27 May 2025
Bilbao Campus
On 22 May, the University of Deusto hosted the 11th Deusto Maritime Forum, an event organised by the Master’s in Maritime and Port Business Management and Maritime Law, together with the School of Maritime Administration, part of the Department of Food, Rural Development, Agriculture and Fisheries of the Basque Government. The event provided an opportunity to analyse some of the most relevant issues currently affecting the maritime and port sector, such as the raw materials market and environmental challenges.
The forum brought together Master's students, teaching staff, professionals from the sector and people interested in the challenges posed by today's maritime industry, in a context in which this field plays a key role in the global economy and international geopolitics. The session opened with addresses by Javier Larena, Director of the Master’s programme, and Nagore Casas, Vice Dean for Academic Organisation, Academic Staff and Institutional Relations at the Law School.
Afterwards, Marco Pineda, corporate general manager of Sidenor Aceros Especiales, general manager of Mirai Investments and director of Kutxabank, gave a lecture entitled "International trade, community policy, geopolitics and the financial market". The event continued with the presentation of the 'Propeller Club of the Basque Country – Port of Bilbao' Award for the best academic record and Master’s Dissertation of the 2024–2025 academic year. The award went to Adrián Martínez López for his study on the shadow fleet, focusing on legal responsibilities in cases of pollutant spills.
The programme continued with the panel discussion "Incident between the MV Slong and MV Stena", in which the collision between the Portuguese-flagged container ship MV Solong and the US tanker MV Stena Immaculate was discussed from different perspectives. The incident led to a fire off the English coast, with loss of life and significant economic and environmental impact. The investigation remains open.
Moderated by Irantzu Sedano, from Aiyon Abogados, the roundtable featured contributions from representatives of the Junior Committee of the Propeller Club of the Basque Country, including Jokin Izaguirre (Sedgwick), Isabel Gutiérrez (Naviera Ellerman), Ainara Castrilló (Kuehne Nagel) and Carlos Gómez (Mapfre). The speakers looked at the case from various perspectives: navigation, insurance, inter-state conflicts, and the roles of the shipowner and the operator.
This Junior Committee, officially established in March 2024, aims to encourage generational renewal in the sector and promote the involvement of young professionals. It is part of the Propeller Club of the Basque Country - Port of Bilbao, part of the international Propeller Club network, which brings together professionals from the maritime, port and logistics sectors.
The forum concluded with the presentation ‘Decoding the Commodity Market,’ delivered by Marta Escribano, partner and investment advisor at Salmon Mundi Advisors EAF. In her presentation, she offered a critical view of Europe’s future in this area, shaped by economic uncertainty, tariffs, international conflicts, energy prices, demand pressure, and the concentration of purchases by countries like China.
At the closing, Javier Larena and Koldobika Goitia, Director of Coastal Development, Ports, and Maritime Affairs for the Basque Government, took part. Goitia highlighted the importance of generational transition within the sector. "Beyond infrastructure investments, talent can’t simply be bought on the market,” he said, recalling the Basque Country’s historic leadership role in the maritime field.
