EU ETS Compliance for Shipping
The EU Emissions Trading System now covers maritime transport. SEACOTEC helps shipowners and operators stay fully compliant — from monitoring plans to EUA surrender.
What does EU ETS mean for Shipping?
Since January 2024, the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) applies to maritime transport. Ships of 5,000 GT and above calling at EU/EEA ports must monitor, report and surrender EU Allowances (EUAs) for their CO₂ — and from 2026 also CH₄ and N₂O — emissions.
Who is affected?
Shipping companies operating vessels ≥5,000 GT on voyages to, from or between EU/EEA ports.
Phase-in schedule
From 2026 onwards: 100% emissions count.
Which emissions?
CO₂, CH₄ & N₂O.
EUA surrender
Allowances must be surrendered annually by 30 September of the following year based on verified emissions.
Non-compliance penalties
Failure to surrender sufficient EUAs results in fines of €100 per excess tonne of CO₂eq, plus potential port bans.
Your ships are between 400 GT and 5000 GT?
We are also helping smaller vessels with EU MRV compliance
How SEACOTEC Supports Your EU ETS Compliance
We provide end-to-end EU ETS compliance management — from setting up your monitoring plan, through annual reporting to handling EUA procurement.
Monitoring Plan
Drafting and coordination of verifier's approval of EU MRV / EU ETS Monitoring Plans.
Data Collection
All relevant fuel and voyage data reported by your vessels using SEACOLLECT.
Data validation
Our engineers validating reported data and informing the crew of possible reporting errors, assuring the best data quality possible.
Fleet Dashboard
Real-time fleet-wide EU ETS compliance monitoring across all vessels via SEACOSCORE.
Financial Analysis
Voyage-level ETS cost calculations and financial impact analysis via SEACOSCORE.
ETS Statements
EU ETS statements generation via SEACOSCORE to facilitate contractual agreements between parties.
Annual Reporting
Emissions report preparation, THETIS-MRV submission and verifier coordination.
EUA Surrender
EU Allowances (EUAs) calculation, procurement support and assistance with timely surrender by the September deadline.
Our Digital Tools for EU ETS
SEACOSTAR — our integrated compliance platform — gives you real-time visibility into your EU ETS obligations across your entire fleet.
SEACOLLECT
SEACOSCORE
SEACODOCKEU ETS — Frequently Asked Questions
EU ETS applies to all vessels of 5,000 GT and above operating on voyages to, from or between EU/EEA ports. This includes cargo ships, passenger ships, offshore vessels and other ship types regardless of flag.
Shipping was included in EU ETS from 1 January 2024. A phase-in period applies: 40% of emissions in 2024, 70% in 2025, and 100% from 2026 onwards.
The shipping company — defined as the shipowner or the ISM manager (Document of Compliance holder) — is responsible for opening a Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) and surrendering EU Allowances (EUAs) by 30 September each year.
Missing the 30 September surrender deadline results in a penalty of €100 per tonne of CO₂ equivalent, plus the obligation to still surrender the missing allowances. Repeated non-compliance can lead to vessel expulsion from EU ports.
It depends on the voyage type: 100% of emissions for voyages within the EEA (port-to-port), and 50% of emissions for voyages departing from or arriving at an EEA port from/to a non-EEA port.
SEACOTEC provides end-to-end EU ETS support: setting up your Monitoring Plan, verifying MRV data, managing your MOHA account and providing real-time fleet dashboards via the SEACOSTAR platform.
Ready to simplify your EU ETS compliance?
Our experts are ready to walk you through every step — from monitoring plan creation, through reporting setup to EUA surrender.