Selected River Danube - related
conference presentations, media appearances and public domain work of
Edgar
Martin (shipping and inland waterways consultant)
January 2007: Edgar Martin took up the position of General Director of ICS Danube Logistics SRL and Port Manager of Giurgiulesti International Free Port in the Republic of Moldova on the Maritime Danube.
October 2006: Edgar chaired the Middle and Lower Danube session of the Third Danube Summit
conference in Budapest (Hungary). During the session Edgar made a
presentation of the Inland Water Transport section findings of the Danube-Serbia Project and asked the owners of Giurgiulesti International Free Port
in Moldova how they would respond to commercial opposition to their
port by existing neighbouring port facilities. At the event Edgar
also posed the question of what would be the fate of key Upper
and Middle Danube operators following the sad death of Mr. Gerhard Meier and
the likely breakup of the Meier Group
of Danube shipping companies (principally Bayerischer Lloyd, DDSG-Cargo
and Mahart). Later in the month Edgar presented a paper at the Black Sea Transport Forum and Transport Strategy of Ukraine Symposium at the Passenger Sea Terminal (Morskoi Voksal) in Odessa (Ukraine) during the Odessa 212 TransUkraine ports, shipping, logistics
and transport exhibition. The paper concerned current issues in Danube
transport with specific reference to Ukraine and a summary was reported
in both Dunayets and Sea Truth newspapers.
September 2006: Following a further visit to the management of the Ukrainian Danube Shipping Company in Izmail to discuss recent developments, the work of Edgar Martin featured in another front-page article of Dunayets newspaper, also published in Moriak.
July 2006: At the invitation of British inland waterways specialist publication Waterways World, Edgar was the on-board lecturer for the magazine's 2006 readers' cruise on board the Dutch inland cruise vessel Elegant Lady.
Edgar joined the cruise sailing east from Budapest towards the Lower
Danube and gave lectures on various aspects of Danube transport,
politics and history in addition to providing live commentary as key
navigational and historical features were past. The vessel was operated
by WT Cruises and chartered by Kingdom Tours. Edgar's lecturing featured in the cruise review published later in the year in the magazine.
June to December 2006: Edgar led the Inland Water Transport Expert Group of the European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR)-funded
"Integrated Socio-economic Development Plan Based on the Rehabilitation
of the Middle Danube River Basin and Inland Waterway System of Serbia"
or "Danube-Serbia" Project.
The project aimed to target priority projects and areas where funding
could be allocated to have a direct social and economic impact in the
Serbian Danube region. The project somewhat followed on from the Serbian Waterways Masterplan project also funded by the EAR.
The project included several weeks based in Belgrade, discussions at
all levels of IWT government and industry in Serbia and culminated in
two seminars and reports. Conclusions largely concerned required
government policy changes rather than specific areas which lack
funding. The final report was published in mid-2007 and combined
results from all sections of the project (IWT, environment,
agriculture, investment, tourism and socio-economic analysis).
May 2006: Edgar Martin was featured in industry journal EU Infrastructure
in an in-depth interview on the subject of the economic impact of the
Spring 2006 Danube flood and other related issues of Danube
navigational infrastructure.
April 2006: In cooperation with
the European Transport Workers' Federation (ETF), a refereed article by Edgar
Martin was published this month in the Hans-Böckler-Foundation's academic journal SEER - South-East Europe Review for Labour and Social Affairs on the subject of employment constraints and social problems in
the Danube transport industry.
February 2006: Edgar Martin
attended the European
Inland Navigation Summit in Vienna (Austria)
organised by the Austrian
Government as part of the Austrian Presidency
of the European Union.
At the event Edgar posed the question of how the
inland navigation sector can respond to the accusations of the
environmental lobby and how the inland shipping lobby can group
together to emphasise the environmemntal benefits of Inland Waterway
Transport to the general public.
January 2006:
Edgar Martin
was quoted in the German newspaper Welt am
Sonntag on the subject of
Bulgarian-Romanian relations in Danube navigation following an
interview undertaken in a railway carriage travelling between the two
countries.
