More than 60 Spanish and international expert speakers will be analysing the state of play in the maritime sector at WORLD MARITIME WEEK, to be held at the Bilbao Exhibition Centre from 21 to 23 March 2023. The first day will feature the plenary session, which will be shared by all four conferences: EUROFISHING, SINAVAL, FUTUREPORT and OCEAN ENERGY CONFERENCE. Martin Stopford will run this masterclass: Climate change and smart shipping. Maritime Industry Outlook for 2050. Stopford has held positions including Business Development Director at British Shipbuilders; Managing Director of Lloyds Maritime Information Services and Managing Director of Clarkson Research, and is currently Managing Director of MarEcon Ltd.
EUROFISHING will address the challenges of Marine Spatial Planning with real cases as well as keynote speeches and will run in parallel to the Tuna Workshop. Jorge Santos Gonçalves, Senior Researcher at and Member of the Board of CCMAR and María Isabel Artime, the Secretary General for Fisheries, will participate in this conference.
SINAVAL is the longest running conference and the backbone of WORLD MARITIME WEEK. It will cover topics such as competitiveness and resilience in the maritime industry and digitalisation in the sector regarding shipyard 4.0, digital twins and unmanned ships. Among the highly prestigious speakers will be José Ubaldo Dégano, head of Production Process Transformation at Navantia; Jon Lasa, founder of Branka Solutions SLU and Manuel Ruiz, Business Development Manager at Lloyd’s.
As far as FUTUREPORT, the port conference, is concerned, the theme will focus on digital transformation and so-called green ports. José Ramón Iribarren, General Manager of SIPORT21, will address issues such as the sensorisation required to make smart infrastructure. Moreover, SINAVAL and FUTUREPORT will organise a cross-cutting conference to discuss sustainability and decarbonisation from the point of view of shipping lines, ports and their suppliers.
The OCEAN ENERGY CONFERENCE will bring together experts in marine renewable energies, who will mainly focus on innovative public procurement. Patxi Etxaniz, head of Marine Energies at IDOM, will address issues such as public funding to develop wave technology. This will be followed by a presentation of projects selected for the Perte Naval, the strategic recovery and economic transformation project for the modernisation and diversification of the Spanish naval ecosystem.
A new feature this year will be the WMW AWARDS, where 4 prizes will be awarded: one per sector represented at each conference. Applications can be submitted until 28 February and may be local. regional, national or international initiatives. Representatives of the WMW Working Groups and the WMW Scientific Secretariat, professionals of recognised prestige in the maritime sector, will form the jury, which will assess and issue the WMW Awards decision. The awards gala will be held on 22 March at 18.15 at the Bilbao Exhibition Centre. Participants will be able to enjoy an exclusive cocktail and live music, alongside a network of professionals who value transparency, competitiveness, transformation and innovation in the maritime sector.
The exhibition area will feature more than 80 major companies from this sector. As for foreign firms, TWG from the United States, Glo Marine from Rumania and Olen from France, among many others, have confirmed that they will participate in the forum. SEAEurope will also be present; it is an entity that represents the European shipbuilding industry in 15 nations, covering the production, maintenance, repair, modernisation and conversion of all types of ships and floating structures, both commercial and naval, including the entire supply chain with the various producers of marine systems, equipment material and services. As for Spanish companies and entities, firms and/or representatives of the Basque Maritime Forum, Bilbao Port Authority, Uniport, PYMAR, Basque Government, Murueta Shipyards, Bombas Azcue, Spanish Maritime Cluster Association, Branka Solutions, Industrias Ferri, Navantia, Panelship, Trafag, Volvo Group España and Vulkan, among many others, have already confirmed their attendance.
The Hosted Buyers’ Programme will guarantee the presence of domestic and international shipowners, shipping companies and shipyards; these profiles are of great interest for the exhibiting companies, with whom meetings will be arranged. World Maritime Week has recently received the “Full Internationality” honour from the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism.
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