ETS Maritime: Why A Cargo-Based Measure Will Efficiently Allow Member States To Better Protect Ports From Carbon Leakage While Incentivising Shipping To Decarbonise

ETS Maritime was put on the table for the first time more than five years ago, in the summer of 2021, and it included a proposal to extend emissions trading to international voyages. Already back then, port stakeholders warned about the risk of evasion as a consequence of the extra-territorial application of the European Union’s carbon pricing mechanism. These concerns were only partially addressed, and the final text that entered into force in May 2023 introduced criteria for a “list of neighbouring container transhipment ports” that were to be excluded from the Directive’s definition of “port of call”.

The world has changed since 2021 and, while the strategic role of ports was already recognised in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the realisation that our sector makes a key contribution to the achievement of several critical policy goals has accelerated over the past years. For example, conflicts near our borders, including their impact on energy supply, underscore the sector’s contribution to military mobility and ports’ function as energy hubs.

FEPORT is grateful that this recognition is reflected in the EU Commission’s proposal and in several amendments proposed by Members of the European Parliament, which stress that maintaining strong transhipment hubs in Europe is not only crucial for maintaining port competitiveness but also an essential prerequisite for wider industrial competitiveness and control over international maritime logistics chains.

This story was originally published by Hellenic Shipping News. Read the full story at Hellenic Shipping News →