EU Council agrees to partially align EU MRV with IMO DCS regulations

Ambassadors of European Union (EU) member states on Friday (25 October) agreed on their position on a proposal to update existing EU rules, and partially align them with the global data collection system for ship fuel oil consumption of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

As of 2019, ship owners are obliged to monitor and report under two systems: the EU MRV (monitoring, reporting, verification) regulation and the global IMO DCS (data collection system).

The Council agrees that partly aligning the definitions, the monitoring parameters and the monitoring plans and templates of the MRV regulation contributes to reducing the administrative burden for shipping companies and national authorities and facilitates compliance with the reporting obligations under the two systems.

“The maritime transport sector has to become more energy efficient and use less fuel to contribute to our climate goals,” said Krista Mikkonen, Minister of Environment and Climate of Finland.

“We want companies and the general public to know how much fuel each ship uses.

“This means we will be able to compare ships’ emissions and choose more energy efficient ones. This has environmental benefits. We are also looking to the future, as we are asking the Commission to review this regulation in light of further experience gained.”

The agreement reached at the meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives means that the Council is now ready to start negotiations with the European Parliament.

The European Parliament has not yet reached a position on the proposal.

Photo credit: © European Union
Published: 29 October, 2019