Shipping carbon emissions will be included in the EU carbon market

European lawmakers agreed on Tuesday to include international carbon emissions from the maritime industry into the EU carbon market with the goal of being an industry that has not yet paid for its pollution.


They also called on shipping companies to set binding targets. By 2030, the average annual CO2 emissions of all ships in operation will be at least 40% lower than the 2018 level, which is a step further than the European Commission’s original recommendations.

Pollution caused by ships sailing in international waters often fails to meet national emissions reduction targets, but the European Commission says the industry must contribute to its trillion-euro efforts to achieve a “climate-neutral” economy by 2050 .

Shipping companies have not yet been incorporated into the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), which requires factories, power plants and airlines to pay for their pollution. The EU Executive Committee plans to add shipping companies to ETS in 2021 to align the industry with EU efforts to reduce greenhouse gases.

Although the United Nations shipping agency has taken action to reduce the sulfur emissions from ships, it is still many years before a comprehensive plan to solve the carbon dioxide problem is reached.

The European Parliament's Environmental Committee also called for the establishment of an "Ocean Fund" from 2023 to 2030. The source of funds is the revenue from auction subsidies under ETS to improve the energy efficiency of ships.

The Swedish congresswoman Jytte Guteland, who led the talks on the issue, said: "By 2050, global ocean emissions are expected to increase by 50% to 250%, which is inconsistent with long-term climate neutral goals."

The plenary of the Legislative Council will vote in September to approve these rules. Once the parliament agrees to its position, the European Commission and the European Council governments will begin negotiations on the final terms of funding.

According to EU data, last year, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) surpassed Ryanair in the top 10 rankings of Europe's largest carbon dioxide emitters in 2019, and this ranking is still dominated by large coal-fired power plants.