Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Change 2

RemovedSHORT JUSTIFICATION

AddedRecital 1 a (new): (1a) The fishing sector has high accident rates, which also have high mortality levels, and the important role of fishers training when it comes to work safety.

RemovedThe Council position at first reading reflects the political agreement reached between the Parliament and the Council during interinstitutional negotiations at early second-reading stage.

AddedRecital 8: (8) The Agency was initially established with the objective of contributing to the establishment of a high level of maritime safety across the Union while also assisting the pollution prevention from ships and later also from oil and gas installations. While these objectives were further strengthened with the addition of promoting maritime security, the Agency’s focus, during recent years, on support to regulatory developments in the area of decarbonisation and digitalisation of shipping, including port areas, merit the addition of those areas in the overall objectives of the Agency enabling it to contribute to the goals of the twin, green and digital, transition of the industry. Likewise, the crucial role of the Agency in the provision of a maritime awareness picture in the sea, through satellite images and the operation of remotely piloted aircraft systems, justifies the addition of a relevant overall objective for the Agency.

RemovedThe adopted provisions aim to update the mandate of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) by better reflecting its new tasks regarding maritime safety in the new geopolitical context, sustainability and decarbonisation, as well as trainings. The provisions also ensure a balanced approach toward the governance rules of the Agency

AddedRecital 10: (10) For the proper achievement of these objectives, it is appropriate that the Agency carries out specific tasks in the area of maritime safety, prevention of pollution by ships, sustainability, decarbonisation of the maritime sector, maritime security and cybersecurity, maritime surveillance and maritime crises and the promotion of the digitalisation and facilitation of exchanges of data in the maritime domain. While carrying out these tasks the Agency should pay attention to the specificities of the different types of maritime activities with a specific attention to the conditions applicable to the fishing sector.

RemovedThe agreed text is the result of long and extensive negotiations. The co-legislators have reached a balanced compromise on the revision of the founding regulation of the Agency, ensuring that it reflects current needs and realities.

AddedRecital 11: (11) In addition to the specific tasks, the Agency should provide horizontal, technical support, upon request by the Commission or the Member States, for the implementation of any task that falls under the remit of its competences and objectives, stemming from future needs and developments at the Union level under the remits of maritime legislation. Such additional tasks shall be subjected to a consideration of the available human and financial resources, which the Management Board of the Agency should take into account before deciding to include them in the Single Programming Document of the Agency as part of its annual or multiannual work program. Therefore, new additional tasks should be accompanied with a legislative financial statement presented to the legislative and budgetary authorities. This is necessary to ensure that certain tasks which constitute the core of the Agency could be prioritised if needed.

AddedThe importance of having a legislative financial statement whenever new tasks are assigned.

AddedRecital 11 a (new): (11a) The Agency should pay special attention to the fisheries sector when carrying out its tasks, since it has an important economic and social impact in the EU. In particular, fishing vessels and workers are highly vulnerable to maritime safety risks and play a relevant role in the green transition.

AddedRecital 12: (12) The Agency is at the forefront of the technical expertise in the areas of its competence and thus it should provide training and capacity building activities to the Member States with the development of common core curricula courses and the use of the most technologically advanced tools in their delivery. The Agency should inter alia support the training of Port State Control inspectors of the Member States and officials of the Flag State Administrations to conduct targeted inspections as regards the implementation and enforcement of the MLC 2006 in relation to the implementation of seafarers' rights and working and living conditions on board ships. In order to increase the attractiveness of maritime professions, the Agency should assess building up a network comprising academia and any other establishments providing for suitable qualifications for promoting lifelong learning needs.

AddedRecital 13: (13) This technical expertise of the Agency should be further cultivated by conducting research in the maritime field and contributing to the relevant Union’s activities in the area. The Agency should contribute with a proactive approach to the objectives of enhancing maritime safety, security, decarbonisation of shipping and maritime ports and prevention of pollution by ships. In this regard, the Agency could issue relevant non-binding guidance, recommendations or manuals that could assist the Commission, the Member States and/or the maritime industry in attaining these objectives.

AddedThe importance of mentioning the entire maritime ecosystem.

AddedRecital 14: (14) As regards maritime safety, the Agency should develop a proactive approach in determining safety risks and challenges on the basis of which it should present to the Commission every three years a report on the progress on maritime safety. Moreover, the Agency should continue assisting the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of the relevant Union legislation, especially in the areas of flag and port State obligations, directly supporting accident investigation of marine accidents, the passenger ship safety legislation, Recognised Organisations and marine equipment. Finally, the Agency should have a proactive role in assisting the deployment of maritime autonomous and automated surface ships while also it is important to collect further data in the area of the training and certification for seafarers and the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006).

