Marco Polo Towards a policy revision Pawel Stelmaszczyk

Marco Polo – Towards a policy revision Pawel Stelmaszczyk Head of Unit Logistics, co-modality, motorways of the sea & Marco Polo Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport European Commission 1

MARCO POLO - MARKET CONTEXT ● annual freight transport growth (2. 8% pa) higher than overall economic growth (2. 4%) ● road: continues to gain market share compared to all other transport modes ● ● ● short sea shipping: strong, sustained dynamism inland waterway: considerable unexploited potential rail: halted relative decline since 2001, higher increase in states with early market opening ● environmental impacts of transport remain high: 1% of GDP, road congestion cost an additional 1% of GDP 2

MARCO POLO – POLITICAL CONTEXT ● ● 2001: Transport White Paper: intermodality as key concept 2003: MARCO POLO programme (2003 -2006) to support intermodal services and alternatives to road-only transport ● 2006: Keep Europe Moving - Review of 2001 White Paper Co-modality: promotion of optimal use and integration of modes, and logistics: using existing capacities more efficiently, cutting costs, reducing environmental impact ● ● ● 2006: Marco Polo II (2007 -2013): Enlarged scope and budget 2008: Greening of transport: Internalisation of external costs 2009: Communication on future of transport 3

MARCO POLO II ● ● ● Continuing Marco Polo I with larger scale and scope Duration: 2007 -2013 Budget: 450 M € Larger geographical scope – close third countries 5 action types; 2 new innovative ones: ● Motorways of the Sea ● Traffic Avoidance Actions ● Since 1. 3. 08 the Programme is managed by the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation (EACI) 4

MARCO POLO II – Key Features ● objective: shift/avoid international increase in road freight off the road (road freight transport estimated growth of 20. 5 billion tkm/year over the period 2007/2013) ● ● ● risk funding, business-driven all segments of international freight (except air) services only <> no research, studies or (core) infrastructure 5

MARCO POLO II – Key Features ● ● Legal entity: commercial undertakings only (private or public) Eligible for participation: ● EU-27 Member States + “close third countries” ● Eligible for EC-funding: ● EU-27 Member States + EFTA & EEA States after conclusion of specific agreement + Candidate and close third countries after Memoranda of Understanding ● European dimension ● international routes (Member States and close third countries) ● now ony 1 undertaking 6

MARCO POLO II – Key Features ● Eligible costs: only costs incurred after submission date of the application – even if the action starts earlier ● No profit allowed: during the (accumulated) years for funding ● Viability: - the project should show profit and continue after MP funding ● No state aid allowed: maximum combined public grant allowed = (35% - 50%) 7

MARCO POLO II – Key Features ● No unacceptable distortion of competition: - a detailed justification must be given! ● Credibility essential: proven by letters of intent, good business plan, market study etc. ● ● Financial capacity: last annual financial statement Technical capacity: track records and experience of all partners, CV’s etc. 8

MARCO POLO – OVERALL RESULTS Better budget execution in 2009 9

Basis for Marco Polo revision ● ● Communication on the future of Transport The Commission 2020 Strategy: ●Modernise and decarbonise the EU Transport Sector and promote energy efficiency ● Marco Polo II Regulation – Article 14 ●Communication on the results achieved by the Marco Polo Programmes before drawing up a proposal for a third Marco Polo Programme 10

Marco Polo after 2013: Possible Policy options ● ● ● Marco Polo II continued Extension of the Marco Polo II Fundamental revision of the programme 11

Options for the future (1)? ● Extension of the Scope of the Programme ● Extending the programme to passenger inter-modality? ● Extending the programme to pipeline transport? ● Longer funding periods? ● Taking into account effects of economic crisis ● New financing Instruments? ● Loans? ● Involvement of the EIB? ● New types of actions? 12

Options for the future Possible measures for the(2)? future ● Different funding conditions for each transport mode on the basis of safety, environmental performance and energy efficiency? ● Funding intensity expressed not only in tkm but also in terms of energy efficiency and environmental benefits? ● Product-specific lowering of eligibility thresholds? ● Additional support to SME’s? 13

How to carry on? ● Consistency between Marco Polo, Logistics Action Plan and TEN-T ● TEN-T, Marco Polo, Mo. S policy evaluation and impact assessment: parallel exercises ● ● Input from Marco Polo II mid-term evaluation Support from EACI’s experience of the programme management. 14

Timing ● Spring 2010: Launch of a study on Marco Polo beyond 2013 ● ● Mid 2010: Public consultation ● Mid 2011: Communication and possible legislative proposal Second half 2010: Mid-term evaluation and consultation 15

Thank you for your attention! For further information: http: //ec. europa. eu/dgs/transport/index_en. htm 16