The European Parliament voted this week in favour of the FuelEU Maritime proposal, which aims to boost demand for low-emission fuels and push forward decarbonisation efforts in the maritime sector. FuelEU Maritime will play an important role in determining whether a specific fuel can or cannot be described as green for the use of ships. As part of the European Union’s package of legislation that tackles climate change across multiple sectors, this initiative introduces limits on the carbon intensity of the energy used on board ships. The proposal stipulates that ships – starting 2025 – need to gradually reduce their fuel’s average GHG intensity on annual basis. They are required to start with a 2% reduction (compared to a 2020 baseline) and then increase the cut to 6% in 2030 until they reach 75% by 2050. This applies to 100% of fuel used in or between EU ports. As for ships arriving at or departing from EU ports on voyages to third countries, this would apply to 50 % of the energy they use. All EU member states will need to adopt the new rules for a truly effective change to happen. The European Community Shipowners’ Association (ECSA) believes more steps need to be taken to facilitate this transition in the sector. ECSA Secretary General Sotiris Raptis told Shipping Watch, “ensuring access to affordable clean fuels is a major challenge for the decarbonisation of shipping. Clean fuels currently sit on the most expensive side of the spectrum and therefore action is needed to bridge the price gap in order to meet the targets of the FuelEU.” While this is considerable progress in the sustainability of ocean freight, some believe it is not ambitious enough. Transport & Environment’s (T&E), one of Europe’s leading clean transport campaign groups, welcomed the vote in a press release but added that more is still needed to achieve zero emissions. “This is the beginning of the end for fossil fuels in Europe's shipping industry. The green shipping fuel mandate will kick-start the production of hydrogen-based fuels by providing investment security for fuel producers. But 2% will not be enough if we are to stick to 1.5 degrees. The EU must build on this and go bolder. There is a clear will to clean up the shipping industry. This is just the start,” said Delphine Gozillon, sustainable shipping officer at T&E. In addition to the fuel requirements for ships, the legislation specifies the details for monitoring, compliance, certification and verification. FuelEU Maritime is part of the EU’s 'Fit for 55' package of climate change measures aimed at ensuring that the EU achieves the targets set in the European Green Deal, the Climate Law and the Paris Agreement, including the goal of keeping the global temperature increase to well below 2°C and pursuing efforts to keep it to 1.5°C. Sources: Shipping Watch, European Parliament, T&E, Lloyd’s List