Today, we’re setting sail into the uncharted waters of fuel consumption and emissions regulations—wait, don’t jump overboard just yet! We've got the perfect guide for this voyage: Emil Pamer, Head of Development at The Ship AS. He’s here to talk about FuelEU, and the latest feature in The Ship’s platform FuelEU Maritime, that promises to turn the tedious task of monitoring fuel consumption and emissions into something... dare we say, almost enjoyable?
Before we dive in, let me introduce The Ship AS (www.theship.io), where we’re all about simplifying and optimizing the complex world of maritime operations. Our innovative platform streamlines everything from vessel management to compliance, giving crews and operators the tools they need to navigate smoothly in an increasingly regulated industry. Whether it's cutting down administrative tasks or offering real-time insights, we’re helping the maritime industry chart a course toward a more efficient and sustainable future.
And speaking of sustainability, that’s exactly where FuelEU comes in. If the words “fuel tracking” make you break out in a cold sweat, relax—Emil and his team have built a solution that takes the heavy lifting (and the heavy paperwork) off your plate. Think of FuelEU Maritime as the autopilot for keeping your vessel compliant with the latest eco-friendly regulations.
So, Emil, what inspired you to take on this challenge? Was it a deep love for spreadsheets, or did you just get tired of watching captains furiously scribbling numbers on the back of their maps?
“It became clear to us quite early, that FuelEU is a regulation one could easily get lost in, and our focus is to simplify, optimize and streamline, so it is a space that is natural for us to move into.”
So no underlying love for spreadsheets then, but there are several other regulations that Vessel owners and operators need to take into account. Can you explain the importance of fuel consumption monitoring in today's maritime industry, and how The Ship AS is addressing this need?
“Basically, they have to (monitor consumption and emissions). MRV demands it, and our task is to remove the burden of additional calculations and reporting from the crew and operators in order to stay compliant, and let them keep working as before.
From 2025 onwards, consumption yields EUAs and FuelEU Penalties. Consumption control is now tightly tied to the business side of shipping, far exceeding only bunker costs.
Our vessel app collects data that covers the MRV specifications, ensuring compliance. This vessel data is processed into helpful reports that helps operations teams spot errors, trends in consumption data etc."
And with that in mind, what are the most common inefficiencies in fuel consumption reporting that your system helps identify and correct?
“In our experience, a repeating offender is wrongful registrations and incomplete or bad data. That is why we have focused on that aspect, and the coherence between consumption and ROB ensures missing data (such as a bunkering) is easy for the operations team to identify.
Apart from this, I would highlight the use of outdated workflows (requiring double-or triple registration of the same data), as well as the lack of proper automation, although this goes for all reporting, not just fuel consumption."
So not just easier access to correct data and reports I see. In your answer, you tap into The Ship AS’ platform, and further features. Beyond just consumption monitoring, how does The Ship AS provide additional value to its users in areas such as operational efficiency, regulatory compliance, or cost savings?
“Our software offers almost unlimited data collection opportunities. Some of our customers leverage this to the extreme, giving them unparalleled insights into almost minute-by-minute events and stoppages on every portcall. This has enabled them to assume a more collaborative relationship with ports they visit often, where both parties work together to maximize the port call efficiency, cutting time in port by as much as 7-8 %.
Our customers often already use software that helps them handle the planning aspect of operations, as well as handling the aftermath. We do that as well, but our main focus is what goes on with our customers’ fleets right now. We offer operations teams powerful real time monitoring tools, giving them insights into the vessels’ status far beyond standard AIS information (which is also a part of the package).”
An enhanced AIS view in other words?
“Indeed, with more accessible info at a glanse”
“There are other things worth mentioning here as well; automatically compiled Statement of Facts, Noon reporting, automatic Laytime and demurrage calculations. We also submit MRV data to verifiers, and several companies use The Ship as their only operational software, covering the entire data flow from vessel to verifier.”
