Jordi Carrasco (ANEN):

It has been a year since Jordi Carrasco left his position as manager of the Real Club Náutico Calpe to take over the National Association of Nautical Companies (ANEN) as general director.

During these 16 years in which he has worked in port management, Carrasco has acquired a great deal of knowledge and experience which he is currently applying in his new professional role in the organization.

One of the key points of the year for ANEN is the Congress they organize annually, where they bring together hundreds of professionals from the sector to discuss the present and future of recreational boating. This year, this great meeting was held in Bilbao, where issues that directly affect the sector were discussed, such as the new regulation on the Regulation of Maritime Navigation. A regulation that brings many new features, including the possibility that boats for private use (list seven) can be rented. A fact that has caused some commotion within the nautical sector.

The director general of the National Association of Marine Industries (ANEN), Jordi Carrasco, has visited the studios of Passion for the Sea to resolve all the doubts that are generating this new regulation, which to date, has no regulatory development under which to be effective.

"We have to be calm, because it cannot be done this year and it will not come into force in July," says Carrasco, who explains that there is still a lot of work ahead to clarify this new regulation and that it has to be discussed with the whole sector.

"This cannot be something improvised, it requires a very extensive and concise regulatory development" adds the general director of ANEN, who recognises that "there are boats of more than 25 or 30 years old that, due to their characteristics and conditions, cannot be put on the rental market".

Furthermore, according to Carrasco another point to take in to consideration for the development of this regulation is to work in each Autonomic Community in an independent way “because there is competition delegated by the Autonomic Community such as the rental of boats”. Obviously it is a regulation that without being current, has its pros and cons, like the pirate renting that "is going to be produced while being the regulation or not and for that reason we have to ask the Administration to apply these rules to detect these type of uses” that according to the general director of the ANEN “it only damages the sector”.

In addition to the Regulation on the Regulation of Maritime Navigation, during his appearance on Passion for the Sea, Carrasco emphasized other challenges facing the Association, such as safety, sustainability and training. "Training is the future of the sector and we need to go out to attract new talent so that they know the possibilities that exist within the sector", he assures.

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As for the future challenges of the marinas, the general director of ANEN recognises that "we have to work to develop new sheets of water, without enlarging the ports, we have to redesign the sheets so that there are more moorings". And he also stresses the need to make the Administrations see the strengths and opportunities of sailing as well as all the activities that can be carried out in a port because "there are activities that are in decline, but recreational boating is more alive than ever".