REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION 2024 Report from the European Commission on CO2 Emissions from Maritime Transport
Date: 2025-02-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Climate Action, European Commission
Subjects: EU environmental policy, application of EU law, energy consumption, energy efficiency, environmental monitoring, greenhouse gas, marine fuel, maritime transport, pollution from ships, reduction of gas emissions

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  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 12.2.2025  COM(2025) 39 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION 2024 Report from the European Commission on CO2 Emissions from Maritime Transport {SWD(2025) 38 final}  
 
 
2024 Report from the European Commission on CO2 Emissions from Maritime Transport 

1.  Introduction 

Maritime transport is fundamental to the EU economy and one of the most energy-efficient modes 
of transport. However, it remains a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. The EU has made 
substantial  progress  towards  its  climate  goals,  with  significant  emission  reductions  in  2023 
compared with 2022. This report highlights the importance of continuing to monitor the maritime 
sector’s impact on greenhouse gas emissions. 

This sixth annual report on carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from ships entering and leaving ports 
in the European Economic Area (EEA) presents data collected under the EU Regulation on the 
monitoring,  reporting  and  verification  of  greenhouse  gas  emissions  from  maritime  transport 
adopted  in  20151  (the  EU  Maritime  MRV  Regulation). The  report  is  based  on  data  collected 
between 2018 and 2023. It provides a comprehensive comparison of data and an analysis of trends 
in emissions and energy efficiency over the years. 

By examining the characteristics and energy efficiency of ships calling at EEA ports, this report 
also sheds light on the factors influencing CO2 emissions from maritime transport. 

2.  Policy development 

As  part  of  the  package  to  deliver  the  European  Green  Deal,  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council  adopted  a  series  of  measures  in  2023  to  ensure  that  the  maritime  transport  sector 
contributes  to  the  EU’s  climate  ambitions.  These  include  the  revision  of  the  EU  Emissions 
Trading System (ETS)2, which since 1 January 2024 has also covered CO2 emissions from large 
ships entering EU ports, regardless of the flag they fly, and the FuelEU Maritime Regulation3, 
which from 2025 will ensure that the greenhouse gas intensity of energy used on board ships is 
gradually reduced over time. 

Compliance with the new obligations stemming from the extension of the EU ETS to maritime 
transport is enforced through the monitoring, reporting and verification system established by the 
EU Maritime MRV Regulation, which was revised in May 20234. The updated monitoring and 
reporting rules, enabling the ETS to be implemented for shipping and incorporating methane and 
nitrous oxide emissions in the scope of MRV, came into effect on 1 January 2024. 

In  addition  to  legislative  measures,  the  EU  promotes  shipping  decarbonisation  by  providing 
support for research and innovation. Through the Innovation Fund, which is financed by the 

1  Regulation  (EU)  2015/757  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  of  29 April 2015  on  the  monitoring, 
reporting and verification of carbon dioxide emissions from maritime transport, and amending Directive 2009/16/EC, 
OJ L 123, 19.5.2015, p. 55, http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2015/757/oj. 
2 Through Directive (EU) 2023/959, OJ L 130, 16.5.2023, p. 134, http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2023/959/oj. 
3 Regulation (EU) 2023/1805, OJ L 234, 22.9.2023, p. 48, http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1805/oj. 
4 Regulation (EU) 2023/957,OJ L 130, 16.5.2023, p. 105, http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/957/oj. 

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EU ETS, the 2023 Call provided funding for six maritime projects and one marine fuel project 
with a total budget of more than EUR 200 million. 

Moreover,  the  first  EU-wide  hydrogen  auction  for  the  production  of  renewable  fuels  of  non-
biological  origin  (RFNBOs) based  on  hydrogen  allocated  funding  to  six  projects,  including  a 
world-leading  green  hydrogen  and  renewable  ammonia  project  to  produce  maritime  fuels. A 
second hydrogen auction was launched on 3 December 20245 and includes a dedicated budget of 
EUR 200 million for projects supplying their production to off-takers in the maritime sector. 

While the Innovation Fund focuses on higher technology readiness levels (TRL) and deployment, 
the EU has also invested in lower TRL projects in the maritime sector through Horizon Europe, in 
particular the Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport Partnership. Under this partnership, the EU 
will invest up to EUR 530 million until 2027, in five areas: use of sustainable alternative fuels, 
electrification, energy efficiency, design and retrofitting, digital and green ports. 

