Use of renewable and low-carbon fuels in maritime transport, and amending Directive 2009/16/EC

In terms of volume, maritime transport is responsible for over 75% of the Union’s foreign commerce and 31% of its internal trade. 400 million people board or depart in Member State ports per year, with about 14 million doing so aboard cruise passenger ships. Therefore, maritime transportation is a crucial part of the Union’s transportation infrastructure and is vital to the Union’s economy.

Scope

1.This Regulation applies to all ships of above 5 000 gross tonnage that serve the purpose of transporting passengers or cargo for commercial purposes, regardless of their flag, in respect of:

(a) the energy used during their stay within a port of call under the jurisdiction of a Member State;

(b) the entirety of the energy used on voyages from a port of call under the jurisdiction of a Member State to a port of call under the jurisdiction of a Member State;

(c) notwithstanding point (b), one half of the energy used on voyages arriving at or departing from a port of call located in an outermost region under the jurisdiction of a Member State; and

(d) one half of the energy used on voyages arriving at or departing from a port of call under the jurisdiction of a Member State, where the previous or the next port of call is under the jurisdiction of a third country.

2.By 31 December 2025, the Commission shall adopt implementing acts establishing a list of neighboring container transshipment ports. The Commission shall update that list by 31 December every two years thereafter.

Subject matter and objective

This Regulation lays down uniform rules imposing:

(a) a limit on the greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity of energy used on board by a ship arriving at, staying within or departing from ports under the jurisdiction of a Member State; and

(b) an obligation to use on-shore power supply (OPS) or zero-emission technology in ports under the jurisdiction of a Member State.

Its objective in doing so is to increase consistent use of renewable and low-carbon fuels and substitute sources of energy in maritime transport across the Union, in line with the objective of reaching Union-wide climate neutrality at the latest by 2050, while ensuring the smooth operation of maritime transport, creating regulatory certainty for the uptake of renewable and low-carbon fuels and sustainable technologies and avoiding distortions in the internal market.

Source: European Union