The European Shipping Summit 2025 will take place on the 19-20 March 2025 at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels. The two-day event will include engaging industry sessions, networking opportunities, and high-level dialogues featuring European and international policymakers, regulators, and industry stakeholders. Be sure to save the date! You can find a small recap of the previous European Shipping Summit 2023 below.
José Manuel Barroso served as President of the European Commission from 2004 to 2014. In this capacity, he dealt with the global financial crisis in 2008 and the Eurozone crisis that followed. Prior to this, he served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 2002 to 2004. He is currently Chairman of the Board of GAVI, the vaccine alliance. José Manuel Barroso has been awarded several honorary degrees and has received over 60 awards, decorations, prizes and distinctions. He is the author of notable publications on political science, international relations and the European Union.
Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Promoting the European Way of Life. As a member of the Greek New Democracy party, he served as a member of the European Parliament from 2007 – 2009. Between 2014 and 2019 he served as the chief spokesperson of the European Commission and from 2015 to 2019 as deputy director-general of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Communication.
Bio coming soon
Emanuele Grimaldi holds several positions within the Grimaldi Group, namely President and Managing Director of Grimaldi Euromed SpA, Managing Director of Grimaldi Group SpA and Board Member of Grimaldi Deepsea SpA, President and CEO of Finnlines Plc, President of Minoan Lines and Malta Motorways of the Sea and Board Member of ACL. Since last year Grimaldi has also served as Chair of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS). In addition to his current obligations, he has previously served as President of Confitarma (Italian Shipowners’ Association) and President of ECSA (European Community Shipowners’ Associations). He holds a Degree in Economics and Commerce from the University of Naples.
Vassilios Kroustallis is Senior Vice President, Global Business Development for ABS, responsible for client relationship management and business solution development across the ABS operational hemispheres. Previously he served as Vice President, Global Business Development of Europe for ABS, responsible for client relationship management and business solution development within the region. Kroustallis holds a master’s MSc degree in mechanical engineering from the National Technical University of Athens and has participated in the Senior Executive Program on Strategy, Leadership and Transformation at the London Business School.
Aaron Farrugia is Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Capital Projects for Malta, where he also serves as MP for Partit Laburista (Labour Party). He previously served as Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Planning, and has held several different positions in Maltese politics. An economist by profession, he also holds a doctoral degree in Law and has taught politics and political campaigning at the University of Malta.
Beatriz Yordi is a Director in DG Climate Action leading the team responsible for the EU Emissions Trading System, promoting carbon pricing and advancing innovation, opportunities and competitiveness in line with the Paris agreement. She specialised in fundamental physics at the University of Santiago de Compostela. She joined the European Commission in 1994, working on energy policy, Eco-innovation, Green businesses and the LIFE programme in DG Energy, DG Environment and EASME.
Benito Núñez Quintanilla is the Director General of Merchant Marine from the Spanish Ministry of Transport. He is a Naval and Ocean Engineer from the Polytechnic University of Madrid and an official of the Corps of Naval Engineers since 2004. Since November 2010 he has worked as main advisor in the Support Unit of the General Directorate of the Merchant Navy and since 2014 he is the alternate representative of Spain on the Board of Directors of the European Maritime Safety Agency.
Bio coming soon
Elpi Petraki is currently the President of WISTA International, the Women in Shipping and Trade Association. Their goal is to encourage diversity and inclusiveness in the maritime sector, support women in furthering their careers, and ensure equal opportunities for all. Prior to her appointment, Elpi was the President of WISTA Hellas, a position she is still holding. In the past 24 years, ELPI has been working for ENEA Management Inc. a Greek shipping company that manages a fleet of small-sized, clean and specialized tankers.