December 2005:
As a member of
IVR, Edgar
Martin attended the IVR seminar "Inland
Navigation in an
Enlarged Europe" in Sofia (Bulgaria). At the event he
asked the
Bulgarian authorities present the delicate question of why an accepted
loan by the European
Investment Bank (EIB) and a donation of the Greek
Government for the reconstruction of the Port of Lom had not
been used.
November 2005:
Edgar Martin attended the 5th
Danube Region Business Conference in Belgrade (Serbia
and
Montenegro) this month. At the event Edgar pointed out the different
definitions and applications of port privatisation on the River Danube
and emphasised to governments and port administrations the importance
to the wider economy for active ports to focus on transport and related
activities and not to diversify into other areas for short-term
profits. Also this month Edgar's visit to the Kilia
Shipyard on the Ukrainian Danube to deliver newbuild
vessel tender specifications on behalf of two clients featured in a
full-page article in
the Moriyak
newspaper.
October 2005:
The research
work of Edgar Martin featured in another front-page article in the
Dunayets
newspaper following a visit to the
Ukrainian Danube Shipping
Company in Izmail (Ukraine).
September 2005:
Edgar Martin was invited to the European
Conference of Ministers of
Transport (ECMT) workshop "Pan-European Co-operation towards
a Strong
Inland Waterway Transport: On the Move" held at the International
Energy Agency in Paris (France). At the event Edgar
reminded delegates
that the infrastructure requirements and therefore funding priorities
of much of the Central and Eastern European waterways is vastly
different to those in Western Europe and that it can be a mistake to
make broad generalisations of European waterway funding requirements. Also this month Edgar presented at the Orkney International Science Festival in
Kirkwall, Orkney Islands (Scotland) on the subject of "Waterborne
Transport in the 21st Century: Transport Policy on the River Danube".
July 2005:
A visit of Edgar Martin to the Ukrainian
Danube Shipping Company (UDP) and the Port
of Izmail (Ukraine) as part of a research
project was reported on
the front pages of both the UDP Danube region newspaper Dunayets
and
the national Ukrainian paper Moriyak.
June 2005:
Edgar Martin
presented a paper at the European
Inland Waterway Navigation (EIWN)
conference in Szeged (Hungary) on the subject of non-riparian
involvement in Danube transport. Edgar made a presentation on behalf of
the Maritime Danube Port
Administration (APDM) of Galati (Romania) in
addition. Also this month, Edgar was quoted in Cargo
Systems concerning Danube port investment focusing on the
development of the Port
of Giurgiulesti on
Moldova's short section of the Danube.
May 2005:
Edgar Martin
presented a paper concerning his experience in developing a River
Danube Bibliography at the "Geopolitics of the Danube Basin
International Conference" held at the river flotilla base
of the
Romanian Navy and
on-board the Presidential yacht Mures
in Braila
(Romania). The conference was organised by the Romanian Naval Museum
of
Constanta in whose annual journal the paper was published.
February 2005:
The
privatisation of the Bulgarian
River Shipping Company (BRP) of Rousse
(Bulgaria) got underway this month. Edgar Martin was involved in the
pre-privatisation process for two years undertaking reports focusing on
the Danube transport market.
January 2005: The
privatisation of the Mahart
Csepel Freeport (Szabadkikötő) in
Budapest (Hungary) got underway this month. Edgar Martin assisted
the pre-privatisation process over a six month period with a series of
reports comparing Danube port ownership regimes, summarising port and
terminal ownership worldwide and answering the privatation agency's
detailed questions on a number of issues. Also this month, Edgar
attended the IVR
"Inland Navigation in the
Enlarged Europe"
colloquium held at the Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology in Vienna (Austria).
November 2004:
Organised as
part of the Dutch presidency of the European
Union, Edgar Martin attended the Dutch Ministry of Transport,
Public Works & Water
Management's "The
Power of Inland Navigation" event at The Hague (The
Netherlands) this month. During a debate into River Information
Services (RIS), Edgar pointed out that despite the revolutionary opportunities
of RIS, many Lower Danube operators are concerned at the cost of
installing the necessary equipment onboard their vessels. Also this
month Edgar was quoted in Fairplay
International Shipping
Weekly magazine concerning the Bystroye Channel issue.
