SPONSORED EDITORIAL
Niterói, May 29, 2026 - After two editions dedicated to introducing the blue economy concept to the Brazilian market, Tomorrow.Blue Economy Niterói reaches its third edition with a different proposal: to become the space where the sector's agenda is built and executed. The event will take place on November 25 and 26 at the new Arena Niterói, organized by iCities Events in partnership with Niterói City Hall and endorsed by Fira Barcelona.
"In the first two editions, our fundamental role was literacy and audience diversification. We needed to bring the blue economy concept and prove that Niterói was the ideal setting for it. The third edition marks a turning point in the debate, because now we stop being a discussion space and become the place where the sector's agenda is built and executed. And this execution only happens because we will finally achieve our central objective, which is to bring the naval chain, transition capital, and regulation into the same room—sectors that historically operate in isolation," explains Caio de Castro, CEO of iCities.
The debates of this edition will connect regulation, incentives, and operations by addressing the decarbonization of the cabotage fleet, the financing of new vessels, and the impact of new legal frameworks for offshore wind on contract engineering. Through effective governance and smart tools, the panels will explore how regulatory coordination and Marine Spatial Planning are able to mitigate risks, attract green investments, and foster cross-sector partnerships to transform coastal potential into perfectly sustainable economic assets.
Launch event
As a starting point for the year's end, Niterói City Hall, Fira Barcelona, and iCities Events hold the official event launch on June 11, with the presence of Mayor Rodrigo Neves and Executive Secretary of Niterói City Hall, Felipe Peixoto.
The meeting will be aimed at companies, regulators, and authorities, serving as a preview of the discussions to be addressed in November. The program will feature a panel dedicated exclusively to debating market regulation of the blue economy in Brazil.
A US$ 3 trillion sector still little explored
With about 65% of states bordering the ocean and one of the world's longest coastlines, Brazil has in the sea one of its greatest economic reserves. Little known to most of the population, the blue economy, which encompasses everything from fishing and coastal tourism to renewable energy and port logistics and infrastructure, is expected to move US$ 3 trillion globally by 2030, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). In the country, this set of activities generated R$ 415.7 billion in 2018, equivalent to 5.93% of national GDP.
The problem is that almost half of this value comes from oil and gas extraction, while shipbuilding, the segment with the greatest capacity to generate jobs, represents only 2.13% of the total. Starting from this scenario, the event seeks to bring new opportunities for sector development to reverse this reality.
Niterói as capital of the blue economy
The choice of the city for the third consecutive year is strategic. Niterói housed one of the country's first shipyards, but this legacy was lost in the late 1970s, when the naval sector was almost entirely shut down. Tomorrow.Blue Economy integrates the city government's movement to resume this historical relationship, anchored in the long-term planning of Niterói Que Queremos (NQQ), a strategic plan created to define goals and projects that guide public policies and investments.
"Niterói brings together strategic assets that place the city at the center of the debate on the blue economy: a privileged location in Guanabara Bay, tradition and installed capacity in the naval and offshore industry, proximity to the oil, gas, and energy sector, as well as a consolidated innovation ecosystem with universities and technology. Tomorrow.Blue Economy consolidates Niterói as a national reference in the connection between development, sustainability, innovation, and energy transition, strengthening the city's positioning as capital of the marine economy in Latin America," says Felipe Peixoto, Executive Secretary of Niterói City Hall.
New venue
The third edition will have a new venue: Arena Niterói, with inauguration scheduled for June 15. Considered the first of this scale to occupy the space, the event will feature three distinct areas. The Tomorrow.Blue Economy Arena will be the main plenary, with exclusive meetings and a VIP networking area. The Smartclass rooms will bring together technical and academic content, with workshops on the naval and offshore industry. The cultural and gastronomic area, open to the public, will feature workshops and brand activations.
In the two previous editions, the meeting brought together more than 7,000 people, including public managers, executives, researchers, and the Niterói community. For 2026, the expected audience is 3,000 people per day.
Details: 3rd Tomorrow.Blue Economy Niterói edition
Date: November 25 and 26, 2026
Venue: Arena Niterói - Niterói (RJ)
```htmlTickets: Sales starting June 11
More information: www.tomorrowblueeconomy.com.br
ABOUT ICITIES GROUP
iCities Group is a Brazilian holding company dedicated to driving the transformation of cities through innovation, technology, and collaboration between public, private, and academic sectors. With more than a decade of operations and headquarters in Curitiba (PR), the group is a national reference in the smart cities ecosystem and works strategically to connect urban challenges to concrete and sustainable solutions.
With a brand architecture spanning different operating fronts, iCities organizes events, promotes training programs, develops projects, and strengthens collaboration networks throughout the country. Under the endorsement of Fira Barcelona, it is responsible for hosting notable events such as Smart City Expo Curitiba, the IoT Solutions Congress Brasil, and Tomorrow.Blue Economy, the latter being one of its main business verticals.
iCities Group acts as a catalyst for innovative solutions to contemporary urban challenges, by uniting purpose, knowledge, business, and impact to build smarter, more sustainable, and people-centered cities.
Press information:
Natalia Costa Nogueira - 41 99715-5938 - natalia.nogueira@icities.com.br
Source: content automatically reproduced via official feed from Ports and Ships News. Editorial credits and copyrights belong to the original source.
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