Day 1 events at the 62nd Genoa International Boat Show

62nd Genoa International Boat Show day 1 © Confindustria Nautica

Yachting and taxation policies

During the "Yachting, Taxation and Customs", the annual appointment dedicated to tax and customs regulations, the Agenzia delle Entrate (Italy's Revenue Agency) clarified that the tax credit for the South applies to yachting.

Circular 32/E supplementing the Bonus SUD regulations was also presented during the meeting.

Andrea Maria Zucchini - Central Director of Customs, on the other hand, clarified the matter of simplification for customs procedures with regards to maintenance and refitting work on non-EU yachts, explaining how the progressive reduction of surety guarantees that shipyards must provide when carrying out work on non-EU vessels was achieved. To reach the goal of completely eliminating surety guarantees, companies must embark on the path to AEO (Authorised Economic Operator) certification.

Finally, Dr. Ezio Vannucci - Moores Rowland Partners - gave an overview of the new aspects and contents of the sixth edition of the guidebook "Nautica, Fisco e Dogane" (Yachting, Taxation and Customs) produced by the Italian Marine Industry Association with the Agenzia delle Entrate and the Customs Agency.

Events Eberhard & Co. Theatre

The Genoa International Boat Show's opening day also marked the start of the rich programme of events at the Eberhard & Co. Theatre, which kicked off with the presentation of the Genoa BE-Design Week 2023, an event organised by DIDE Distretto del Design Genova, which will return to the Liguria capital from 17th to 21st May 2023.

This will be followed by the customary and eagerly awaited conference presenting the Local Port Authority - Coast Guard's summer activities, a traditional event at the Genoa Boat Show. The data and activities of "Summer 2022: the Coast Guard's balance sheet, from safety at sea to environmental protection" were presented by Commander Cosimo Nicastro, the Coast Guard's spokesperson, and by Massimiliano Ossini, who highlighted the great sea protection work carried out every day by the Harbour Office, a certainty for all sea enthusiasts.

The Ocean takes centre stage at the Eberhard & Co Theatre

The first appointment at 62nd Genoa International Boat Show was "L'Oceano a vela" (Sailing the Ocean), the series of events organised by The Ocean Race - Genova Grand Finale at the Eberhard & Co Theatre and hosted by journalist Fabio Pozzo.

The opening event was dedicated to the oceans and the state of Italian ocean sailing and featured Alberto Bona with Ambrogio Beccaria, both taking part in the Route du Rhum, the solo transatlantic from Saint Malo to Guadeloupe that starts on 6th November, Andrea Fantini, who is taking part in the Class 40 round-the-world race in stages, the Globe 40, paired with a Japanese skipper, and Francesca Calpcich reporting from Lorient where she is engaged with the 11th Hour Racing Team, one of the teams that will participate in the next round-the-world race of The Ocean which will end in Genoa itself for its Grand Finale.

Lastly we heard from Marco Trombetti, promoter of Italy's role in the Ocean Globe Race, the regatta-commemoration of the first edition of the Whitbread Round the World Race, the round-the-world crewed race that took place in 1973 and which, 50 years later, will repeat that route with boats identical to those that raced the first round and therefore without electronics and without satellite connections.

"A participation that wants to put the human element at the centre of this great adventure," emphasised Trombetti, who will participate with a crew of three professionals, the first two being Vittorio Malingri and his son Nico, as well as, for each leg, seven people chosen from a selection of the hundreds of applications received from sailing enthusiasts.

Further events

Side events included the world premiere of the Tiara 34 LS, imported by Given For Yachting, dealer for Italy of the iconic US shipyard Tiara Yachts, and the arrival at Nuova Jolly Marine's outdoor stand of the twelve girls involved in the Mediterranean in Pink raid. An initiative - the dinghy crossing from the Ionian coast of Calabria and landing at the Genoa International Boat Show - conceived to enhance the skills of women with a passion for boating and to raise funds for another women's initiative, the Cuore Rosa (Pink Heart) free medical transport organised by the Lorenzo Perrone Onlus Association for cancer patients who need to go to hospital for examinations and treatment.