Staying true to your goal of simplify, optimize and streamline I see. And from your experience, how have ship owners responded to the increasing regulatory pressure around consumption monitoring and emissions control?
“Our experience is that most shipping companies have accepted the new reality of EU shipping regulations, both in terms of hiring in-house experts to be able to deal with it, as well as acquiring software that helps ensure all necessary data is collected and shared with their verifier. This year we have signed deals with several new customer who previously got by using spreadsheets or similarly simple tools, but now realize that the regulations are too complex to handle without specialized systems.”
And this brings us fully into Fuel EU. So, give me the rundown in 5 statements, what is FuelEU?
“Put bluntly, the FuelEU regulation is put in place to punish the use of fuels with high emissions, and/or low energy density.”
FuelEU is a regulation intended to accelerate the abandonment of conventional fossil fuels in shipping.
FuelEU differs from EU ETS in several key aspects, the main one being that it targets fuel consumption on a "well to wake" basis, considering the manufacturing processes of fuels as well, whereas EU ETS targets the more limited "tank to wake" perspective. Fuel EU also includes CH4 (methane) and N2O (nitrous oxide) from the start, while EU ETS will also start including these in 2026.
The greenhouse gas intensity target for FuelEU is based on the global average for 2020: 91.16 grams of CO2-equivalents per megajoule. The target for 2025 constitutes a reduction in 2%, then 6% in 2030, ending in an 80% reduction in 2050 compared to 2020. Failing to reach the GHG target will lead to a compliance balance deficit (from which penalties are calculated), while surpassing the target will lead to a compliance balance surplus.
The regulation covers 100% of the energy used on intra-EU voyages, and 50% of the energy used on voyages between EU ports and non-EU ports.
Several tools are at shipping companies’ disposal in order to become compliant. Some are actions that help reach the target GHG, such as installing wind assisted propulsion, the use of biofuels or synthetic fuels (RFNBOs), and the use of on-shore power supply in port. Others are strategies for managing compliance balance deficits, such as pooling and borrowing.
So it is not just a matter of how much emissions your vessel emits but what types, how its made and more. This seems complex to control. With FuelEU regulations coming into force, what are the main compliance challenges that ship owners are currently facing?
“The immediate challenge is simply to collect the correct data. The main challenge, however, is that continuing with “business as usual” will lead to penalties, those penalties are substantial, and will increase year-over-year.
Shipping companies are now evaluating the cost/benefit of the different pathways to compliance. Should we fit wind-assited propulsion measures on our vessels? Should we switch to biofuels? Will performing those actions lead to compliance? Will it lead to a compliance balance surplus that can help cover the investment?
All of these questions are hard to answer without a good grasp of the fleet’s fuel consumption.”
But luckily you and your team has been hard at work to ensure that it can be answered.
How does The Ship's platform help ship owners ensure compliance with the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) and the Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (mRV) regulations?
“Our main focus is to help companies collect enough high quality, correct data from the vessels. We then process the data and display it in helpful reports, where EUAs owed is presented, from fleet totals to individual port calls and legs.”
What specific data points and metrics does your platform track to meet the stringent requirements of FuelEU and other emissions-related regulations?
“The data necessary for collection will vary depending on various factors, and the vessel app has rules built in to ensure that correct data is submitted. There are, for example, extra data requirements when bunkering bio-fuels and synthetic fuels compared to the requirements for conventional fossil fuels. This includes the greenhouse gas intensity (GHG), lower calorific value (a measure of energy density), as well as a reference to the sustainability scheme under which the fuel has been certified. The documentation supplying these figures will accompany the usual bunker delivery note received by the vessel when bunkering these fuels.”
So alot of calculations, and metrics to take into account. And I take it that this has not been straightforward to implement. What were some of the biggest technical challenges you faced in developing tools for FuelEU compliance within The Ship platform?
