SEA Europe’s position on European preference in the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA)

SEA Europe has adopted a joint position calling for the immediate inclusion of the European maritime industry (shipyards and equipment manufacturers) within the scope of the Industrial Accelerator Act, so that public procurement and public support mechanisms can better promote industrial value creation in Europe. In particular, the association advocates for the introduction of European origin criteria, combining a minimum threshold for European content with a list of strategic maritime technologies that must be sourced within the EU.

This position is the result of a consensus among all SEA Europe members, representing the various European maritime industries. It also emphasizes that opening up to third countries benefiting from free trade agreements with the EU must be assessed on a case-by-case basis, depending on reciprocity and competitive conditions.

GICAN fully supports this common position, while advocating for a more ambitious approach regarding the geographical scope of the origin criteria. GICAN believes that access to European preference mechanisms must be more strictly regulated to ensure that European public funding effectively benefits European industry and cannot be circumvented to the advantage of actors from third countries benefiting from massive public support or unfair competitive conditions.