Company: CMRE-PC
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001140361-25-005199
Chunk: 113

Company: Costamare Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-02-20
Form: 20-F
Item: Item 4
Chunk 113
---
 to vessels and adopted regulations limiting the number of organisms in ballast water discharges. Other states could adopt similar requirements that could increase the costs of operation in state waters.
 
The EPA has adopted standards under the Clean Air Act (“CAA”) that pertain to emissions from vessel vapor control and recovery and other operations in regulated port areas and emissions from the large marine diesel engines from model year 2004 or later. Several states also regulate emissions from vapor control and recovery under authority of State Implementation Plans adopted under the CAA. In April 2010, the EPA promulgated regulations that impose more stringent standards for emissions of particulate matter, sulphur oxides and nitrogen oxides from new Category 3 marine diesel engines on vessels constructed on or after January 1, 2016 and registered or flagged in the U.S. and implement the new MARPOL Annex VI requirements for U.S. and foreign flagged ships entering U.S. ports or operating in U.S. internal waters. California has adopted emission limits for diesel engines of ocean-going vessels operating within 24 miles of the California coast and requires operators to use low sulphur content fuel. California has also mandated that ships, instead of relying on their shipboard power, must use shore power while berthed through a process known as Cold Ironing or Alternative Maritime Power or use other CAECS (CARB Approved Emission Control Strategies) such as emission capture systems. The regulation was phased in starting in 2014 and the compliance start date for containerships, refrigerated cargo vessels and passenger vessel began on January 1, 2023. Our vessels currently affected by California regulations have made the necessary modifications. If this regulation is extended to dry bulk vessels, we will have to make necessary modifications to our vessels. It is expected that the cost of modifications needed for other vessels in our fleet that may call to California in the future will be borne in part by the charterers of each vessel, but it is difficult to predict the exact impact on our operations.
 
If new or more stringent regulations relating to emissions from marine diesel engines or port operations by ocean-going vessels are adopted by the EPA or states, these requirements could require significant capital expenditures or otherwise increase the costs of our operations.
 
European Union Requirements
 
The European Union has adopted legislation that (1) requires member states to refuse access to their ports to certain substandard vessels, according to vessel type, flag and number of previous detentions; (2) obliges member states to inspect at least 25% of foreign vessels using