The Commission is also committed to supporting global action to encourage the decarbonisation 
of the sector, notably at the International Maritime Organization (IMO). In July 2023, a revised 
IMO strategy was adopted to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships, which set the 
goal  of net-zero  emissions from  ships by or  around,  i.e. close to,  2050.  Following  the strategy 
revision, the Commission continued throughout 2024 to support the development of a basket of 
mid-term GHG reduction measures to implement such targets, including both a technical element, 
in the form of a marine GHG fuel standard, and an economic element, in the form of a GHG pricing 
mechanism. 

3.  Maritime emissions decreased in 2023 to levels close to those of 2021 as economic and 

geopolitical uncertainties drove down maritime transport activity in Europe 

The monitored voyages for the 2023 reporting year emitted 126.7 million tonnes of CO2 into the 
atmosphere. These emissions were 7.9% lower than those reported in 2022 and nearly the same 
(-0.1  million  tonnes)  as  those  reported  for  2021,  a  year  marked  by  the  lingering  effects  of  the 
pandemic. Compared with the reporting years preceding the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e. 2018 and 
2019), which included emissions related to the United Kingdom, the emissions reported for 2023 
were around 13% lower6. 

The  emissions  reported  for  2023  were  generated  by  a  fleet  of  almost  12 300  ships,  the  second 
highest number recorded so far (5.4% lower than in 2022 but 2.9% higher than in 2021). 

In 2023,  the  vast  majority  of  ship  types  (12 out  of 15)  reported lower emissions  than in 2022, 
which  reflects  the  drop  in  activity  levels  experienced  by  most  subsectors  of  the  maritime 

5 https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/eu-funding-climate-action/innovation-fund/competitive-bidding_en. 
6 The granularity of the data reported under the EU Maritime MRV Regulation does not allow the MRV data to be 
recalibrated so as to exclude emissions resulting from the application of the Regulation to the United Kingdom for 
reporting years 2018, 2019 and 2020. 

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industry. This decline was largely driven by a decrease in the volume of goods handled in EU 
ports (-3.9% compared with 2022), mainly due to the restrictions on goods transport with Russia: 

-  The most significant absolute decrease in  CO2 emissions was reported in bulk carriers     
(-23% compared with 2022). This was the result of several factors, including a considerable 
decrease in the number of bulk carriers calling at EEA ports in 2023 (-12%), a reduction in 
the average distance travelled per ship (-8%), and slower speed (-4%). 

-  Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine continued to affect energy imports. While CO2 
emissions from liquified natural gas (LNG) carriers recorded a decrease (-11%) compared 
with 2022, they remained much higher than in previous years (+42% compared with 2021). 
CO2 emissions from oil tankers fell slightly (-2%) compared with 2022. 

-  CO2 emissions from passenger ships increased by 6% compared with 2022, reaching the 
highest  level  since 2018, confirming  the full rebound of the sector after the COVID-19 
years. 

-  Container ships recorded a  6%  decrease in  emissions  for the second  consecutive year, 
which reflects a general decline in container handling in the main EU ports (-3.8% in 2023 
compared with 2022), a decrease in the average distance reported by container ships (-3%) 
and a reduction in the average speed of active container ships (-5%). 

Container ships, oil tankers and bulk carriers remained the highest emitters in 2023. They 
were responsible for generating around 52% of all reported emissions in 2023. Container ships 
alone accounted for 28% of CO2 emissions. Overall, the breakdown of most ship types by reported 
emissions  remained  stable  in  2018-2023,  but  passenger  ships,  ro-pax  ships,  and  LNG  carriers 
continued to see an increase in their respective share of emissions. This trend has been evident 
since 2020, driven by energy market dynamics and the rebound of passenger traffic after COVID-
19. 

The breakdown in 2023 of the fleet’s total CO2 emissions by type of voyage and at berth remained 
largely unchanged compared with 2021, following the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from 
the EU. Voyages  starting or ending  outside the EEA  continued to  account  for the bulk  of CO2 
emissions (around two thirds). This was in line with the volume of inward and outward trade flows 
recorded by Eurostat, although the share of voyages decreased slightly in 2023 as a result of lower 
activity levels of the subsectors of the fleet most active on extra-EEA trade routes (bulk carriers 
and LNG carriers).  