AddedThere should be a European framework on accidents investigations to reduce current disparities across Member States.

AddedRecital 14 a (new): (14a) Calls on the Commission to transpose the IMO International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Fishing Vessel Personnel (STCW-F 1995), into EU law in order to achieve a harmonized framework for minimum level of training of fishers in Europe.

AddedRecital 16: (16) In the area of decarbonisation of the shipping sector, efforts to limit global maritime emissions through the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) are under way and should be encouraged, including the rapid implementation of the initial IMO Strategy on Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Ships, adopted in 2018. Discussions are ongoing on the means to implement in practice such ambition. Those discussions cover the possibility of revising the initial strategy, and offer the opportunity to reflect on the Union´s ambitions at international level and the importance of securing a global level playing field that would result in the strengthening of EU maritime competitiveness. At the Union level, a set of policies and legislative proposals to support the decarbonisation and further promote the sustainability of the maritime sector has been developed, as reflected in particular in the European Green Deal, the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, the “Fit for 55” package and the Zero Pollution Strategy. As a result, the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the maritime sector should be reflected in the mandate of the Agency.

AddedInternational role of EMSA due to its expertise.

AddedRecital 17: (17) In this regard, while the Agency should continue assisting the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2015/757 of the European Parliament and of the Council25 it should further assist in the implementation of the new regulatory measures to decarbonise the shipping sector, as stemming from the Fit for 55 legislative package, such as the Regulation [..] on the use of renewable and low-carbon fuels in maritime transport and the shipping-related elements of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council26 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community. That includes monitoring and reporting on the impacts of EU ETS Maritime and FuelEU Maritime on port traffic, port evasion and traffic shift to transhipment ports in third countries, at the detriment of EU ports. The Agency should continue to be at the forefront of expertise at Union level to assist in the transition of the sector into renewable and low carbon fuels by conducting research and providing guidance on the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships and the related infrastructure in port areas, onshore power supply to ships and in relation to the deployment of energy efficiency and wind-assisted, solar and kinetic wave propulsion solutions. That also includes new greenhouse gas abatement technologies, such as onboard carbon capture and energy efficiency practices, such as slow steaming. F…

AddedRecital 18: (18) In the area of maritime security, the Agency should continue to provide technical assistance to the Commission inspections in the framework of Regulation 725/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council27 on enhancing ship and port facility security. Given that the number of cyber security incidents in the maritime sector has gone up significantly in recent years, the Agency should assist Union efforts to prevent cyber security incidents and enhance cyber resilience in the maritime sector by preparing guidelines, facilitating the exchange of best practices and information on cyber security incidents between the Member States.

AddedRecital 19: (19) The Agency should continue to host the vessel monitoring and information system established under Directive 2002/59/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council28 together with other systems underpinning the establishment of a maritime awareness picture. In this regard, the Agency should continue to play a vital role in the management of the maritime security component of Copernicus programme and should continue making use of available state-of-the-art technology, such as remotely piloted aircraft systems providing to Member States and other Union bodies a useful tool for surveillance and monitoring. In addition to these services, the Agency has demonstrated its strategic role in providing maritime situational awareness supporting various crises, such as the COVID-19 and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. As a result, the Agency should operate a centre, open 24 hours per day and 7 days per week, which should assist the Commission and the Member States and provide information regarding potential and emergency situations. In support of a strong and united answer of the Union and its Member States to Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the Agency should, inter alia, monitor suspicious behaviour around pipelines and detect sanctions evasion at sea.

AddedEMSA provides assistance to the implementation of sanctions against Russia and to the United Nations bodies on the “grain corridors”.

AddedRecital 20: (20) Digitalisation of data is part of technological progress in the area of data collection and communication with a view to helping to bring down costs, reducing administrative burden and making efficient use of human resources. The deployment and operation of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) and the digital and technological developments provide a wide range of new opportunities in terms of data collection and management of integrated systems. This creates opportunities for the potential digitalisation, automation and standardisation of several processes, which would allow for the facilitation of safety, security, sustainability and efficiency of maritime operations, including surveillance mechanisms, at Union level, reducing in parallel the administrative burden to the Member States. In this regard, the Agency should, among others, facilitate and promote the use of electronic certificates, the collection, recording and evaluation of technical data, the systematic exploitation of existing databases, including their cross-fertilisation through the use of innovative IT and artificial intelligence tools, and, where appropriate, the development of additional interoperable databases.

