Blue Growth Potential in South Baltic Sea Region

Abstract

The Baltic Sea Region (BSR) stands for a flagship maritime region in Europe with dominating SME sector. Nevertheless, compared with other European regions, the cooperation and promotion activities of companies that belong to the Blue Economy in South Baltic Sea Region (SBSR) are not sufficient. As a response to this, the EU-project INTERMARE South Baltic aims to support the maritime economy in the SBSR by the creation of a network of companies and stakeholders.In line with the project, this study aims to analyse the future potential of the maritime economy and to identify trends that impact the sustainable development of the blue sector in SBSR. Based on primary data from a SBSR wide survey, descriptive statistical analysis is applied and Compound Annual Growth Rate is used as an indicator. The findings reveal need for actions regarding the sub-sectors Transport, Offshore oil & gas, Aquaculture, Fishery, Mineral resources and Biotechnology.

Towards Green and Smart Seaports: Renewable Energy and Automation Technologies for Bulk Cargo Loading Operations

“…Within the scientific literature concerning digitalisation in ports, one of the main focuses is on automating processes in large container ports, since among other things, automation in the case of standardised units like TEUs (Twenty-foot Equivalent Unit) is much easier to ____________________________________________________________________________ 2021 / 25 653 implement than -for instance -in case of dry bulk goods [3]. Such process automation efforts regularly lead to the development of new business models or the adaption of established business models [31], [32].…”

“…Ports, as multi-activity transport and logistic nodes, play a crucial role in the development of the economy in general and the Blue Economy in particular, as ports provide the basic infrastructure and services for diverse sectors, including marine living resources, marine nonliving resources, marine renewable energy, maritime transport, coastal tourism, maritime defence, etc. Hence, ports are the heart of the maritime industry, as they are the departure, Environmental and Climate Technologies ____________________________________________________________________________ 2021 / 25 651 entry and transfer points for all goods, services and persons transported by vessels [1]- [3]. Concerning Europe, in 2018, 70 % of all goods were transported to or from ports outside the EU-27, making maritime transport the most important mode for long distances [4].…”

Sustainable development goals for the coastal territories of the Baltic Sea Region

“…The sustainable strategies for the coastal territories should be designed taking into account regional specifics as its development is largely determined by its unique resources [40,41], which include the location that in the case of the coastal territories creates the conditions for the blue economy development [42,43]. This means that a sustainable development strategy for a coastal territory of the BSR shall particularly focus on Goals 8, 9, 11, 13 and 14, which are closely intertwined with the EU BSR strategy's orientation to the development of sectors and industries related to the use of marine resources.…”

Challenges of the Blue Economy: evidence and research trends

“…In 2012 the European Union implemented its BG strategy and established subsectors within the field of the BE [41,96]. The BG Strategy breaks down the BE into five main sectors: Biotechnology, Renewable Energy, Coastal and Maritime Tourism, Aquaculture and Mineral Resources, and integrates other sectors such as fishing, transportation, offshore oil and gas extraction, and ship construction and repair.…”