EU countries on Thursday reached a preliminary agreement that would see them reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the maritime sector by augmenting the use of renewable fuels on ships.
The deal is part of efforts by the Commission to ensure the maritime transport is on track to meeting the EU’s climate goals in 2030 and 2050 by increasing reduction targets for emissions from energy used on ships and introducing measures to encourage the use of so-called renewable fuels of non-biological origin.
The regulation will ensure that the greenhouse gas intensity of fuels used by the shipping sector will gradually decrease over time, by 2% in 2025 to as much as 80% by 2050.
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“The agreement will make sure that fuel suppliers, ships and maritime operators will have sufficient time to adapt for the new conditions so the maritime sector will deliver on the climate targets,” Swedish Infrastructure Minister Andreas Carlson said in a statement.
The deal complements the provisional agreement reached on 18 December 2022 to include shipping emissions in the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), both key initiatives in the EU’s efforts to reduce maritime emissions.
The agreement between representatives of EU member states and the EU parliament will now have to be formally adopted by EU ministers.
Story was adapted from Reuters.