AddedRecital 22: (22) In the context of the IMO, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Paris Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control, signed at Paris on 26 January 1982 (‘Paris MoU’), the Commission and the Member States may need technical assistance and expertise, thus the role of EMSA should be reinforced, in particular within IMO, where EMSA should participate in and attend the discussions. Likewise, the Commission may also need the technical assistance of the Agency in supporting third countries in the maritime domain, in particular with capacity building and pollution prevention and response means. The Management Board of the Agency should be tasked with adopting a strategy for international relations of the Agency concerning matters under its competence, as part of the single programming document.

AddedRecital 23: (23) National authorities carrying out coast guard functions are responsible for a wide range of tasks, which may include maritime safety, security, search and rescue, border control, fisheries control, customs control, general law enforcement and environmental protection. The Agency, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 of the European Parliament and of the Council29 , and the European Fisheries Control Agency, established by Regulation (EU) 2019/473 of the European Parliament and of the Council30 , should therefore strengthen their cooperation, within their mandate, both with each other and with the national authorities carrying out coast guard functions, in order to increase maritime situational awareness and to support coherent and cost-efficient action, by providing services, information, technology, equipment and training, as well as by coordinating multi-purpose operations, collecting data for scientific research, monitoring European waters and implementing cooperation programmes with third countries.

AddedRecital 25: (25) In order to streamline the decision-making process in the Agency and to contribute to enhancing efficiency and effectiveness, a two-level governance structure should be introduced. To that end the Member States and the Commission should be represented on a Management Board vested with the necessary powers, including the power to establish the budget and approve the programming document. The European Parliament should be represented as an observer. The Management Board should give general orientations for the Agency's activities and be more closely involved in the monitoring of the Agency's activities, with a view to reinforcing supervision on administrative and budgetary matters. A smaller Executive Board should be set up with the task of preparing the meetings of the Management Board in an appropriate manner and supporting its decision-making process. The powers of the Executive Board should be defined in a mandate to be adopted by the Management Board and should, where necessary, include opinions and provisional decisions subject to final endorsement by the Management Board. The Agency should be headed by an Executive Director.

AddedIt is important to strengthen the relations between the European Parliament and the Agency.

AddedRecital 27: (27) In order to perform its tasks properly, the Agency should have legal personality and an autonomous budget funded mainly through a contribution by the Union and through proportional fees and charges paid by third countries or other entities. The Agency's independence and impartiality should not be compromised by any financial contribution that it receives from Member States, third countries or other entities. In order to ensure independence in its daily management and in the opinions, recommendations and decisions which it issues, the Agency's organisation should be transparent and the Executive Director should have full responsibility. The Agency's staff should be independent and should be employed on both short-term and long-term contracts in order to maintain its organisational knowledge and business continuity, while keeping a necessary and ongoing exchange of expertise with the maritime sector. The expenditure of the Agency should include staff, administrative, infrastructure and operational expenses.

AddedThe fees imposed to the maritime stakeholders should be proportional.

AddedRecital 28: (28) With regard to the prevention and management of conflicts of interest, it is essential that the Agency acts impartially, demonstrates integrity and establishes high professional standards. There should never be any legitimate reason to suspect that decisions might be influenced by interests conflicting with the role of the Agency as a body serving the Union as a whole or by private interests or affiliations of any member of the Management Board which would create, or have the potential to create, a conflict with the proper performance of the official duties of the person concerned. The Management Board should therefore adopt and make publicly available comprehensive rules on conflicts of interests, giving due consideration to the recommendations of the European Ombudsman.

AddedRecital 33: (33) In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation with regards to fees and charges, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission in respect of the determination of the fees and charges for the delivery of services. Those powers should be exercised in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council31 .

AddedRecital 33 a (new): (33a) In order to specify the methodology for the calculation of those fees and charges, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union should be delegated to the Commission in respect of … [content and scope]. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making 1a. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States' experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. / 1a OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/agree_interinstit/2016/512/oj.

AddedRecital 34 a (new): (34a) The proposed increase in EMSA's resources is insufficient given the extent of the proposed increase in the Agency's tasks and the scale of the EU's ambitions for maritime policy. Thus, the amount of the financial resources dedicated to this proposal should be drawn from the unallocated margins under MFF ceilings or mobilised through the non-thematic MFF special instruments. Since the Commission proposal for MFF revision did not reinforce EMSA budget, the increase in appropriations for EMSA cannot be offset by a compensatory reduction of programmed spending under CEF Transport or lead to a reduction of the funding for any other Union programmes.

