CIRCLE S.p.A. ("CIRCLE" or “the Company”) - innovative SME heading the homonymous Group specialized in the analysis and development of innovative digitization solutions for port and intermodal logistics and in international consultancy with focus on Green Deal and energy transition, listed on the Euronext Growth Milan market organized and managed by Borsa Italiana - will support the European Union in Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP), replacing the Motorways of the Sea (MoS).

CIRCLE, specifically, will lead a highly qualified Consortium that includes the Belgian consulting company ADS Insight and the German Institute ISL - Institut für Seeverkehrswirtschaft und Logistik. With a strong background in the transportation sector, this working group has been supporting the Motorways of the Sea (MoS) Coordinator since 2016 and has contributed to the development of the initial four versions of the MoS Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP) in 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2022, along with their associated studies.

Based on the work carried out in the previous phases of the study for the Motorways of the Sea Coordinator, CIRCLE will further develop knowledge about Maritime Space, assess its implementation, involve experts, and organize working groups and Forums.

This significant contract has an approximate value of €385,000 for 24 months (of which around €138,000 is attributed to CIRCLE), with the possibility of extension up to 48 months and a maximum value of €773,800 (of which around €277,000 is attributed to CIRCLE). This contract enters into force on 01/03/2024 if the revised Regulation on the Union guidelines on the development of the trans-European transport network has been adopted, otherwise on the date of its adoption.

Alexio Picco, Managing Director of CIRCLE Group, states: “We are proud to continue this strategic work with the European Commission for the development of an innovative concept contained in the new TEN-T Regulation, the European Maritime Space”.

Maritime transport - especially short-sea shipping - plays a vital role in the movement of goods and people in Europe. The competitiveness Europe, with its extensive network of 328 maritime ports on the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), relies on a functioning maritime sector. Moreover, maritime transport is a highly efficient mode and can contribute to the reduction of overall environmental and social costs related to the transport sector.