The new EU law to decarbonise the maritime sector has cleared its final adoption stage, putting an end to two years of intense negotiations. 

The main objective of the initiative is to increase the demand for and consistent use of renewable and low-carbon fuels, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the shipping sector. Under the new agreement, shipping will be covered by the EU’s emissions trading system (ETS) from 2024 and FuelEU Maritime from 2025.

As part of this effort, the new regulation includes measures to ensure the greenhouse gas intensity of fuels used by the shipping sector decreases by 2 per cent in 2025 and by as much as 80 per cent by 2050. Additionally, there will be rules for the infrastructure of alternative fuels, including requirements for using shore power in selected larger ports.

“The new law will provide legal certainty for ship operators and fuel producers, and help kick-start the large-scale production of sustainable maritime...