In terms of fuel consumption, the monitored ships used 41 million tonnes of fuel in 2023. Fuel 
consumption in 2018-2023 remained dominated by conventional fossil marine fuels (heavy fuel 
oil, light fuel oil, gas oil, diesel oil), which accounted for 91% of the total mass of fuels reported 
in 2023. The fuel data reported in 2023 confirmed the trends observed in fuel consumption reported 
since 2021, namely a decrease in the share of light fuel oil (accounting for 15.6% of reported fuel 
in 2023) and a corresponding increase in the use of heavy fuel oil (reaching 55.3% in 2023).  

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2023 saw the highest recorded level of LNG consumption by the fleet (around 11% more than in 
2022,  accounting  for  more  than  8%  of  reported  fuel  in  2023).  This  is  due  to  LNG  being 
increasingly  used  by  ships  other  than  LNG  carriers,  with  container  ships,  ro-pax  ships  and 
passenger ships making up the lion’s share. The consumption of non-fossil bunker fuels remained 
negligible, as in previous years. 

4.  The monitored fleet: shipping routes, speed, technical and operational efficiency 

According to Eurostat data, the total volume of inward trade flows in 2023 decreased by 3.7%. 
Compared  with  2022,  the  inflow  from  the  United  States  (East  Coast),  Norway,  Brazil,  Egypt, 
Nigeria, Libya, and Algeria increased in 2023, while inflows from the United Kingdom, Russia, 
Türkiye and China decreased. The total 2023 volume of outward trade flows decreased by 1.7%. 
Outflows to the four main partners (United Kingdom, United States, Türkiye and China) remained 
largely consistent with 2022 levels, and as in previous years, the main route of outflows was still 
to the UK. 

MRV data for 2018-2023 shows no indication of a structural reduction in speed for the MRV 
fleet over this period. Ten out of 15 ship types recorded higher average speeds in 2023 than in 
2018,  with  some  experiencing  significant  increases,  such  as  combination  carriers  (+32%),  gas 
carriers  (+20%),  other  ships  (+19%),  oil  and  chemical  tankers  (+14%),  and  passenger  ships 
(+13%). Bulk carriers and container ships, which recorded the highest reduction in emissions in 
2023, were among the few ship types that continued to decrease their speed compared with 2022, 
achieving reductions of 4% and 5% respectively. 

A  graphical  analysis  of  key  technical  and  operational  efficiency  indicators  shows  that  no 
significant changes took place in 2018-2023. Container ships, ro-pax ships and oil tankers recorded 
the largest increases in the average size of active ships over this period. 

Over the reporting period, the completeness and accuracy of the reported data improved. This is 
confirmed by increasing data correlation values between key technical and operational efficiency 
indicators7 and the size of ships reporting under the EU Maritime MRV Regulation. 

5.  Implementation of the EU Maritime MRV Regulation in 2023 

In terms of implementation of the EU Maritime MRV Regulation, the results indicate a continued 
improvement in  the quality  and completeness  of  the submitted  data. However, more data were 
submitted late in 2023 than in 2022, which could be explained by the additional workload faced 

7 The Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) and the Estimated Index Value (EIV) are assessed for the technical 
efficiency of ships. The Energy Efficiency Operational Indicator (EEOI) and the Annual Efficiency Ratio (AER) are 
assessed for their operational efficiency. 

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by  shipping  companies  and  verifiers  as  a  result  of  the  extension  of  the  EU  ETS  to  maritime 
transport and the application of the new monitoring and reporting rules. 

6.  Overall impact of maritime transport on the global climate and the environment 

The fourth IMO greenhouse gas study8 showed that GHG emissions (including carbon dioxide, 
methane and nitrous oxide) from shipping increased by 9.6% between 2012 and 2018 (from 977 
million tonnes to 1 076 million tonnes). It also projected that, under a range of plausible long-term 
economic and energy scenarios, CO2 emissions are on track to rise from about 90% relative to 
2008  levels  in  2018  to  90-130%  relative  to  2008  levels  by  2050.  Recent  studies  on  trends  in 
international  shipping  for  the  period  2018-2022  have  found  that  in  2022,  emissions  did  not 
decrease but remained around 2008 levels. Data reported under the IMO data collection system 
for 2023 shows only a minor (-1%) reduction in fuel consumption by the world’s reporting fleet 
compared with 2022. 

The fourth greenhouse gas study also highlighted the importance of black carbon emissions, which 
were found to represent around 7% of international shipping’s GHG emissions. 

8 https://www.imo.org/en/OurWork/Environment/Pages/Fourth-IMO-Greenhouse-Gas-Study-2020.aspx. 

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