Venue: St Petersburg, Russia
Following the outstanding success of NEVA 2007, the scene is set for the largest and most successful NEVA conference and exhibition in the event’s 20 year history.
The bedrock of this confidence, and the reason why NEVA 2009 has already drawn such high levels of domestic and international support, is Russia’s long term commitment – supported by a clearly defined strategy and financing – to the further development of its transport system, maritime and offshore industries.
The role that the bi-annual NEVA exhibition and conference plays in cementing the international ties that are essential to Russia’s maritime and energy ambition cannot be underestimated. Once again the event will uniquely bring the entire Russian maritime spectrum together under one roof for four days. A key element in this success is the traditional support that NEVA enjoys from key maritime institutions including the Maritime Collegium of the Government of Russia, Ministry of Industry & Trade, Association of Sea Ports, Union of Russian Shipowners, Union of Oil and Gas Equipment Producers, the United Shipbuilding Corporation, Maritime Council of the Government of St. Petersburg.
The international list of confirmed exhibitors reads like a who’s who of the maritime community and includes the likes of ABB, ABS, MAN, Caterpillar, MacGregor and Rolls-Royce Marine. These names are joined by a number of first time exhibitors such as Samson Ropes and Italian dredging company Italdraghe. Following the success of the 2007 event there are two Chinese pavilions at this years event – a national one and a regional one from Guangzhou. There will also be a Romanian national pavilion for the first time which will stand alongside national pavilions from Norway, Finland, Denmark, France, Germany and Poland. General Director of Dolphin Exhibitions Roderick Keay, who has organised NEVA since its inception in 1989, reports that over 85 per cent of available exhibition space had been reserved as of January “and this takes into account the additional space available in 2009.”
In parallel with the exhibition, NEVA 2009 will bear witness to an outstanding conference programme. Day one (22 September) takes the Arctic and Antarctic as its theme and will address legislative, commercial and technical aspects of operations here. This day is scheduled to culminate in the US Coast Guard Amver Awards Ceremony. Day two has been designated the day of ‘Shipbuilding, marine technologies and offshore support operations’ and is organised jointly with the world famous Krylov Institute. This will include a focus on ‘Russian shipyards as European shipbuilders and their cooperation with Far East shipyards’ and special sessions highlighting the rapid development of the offshore support sector in Russia. Day three has been themed ‘Ports Day’ which will look at infrastructure development as well as technologies; while day four will see another NEVA and Russia first: The World Congress on Maritime Training. This prestigious event will be coordinated by the Admiral Makarov State Maritime Academy.
