This Petition for Review of the Commission’s Environmental Assessment (EA) and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) regarding Docket No. 2022-0066 is being submitted on behalf of the World Shipping Council (WSC) and the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association (PMSA).

Brussels, 9 December 2022 – In an open letter to decision-makers in Brussels, the World Shipping Council (WSC) together with Danish Shipping and the Methanol Institute urge decision-makers to reach an agreement on the FuelEU Maritime which will help reduce shipping GHG emissions.

The liner sector, including container and vehicle carriers, are leading decarbonisation investment in new fleets that are ready for alternative fuels that reduce GHGs. Future-ready fleets will be demanding more and more green fuels with lower GHG intensity to ensure that we meet decarbonisation targets.

An open letter to the EU Parliament, Commission and Council from Danish Shipping, Methanol Institute, and the World Shipping Council in connection with the FuelEU trilogue negotiations.

Green fuels are essential for the maritime sector to deliver on the EU Green Deal and the Paris Agreement. The technologies for making the green fuels exist, but production capacities must be scaled up to make the fuels available for shipping. FuelEU Maritime can provide the certainty needed to ensure investments in scaling up green fuels, but the ambitions need to be strengthened to send a clear market signal. Danish Shipping, Methanol Institute, and World Shipping Council therefore call for increasing the ambition in the FuelEU, maximising GHG-intensity reduction from 2035 to 2050 and supporting early use of green e-fuels.

Late 29 November 2022, the European Parliament, Council and Commission reached a preliminary agreement on maritime elements of the EU ETS. Including the maritime sector in the EU ETS will encourage shipping’s journey towards decarbonisation as well as accelerate emission reductions among non-maritime sectors. The provisional agreement on shipping is subject to an overall agreement on the ETS revision, later this year or next.

The total climate footprint from production to combustion should be considered in the EU ETS for maritime. The World Shipping Council joins with Danish Shipping and renewable energy producers, shipowners and other organisations in an open letter to EU’s decision makers.

Green fuels are essential for the maritime sector to deliver on the Paris Agreement and the EU Green Deal. The technology for producing and using the new green fuels exists, but their production and distribution needs to be considerably upscaled. To get the necessary investments started today, politicians need to provide certainty on the requirements for the fuels of tomorrow by agreeing on a life-cycle approach in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS). An open letter from Danish Shipping, Methanol Institute, Renewable Hydrogen Coalition, Royal Association of Netherlands Shipowners, Swedish Shipowners’ Association, and the World Shipping Council.

To serve as many ports and customers as possible, as efficiently as possible, international ocean carriers often share space on vessels. Vessel sharing benefiting the EU is regulated through the Consortia Block Exemption Regulation (CBER), which expires in April 2024 and is now under review by the European Commission’s DG COMP. The World Shipping Council (WSC), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), and the Asian Shipowners’ Association (ASA) have submitted their input to the European Commission, calling for a renewal of the CBER and demonstrating how vessel sharing contributes to the EU policy goals of reducing transport emissions, increasing competitiveness and improving efficiency to reduce costs.

Taking the Customs Union to the next level as pledged by President Von der Leyen, should equip the EU to better withstand present and future challenges, while protecting its citizens and harnessing the economic opportunities of the 21st century. To do so Europe will continue to rely on its external trade and maritime commerce. The future Customs Union needs to be better configured for that trade to flourish securely. The completion of a genuine Customs Union characterised by the seamless application of its rules across all EU Member States, the operation by default of common EU IT systems and innovative processes remains a key priority.

Having concluded on short-term climate measures at IMO MEPC 78, member nations and organisations have turned their full attention to developing the mid-term measures necessary to progress the decarbonisation of shipping. In a recent paper to IMO ISWG-GHG 13 and MEPC 79, the World Shipping Council (WSC) examines the current proposals, highlighting three key suggestions to support swift progress and ensure that regulations are effective in driving the transition to alternative fuels and propulsion technologies in line with global climate goals.

The World Shipping Council (WSC) is excited to welcome Pacific International Lines (PIL) as a new member, to join in its work for a safe, secure and sustainable industry.

The World Shipping Council (WSC) is excited to welcome three new team members to further its work for the future growth of a safe, secure and sustainable shipping industry.

WSC and member liner carriers are highly concerned about Parliament’s delay in finalizing its position on FuelEU Maritime. Liner carriers are committed to decarbonizing the industry as soon as possible and are already investing in alternative fuel technology. Fuel EU Maritime is crucial for EU policymakers to reach their climate goals, and for the progress of shipping decarbonization.

Early June 2022, representatives of shipping companies and Customs authorities from across the globe came together to discuss ways to step up the fight against drug trafficking. The Conference was organized by the World Shipping Council (WSC) and the Container Control Programme (CCP), which is a joint initiative between the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and the World Customs Organization.

The WSC acknowledges the important milestone that has been reached following the adoption of the European Parliament’s position on the EU ETS proposal. WSC calls on the EU institutions to work together in the trilogue process to ensure that EU ETS provides the correct market signals for decarbonising the shipping industry in support of the EU Green Deal GHG goals.

In 2021, international liner carriers’ onshore staff and crews managed 6300 ships, successfully delivering vital supplies worth $7 trillion to the people of the world, in approximately 241 million containers. The World Shipping Council (WSC) Containers Lost at Sea Report covering 2020-2021 shows that containers lost overboard represent less than one thousandth of 1% (0.001%). However, the past two years have seen a worrying break in the downward trend for losses, with the average number of containers lost at sea per year since the start of the survey increasing by 18% to 1,629.

WSC members in the liner industry are among the first movers leading the decarbonisation transition globally and within the European region. We need good policy in the Fit-for-55 package and especially an effective inclusion of shipping within the EU ETS framework that delivers the right GHG price signals to the parties that can change and shift the sector to the green vessel technology needed for deep decarbonisation.

Today the President signed the Ocean Shipping Reform Act into law. The Federal Maritime Commission now has the important task of implementing the law so that it fulfils its core objective to support “an ocean transportation system that is competitive, efficient, and economical.”

Today’s vote on The Ocean Shipping Reform Act (OSRA) marks the conclusion of the legislative phase and transition to the Federal Maritime Commission rulemaking process. We appreciate the time and effort that Congress has put into crafting this bill and look forward to engaging in productive conversations with the Federal Maritime Commission to implement OSRA in a way that will minimize disruption in the supply chain.

As the IMO MEPC78 draws to a close, we have seen good progress on several important topics, including on the next phase of the IMO greenhouse gas (GHG) strategy. WSC urges member states to maintain the momentum and step up the crucial work on developing the pathways to decarbonising shipping.

The European Parliament’s ENVI Committee today adopted its report on the proposal on the revision of the EU ETS. The World Shipping Council (WSC) welcomes this crucial step towards the achievement of the goals of the EU Green Deal but stresses that improvements to the ETS proposal are still needed.