SAS Loire-Atlantique Nautisme was created on 1 January 2021. Its director, Emmanuel Jahan, answers our questions about the ambitions and the raison d'être of this new port operator.
What are the origins of Loire-Atlantique Nautisme (LAN)?
It is the association of the 2 main port managers of Loire-Atlantique: the CCI of Nantes Saint-Nazaire and the SAEML Loire-Atlantique Pêche et Plaisance, which are the 2 shareholders of the SAS. This is an association that we had already tested on the Old Port of Pornic. We wanted to accelerate it. The Syndicat Mixte Les Ports de Loire-Atlantique (editor's note: created in January 2020) owns the ports. It has kept 3 of them in management, the beaching ports of Saint-Michel Chef, Préfailles and la Plaine-sur-Mer. The SAEML retains the ports of La Turballe and Le Croisic under a public service contract for both pleasure boating and fishing. The other ports are now delegated to LAN. There is a reflection on a specialization with one operator for fishing and another for yachting, the trades being somewhat different.
What is your program as head of LAN?
We have 5 ports under management today, to which will be added the Noéveillard in Pornic in 2022. We want to continue to consolidate our position in the department with new ports. We will continue and accelerate the transformation and improvement of our services, as the CCI had started. We are not just managers of water bodies and our customers are not just boat owners. We are suppliers of port and nautical products and services. We have to accompany boaters for a facilitated practice as with the coaching for the maneuvers of port that we set up. There is also the digital aspect that we have started with our application or the digitalization of the administrative process. This will come for the registration and payment of waiting lists or handling.
What measures do you plan to take with nautical professionals in the ports?
I see the port as an ecosystem with various businesses and service providers. We need to partner. We don't do the same business, but we have the same client. For example, in high-pressure ports, we need to find ways to put boats ashore to make the best use of the infrastructure. We need to work together on training. In the rental business, we have to find locations, try to group them on the same site for better visibility as we did in Le Pouliguen.
What are the investments planned by Loire-Atlantique Nautisme?
Infrastructure investments are made by the Syndicat Mixte. LAN invests more in superstructures or dredging. In particular, we are going to work a lot on careening water to have the latest generation facilities. We are aiming for the Clean Port label for all our ports by the end of 2021. We are also experimenting with a device in Piriac on water consumption, with the company Ruban. It consists of a suitcase with an electric pump, a strainer and a hose. It allows to use sea water to clean the boat. Even though we are in Southern Brittany, we regularly have water restrictions!
