CLECAT WEEK IN BRUSSELS
This week, the CLECAT Board, General Assembly and several of its institutes met in Brussels to discuss and plan strategies for 2023, addressing priories but also ongoing logistics and supply chain issues.
On 22 November, the Air Freight Institute of CLECAT met to discuss legislative and non-legislative developments relating to the EU Aviation Acquis, as well as aviation security, sustainability, digitalisation, and the impact of the energy crisis on the air freight forwarding industry. During the meeting, members exchanged views the revision of the EU Slots Regulation, including CLECAT’s input and the way forward to set up a fair, transparent, and market-oriented system for the allocation of slots. Discussions were also held on the progress in the implementation of the Import Control System 2.0 (ICS2) Release 2 for air cargo, as well as CLECAT’s initiatives in that regard. Members also received a presentation from an airline on their initiatives in the area of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), which was followed by an exchange of views.
In the afternoon, CLECAT’s Supply Chain Security Institute met to discuss developments in the area of land transport-, aviation-, and cybersecurity. The Institute discussed developments in cargo crime, and the way forward following the adoption of the Delegated Regulation for Safe and Secure Parking Area (SSTPA) Standards. Members also discussed the upcoming changes in aviation security legislation, and the NIS2 Directive. During the meeting, a focus was placed on the ongoing preparations and future actions for Release 2 of the Import Control System 2.0 (ICS2) for general air cargo in March 2023, as well as Release 3 for road, rail and maritime in March 2024.
On 22 November, CLECAT’s Customs and Indirect Taxation Institute (CITI) met to discuss important customs and trade related developments impacting European freight forwarders and customs agents. During the meeting, members discussed relevant developments at national and EU-level concerning the implementation of customs formalities and procedures. An important topic of the meeting was the UCC IT implementation, with a particular focus on ICS2 Release 2 and AES-NCTS Phase 5. Other items on the CITI agenda included developments regarding CBAM, Customs Single Window and AEO.
The Maritime Logistics Institute met on 24 November to discuss the latest developments impacting sea freight forwarders. Members also had the opportunity to exchange on the key takeaways from the Logistics for Europe forum’ session on maritime competition. The Institute received a briefing on the CLECAT submission to the evaluation of the CBER and discussed the next steps of the procedure as well as possible new CLECAT initiatives. Members also received an update on the preparation for ICS 2 Release 3, which will cover maritime imports as of 1st March 2024.
On 24 November, CLECAT’s Rail Logistics Institute met to discuss the progress of ongoing policy initiatives at EU level, including the evaluation process of the Combined Transport Directive and the revised TEN-T Guidelines, as well as to discuss contentious issues such as the quality issues in rail freight and how to resolve them. Additionally, the Institute discussed the progress in the preparations for Release 3 of the Import Control System 2.0 (ICS2) for rail (as well as road and maritime), which will come into effect in March 2024.