Page 58: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (June 2015)

COUNTRY REPORT

U.K. Seeks Maritime

By Joseph R. Fonseca

Dominance of Yore “Britannia rules the waves” paid a ? eet became an immense operation, and Shipping is a high-productivity indus- has some of the most prestigious cruise glowing tribute to the maritime past of entire industries grew up around it. The try requiring a stable and competitive en- companies in the world; and London is the United Kingdom. Over the past three country’s marine industries are known vironment in order to continue to thrive. the world’s center for maritime ? nancial centuries as the sun began to set on the for their strength and vibrancy built on a The Government’s continued commit- and legal services.

British power, resilient U.K. with its pio- global outlook coupled with an expertise ment to tonnage tax is crucial to ensure Broadly, U.K.’s maritime industry can neering characteristics began its voyage in advanced engineering and the ability that the U.K. remains an attractive loca- be classi? ed into four important sectors: of transformation to become a world- to adapt and to innovate. tion for maritime investment.

class maritime services center, with one Around 95% of U.K.’s trade is carried The diversity of the U.K. Maritime ¦ Naval of the largest clusters of marine insur- on by sea through nearly 180 ports annu- Industry is immense. In fact it covers

While the Royal Navy is the principal ance, ship ? nance, law, classi? cation ally handling cargo totaling 512 million everything from shipping to sub-sea end customer for this sector, U.K. com- societies, ship broking, education and tons. Shipping has been a major source technology, ports to aquaculture, and panies also look to the export market consultancy organizations. of growth for U.K.’s economy over the maritime legal and ? nancial services to for growth opportunities, based on the

Signi? cantly, two factors were respon- last decade, following a dynamic revival leisure. It directly employs approximate- strong foundation of domestic success. sible for this change. The ? rst being ma- of the U.K. ? eet. Latest data shows that ly 410,000 people, making a massive Export expansion is a priority for the na- rine transport, since it was the only point shipping, ports and the maritime busi- contribution to the country’s economy. val sector with support from U.K. Trade of access to the British Isles, and the ness and services sectors: Today, it boasts of being the largest mar- & Investment Defense & Security Orga- second was the maritime trade and naval • contribute £31.7bn to U.K. GDP itime sector in Europe. nizations, and the government. Key ini- power that have had a great impact on • support 537,500 U.K. jobs and The country’s technological leadership tiatives include the Global Combat Ship the maritime sector in? uencing the coun- • provide £8.5bn in tax receipts is well-established in offshore oil and gas export drive and the ‘Exportable naval try’s economy for several centuries. Thus to the U.K. exchequer. extraction, marine manufacturing; yacht technologies’ innovation theme. U.K. building, equipping and maintaining the designing, building and racing. The U.K.

NEST (Naval Engineering Science &

Technology) provides a forum for com- mon development such as developing the next generation of engineers. Head- ing the list of U.K.-based companies in this sector are Babcock Marine, BAE

Systems Maritime, BMT, Rolls-Royce

SEA, SELEX, Thales, Ultra Electronics to mention a few.

¦ Commercial

Merchant shipbuilding has traditionally been the country’s forte. U.K. companies 58 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News • JUNE 2015

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