October 2004:
Edgar Martin chaired a session at the Second Danube Summit
conference
in Belgrade (Serbia and Montenegro) this month, where Danube Research
also had an exhibition stand. At the conference,
Edgar commented on the potential risks of full port
privatisation being considered by some riparian states at present; he
noted the concerns of several Middle and Lower Danube operators with
regard to the introduction of River Information Services, and with the
Danube Commission's
presidency due to switch to Serbia and Montenegro
and the General Directorship to Ukraine in 2005, Edgar asked the European
Commission how they see their involvement with the Danube
Commission
developing. During the conference closing session, Edgar
officiated between the Ukrainian and Romanian delegations on the
controversial subject of the Bystroye Channel [Danube Research has
closely followed this matter and remains strictly impartial on the
subject]. Following interviews at the Danube Summit event, Edgar
appeared on Radio
Romania (domestic and international
services) and was quoted in the Romanian Gardianul
national newspaper
on the subject of the Ukrainian Bystroye Channel. Earlier in the month,
Edgar spoke at the First
International Congress of Naval
History in Mamaia (Romania) organised by the
Constanta-based Romanian
Naval Museum. His paper, published in the Museum's
Yearbook, concerned
the involvement of non-riparian states in the historical development of
Danube navigation. Edgar also attended the First
European Convention for the Inland Waterways Navigation Sector
in Nancy
(France) this month, organised by Voies
Navigables de France.
July 2004: Edgar Martin
presented a paper at the prestigious World Conference on Transport
Research in Istanbul (Turkey) and chaired a conference
session
concerning Regional Transport Issues in Southeast Europe. Edgar's
paper,
which was selected to appear in the conference proceedings, concerned
the future of Danube transport policy. Whilst in Istanbul, Edgar was
also invited to attend a meeting of SETREF (the Southeast
European Transport Research Forum) as an observer.
April-May 2004:
On the
occasion of the accession into the European
Union of 10 new member
countries, including Danube riparian states Slovakia and Hungary, Edgar
Martin was interviewed by BBC
News on
the subject of environmental benefits of and opportunities for Danube
transport in an enlarged European Union. The environmental interview
(screen capture, below left), recorded in Komárno (Slovakia)
was
broadcast on BBC
Breakfast News on UK television channel BBC One in
addition to BBC World
and BBC News 24
television channels and BBC
News
Online. Interviews concerning general opportunities of the
River Danube
were broadcast live on BBC World and BBC News 24 from Esztergom
(Hungary; screen capture, below right). Also in May Edgar
participated in the Central Europe - Open for Business seminar in
Edinburgh (Scotland).
March 2004:
Edgar Martin attended Focus
Hungary, a Hungarian investment forum in Glasgow
(Scotland) where he pointed out potential present and future conflicts
of interest between residential / leisure redevelopment and operational
port areas using Budapest Csepel Freeport as an example. Also this
month, Danube Research images and data of the Romanian paddle steamer
Tudor Vladimirescu appeared in the Swiss German-language journal
Dampferzeitung.
December 2003:
Edgar Martin
was invited to speak at the European
Transport Workers' Federation
(ETF) Corridor VII
conference in Vienna (Austria); his presentation tackled
social aspects of Danube transport and opportunities for increasing
traffic on the river. Edgar was again invited this month to the European
Parliament in Brussels (Belgium) for a symposium concerning the
future of inland
waterways from an environmental perspective. At the symposium Edgar
emphasised the assertion that Inland Waterway Transport is the
most environmentally friendly mode but that the reliability of the
Danube is crucial to achieve modal shift from road transport. Edgar
also attended the International
Association of Cities and
Ports (AIVP) inland ports conference in Brussels this
month.
November 2003:
Edgar Martin
has signed a contract with Austrian Danube transport promotion agency
via donau to
provide regular news articles of Danube shipping related
developments from the Lower Danube.
