In a significant gathering of the European maritime sector, during UNOC3, Founder of Le Quere technologies, was invited to participate in a closed roundtable and high-level dinner hosted by Fabrice Maire, President of the Luxembourg Maritime Cluster and the European Network of Maritime Clusters (ENMC). The event brought together presidents and vice presidents of the most influential national maritime clusters in Europe, as well as a representative from the Tunisian Maritime Cluster, for a discussion focused on the urgent challenges and future priorities for maritime innovation and sustainability.

The ENMC, established in 2005, is a collaborative platform of more than 30 maritime cluster organizations. Its primary aim is to facilitate knowledge-sharing, joint initiatives, and policy alignment across EU member states and neighbors, to ensure Europe’s maritime economy advances toward greater sustainability, innovation, and competitiveness.

Topics during the roundtable reflected a growing consensus: plastic pollution, unsustainable marine practices, and emissions from shipping fleets represent urgent threats that demand systemic innovation. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has mandated net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international shipping by “close to 2050,” setting ambitious expectations that the sector must rapidly adapt to.

Eric shared our approach to addressing these challenges with scalable solutions, including technologies that address ocean plastic retrieval, sustainable material alternatives, and auxiliary wind propulsion systems for decarbonising vessels. These innovations sparked constructive dialogue and strong interest from several cluster leaders, many of whom expressed alignment with the company’s mission and the potential for future collaboration.

Participation in this forum strengthens our engagement with Europe’s maritime policy ecosystem and positions its technologies as vital contributions to regional and global maritime decarbonisation strategies.

This event marked the beginning of deeper conversations around joint innovation pilots, regional demonstrations, and shared commitments to protect marine ecosystems through measurable, actionable innovation.