Bio to be added
Bio to be added
Fotini Ioannidou has assumed the role of Head of the Maritime Safety Unit and Deputy Director Waterborne Transport in the Directorate General for Mobility and Transport of the European Commission since January 2021. Currently, her responsibilities encompass the handling of maritime safety legislation and overseeing the coordination of all European Union submissions to the International Maritime Organization (IMO), with a particular focus on the GHG file. Having joined the Commission in 1994, Fotini Ioannidou has experience from various positions, ranging from transport policy and inter-institutional coordination to aviation safety and air traffic management, as well as road safety and human resources management. Prior to her work in the European Commission, she pursued a career as an electrical engineer, serving as a telecoms consultant in Paris.
Bio to be added
Karima Delli is a French politician and Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2009 for the Europe Écologie/Greens-EFA. She chairs the European Parliament Committee on Transport and Tourism, and has previously served on the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs. In addition to her committee assignments, Delli has been a member of the parliament’s delegations for relations with India (2009-2019) and China (since 2019). She is also a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights, the European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights, and the URBAN Intergroup.
Livia Spera is the General Secretary of European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF). She studied Labour Sociology at Sapienza University and then obtained a Master’s in European Labour Studies at the University of Milan and the University of Warwick. She joined the ETF in 2005 as a political assistant and in 2011 became political secretary for the Dockers and Fisheries Sections. In May 2019, she was nominated ETF Acting General Secretary.
Peter Liese is a German politician who has been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 1994 as a member of the Christian Democratic Union (EPP). Liese sits on the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, where he serves as the EPP Group’s coordinator. From 2012 until 2018, Liese was a member of the CDU leadership under the party’s successive chairwomen Angela Merkel (2012-2018) and Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (2018).
Pierre C Sames holds the position of Strategic Development Director at DNV Maritime. His previous experiences include managing corporate and maritime research & development as well as rule development and regulatory affairs. His own research focused on hydrodynamics, risk analysis, shipping emissions, alternative fuels and the assurance of digital assets. He joined GL in 1995 after studying naval architecture in Hamburg.
Bio coming soon
Rolf Habben Jansen has been serving as CEO of Hapag-Lloyd AG since 2014. A Dutch national, he graduated in Economics from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam in 1991. The same year he began his career in shipping with the Dutch shipping company Royal Nedlloyd. Since then he has held a number of different positions at RoyalNedlloyd, Swiss logistics firm Danzas and DHL. Prior to be appointed CEO, he was appointed member of the Hapag-Lloyd AG Executive Board in April 2014.
Roxana Lesovici is the cabinet expert and communications adviser for the European Commissioner for Transport, Adina-Ioana Vălean. Her portfolio includes waterborne transport, including maritime safety, ports and inland navigation, EMSA, IMO and ship emissions, maritime passenger rights, Spokesperson’s Service and coordination of external policies. She joined the European Commission as policy officer in 2011.
Torben Carlsen is the CEO of DFDS since May 2019, and since June 2023 he has occupied the position as Chair of Danish Shipping. Carlsen has broad international expertise and knowledge within finance, risk management, merger and acquisitions and management of international corporations, and serves as chair and board member of several prominent companies. He holds a master MSc. in Finance and has been Executive Vice President and CFO of DFDS between 2009 and 2019.
Vera Tax is a Dutch politician who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019 as a member of the Socialist and Democrats (S&D). Here, she sits on the Transport and Tourism Committee. Prior to joining the European Parliament, Vera Tax was director of a health institution in The Netherlands and has been serving as a local counsellor in Venlo in the province of Limburg.
William Todts is the Executive Director of T&E, steering the organisation to promote, at EU and global level, an emissions-free mobility system. He joined the organisation in 2011, working first on cars and then taking over as T&E’s freight director. He led civil society’s efforts to have CO2 emissions from trucks regulated for the first time in Europe. A Belgian native, William studied history and European studies. He started his career in Brussels working for the European Parliament, after which he joined Belgium’s EU presidency working on climate and environment.
