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including shipyards and maritime equipment manufacturers, are encouraged to jointly develop structured industrial roadmaps for specific lead markets (e.g., electric ferries, next-generation cruise ships, or advanced offshore support vessels).These business cases are expected to define a clear vision and ambition, set measurable milestones, identify technological, regulatory, financial, and market barriers, and propose solutions to overcome them. This approach must create a direct bridge between industrial reality and public policy, ensuring that support measures are targeted, effective, and grounded in real business-investment projects.The Maritime Industrial Value Chains Alliance, anticipated for the autumn of 2026, constitutes another key element of the EIMS. This governance body will provide a structured platform for industry, shipowners, Member States, financial institutions, and the European Commission to jointly assess the business cases and mobilise the necessary policy actions, funding instruments, and, where needed, regulatory adaptations.Fair competition with third countries: No further time to wasteWhile the EIMS is a major step forward, its success will also depend on the European Commission%u2019s political willingness to act swiftly and decisively against unfair international competition. Unfair competition from Asia has distorted global shipbuilding markets for decades. This problem has already been recognised since the late 1980s, yet effective solutions have remained elusive.The challenge is structural. Unlike many industrial products, ships are generally not imported into the EU customs territory, making traditional trade-defence instruments such as anti-dumping measures largely inapplicable. Past efforts to address this structural issue through international agreements or WTO litigation have failed. Meanwhile, global market concentration has intensified dramatically, with China now accounting for around 70% of the global orderbook, exerting enormous pressure on other shipbuilding nations and increasingly targeting Europe%u2019s remaining strongholds, including the cruise shipbuilding sector.May 2026 295