Since 2008 the key stakeholder in the Inland Waterway Transport (IWT) sector are cooperating towards the harmonisation and modernisation of professional qualifications in inland navigation. These stakeholders consists of: European Commission (DG Move), River Commissions (Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR), International Sava River Basin Commission and the Danube Commission), EU Social Partners (European Skippers Organisation (ESO), European Barge Union (EBU) and European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) as well as the European IWT education and training (e&t) institutes (EDINNA). Following the activities in the FP7 project PLATINA, the European Commission installed in 2012 a Common Expert Group on Professional Qualifications in Inland Navigation (CEG) co-chaired by the CCNR, in order to start the revision of the 96/50/EC in place. This resulted in 2016 in a proposal from the European Commission for a directive on the Recognition of Professional Qualifications in Inland Navigation. One key item of this directive is the fact that the competences crew members on board of inland vessels should possess are laid down in an Annex, based on a series of research activities executed. The second key item is the fact that the students that will pass an exam in line with the new directive, will receive a Union certificate, increasing labour mobility throughout the EU. On the 27 December 2017, Directive 2017/2397 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the recognition of professional qualifications in IWT and repealing Council Directives 91/672/EEC and 96/50/EC has been published in the Official Journal of the EU. For this reason, the time has come to support the implementation of the competence based IWT e&t system throughout the EU. COMPETING will develop curricula and lesson materials, as well as a Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC) system, to ensure the highest level of quality concerning the implementation of future proof IWT e&t

This proposal is for the creation of a Research and Innovation Action aimed at advancing innovation in the Inland Waterway Transport (IWT) sector (topic MG.4.4-2014). It is called “PROMINENT – Promoting Innovation in the Inland Waterways Transport Sector” and will address the key needs for technological development, as well as the barriers to innovation and greening in the European inland navigation sector. PROMINENT thereby is fully in line with the objectives of the European action programme NAIADES-II. PROMINENT addresses all topics included in call MG.4.4-2014 and is geared towards reaching its full impacts during the project lifetime. PROMINENT is ultimately aimed at providing solutions which make inland navigation as competitive as road transport in terms of air pollutant emissions by 2020 and beyond. In parallel PROMINENT aims to further decrease the energy consumption and carbon footprint of IWT, an area where IWT has already a strong advantage compared to road transport. PROMINENT will focus on: • Massive transition towards efficient and clean vessels. • Certification and monitoring of emission performance and development of innovative regimes • Harmonisation and modernisation of professional qualifications and the stimulation of the further integration of IWT into sustainable transport chains. PROMINENT will achieve the following targets: - develop cost-effective solutions applicable to 70% of the fleet and reduce the implementation costs by 30%; - involve all relevant stakeholders; - actively address and remove implementation barriers by 2020. The PROMINENT partners have found broad support among political and commercial decision makers in the field of inland navigation. Through its direct access to relevant industrial stakeholders and Member States the consortium has obtained significant backup needed to perform the work. The commitment of these organisations will lead to a high acceptance and further dissemination of results.

NOVIMAR aims to adjust inland/short-sea shipping such that it can make optimal use of the waterborne system of waterways, vessels and ports/terminals. To achieve this NOVIMAR introduces the waterborne version of 'platooning', the Vessel Train. This is in essence a number of unmanned Follower Ships with own sailing/manoeuvring capabilities being temporarily led by a manned Leader Ship. Vessels will be able to join and leave such trains at places adjacent to their points of origin and destination at seaside or inland. Envisaged main benefits and impacts are: Reduction of crew costs result in up to 47% total cost reduction for IWT and up to 88% crew cost reduction for short sea transport, Enhanced Logistic flexibility, 10-15 % Less energy use/emissions, Solutions for overcoming barriers between transport modes and High potential for reducing road congestion and associated costs. Lower costs increases the attractiveness of small vessels at sea and inland, hereby increasing access to urban areas located at small waterways (CEMT I/II), with no need for sizeable investments in infrastructures. SME’s benefits include enhanced competitiveness and improved working conditions for vessel owners/operators, and market opportunities for equipment suppliers. NOVIMAR technology developments include measuring, control and communication systems, and navigation aids for IWT use. NOVIMAR work structure contains 5 technical Work Packages dedicated to the Transport system, Impact assessment, Navigation, Cargo systems and vessels, and Safety and human skills issues. The consortium contains 22 partners: logistic operators, industry, public bodies and research organisations from 7 EU and 2 associated countries. The project duration is 48 months, required funding is €7,9 million.

The HI2 Valley project will establish a large-scale renewable hydrogen (H2) economy in the Austrian industrial regions of Upper Austria, Styria and Carinthia, directly contributing to the goals outlined in the European Green Deal, REPower EU and Hydrogen Strategy. The project will achieve this by decarbonising key sectors through H2, drastically reducing emissions in the steel, chemical, and cement industries as well as in energy and mobility via displacement of fossil fuels – including reducing the reliance on natural gas which Austria overwhelmingly imports from Russia. With 13,000 tons of green hydrogen being needed in the regions by 2028, over 10,000 tpy of green hydrogen will be produced within this HI2 Valley. By introducing strategically placed, decentralised H2 production facilities, the project will strengthen the country's energy resilience and flexibility and create a robust domestic market for green H2. The HI2 Valley will play a crucial role in bridging the gap between Southern and Eastern European hydrogen supply corridors. Being embedded on the European Hydrogen Backbone and TEN-T network and future pipeline connections (PCIs) with Southern Europe and North Africa, the HI2 Valley will seamlessly connect Austria's multi-user H2 ecosystem with neighbouring countries like Germany, Italy and Slovakia, fostering a truly interconnected Central European hydrogen network. This role model helps to secure industrial jobs, and through standardisation and integration brings costs of hydrogen down, creating a green industrial future for Europe. Going beyond its immediate neighbours, the HI2 Valley will also foster knowledge sharing and wider adoption of green hydrogen through the active collaboration with five other emerging Hydrogen Valleys in Eastern Europe in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Latvia and the Czech Republic.

Considering the diversity of the waterborne transport sector, its geographical scope, the international dimension and the challenges and opportunities upfront, LASTING will broaden engagement of the broader waterborne transport sector in European RD&I activities, by developing a communication strategy, and implementing a long-lasting communication campaign beyond the lifetime of this project, ultimately increasing, stakeholder engagement in the sector and thereby increasing impact of European waterborne transport RD&I. The communication strategy, and thereby the campaign will be based on clear KPI’s set at the starting point of LASTING, jointly developed with the relevant European Commission Services and the broader waterborne transport sector. The achievement of the KPI’s will be measured at fixed intervals, to ensure that the final communication strategy and the campaign will be fit-for-purpose and ready for roll-out. An essential element of the communication strategy will be the development of a plug-and-play system for participation in European, national or regional strategic maritime and/or inland waterway transport events. In the framework of LASTING, the plug-and-play system will be tested at a number of occasions, to ensure the system is fit-for-purpose. In addition, high quality dissemination materials (such as flyers and banners) and templates will be delivered. There will be a main focus on the use of digital tools for dissemination purposes, to ensure that the communication efforts of the waterborne transport community will easily follow the concept launched in the framework of LASTING. Finally, yet importantly, the Waterborne TP will take over the communication strategy and campaign after the lifetime of LASTING and will ensure a durable implementation of the concepts and materials developed in the framework of the project.