Asime presents the 2nd International Congress Maritime Trends Summit

• Asime will hold the second edition of the Maritime Trends Summit on 29 and 30 November in Vigo.
• The International Naval, Maritime and Port Congress will be a meeting point for 200 business representatives and leading organisations in the sector at national and international level, who will discuss the latest trends and the future of this industry.
• The event is sponsored by, among others, the companies Ardora, Brezo, Galenergy, Grenalia, Marinsa, Ocean Winds and Grupo Davila.
  This morning, Asime has presented at its headquarters in Vigo the details of the second edition of Maritime Trends Summit, its International Naval, Maritime and Port Congress, which will take place next 29th and 30th November in Vigo.

Enrique Mallón, Secretary General of Asime, highlighted that “Maritime Trends Summit consolidates in this second edition as a reference event in the sector. It is a unique congress, which differs from other events because it is very business oriented. At the same time as we analyse together the latest trends in the sector, what we are looking for is to generate business opportunities”. To do this, he explains, they seek “to bring buyers closer to our companies in the naval-maritime world, which in Asime are more than 270, one of our core activities”.

More than 200 national and international experts are expected to attend the event, including major shipbuilders, port representatives, maritime multinationals, heads of SMEs in the value chain, leaders of marine energy projects and, especially, purchasing managers of all these companies, who will attend the event to attract potential suppliers, as explained by Asime.

Activities during the congress

• On 29 November, business visits will be organised to the facilities of the Armón Group and also to the Port Authority of Vigo. In addition, that same day at 20:30, a networking cocktail will be held at the Real Club Náutico de Vigo, with the aim of enriching the experience of the participants, providing a relaxed atmosphere in an incomparable setting, to generate contacts and interaction among attendees.
• On the 30th of November, the congress activity moves to the Mar de Vigo Auditorium, where the congress presentations will take place from 09:00 to 14:30.There will also be a cocktail party at the end of the congress, to continue providing networking spaces to promote business and joint projects between companies.

Speeches

Rebeca Gil, Technical Coordinator of the Congress, gave some details of the congress presentations, in which “we will bring together the main players in the industry at international level, to examine, among other topics, the current reality of shipyards and shipowners, new business areas and markets, logistical and port challenges and the rise of marine energies”.

“Both attendees and speakers will have a special focus on profiles that favour the generation of business, especially fleet and shipyard managers, purchasing managers and supply managers”.

The congress will be organised into different panels, including the following:

• Defence industry, with the intervention of the Spanish Navy.Shipbuilding and ship repair, where experts from leading shipyards such as Navantia, Grupo Armón, Nodosa Shipyard or the Portuguese West Sea Viana will talk about capabilities and the importance of the value chain.
• Trends in propulsion systems will also be addressed, an area where important developments are taking place towards new energies linked to the energy transition, many of these developments precisely in Galicia, with companies such as Marinsa, which will offer a complete vision in this regard.
  Offshore wind power, one of the booming business areas for the naval industry, due to the interrelationship that exists with its value chain. For this reason, the opportunities presented for the value chain will be addressed, with promoters such as Greenalia and Oceans Winds.
• A keynote speech by the Fraunhofer Centre for Logistics and Maritime Services in Hannover (Germany), one of the most internationally renowned research institutes in this field, which develops innovative solutions for the maritime sector and its supply chain; and the Port of Rotterdam, one of the largest in Europe.
• The event will be closed by the president of Asime, Justo Sierra; the mayor of Vigo, Abel Caballero and the president of the Xunta de Galicia, Mr. Alfonso Rueda.

State of the sector

Regarding the current state of the naval-maritime sector in Galicia, Enrique Mallón took the opportunity to stress that “we are in a good moment, the productive capacity occupied is around 85% on average. These are good figures, but with room for further growth. Asime’s objective is still to recover the figure of 10,000 workers that existed in the sector years ago. At the moment we are still a long way off, at around 7,000, but now the reasons are more related to the lack of qualified personnel that affects all industries, and not to the lack of projects in recent years. We must continue working to expand our order book and projects, and that is why congresses such as the Maritime Trends Summit are crucial for our sector”.

“The Galician shipbuilding and maritime industry has a unique and consolidated international brand. Its wide range of capabilities, services and potential make it particularly interesting for investors and customers ranging from cutting-edge shipbuilding and ship repair to efficient logistics with the motorway of the sea. Precisely, with this international projection that is part of the DNA of our sector, we are participating this week in the Europort fair in Rotterdam, one of the most important in the world”, explained Enrique Mallón. A delegation of more than 10 companies led by Asime has travelled there to close new business opportunities and also to spread the celebration of the Maritime Trends Summit congress, with the aim of continuing to work on its international essence.

Asime concluded by inviting “companies in the sector to participate in Maritime Trends Summit and be part of this conversation about the present and future of the maritime, naval and port world. We firmly believe that together we can contribute to the growth and sustainable development of this sector. We are sure that it will be an enriching experience for all”.