EU ports welcome Framework on Foreign Investment Screening as useful Instrument for an open Investment Environment
18 January 2018
On 13 September 2017, the European Commission published a Proposal for a Regulation establishing a framework for screening of foreign direct investments into the European Union and a Communication entitled “Welcoming foreign direct Investment while Protecting Essential Interests”.
The European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) welcomes the fact that the Commission proposal is stressing the importance of an open investment environment. The port sector is capital intensive. Over the last decades ports in Europe have benefitted from substantial investment from outside the European Union, both directly into assets and in some cases, into significant equity stakes in port owners. The ports sector recognises the important role these investments have played in the development and success of European ports. ESPO therefore believes that having an open investment environment should remain one of the basic principles of Europe’s Trade policy.