FUELEU MARITIME IS HERE – ARE YOU PREPARED?
The introduction of FuelEU Maritime (FEUM) on January 1st 2025 represents one of the most comprehensive pieces of EU regulation designed to directly mitigate the carbon intensity of maritime operations.
Complete with significant penalties for non- compliance, FEUM has the ability to make a tangible impact on the maritime industry’s carbon emissions, whilst incentivising and accelerating the development of low-carbon alternative fuels.
Studies into the likely impact of FEUM compliance cost show a significant burden across various maritime sectors, with owners and operators being charged for failing to meet 2% baseline savings. The EU has acknowledged that compliance will be easier for more modern vessels than older ships where emissions are more complex to abate.
A NEW REGULATION All commercial ships over 5,000 Gross Tonnes (GT) that enter EU (and EEA) port areas are due to record their emission figures for every voyage to, from or within the said ports. By the end of January 2026, the ship managers of all vessels must submit a FEUM Report for each ship to a so- called “verifier”, who then has until the end of Q1 to assess and file the data in the FEUM database.
For 2025 to 2029, the vessel target emission was set at 2% below the average 2020 emission of 91.2 grammes of CO2 equivalent per MegaJoule (gCO2
lowered further to reach 18.2gCO2 onwards, or 80% below the 2020 levels.
The penalty hike every five years would bring the additional costs to over EUR 150,000 (Graph A) for a similar voyage on MDO by 2040.
For trips to/from outside the EU, the fee would be halved, although the distance covered on a non- compliant fuel can be substantially longer. For a similar ship to perform a voyage from Buenos Aires to Rotterdam on MDO would result in a EUR 9,200 penalty under FEUM this year, and just under EUR 180,000 by 2040.
FEUM clauses are still being debated and fine-tuned, but ultimately the owner/operator of the ship will pass down the penalties linked to trading in European waters to the charterer, or they will go sail their ships somewhere else, which would eventually reduce the supply of carrying capacity in Europe and increase freight rates.
eq/MJ). Every five years, that target figure is eq/MJ from 2050
SUBSTANTIAL PENALTIES On the basis of an MDO-fuelled 14-days/round- voyage intra-Europe a Handysize vessel could face a EUR 7,800 fee during the next five years. With Handysize spot rates around the USD 10,000/ day mark now, this represents a 5% mark-up.
50,000 100,000 150,000 200,000 250,000 300,000
- 2025-29 B20 Biofuel 2030-34 MDO / MGO 2035-39 Grey Methanol 2040-44 Grey Ammonia
Graph A: Potential penalties using specific fuels (on a Piraeus-Valencia 14-days/round-voyage with 6 days at port, for a 7-years old Imabari 38,000 DWT bulk carrier at 14 knots) in EUR.
Source: Bureau Veritas 30 | ADMISI - The Ghost In The Machine | Q1 Edition 2025
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