PLATINA4Action Strengthens European Cooperation for a Green and Smart Inland Waterway Transport System
The Second Stage Event of the PLATINA4Action project was hosted by Danube Commission in Budapest on 4 November 2025. It gathered representatives from the European Commission (DG MOVE), the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR), Member State authorities, industry experts, and research organisations to advance the transition toward zero-emission and digital inland waterway transport (IWT) in Europe. The project is funded under the European Union’s Horizon Europe Research and Innovation Programme and the event presentations are available on the PLATINA4Action website.
Supporting NAIADES III and the European Green Deal
PLATINA4Action acts as a strategic coordination and support platform under NAIADES III, directly contributing to the EU Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy and the objectives of the European Green Deal. Through close cooperation with DG MOVE and other key stakeholders, the project:
- Assesses the impact of EU policy measures on emission reduction and modal shift in inland navigation, based on a new Digital Twin;
- Prepares a European system for reporting on energy and emissions performance of IWT;
- Identifies barriers and policy needs for the deployment of zero-emission solutions;
- Builds a comprehensive RD&I roadmap for innovation and funding for IWT.
Key milestones presented in Budapest at the 2nd Stage Event
During the event, the consortium reported significant progress across several work packages:
- The first version of the Digital Twin for IWT policy analysis is operational, providing quantitative assessments of policy actions and potential emission reductions.
- A state-of-play and concept for methodologies serving a KPI dashboard was developed for expressing energy efficiency and emissions performance. Draft standards were presented by CCNR for the measurement of air pollutants and greenhouse gas intensity while PLATINA4Action presented the progress on the energy efficiency methodology and operational GHG performance linking to CountEmissionsEU and ISO14083.
- Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analyses highlighted the need for financial instruments and regulatory incentives to bridge the gap between fossil-fuelled and zero-emission technologies, in-line with the paper prepared for the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan, pointing towards HVO as main solution for the short term for decarbonisation.
- The human dimension of the transition was emphasised through new competence standards and education initiatives, notably 1System4IWT, aimed at equipping the future IWT workforce with the skills required for digital and green operations.
Stakeholder Collaboration and Policy Dialogue
The Stage Event reaffirmed PLATINA4Action’s role as a European platform for knowledge exchange and policy dialogue. Moreover, by engaging close to 50 complementary research and innovation projects through the IWT Projects Cooperation Platform (iwtprojects.eu), PLATINA4Action ensures synergies, visibility, and coherent input to EU policy development.
The event also featured contributions from European industry representatives, research institutions, and sectoral organisations such as EBU, EDINNA, and CESNI, underscoring the shared commitment to a modern, sustainable, and competitive inland waterway transport sector.
