Navigating the EU ETS and Fuel EU Maritime Regulations: What You Need to Know for 2025

In 2025, significant legislative changes will impact shipping companies calling at European Union ports (in EU/EEA countries). The implementation of the FuelEU Maritime Regulation and the continued phase-in of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) will increase regulatory requirements for shipping companies. This update aims to explain these changes.

European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS)

EU ETS cost to comply with regulation will rise due to two key factors:

Firstly, shipping companies will need to surrender allowances for 70% of their emissions reported in 2025, up from 40% in 2024. This increase is part of the EU ETS legislation phase-in.

Secondly, the price of European allowances is expected to increase due to supply cuts.

Fuel EU Maritime Regulation

Fuel EU Maritime will enter into force from 1 January 2025. It is part of the EU's ‘Fit for 55’ package, which aims to reduce EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The regulation sets limits on the yearly average GHG intensity of the energy used by ships over 5,000 gross tonnage that call at European ports. The targets cover not only CO2 but also methane and nitrous oxide emissions over the full lifecycle of the fuels used onboard. These limits will gradually decrease over time, starting with a 2% reduction by 2025 and reaching up to an 80% reduction by 2050.

In practice, this regulation incentivizes the use of renewable, lower emissions fuels and alternative “clean” energy technologies on ships to meet the GHG intensity targets to decarbonize the maritime sector. As the limits for the yearly average GHG intensity of the energy used by ships decrease, the cost of compliance will increase gradually. Additionally, the regulation requires ships at berth to use on-shore power supply (OPS) or other “zero-emission” technologies to reduce air pollution in ports. This requirement applies from 2030 for TEN-T ports and from 2035 for other ports.

For more details on the Fuel EU Maritime Regulation, please click here.

What this means for customers?

We have decided to simplify the process for our customers by recovering the additional cost to comply with Fuel EU through assessment of the “emission surcharge” (EMS/ESS) which also includes the EU ETS cost of compliance.

The cost of complying with regulatory requirements is expected to rise significantly with the phased implementation of EU ETS, Fuel EU, and other potential regulations from various jurisdictions in the coming years. By choosing Maersk ECO Delivery Ocean product, customers can mitigate these costs while benefiting from emissions savings. It utilises lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fuels* to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80% compared to fossil reference fuels, thereby lowering your value chain GHG footprint. Click here to know more.

What is the estimated emissions surcharge levels for 2025?

We expect the emission surcharge in 2025 to be nearly double that of 2024. The actual surcharge for Q1 2025 will be published in December 2024, about 30 days before it takes effect.