AddedArticle 2 – paragraph 1: 1. The objectives of the Agency shall be the promotion and establishment of a high, uniform and effective level of maritime safety aiming at the maximum reduction of accidents, maritime security, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from ships and the sustainability of the maritime sector as well as the prevention of and response to pollution caused by ships and the response to marine pollution caused by oil and gas installations.

AddedArticle 2 – paragraph 2: 2. Further objectives of the Agency shall be the promotion of digitalisation of the maritime sector by facilitating the electronic transmission of data supporting simplification, the reduction of the administrative burden and the provision of integrated maritime surveillance and awareness systems and services to the Commission and the Member States.

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States:

AddedArticle 3 – paragraph 4: 4. The Agency shall contribute, at the Commission’s request, or on its own initiative, subject to the approval of the Management Board in accordance with Article 17, to maritime research activities at the Union level consistent with the objectives of the Agency. In this regard, the Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in identifying key research themes, without prejudice to other research activities at the Union level, and in analyzing ongoing and completed research projects relevant to the objectives of the Agency. Where appropriate, subject to the applicable rules on intellectual property and security considerations, the Agency shall disseminate the results of its research and innovation activities, following approval by the Commission, as part of its contribution to creating synergies between the research and innovation activities of other Union bodies and the Member States.

AddedArticle 4 – paragraph 1: 1. The Agency shall monitor progress on the safety of maritime transport in the Union, conduct risk analysis on the basis of the available data and develop safety risk assessment models to identify safety challenges and risks. Every three years it shall present to the Commission a report on progress on maritime safety with possible technical recommendations that could be addressed at the Union or the international level. In this regard, the Agency shall in particular analyse and propose relevant guidance or recommendations in relation to potential safety risks stemming from the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative sources of power for ships, including onshore power supply to ships at berth, battery technologies used for propulsion, “zero emission technologies”, as defined in [FuelEU Maritime] or other future technologies on board of ships or in port areas.

AddedArticle 4 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1: The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the development and maintenance of the databases provided for in Articles 24 and 24a of Directive 2009/16/EC. On the basis of the data collected, the Agency shall assist the Commission in the analysis of the relevant information and the publication of information concerning ships and companies with low and very low performance pursuant to Directive 2009/16/EC.

AddedArticle 4 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1: The Agency shall assist the Commission in the development and maintenance of the database provided for in Article 17 of Directive 2009/18/EC. On the basis of the data collected the Agency shall compile a yearly overview of marine casualties and incidents. The Agency may be invited by Member States to provide operational and technical support concerning safety investigations. The Agency shall comply with such requests where no conflict of interest arises for the Agency. The Agency shall also carry out an analysis of safety investigation reports with a view to identify added value at Union level in terms of any relevant lessons to be drawn.

AddedArticle 4 – paragraph 7: 7. The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the implementation of Directive 2014/90/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council39 by providing its technical assessment on safety aspects, providing recommendations with lists of the respective design, construction and performance requirements and testing standards, developing and maintaining the database provided for in Article 35(4) of that Directive and facilitating cooperation between notified assessment bodies acting as the technical secretariat for their coordination group.

AddedArticle 4 – paragraph 9: 9. The Agency shall gather and analyse data on seafarers provided and used in accordance with Directive (EU) 2022/993 of the European Parliament and of the Council40 . It may also gather and analyse data on the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) with the aim of assisting in the improvement of the onboard working and living conditions of seafarers. The Commission shall use that data, jointly with the data generated by the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers information system (STCW IS) for developing appropriate strategic responses to recruit and retain seafarers in activity.

AddedArticle 5 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new): (da) sharing and receiving relevant information from other EU Agencies, such as EFCA, especially in relation to lost fishing gear

AddedArticle 5 – paragraph 5: 5. The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States in the context of the implementation of Directive 2008/56/EC, by contributing to the objective of achieving good environmental status of marine waters with its shipping-related elements and in exploiting the results of existing tools such as the Integrated Maritime Services. In this regard, the Agency shall conduct further research in issues related to lost containers, including plastic pellets, and underwater noise, provide recommendations to the Commission and the Member States. / On the containers lost at the Sea, the Agency shall provide guidance to the industry stakeholders and to the Flag State on the requirements agreed at IMO for mandatory reporting of lost containers. The possibility of collective and coordinated response mechanisms at EU and international level shall also be examined.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 1: 1. The Agency shall monitor progress on the operational and technical measures undertaken to increase the energy efficiency of ships and ports and the deployment of sustainable alternative fuels, energy and power systems for ships, including onshore power supply and wind-assisted propulsion and onboard carbon capture, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. The Agency shall assess the need to implement additional training modules for maritime professionals handling new and often complex hybrid and zero emission systems.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 2: 2. The Agency shall provide technical assistance to the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, in relation to regulatory efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships and ports. In this regard, the Agency may utilize any operational tools or services pertinent to the task. The Agency shall in particular research, analyse and propose relevant guidance or recommendations in relation to the uptake and deployment of sustainable alternative fuels, energy and power systems for ships, including, onshore power supply, wind-assisted, solar and kinetic wave propulsion and on-board carbon capture, ensuring respect for technology neutrality, as well as in relation to energy efficiency measures, with practices such as slow steaming and speed optimisation.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 5 – subparagraph 1 a (new): Such assistance shall also include monitoring and reporting on impacts on port traffic, port evasion and traffic shift to the neighbouring container transhipment ports, to the detriment of EU ports.

