The European shipowning industry, with the exception of the field tanker, heavy is hit by the impact of the pandemic



With the exception of the shipowners that operate in the segment of the tankers, all the other operators of the European shipowning industry are enduring huge losses because of the effects on their activity of the pandemic of Covid-19. It last month evidences an investigation lead from the European Shipowners' Community Associations (ECSA) between own associates from which it turns out that important segment of the European marine field strongly are hit and that the measures assumed to European or national level in order to alleviate such difficulties not always are available in all the Member States of the European Union. The document emphasizes that, beyond to a meaning impact negative on the economic account of the companies of navigation in terms of loss of turnover, the sanitary crisis is having also a serious impact on the occupation in the marine field.

If the field of the ships tanker turns out less the most damaged from the impact of the crisis, the investigation explains that the hit segments more are those of the ferries, the cruises, the marine carriers that transport car and of the ships that operate to service of the offshore industry.

Relatively to the reduction of turnover determined from the limitations to the displacements of the people taxes from the governments in order to contain the contagion, the consisting bending more accused in March 2020 regarding March 2019 is recorded by the field of the ferries, with many companies of this segment that have denounced a decrease of the advanced turnover to 60%, and to follow the cruise ships, the car carrier and the ships for the offshore industry. To the other extremity of the phantom there are the oil tankers that last month of March have recorded an increase of their turnover.

The survey carried out from the ECSA between own associates is centralized also on the forecast of the turnover that will be recorded in according to trimester 2020 regarding according to trimester last year and once again, with the exception of the segment of the tankers, the entire field of the European marine transport has answered that it is being confronted with immediate and meaningful losses. Moreover, beyond to an immediate impact, one previews that the situation in the segments of the car carrier, of the ships for the offshore industry, of the ships general cargo and the container vessels will get worse.

Relatively to the forecasts for entire 2020, from the investigation it has turned out that the majority of the active operators in the section of the transport fleeting previews a decrease of the turnover of beyond 40% regarding last year.

The survey of the ECSA has examined also the impact of the crisis on the occupation. Relatively to the occupation of the marine ones, the operators with fleets of rinfusiere and tanker have marked not to expect great changes, while those which operate fleets of portacontenitori and general ships for goods preview a decrease until occupied 20% of the marine ones. Consisting reductions very more are attended in other segments that they record put up losses, that is those of the cruises, the offshore one, the ships door-car and the ferries in which a advanced decrease also to occupied 60% of the marine ones is previewed.

As for the earth staff, the investigation has found analogous trends, with a greater impact negative on the occupation in the segments of the cruises, the offshore one, the car carrier and the ferries. However, regarding the forecasts on the occupation of the marine ones, there are less expectations than serious losses of advanced places of work to 60% of the total.

ECSA has asked moreover to own associates if the assumed measures or on a national level regional in order to safeguard the occupation of the marine ones and the earth staff have been effective. From the survey it turns out that for the fields of the ferries, of the ships ro-pax, the cruise ships and of the car carrier the measures in existence supply a meaningful support in the short term, but they are not adapted sufficiently to the marine field. In particular, it has been marked that the support measures are only applied to a part of the seafarers, for example because the measure is applied only to the citizens of the State that has adopted the measure, and that the measures do not allow to integrally recover the quota salaries that has been lost.

The investigation has evidenced moreover that in all the segments of the marine transport the score collected from the voice "measures in vigor and effective" for the occupation of the earth staff turns out elevated more regarding the relative score to the marine ones.

At last the investigation has emphasized that the assumed measures in order to allow with the enterprises to tackle to the liquidity problems have not turned out useful for the shipowning societies. About the half of the interviewed ones, in fact, it has asserted that national, regional measures are not assumed or local to such scope and that whereby these are assumed are not applicable to the marine field. About the measures assumed from the banks in order to support the customers with liquidity problems, solo a minority of the interviewed ones has asserted that the measures put in existence from the credit institutions are effective, while wide it is evidenced that, also when measures of support exist adopted by the governments, practically the banks do not offer these options or if they offer the shipowning companies to them not of it they make use since, among other things, the administrative burdens and the costs to face in order to obtain supports to the liquidity exceed the benefits of these measures.

Drawing the conclusions of own investigation, the association of the European shipowners has found that in general terms the European marine industry does not preview a return to the level of activity pre-crisis in the course of 2020. In particular, 74% of the interviewed ones beginning from do not preview that the situation can begin to improve in the next weeks, with a gradual return to normal conditions of activity june. Regarding the occupation: 65% of the interviewed ones think to maintain or to return to the same number of marine previously employed and 56% of they it thinks that this will happen for staff also of earth.