The awards, launched as part of the Malta Maritime Summit by John Gauci-Maistre, aim to celebrate the maritime sector’s achievements, inspire young people to pursue maritime careers, and highlight the industry’s importance to Malta’s economy.

The awards aim to recognise individuals and companies that have contributed to strengthening Malta’s reputation as a leading maritime centre.

Categories:

• Newsmaker of the Year
• Contribution to Maritime Law
• Contribution to Maltese Merchant Shipping
• Contribution to the Yachting Industry
• Seafarer of the Year
• Next generation shipping award
• Contribution to the Protection of the Marine Environment
• Nautical & Cruise Tourism
• Sustainable Maritime, Logistics & Resource Operations
• Other – (If you do not see a suitable classification listed above, please select ‘Other’ and provide the name of your nominated person or entity. You
  may then use the adjacent text field to specify and describe the new classification category. This new category will remain provisional pending review and formal committee approval.)

Launch date: 24/07/2026
Closing date: 31/08/2026

The Malta Maritime Awards are intended to honour achievement in the Maltese shipping community. For most of the Awards, ‘Maltese’ is defined as based in Malta or else of Maltese ‘ethnicity’ if based outside Malta.
In the case of service Awards, non-Maltese companies are also eligible but must be demonstrably active in the Maltese shipping marketplace. The judges’ decision on eligibility will be final.

Members of the judging panel personally and any companies in which they participate as principals or managers are not eligible for Awards adjudicated by the panel in 2026.

Past winners of the Maltese Shipping Awards may again be nominated in 2026 and are eligible to win the same Award again or any other category.

The sole exception is the Lifetime Achievement Award, which may not be won twice by the same individual or entity. Individuals and companies can also enter themselves. The organisers encourage this.

Nominations will be accepted at any time up until the published closing date of 31st August 2026.

Nominations in writing may be made by any person involved in any maritime sector, with a limit of one nomination per category per person.

Nominations MUST include:

1. Proposed name,
2. Proposed company,
3. Contact address and telephone number
4. And/or fax number
5. And/or e-mail.

If not typed, all contact information must be CLEARLY PRINTED.

All nominations MUST be:

1. Written in the English language,
2. Clearly legible,
3. Clearly state the category of Award and nominated company or individual (as appropriate) in as many or as few categories as you wish, and
4. Include clear and precise reasons why your candidate would be a worthy winner of the particular Award, in no more than 500 words for each nominee/category.

An independent judging panel representing a broad cross-section of the Maltese shipping community and impartial experts in the industry will assess nominations and decide the recipients of all Awards.

The Judging Panel is free to adopt its own criteria, and its decisions are final.

Suggested criteria may include, but are not limited to: business success, quality, growth, exemplary initiative, financial results, share price, investment, integrity, service, safety, environmental record, commercial acumen, technical or operational performance, employment, innovation, good corporate citizenship, or any other criteria the panel individually or collectively wishes to take into consideration, depending on the Award category.

The judges’ deliberations and selections, to be decided democratically, are at their own discretion, and the panel’s decisions are final.