EU Launches Industrial Maritime Strategy

The European Commission has adopted a comprehensive Industrial Maritime Strategy to drive competitiveness, innovation and technological leadership in Europe’s maritime manufacturing and shipping industries. The strategy sets out a vision and concrete actions to reinforce Europe’s industrial sovereignty, trade and economic security, while supporting the sectors’ clean and digital transition.

EU shipbuilding and shipping are vital to the Union's strategic autonomy, trade flows, mobility, defense capabilities, and for the protection of Europe’s Exclusive Economic Zones’ assets and resources.

In the face of intensifying global competition and growing dependencies on third-country ship production, the Strategy introduces measures to strengthen these critical industries, structured around three main pillars.

The first pillar, ‘Build, Equip and Repair’, focuses on reinforcing Europe’s maritime manufacturing capabilities and technological leadership to leverage the waterborne single market.

This pillar includes actions designed to foster EU industrial sovereignty and create synergies across the maritime value chain. To this end, the Commission will launch an EU Industrial Maritime Value Chain Alliance. It also aims to accelerate the digital and circular transformation of European shipyards, maximize public demand and funding and improve the global level playing field for the EU industry.

‘Transport and Connect’ includes measures to strengthen the competitiveness, sustainability