Óscar Puente urges EU countries to accelerate rail certification processes and train deliveries

The Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, during his speech at the informal European Council of Transport and Maritime Affairs Ministers

At the informal European Council of Transport and Maritime Affairs Ministers, the Minister for Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Óscar Puente, advocated for accelerating train certification processes to improve the competitiveness of the European rail industry "We cannot continue investing in the manufacture, delivery, and commissioning of a train for six or seven years, as is happening now," Puente stated at the meeting, which brought together the Ministers of Transport in the first session and the Ministers of Maritime Affairs in the second, both held in Nicosia.

The challenges facing European rail transport and ports were the focus of the first meeting, which identified ways to improve the resilience, safety, and competitiveness of European transport networks. Given the urgent need for Europe to implement interoperable rail technologies across its network, Puente emphasised the need to improve current rail certification and authorisation processes to facilitate this deployment.

According to the Spanish minister, delays in train deliveries not only hinder interoperability but also the competitiveness of the European rail industry itself. He pointed to the main causes of these delays, which align with the assessment of the European Railway Agency: "dispersed and fragmented regulations, excessively slow procedures, and a rolling stock industry with limited capacity and agility in fulfilling orders."

As Óscar Puente pointed out, improving the situation would involve promoting greater regulatory awareness, strengthening the quality and reliability of independent assessments that support the competent authorities, and increasing the availability of dedicated testing infrastructure. The minister described the discussion on this matter as "productive" and expressed his hope that these improvements could be addressed in subsequent sessions. "It is gratifying to find common ground with the European Railway Agency's vision. Today we have reason for optimism," he concluded.

The meeting of transport ministers also addressed strengthening European ports as strategic hubs for trade, logistics, and military mobility. In this regard, the Spanish minister emphasised the need to "allocate a portion of the ETS revenues to policies and measures for the decarbonisation of transport" in order to mitigate the consequences of carbon leakage and advance the ecological transition.

The minister also highlighted Spain's ongoing process of adapting its regulations to European directives on the resilience of critical entities and cybersecurity, specifically the guide promoted by State Ports and Spanish port authorities to address scenarios of "cyberattacks, extreme weather events, prolonged power outages, or unavailability of critical facilities."

The second informal Council of Ministers meeting of the day brought together the Ministers of Maritime Affairs to discuss strengthening the sector's human capital at a time of international uncertainty due to the Strait of Hormuz crisis. For this reason, Óscar Puente called for "recognising the importance of their work."

In this regard, Puente welcomed the signing of the Nicosia Declaration, which will serve to address this issue jointly "in order to preserve maritime employment and move towards the effective implementation of the future European maritime industrial strategy." Thus, the minister outlined a roadmap aimed at increasing the attractiveness of the profession, which includes "measures to support the onboarding of European students; mechanisms to promote greater harmonisation and attractiveness of seafarers' working conditions; modernisation of maritime education and certification; and increased participation of women."

Finally, he stressed that these measures are being incorporated by Spain into its Maritime Strategy 2025-2050, which recognises that "there will be no European maritime strategic autonomy without quality employment, without up-to-date professional skills, and without a more attractive sector for young people and women."

Non official translation