October 2003:
Edgar Martin
presented at the Danube
Region Business Conference 4 held at the Palace
of Parliament in Bucharest (Romania) where he called for a
"Shipping Lobby for
the Lower Danube." This month Edgar was again interviewed for the BBC
World Service's "The World Today" programme on the subject
of the
continuing low level of the Danube and of conflicts between
environmental organisations and the Danube shipping industry.
August 2003:
Edgar Martin was interviewed for the BBC World Service's
"Europe Today" programme on
the subject of the record low water levels on the Danube. This month
Edgar
also featured in Industry
Europe magazine further to an interview in
Budapest (Hungary) on the environmental benefits of Danube transport.
July 2003:
In another
Financial
Times interview, Edgar Martin discussed the current
constraints of Danube transport. The interview also featured in Marcon
International's (US) "Inland
Push Boat Market Report" and was translated
into Serbian on the beograd.com
website.
June 2003:
Edgar Martin
presented in the plenary session of the European Inland Waterway
Navigation (EIWN) Conference in Győr (Hungary) on the
subject of future
policy options relating to Danube transport. Also this month, Edgar
wrote a special feature on Danube ports in World Port
Development International magazine.
May 2003:
Edgar Martin was
invited to the European
Parliament in Brussels (Belgium) to a symposium
concerning the future of inland waterway transport in an enlarged
European Union.
At the symposium Edgar questioned the
priorities of Brussels institutions on the Lower Danube. The Austrian
Danube transport promotion agency via
donau published their Manual of
Danube Ports this month, for which much data, images and
editing was
provided by Danube Research.
April 2003: Edgar
Martin attended the Southeast
European Cooperative Initiative (SECI) Danube
Transport Working Group meeting in Vienna (Austria). At the meeting he commented
that he would like to see more ports represented on the working group
and hope that more will be invited in the future.
February 2003:
Edgar Martin discussed Lower Danube port facilities in an interview
with the Financial
Times.
November 2002:
The annual
conference of the International
Association of Maritime Economists
(IAME) in Panama City (Panama) featured a refereed paper by Edgar
Martin
which discussed problems of Danube policy. The event was hosted by the
Panama Canal Authority.
October 2002:
Edgar Martin was interviewed for the Financial
Times on the subject of modal shift opportunities to the
River Danube.
September 2002:
Edgar Martin wrote a special feature on Danube shipping in World Port
Development International magazine. Edgar also
contributed to a short
article on Romanian presidential yachts in Le Monde 2.
August 2002:
Edgar Martin was interviewed by The New York
Times, International
Herald Tribune and
BBC World Service's
"World Business Report" on the economic impact of the
Danube flood.
June 2002:
Edgar Martin
presented a paper concerning the wider economic impact of the Novi Sad
blockage at the Danube
Summit conference in Constanta (Romania). An
excerpt from the paper was later published in Ukrainian industry
journal Black
Sea Trans. The conference was hosted by the Constanta
Port Administration.
April-May 2002:
Edgar Martin was interviewed for Radio
Austria International both in April
and May concerning the development of Danube cruise shipping and the
implications for the River Danube of the development of the Port of
Constanta respectively. Austria's FM4 news and the
UK's The
Independent
newspaper interviewed Edgar in May on the subject of the Danube
Cooperation event in Vienna (Austria). Edgar also featured on a
documentary of
Australia's Radio
National and Radio
Australia International regarding
Australian interests in Danube navigation.
March 2002:
Edgar Martin attended the IVR/TAIEX-Colloquium
in Bucharest (Romania) where he posed the
question what could be done to bring the European Commission
in closer
contact with Danube shipping companies and port and waterway
administrations on the Lower Danube, who often feel isolated from
Brussels yet are impacted by its legislation.
November 2001:
Edgar Martin
was invited to speak at the Southeast
European Cooperative Initiative
(SECI) Danube Transport
Working Group meeting in Belgrade (Yugoslavia) in early
November, where he presented Danube Research's ideas for a Danube Ro-Ro
study "MODAN"
(Modal Shift to the River Danube). Following the opening of a safe
marked temporary fairway through Novi Sad (Yugoslavia) in late November 2001 by the
Danube Commission,
Edgar Martin was interviewed by the BBC
for the
World Service's
"World Business Report" programme and BBC News Online.
