EuropeOperations

French shipowners urge Macron to enact a shipping Marshall Plan

Jean-Emmanuel Sauvée, the 55-year-old head of cruise line Ponant, has been elected president of Armateurs de France, the French shipowners association. He takes over from Jean-Marc Roué, whose parting message this week was a call to Emanuel Macron, the French president, to enact a Marshall Plan for local shipping amid the coronavirus crisis.

“I appeal to the state to right now plan a Marshall Plan for French shipping,” Roué said in his final address as president this week, going on to relate how often Macron has said, “We are at war” when discussing the fight against coronavirus in recent weeks.

“Let’s plan together, and very quickly, the Marshall Plan for reconstruction,” Roué urged, adding: “Other economic sectors have already launched their emergency beacons. Ours must be seen from afar.”

The Marshall Plan was a massive American aid project launched in Western Europe after the Second World War.

Roué’s successor at Armateurs de France, Sauvée has worked for Brittany Ferries, Bourbon Offshore and CMA CGM over a 32-year career in shipping.

“We are currently facing extremely violent external events which will profoundly affect our economic models and the performance of our companies,” Sauvée said on being appointed president of the shipowning body.

“To get through such a crisis, we must rely on the values ​​of our sector: solidarity, professionalism, pragmatism and constant dialogue with all stakeholders,” Sauvée said.

Sam Chambers

Starting out with the Informa Group in 2000 in Hong Kong, Sam Chambers became editor of Maritime Asia magazine as well as East Asia Editor for the world’s oldest newspaper, Lloyd’s List. In 2005 he pursued a freelance career and wrote for a variety of titles including taking on the role of Asia Editor at Seatrade magazine and China correspondent for Supply Chain Asia. His work has also appeared in The Economist, The New York Times, The Sunday Times and The International Herald Tribune.

Comments

  1. “Jean-Emmanuel Sauvée, the 55-year-old head of CMA CGM’s cruise line, Ponant, ” : can you check the relationship between Ponant and CMA CGM and correct please. This is a very informative news and would be even better when corrected 🙂
    thank you for the grat job all along the years.
    regards

  2. EU is in urgent need of a “Marshall” plan and hasn’t got it!!! Cruise sector can either stall or close down its business. It’s not about fan these days…Shareholders can still sell their assets and send pure sailors home and their flamboyant useless CEO’s to a quarantine…

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