The 2020 edition of the annual International Breakfast meeting (IBM) will feature the topic of sustainable boating with a focus on alternative fuels and engine systems. The European Commission, as well as innovators from the fields of electric, hybrid, digital and hydrogen will contribute to an exciting discussion on a key topic for the recreational boating industry.

IBM is organised by boot Düsseldorf and EBI. The theme follows the cross-sectoral developments towards decarbonisation and will bring together high-level experts to provide thought leadership on a key issue for industry, governments and the wider public. It will take place on Tuesday, 21 January 2020 from 8:30 until 10:30 in the Congress Center East at boot Düsseldorf.

Topics taking centre-stage will be the European Union’s strategy towards decarbonising Europe’s industry and the ambition to develop a carbon-neutral continent in the coming decades. The alternative solutions that will be presented and discussed in IBM’s interactive format are expected to be hydrogen, hybrid and electric engines.

To register, please click here. For more information about the IBM in general, please click here.

The Recreational Craft Directive regulates key aspects of boat building, as well as that of certain components. The latest revision dates from 2013 and has been applicable since January 2016.

The Directive contains review clauses, meaning that the European Commission is obliged to review the Directive and its application with the possibility of proposing legislative changes. This process is due to formally start in early 2020 and will likely end in 2022. It will include reports analysing the Directive and a potential legislative proposal to change the RCD. This would then be subject to the legislative process in the Council and European Parliament. The review will likely focus on the feasibility of exhaust emission reductions, potential requirements for evaporative exhaust emissions, the current design categories and potential need for further subcategories. A third-party study will provide the underlying basis for the review and will be awarded to a contractor towards the end of 2019.

Members have been informed about the review and are asked to provide input to EBI by mid-December. EBI will closely follow the review process and engage with it in order to represent the recreational boating industry. Any questions or input should be brought to the attention of the EBI Office.

The European Commission’s BlueInvest Day will bring together innovators, entrepreneurs, investors and enablers to unlock opportunities for investment and growth. It will take place on 4 February 2020 in Brussels, Belgium. Registration is now open and can be accessed here.

More information about the European Commission’s BlueInvest platform can be found here. Further Information about the BlueInvest grants will also be published on 21 November, which have a budget of over €22 million. These will support the development of innovative services and technologies and awards grants to market- and investment-ready SMEs with innovative products, technologies and services for the blue economy.

The European Council adopted the decision to extend Brexit until 31 January. For the duration of the extension, the UK remains a full member of the EU. Prior to this, the two sides had concluded a new withdrawal agreement. This was however not approved by the UK House of Commons and the European Parliament. Should this be ratified before the end of January, the withdrawal would take place earlier. An election will also take place in the UK on 12 December, which will influence the next developments and also the negotiations for the future relationship between the EU and the UK.

EBI is monitoring the developments and urges members to take careful note of the Brexit preparedness notices provided by the European Commission. These include in particular:

• Recreational and personal watercraft (click here)
• Industrial products (click here)

For a full overview of the Brexit preparedness notices from the European Commission, please click here. The UK Government likewise published guidance for the recreational craft regulations in case of a no-deal Brexit here. General Brexit guidance from the UK government can be found here.

The 2020 edition of the annual International Breakfast meeting (IBM) will feature the topic of sustainable boating with a focus on alternative fuels and engine systems. The European Commission, as well as innovators from the fields of electric, hybrid and hydrogen will contribute to an exciting discussion on a key topic for the recreational boating industry.

IBM is organised by boot Düsseldorf, the world’s largest boat show and EBI, the voice of Europe’s recreational boating industry. Now in its fourth edition and growing to over 150 participants in 2019, the theme follows the cross-sectoral developments towards decarbonisation. It brings together high-level experts to provide thought leadership on a key issue for industry, governments and the wider public. It will take place on Tuesday, 21 January 2020 from 8:30 until 10:30 in the Congress Center East at boot Düsseldorf.

Topics taking centre-stage will be the European Union’s strategy towards decarbonising Europe’s industry and the ambition to develop a carbon-neutral continent in the coming decades. The alternative solutions that will be presented and discussed in IBM’s interactive format are expected to be hydrogen, hybrid and electric engines.

Petros Michelidakis (Director, boot Düsseldorf) commented: “We are very proud to host this important networking platform which is successfully taking place every year during boot Düsseldorf. Recognising new trends and developments at an early stage will help the industry to understand and effectively use innovations for a sustainable development.”

Philip Easthill (Secretary-General, EBI) commented: “Environmental sustainability is a key issue for the recreational boating industry where there a number of exciting innovations. We very much look forward to discussing this with international experts at the International Breakfast Meeting next year that we are delighted to be organising again with our partner boot Düsseldorf.”

To register, please click here (and to register in German here). For more information about the IBM in general, please click here.

The latest edition of Nautica in Cifre was presented, which is the annual publication put together by the Market Analysis Department of UCINA, Italy’s Marine Industry Association, in partnership with the Edison Foundation and which can boast the patronage of the Italian Ministry for Infrastructure and Transport.

This report, now having reached its 40th edition, provides businesses, institutions and operators from across the sector with a series of key data and content for analysing in detail the economic framework of the Italian recreational boating industry.

The Fédération des Industries Nautiques (FIN, French Federation of Leisure Marine Industry) released the key figures for the 2018 leisure marine industry season in France. With a growth rate of 5%, the turnover of the marine industry and services reached 5.09 billion euros in 2018. This is the best performance since the 2008 crisis. This increase is mainly due to exports, which reached 76.4% of production in 2018. This dynamic should be confirmed for 2019. “This is undoubtedly good news for the entire leisure marine sector. We stay vigilant though, because uncertainties weigh on the international market,” according to Yves Lyon-Caen, President of the FIN

Funded under: Horizon 2020

Planned opening date: 3 December 2019

Deadline: 21 April 2020

ICOMIA’s 2018 statistics book has been released and can be purchased on ICOMIA’s website. More information can be found here.

In order to promote the positive economic impact and opportunities that the recreational boating industry offers for Europe, EBI commissioned a new graphic for publication on its channels. It shows the key figures per EBI member country, as well as key overall figures. This was also published on the EBI website, social media channels and is available for download here.