AddedArticle 6 – paragraph 6: 6. The Agency shall every three years present to the Commission a report on the progress made in achieving the decarbonisation of maritime transport at the Union level. Where possible, the report shall include technical analysis on identified issues that could to be addressed at the Union level. The report shall be made publicly available on the Agency's website in a searchable format and in a disaggregated manner.

AddedArticle 7 – paragraph 1: 1. The Agency shall provide technical assistance to the Commission and the Member States in the performance of the tasks assigned to it pursuant to Article 9 of Regulation (EC) No 725/2004.

AddedArticle 7 – paragraph 2: 2. The Agency shall assist the Commission and the Member States, together with any other relevant Union body, in developing resilience against cybersecurity incidents in the maritime sector in particular by providing guidelines, facilitating the exchange of best practices and information on cyber security incidents between the Member States.

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 1: 1. The Agency shall provide to the Commission and the Member States, upon their request, maritime surveillance and communication services based on state-of-the-art, including space-based and ground infrastructure and sensors mounted on any kind of platform, improving maritime situational awareness, including with regard to new geopolitical challenges, such as Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the related security threats to specific Member States and to the Union as a whole.

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1 – introductory part: The Agency shall operate a center available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week providing, without prejudice to national and Union law, to the Commission, the competent national authorities, without prejudice to their rights and responsibilities as flag, coastal and port States, and to relevant Union bodies, within their mandate, maritime situational awareness and analytical data, as appropriate, supporting them in:

AddedArticle 8 – paragraph 4 – subparagraph 1 – point c: (c) the implementation of any Union legislation requiring the monitoring of ship movements and containers lost at sea;

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 2 – point d: (d) to facilitate and improve the re-use and the sharing of data exchanged in the EMSWe using SafeSeaNet.

AddedArticle 9 – paragraph 3: 3. The Agency shall provide technical and operational assistance, as well as regular training and certification programmes to the Member States, upon their request and without prejudice to their rights and obligations as flag States, in the digitalization of their registries and their procedures facilitating the uptake of electronic certificates and in the digitalisation of any other procedures, which may have a positive effect in reducing the administrative burden on flag, port or coastal State Authorities.

AddedArticle 10 – paragraph 6: 6. Where appropriate, and in any case when a cycle of visits or inspections is concluded, the Agency shall analyse reports from that cycle with a view to identifying horizontal findings and general conclusions on the effectiveness and cost-efficiency of the measures in place. The Agency shall present this analysis to the Commission for further discussion with Member States in order to draw any relevant lessons and facilitate the dissemination of good working practices, in particular as regards the implementation of Union law.

AddedArticle 11 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1: The Agency shall provide technical assistance necessary for the Member States and the Commission, upon their request, to contribute to the relevant work of the technical bodies of the IMO, where EMSA should, within the Commission delegation, participate in and attend the discussions, the International Labour Organisation as far as shipping is concerned, and the relevant Memoranda of Understanding on Port State Control and relevant regional organisations to which the Union has acceded, with regard to matters of Union competence.

AddedArticle 11 – paragraph 2: 2. The Agency may, in consultation with the Commission, provide technical assistance, including the organisation of relevant training activities, as regards relevant legal acts of the Union, to States applying for accession to the Union, and, where applicable, to European Neighbourhood partner countries and to countries taking part in the Paris MoU.

AddedArticle 11 – paragraph 3: 3. The Agency may, in consultation with the Commission or the European External Action Service, or both, provide assistance in case of pollution caused by ships as well as marine pollution caused by oil and gas installations affecting third countries sharing a regional sea basin with the Union. The Agency shall provide the assistance in line with the Union Civil Protection Mechanism established by Decision No 1313/2013/EU, and with the conditions applicable to Member States as referred to in Article 5 (1) of this Regulation applied by analogy to the third countries. Those tasks shall be coordinated with the existing regional cooperation arrangements related to marine pollution.