EU maritime emissions continue to rise: EMSA

: Biofuels, Emissions, Freight
25/02/04

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the EU's maritime sector have continued to rise since 2015, the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) found in its 2025 environmental report, although "promising progress" has been made in some areas.

Maritime activity was responsible for 26pc of methane emissions and 39pc of NOx emissions in the EU transport sector in 2022, as well as for 14.2pc of CO2 emissions from the sector, the report said.

Methane emissions from maritime "at least doubled" from 2018-23, the report found, pushed up by growth in the LNG fleet. NOx emissions rose by 10pc from 2015-23, while CO2 emissions totalled 137mn t in 2022, having risen by 8.5pc from a year earlier.

But sulphur oxide (SOx) emissions fell by approximately 70pc in 2023 compared with 2014 levels, EMSA said. This was driven mainly by the implementation of Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) in the Baltic and North seas, while the tightening of maximum sulphur levels in marine fuel in 2020 further contributed to the fall in SOx emissions.

EMSA expects SOx emissions to drop further once a SECA is established in the Mediterranean Sea. And the northeast Atlantic countries may set up an emission control area by 2027.

Biofuels are an "immediate, attractive and cost-effective solution" to cutting GHG emissions in the maritime sector, EMSA said. And synthetic and other drop-in fuels, which can be blended with fossil fuels, could help the shipping sector transition to lower emissions. But their costs could prove an obstacle because they are still "significantly higher" than for marine fossil fuels, the report said.

Further electrification of ships could assist in decarbonising short-range waterborne transport, the report said.

And the establishment of green shipping corridors — zero-emission maritime routes — could further encourage investment in sustainable fuels and supply chains, EMSA added.

The EU emissions trading system-financed Innovation Fund has already supported more than 300 shipping projects, the report said, with funding to be deployed out to 2030.

By Navneet Vyasan

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