, The European Commission adopted an Implementing Decision (EU) 2021/2173, amending Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/919 as regards harmonised standards

The following entries were added:

• EN ISO 8099-2:2021 - Small craft – Waste systems – Part 2: Sewage treatment systems
• EN ISO 8849:2021- Small craft – Electrically operated bilge pumps
• EN ISO 14945:2021 - Small craft – Builder’s plate
• EN ISO 14946:2021- Small craft – Maximum load capacity

The full list of harmonised standards for the RCD can be found on the website of the European Commission.

In Antalya, Turkey, the contracting parties of the UN’s Barcelona Convention on the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea Against Pollution, including the EU and the Mediterranean countries, signed a declaration endorsing a new strategy for 2022 to 2027 to achieve a healthy, clean, sustainable and climate resilient Mediterranean Sea. All signatories agreed to support the designation of a sulphur emissions control area in the whole region, meaning that ships navigating through the Mediterranean can only use fuels containing low sulphur. This aims to bring benefits to water and air quality as well as human health.

Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius, commented positively the adoption of the new environmental strategy by highlighting that it shows the commitment of the EU to work with non-EU partners to achieve high standards of environmental protection in line with the European Green Deal, while protecting the health of millions of Mediterranean citizens and their marine environment from pollution.

Regional cooperation for the protection of the marine environment is a key element of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the EU’s main tool for marine environmental protection. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive requires EU Member States to set up marine strategies in respect of the marine region of the Member States’ marine waters to achieve “Good Environmental Status”. This translates into extensive cooperation on a number of issues like biodiversity, eutrophication, contaminants, litter and underwater noise with the Regional Sea Conventions, such as the Barcelona Convention. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive will be reviewed by mid-2023 and, where necessary, amendments to the Directive will be proposed.