The online article was quoted in the UK Parliament. Edgar
was also
interviewed by Radio
Free Europe / Radio Liberty, where the interview
was broadcast on several of RFE's different language services across
Europe, in addition to featuring in their online text news service.
Edgar also wrote an article for Lloyd's List
on the subject
of the newly opened safe marked fairway.
September 2001:
Danube
Research has been awarded the contract for designing and maintaining
the Danube Commission
Clearance Project Unit's new official website.
Tenders and press releases will be posted on the site in addition to
summary and progress information relating to the clearance work. Danube
Research aims to produce a comprehensive yet basic website. The new
site
was uploaded in mid-September 2001 and is updated regularly. [N.B. the
Clearance Unit has now finished it's task and it's website is no longer
available as of December 2003]
May 2001:
Edgar is
becoming increasingly involved in the clearance of the river in
Yugoslavia. He has have completed a report for clearance architects the
COWI-Utiber
consortium on Danube vessel types using the Novi Sad
stretch of the river, to assist COWI in designing the temporary fairway.
[which opened in November 2001]
April - June 2001: Edgar
Martin presented a paper concerning river ports and the effects of
the Novi Sad (Yugoslavia) blockage in the plenary session of the European Inland
Waterway Navigation (EIWN) Conference in Budapest (Hungary) in June.
Media
appearances continue with interviews for Radio Austria International
and Deutsche Welle
at the Danube - Economic
Backbone of Europe
symposium in Vienna (Austria) in April. In May Edgar wrote an
article for Lloyd's
List detailing the developments of the Clearance work.
October &
November 2000: Two
special reports by Edgar Martin were published in shipping newspaper
Lloyd's
List into the impact of the Danube blockage and the
developments of the Clearance preparations.
July 2000:
Edgar Martin's
work into the history of the Commissions of the Danube featured on
Romanian national television channel TVR 2.
June 2000:
Edgar Martin met with the Croatian
Ministry of Transport in Vukovar (Croatia) to
discuss the reconstruction of the Port
of Vukovar (at km 1333). The
port has already been partially reconstructed following the war in
1991, now a further stage is to be agreed including a new bulk handling
terminal and a possible container terminal.
May-September 2000:
Danube
Research exhibited at the 110
Years of Modern Romanian Danube
Navigation exhibition in Galati (Romania) alongside principal shipping
companies, port and
waterway administrations. The exhibition was held in the ground floor
foyer of Galati's Navrom
Navigation Palace. The first of its kind in
Galati, the exhibition proved a great success, running throughout
Summer 2000. All profits were donated to the restoration fund of the
paddle steamer Tudor
Vladimirescu.
April 2000:
Edgar Martin (right on each frame below) discusses the
blockage of the River Danube in Serbia with the then President of
Romania, His Excellency Emil Constantinescu (left on each
frame), on
the occasion of the Forum
Romania at the Crossroads International
Transport Conference in Bucharest (Romania) in April 2000. Edgar
presented a paper entitled "Opportunities for Romanian River Ports" at
the conference, which was later reviewed in the Romanian
Business
Journal. Also this month the [original] Danube Research
website was reviewed in the
journal European
Water Management.
February 2000:
Danube Ro-Ro
project proposals of Danube Research have been referred to this month
in industry publications Journal of
Commerce, International
Freighting
Weekly and Petrodata
MACCS Daily. Also this month the Danube Research
[original]
website was featured in Belgrade-based NIN magazine.
June & July 1999:
Edgar Martin featured in two television productions of Romanian channel
Express TV Galati
concerning the history of the European Commission of
the Danube and historic Romanian ships.
April 1999:
On the occasion of
the International
Association of Cities and Ports (AIVP) General
Meeting in Constanta (Romania) television channel MTC Constanta
interviewed Edgar Martin on the subject of the development of the
Port of Constanta
and the likely impact of the NATO bombing of
Yugoslavia, then underway. The event was hosted by the Constanta Port
Administration.
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Edgar Martin
(t/a Danube Research) webpage (including contact details)
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