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A study commissioned by the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN), published in October 2026, examines the challenges facing European ports and assesses the EU Ports Strategy. It makes recommendations on competitiveness, security, decarbonisation, digitalisation and hinterland connectivity. CLECAT contributed through an interview with CE Delft and welcomes the reflection of its priorities in the study’s findings and recommendations.

The study stresses that port competitiveness cannot be assessed in isolation from hinterland transport It notes that, for cargo owners and logistics providers, hinterland connections, predictability and total logistics costs may matter more than port dues alone. This closely reflects CLECAT’s emphasis on reliable connections and efficient cargo flows beyond the port gate. To address bottlenecks, the authors propose a European port-hinterland connectivity and resilience observatory to monitor capacity, service reliability and alternative routes. They also recommend directing EU funding towards coordinated investment in port access, inland connections and terminals, prioritising the weakest links in the logistics chain rather than isolated infrastructure projects.

On digitalisation, the study recommends improving interoperability between existing systems, including Port Community Systems, the European Maritime Single Window environment, and eFTI, rather than developing new centralised platforms. It further underlines the importance of secure data exchange and the protection of commercially sensitive information.

On security, the study highlights how organised crime increasingly exploits digital systems, cargo information and insider access, with vulnerabilities extending to inland terminals and freight corridors. The authors recommend better intelligence-sharing between customs, law enforcement and logistics operators, alongside risk-based controls that target suspicious activities without unnecessarily delaying legitimate cargo flows.

The study also examines how the EU ETS and FuelEU Maritime affect European ports’ competitiveness. It identifies a credible risk that shipping lines could move transhipment activities to neighbouring non-EU ports, particularly in the Mediterranean, although early market evidence remains inconclusive. The authors recommend stronger and more transparent monitoring to distinguish changes caused by EU regulatory costs from normal adjustments to shipping networks or temporary disruptions. They also call for examining whether investment in non-EU ports would otherwise have taken place in the EU, with ports, Member States and industry involved in developing the assessment methodology.

The full study is available here.