Download the agenda for both days:
Environment – Choosing shipping “How to increase the share of maritime transport in Europe’s trade”
(Royal Association of Netherlands Shipowners (KVNR)/ Interferry/ Confitarma/ Spanish Shipowners’ Association (ANAVE)/Joint Cyprus Shipowners’ Association (JCSA))
Industry – “Maritime transport, enabler of European strategic autonomy through the Global Gateway” (European Dredging Association (EuDA))
People – “Fair transition and human centered decarbonization for seafarers” (European Transport Federation (ETF)/ European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) / International Chamber of Shipping (ICS))
Environment – “Charting a course to green marine fuels – the role of Europe” (World Shipping Council (WSC))
Industry– Europe goes dark without shipping “The Crucial Role of Shipping in Safeguarding the EU’s Energy Security and Supply”
(Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS)/ German Shipowners’ Association (VDR))
People – Shipping and the growth of offshore wind (Norwegian Shipowners Association (NSA))
Environment – “Shipping for net-zero Europe” (European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)/ Transport & Environment (T&E) /International Association of Classification Societies (IACS))
Industry – “Challenges and Opportunities for the Competitiveness and Resilience of the Maritime Technology Industry in the light of
geopolitics and the twin green/digital transition” (SeaEurope/ Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) /European Tugowners Association (ETA))
People – “Dangerous Trade: joining forces against drug trafficking” (World Shipping Council (WSC) / European Community Association of Ship Brokers and Agents (ECASBA))
Environment – FuelEU implementation (European Commission / European Seaports Organisation (ESPO) / European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA))
Industry – Financing the green transition (ECSA/Danish Ship Finance)
People – Setting a New Compass: Embracing the Ship Recycling Revolution (BIMCO)/ Royal Belgian Shipowners Association (KBRV))
Following this session, Belgian shipowners invite you to join a presentation by the Great Whale Conservancy on “How European shipping can lead the way in saving whales?”
European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)
European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)
Environment – Choosing shipping “How to increase the share of maritime transport in Europe’s trade”
(Royal Association of Netherlands Shipowners (KVNR)/ Interferry/ Confitarma/ Spanish Shipowners’ Association (ANAVE)/Joint Cyprus Shipowners’ Association (JCSA))
Industry – “Maritime transport, enabler of European strategic autonomy through the Global Gateway” (European Dredging Association (EuDA))
People – “Fair transition and human centered decarbonization for seafarers” (European Transport Federation (ETF)/ European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) / International Chamber of Shipping (ICS))
Environment – “Charting a course to green marine fuels – the role of Europe” (World Shipping Council (WSC))
Industry– Europe goes dark without shipping “The Crucial Role of Shipping in Safeguarding the EU’s Energy Security and Supply”
(Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS)/ German Shipowners’ Association (VDR))
People – Shipping and the growth of offshore wind (Norwegian Shipowners Association (NSA))
Environment – “Shipping for net-zero Europe” (European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)/ Transport & Environment (T&E) /International Association of Classification Societies (IACS))
Industry – “Challenges and Opportunities for the Competitiveness and Resilience of the Maritime Technology Industry in the light of
geopolitics and the twin green/digital transition” (SeaEurope/ Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) /European Tugowners Association (ETA))
People – “Dangerous Trade: joining forces against drug trafficking” (World Shipping Council (WSC) / European Community Association of Ship Brokers and Agents (ECASBA))
Environment – FuelEU implementation (European Commission / European Seaports Organisation (ESPO) / European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA))
Industry – Financing the green transition (ECSA/Danish Ship Finance)
People – Setting a New Compass: Embracing the Ship Recycling Revolution (BIMCO)/ Royal Belgian Shipowners Association (KBRV))
Following this session, Belgian shipowners invite you to join a presentation by the Great Whale Conservancy on “How European shipping can lead the way in saving whales?”
European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)
European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA)
For more information on any aspect of this event, please contact us:
Boulevard du Régent, Regentlaan 43-44, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
Email: ess@ecsa.eu
Tel: +32 2 510 61 28
© 2025 European Community Shipowners’ Associations