“First of all, the main challenge of the project itself was not the technical part, but learning all the intricacies of the regulation, and what the regulation means for the vessel and operations teams in practice. Turning the knowledge into code accounted for maybe 20-25% of the project.
I would say that our dedicated FuelEU monitoring module was the biggest technical challenge. At its core, it is a report that shows the GHG intensity, Compliance Balance and accumulated FuelEU Penalty for the entire fleet, as well as for individual vessels.
However, we also developed (and are actively expanding on) simulation tools, enabling our customers to find answers to questions like
“If we do nothing, what will our penalty for 2025 be? What about 2030? What about 2050?”
“If we implement wind assisted propulsion on one vessel, will the fleet compliance balance turn positive?”
“What is the most cost-efficient pooling option within our fleet?”
“If we use bio-diesel instead of MDO, how will FuelEU penalties be affected?”
And for you Emil, looking forward, how do you see consumption monitoring and emissions regulation evolving in the maritime industry, and how is The Ship AS preparing for these changes?
Some future regulatory changes are already known.
FuelEU Maritime starts its first reporting period in 2025.
This is also the first year where general cargo vessels between 400 and 5000 GT must submit MRV data. This is in preparation for a likely inclusion into mandatory EU ETS coverage for these vessels in 2027.
EU ETS will include CH4 and N2O in EUA-calculations in 2026, making it equal to FuelEU in that regard
2030 will be the first year where vessels must connect to on-shore power supply when in port.
In 2034, if the global share of synthetic fuels (RFNBOs) are less than one percent, a mandatory quota of 2% will be implemented.
Apart from this, I believe it is quite clear that the FuelEU regulation expects other regions to follow their example, in order to “grab” the missing 50% on inter-EU voyages. I think that other regions will follow, or alternatively that IMO will implement a worldwide emissions regulation that will render the FuelEU and EU ETS regulations superfluous.
It is a evolving and changing world and the Maritime sector is in no way different. What are your recommendations for Vessel owners and operators in preparing for FuelEU, and future regulatory requirements?
“I would recommend shipping companies that have not yet done so, to adopt specialized digital tools for data collection from their vessels. There are two main reasons for this:
The regulatory requirements for reporting are becoming too extensive to rely on spreadsheet software etc. for handling reporting from the vessels
I do not believe that a company that does not have a high level of control on key consumption metrics for their fleet, will be able to compete in the not-so-distant future. Early adopters of digital solutions will have a leg up on the competition with structured, comprehensive historical data from which necessary analyses can be conducted. Data-driven companies already outperform their competition today, and I expect that trend to play an even bigger role in the future.
“For FuelEU specifically - gather enough metrics about your fleet to be able to calculate the best way forward. This includes cost/benefit analyses of wind assisted propulsion, the switch to bio-fuels, as well as what to do with a compliance balance surplus or deficit.
Automate the reporting chain. With the availability of modern digital tools, there is no need for data collection via emails, double-or triple-registration of the same data, or manual construction of analyses and reports in order to become compliant with regulations.”
So we end up back to where we started, with the statement simplify, optimize and streamline.
“Exactly, it is our mantra”.
And there you have it, folks! We’ve just navigated the sometimes choppy but crucial waters of fuel monitoring, compliance, and all things FuelEU with none other than Emil Pamer, the guy making sure your vessel stays on the right side of the environmental regulations without breaking a sweat—or a pen.
From The Ship AS’ Platform making MRV compliance as smooth as a calm sea, to prepping for the EU ETS like seasoned captains, it’s clear Emil and his team are steering the maritime industry toward a smarter, greener future. So whether you're the captain of a fleet or just someone who likes to nerd out on compliance (we don’t judge!), you can rest easy knowing The Ship AS has your back.
Emil, thanks for taking the time to chat today and for showing us that even in the world of fuel and emissions, there’s always room for innovation—and maybe even a little fun.
To everyone tuning in, keep your ships sailing smoothly, your paperwork light, and your emissions in check.
-ØF
댓글