The port of Riga has become one of the founders of the Association of Four Sea Ports by signing a joint declaration of cooperation with the ports of Cartagena , Trieste and Monfalcone  and the ports of the North Sea . The declaration aims to strengthen port operations in the areas of sustainability, energy, digitalisation and European transport by creating a medium-sized European port network to share knowledge and experience, as well as to promote operational cooperation between ports. The association established by the declaration is open and other ports are invited to join it.

“In Europe, medium-sized ports have the same requirements and challenges as large global ports, but significantly fewer resources to meet Europe’s goals and address geopolitics and global industry changes. Together with our partners, we have defined guidelines for a medium-sized port, as well as identified challenges and areas where we would need to cooperate in order to achieve the greatest synergy effect,” emphasizes Ansis Zeltiņš, the Freeport of Riga CEO.

As part of the cooperation process, ports will exchange knowledge, experience and best practices in the field of energy, including the production and use of renewable energy sources in ports, as well as environmental management and sustainable port management. The competitiveness of each port will also be enhanced within the overall port network by facilitating the flow of cargo between ports and by sharing knowledge on the digitalisation of port processes, port community systems (PCS) and traffic management. Another important objective is cooperation in attracting funding and joint participation in European projects, especially in the areas of sustainability, energy, smart technologies and the trans-European transport network.

Port cooperation will help to jointly achieve the objectives set by Europe, in particular in implementing the European Green Deal and meeting the requirements of the Fit for 55 package, building alternative fuel infrastructure and using renewable and low-carbon fuels in maritime transport.