The Port Authority of the Bay of Algeciras (APBA) participated in the MEDPorts seminar on Sustainable Business Development, held in Marseille and organized by the Port of Marseille Fos, where it showcased its green maritime corridor projects and its strategy to become a sustainable energy hub. The meeting brought together Mediterranean ports, institutions, and industry leaders with the aim of sharing a common vision and establishing commitments for a more sustainable, resilient, and competitive port system.
Luis Núñez, head of the Strategy and European Projects Department of the APBA, was tasked with conveying the Algeciras experience in green corridors, as well as the importance of cooperation, interoperability, and innovative investment models in the Mediterranean region. In his speech, Núñez detailed how the Port of Algeciras is adopting a comprehensive approach that combines energy infrastructure and sustainability, positioning itself as a benchmark for new standards for the ports of the future.
The seminar, inaugurated with welcoming words from the Deputy General Director of the Port of Marseille, Rémi Costantino, and MEDPorts President, David Magro, highlighted that ports grow more effectively when they do so collectively, through cooperation, shared knowledge, and a common vision for a more connected and sustainable maritime future. Sustainable business development has been addressed as a strategic cross-cutting priority for all participating ports.
The two sessions of the seminar generated a space for debate among high-level officials on green maritime corridors, energy transition at the port level, and infrastructure preparation, transcending theoretical approaches to address specific operational and business issues. From the discussions emerged a clear message: the development of green corridors is not just a technical challenge, but also an organizational and business one, requiring aligned partners, institutional support, and a realistic assessment of risks to move from pilot projects to scalable ecosystems.
Participating ports shared their ongoing energy projects and openly reflected on the current pace of the transition, preparing for alternative fuels such as methanol and ammonia, while continuing to manage current needs around liquefied natural gas (LNG), shore power supply to ships in port (OPS), and conventional fuels.
The conclusions of the sessions, led by Eduard Rodes and Alaa Morsy, pointed out that decarbonization is not a one-time leap, but a gradual and adaptive process that combines shore power supply, alternative fuels, energy efficiency, and intermodality. As ports evolve into energy hubs, progress will depend on acting as an integrated Mediterranean system, aligning incentives, infrastructures, and data, and investing step by step in flexible solutions. With the development of professional skills remaining a critical gap, the port authority emerges as an integrative and coordinating figure, capable of transforming collective ambition into viable and fundable actions.
The seminar also featured a presentation by Isabelle Ryckbost from the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO), and Peter de Langen from Ports & Logistics Advisory, who offered a speech on the strategic vision for Mediterranean port development in the era of the green transition. Both experts noted that ports are not only evolving, but are being transformed by the energy transition, electrification, digitalization, and new global dynamics, which are shaping a completely different landscape for port development.
In this context, as ports invest significantly in shore power supply and electrification, the capacity of the electrical grid must be prioritized for port areas. Without the necessary power to match the ambition, even the best infrastructure risks being insufficient, turning the green transition into a matter of competitiveness and not just environmental. The transition demands a more agile permitting process, updated thresholds for state aid, and stronger business development strategies in port ecosystems.
At the closing of the seminar, Amal Louis emphasized that the true strength of the Mediterranean lies in cooperation and not in isolation. The exchanges held in Marseille were not conceived to stay within the room, but to serve as the basis for deeper collaboration, concrete actions, and shared initiatives within the MEDPorts community, already looking ahead to the MEDPorts Forum 2026, scheduled for next May.