Harbours, logistics and shipping

The perimeter: port competitiveness

As France's maritime "gateways", industrial areas and first-class logistics platforms, ports create wealth and jobs that go far beyond the boundaries of the port area. In April 2019, the Ministry of Transport initiated a process to develop a new national port strategy with the aim of providing France with a truly efficient and sustainable port offer in order to win new market shares, while taking part in the digital and ecological transition.

This strategy will aim in particular to define a new, evolving framework shared between the State, local authorities, economic and social stakeholders in order to: consolidate the role of ports in logistics chains, share the strategies of the various port authorities more efficiently, support the ecological (in particular energy)  transition, accelerate the digital transition and the rise in power of territories of industrial innovation, develop the jobs and skills necessary for the performance of our port ecosystems.

A rich and structured local economic network

The State ports of the northern axis (Dunkerque), the Seine axis (Le Havre, Rouen, Paris) and the Mediterranean coast (Marseille) oriented towards the Rhône-Saône axis produce an estimated added value of €13 billion associated with 130,000 direct jobs.

Key figures (Provence-Alpes Côte d'Azur, Occitania, Monaco, Corsica):

• 3 million cruise passengers and 3.68 million ferry passengers per year.
• 196 marinas, representing nearly 89,000 berths (58% of the berths in France).
• The Grand Port Maritime de Marseille is a major source of employment with 41,500 port jobs (direct + indirect) and a driving force of the local economy with 3.5 billion euros of added value.

Our territory has numerous assets, with a world-renowned port centre and initiatives on structuring projects (PIICTO, French Smartport in Med, HYNOVAR, Plan Littoral 21...). The local port ecosystem is well structured, with a whole industrial sector developing around ship repair.

Finally, the creationof the “Conseil de coordination interportuaire et logistique Méditerranée Rhône Saône” covering the territory of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté and Occitanie regions aims to ensure better coordination of the Rhône-Saône logistics axis and better coordination with the ports on the Mediterranean coast, which will increase the competitiveness of this port complex and the network of logistics platforms to which it is linked.

Issues of today and tomorrow

• The Smart Port to deploy new applications that promote (thanks to dematerialization) the smooth flow of goods and passengers through intelligent logistics, environmental excellence by not opposing sustainable development and economic development, and a digital infrastructure offer that allows ports to become not only hubs for goods and passengers, but also data hubs.
• Adapting infrastructure to climate change and demographic pressure
• Ensure the security and safety of the digital transition in the face of the increasing threats in the port area and more particularly in the field of cybersecurity
• The Greenport to reduce greenhouse gases and improve air quality by supporting the electrical connection of ships at berth, the deployment of a green hydrogen supply chain and the refueling of ships with LNG.
• Setting up value-creation programs on industrial platforms of the circular economy and industrial ecology

Port cities, crucible of experimentation and creativity

Port cities are formidable experimental laboratories at the heart of urban areas. They often associate complex environmental problems with an industrial foundation. They then give rise to innovative projects, particularly for marine renewable energies, which generate new economic and employment opportunities.