Interview
Cooperation between France and Norway in the maritime sector
Norway leads a lot of projects in environment transition especially with electric propulsion and energy efficiency. French maritime industries are involved in defining the 2050 Vision for Energy transition. Cooperation would be relevant regarding these shared objectives.
CCFN: How would you describe the French Maritime Cluster (CMF)’s role and objectives?
Frédéric Moncany de Saint-Aignan: The French Maritime Cluster (CMF) gathers, stimulates and promotes the French maritime economic sector, which accounts for 83 billion euros worth of production and more than 340,000 jobs.
The CMF brings together more than 400 members in all sectors: shipping companies, shipbuilding and repair, offshore Oil and Gas service, supply industries, maritime safety and security industries, ports, insurance, ship broking, shipping finance, classification, etc.
The CMF acts on three fronts: communication, continuous dialogue with government authorities and the pursuit of synergies between its members. Annually, the Cluster gives an analytical snapshot of essential data on France’s maritime industries and organizes numerous conferences and activities.
CCFN: What are your ambitions for the French maritime industry and the main challenges it has to face today?
Frédéric Moncany de Saint-Aignan: Our ambition, shared with the French government, is to double figures of the French maritime economy in terms of added value and jobs.
This ambition comes from our conviction, shared by EOCD, that the world maritime sector will be increased by 100 % during the next decade. Many observers and economic indicators confirm this worldwide trend.
Therefore, French maritime industry must innovate, recruit, finance and develop sustainable activities whether in the traditional maritime fields or in the emerging fields, as promoted by the EU Blue growth initiative.
CCFN: You will team up with our Chamber of Commerce and the Team Norway in France to organize an ambitious French-Norwegian Forum (24th of May), dedicated to Sustainable Blue Growth, the 24th of May at the French Senate in Paris. What are your main expectations for this event?
Frédéric Moncany de Saint-Aignan: The French Maritime Cluster is pleased to support this forum organized by the Chamber of Commerce and the Team Norway in France. The creed of the Cluster is “heading for blue growth”! Our mission is to promote the maritime economy and its economic actors and there can be no development of maritime activities without sustainable development of these activities, that is to say that it is essential to take into account several aspects: such as the environmental dimension of these activities with regard to the protection of fisheries resources, or the fight against pollution of the oceans, or such as the social dimension, as it is necessary to promote the attractiveness of maritime training courses and careers to create the jobs of the future, while ensuring the enhancement of the talents and skills of women and men to ensure the quality and sustainability of our human resources in our maritime sector. So this forum can allow French and Norwegian actors to cross our eyes and experiences on these common maritime issues, to create links between actors and to encourage synergies and cooperation between our members.
CCFN: In which specific areas would you be interested in strengthening the maritime cooperation between France and Norway?
Frédéric Moncany de Saint-Aignan: France and Norway are already working on a new but most important topic, known as « Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships » (MASS). For instance, we are both part of the dialogue in the Maritime Safety Committee (and Correspondant Group above) on behalf the International Maritime Organization, looking for a balanced Regulatory Scoping Exercise on the MASS, as our companies Kongsberg and BOURBON teams up last year to develop new autonomous systems and technologies for the maritime sector.
In this field, we need to cooperate more, on both regulatory and industrial aspects.
Digital revolution is also a trend to reduce GHG emissions, thanks to IoT, smart grids, digital twin, etc. which help to optimize fuel consumption. Norway leads a lot of projects in environment transition especially with electric propulsion and energy efficiency. These technologies implemented on ships will improve new economic models for shipping on the whole of the value chain to be compliant with IMO regulations and social expectations regarding climate change and industrial impacts. French maritime industries are involved in defining the 2050 Vision for Energy transition: ship design and ship buiding, ship operations, logistics and three transverse challenges: energies and new energies, digitalisation (IoT, smart grids, digital twin, etc.) and services (insurances, banking, etc.). Cooperation would be relevant regarding these shared objectives.
Norway is the European leader for marine bio resources production both fisheries and aquaculture. France is in the top European countries for fish consumption and importation for Norway. Our industries cooperate for fisheries (in innovative technologies) and for fish processing (especially in Boulogne-sur-Mer and in Brittany), but we could deepen this collaboration regarding the new business opportunities of value added created by valorization of the co-products and biotechnologies.
Fish farming is also a strategic sector. Cooperation between France and Norway started a lot of years ago with salmon and now cooperation could be strengthen in technologies for fish farms as well as biological research (diversification, IMTA, etc.).
For some years now, a French Delegation participates at the NASF. A partnership with NASF and Mission Capécure gathers companies and research centers of fish industry and could implement these different cooperations.
Source: Newsletter France-Norway Express #11, January 2019
> French-Norwegian Sustainable Blue Growth Forum: 24th of May / Palais du Luxembourg, Paris
