FuelEU

OceanScore reviews BIMCO FuelEU clause for time charter parties

Firm applauds BIMCO for taking this ‘admittedly difficult first step’ but noted quite a few gaps remain that individual charter party clause discussions will have to close.

Published

4 months ago

November 29, 2024

Admin

OceanScore reviews BIMCO FuelEU clause for time charter parties

The current BIMCO draft provides a foundation but leaves substantial room for improvement and charter party specific clarifications, said Hamburg-based technology platform OceanScore on Wednesday (27 November).

The company was commenting on BIMCO recent release of its much-anticipated clause for Time Charter Parties under the FuelEU Maritime Regulation.

“Practical solutions must address timing constraints, pooling frameworks, surplus incentives, and pricing disputes,” OceanScore said in a statement.

“We applaud BIMCO for taking this admittedly difficult first step. The result is balanced, which is appreciated, but quite a few gaps remain that individual charter party clause discussions will have to close. It will be critical to mirror these into the Shipmans with the DOC (Document of Compliance) holders eventually being responsible.”

OceanScore added it is already working with customers to implement forward-thinking FuelEU strategies that fill these gaps, supporting smart decision making and efficient processes between the different stakeholders.

“Our insights and solutions have demonstrated multiple pathways for turning regulatory challenges into opportunities – requiring proper understanding of these rules and quantification of different pathways,” it added.

Here are some of OceanScore’s key observations and comments:

Key Observations and Challenges

Alignment with Long-Term Charters

The solutions proposed for long-term Time Charter Parties (those covering entire reporting periods, typically a year) are broadly aligned with market expectations and appear balanced between the needs of owners and charterers.

Role of DOC Holders

Under the regulations, DOC holders are the designated responsible parties for FuelEU compliance. This means that any clauses within the Time Charter Party must also be reflected in the ship management agreement (shipman). Ensuring consistency across these agreements will be critical for seamless compliance, especially in the case of third party managers.

Timing Considerations

The clause proposes providing compliance balances for the prior two years, but this won't be feasible until at least 2027 due to the rollout timeline.

Proofs of Sustainability (POS), which are critical to FuelEU compliance, take 4–6 weeks to become available post-bunkering. The proposed 15-day reporting deadline for “verified” compliance balances can be unrealistic.

The clause proposes for the charterer to notify the owner “x days before April 30” of their intent to pool the compliance deficit. These requests should be made as early as possible., If the charterer decides to not pool but pay the “surcharge”, an earlier notification will help the owner (and DOC holder) to identify the commercially most attractive alternative – especially when it comes to finding an alternative external pool.

Pooling – Incomplete Framework

Pooling compliance balances is likely the most efficient way to secure compliance. But while the clause mentions this in the context of long-term charters, it does not offer a meaningful framework for short-term or broader application. Charterers and owners might benefit from a clear, common understanding of how pooling will be used to achieve compliance – especially as this might be the commercially most attractive choice.

Compliance Surpluses – Practical Solution

The proposal on how to deal with compliance surpluses is balanced, the timing of the proposed steps practical. It will be critical to define the right applicable price (and not fall for a price at the level of the penalty in the case of compliance deficits). Given that pool prices will not be known until well into 2025 or even only when pooling starts in April 2026, it might make sense to opt for some flexibility mechanism in this proposed price for surpluses.

Pricing Compliance Balances – Unrealistic Approach

The guidance provided that compliance deficits will be compensated for at the level of the penalty (€2.400 / ton VLSFOe) is an attractive, clear solution for the owner. But we do not see this stand the test of intense C/P negotiations, as there will be cheaper ways to comply than to pay the penalty. Realistically, there will be two options: Either an adjusted surcharge below the penalty level or a flexibility mechanism reflecting the pool prices. It should be secured though that the DOC holder receives a fair compensation for his extra effort in securing compliance and for the risk he carries in doing so.

Photo credit: OceanScore
Published: 29 November, 2024

FuelEU

Baltic Exchange adds biofuel blends in latest expansion of emissions calculator

Biodiesel, bio-LNG, bio-LPG, green methanol, green hydrogen and green ammonia have all been added to Baltic Exchange’s FuelEU Maritime calculator, either as green fuel or blend options.

Published

4 days ago

March 17, 2025

Admin

Baltic Exchange adds biofuel blends in latest expansion of emissions calculator

Baltic Exchange on Wednesday (12 March) introduced a series of green fuel options to its FuelEU voyage and compliance cost calculator as more shipowners, traders and charterers seek to understand the commercial implications of this regulation on their voyage costs.

Biodiesel, bio-LNG, bio-LPG, green methanol, green hydrogen and green ammonia have all been added to the calculator, either as green fuel or blend options. Baltic Exchange’s FuelEU Maritime calculator provides an overview of the cost implications for the selected option relative to the Baltic standard for that route. This will enable the market to factor any change in fuel selected or contemplated into their voyage cost estimates.

“Green fuels are expected to be very expensive initially, so will likely be blended into fossil-derived fuels initially, to achieve compliance with the new FuelEU Maritime regulation. For this reason and based on industry feedback, we have added a blend capability to Baltic Exchange’s FuelEU compliance and fuel cost calculator,” said Martin Crawford-Brunt, Emissions Lead at Baltic Exchange.

“Baltic Exchange is assisting the market by cutting through the considerable complexity of these regulations by providing a simple decision-making tool that estimates the voyage costs of the many fuel and blend alternatives quickly and simply,” he added.

“With the latest update to Baltic Exchange’s FuelEU Maritime Calculator, users now have the ability to experiment with any green fuel blend percentage taking into account the assumed green fuel cost premium and the expected well-to-tank emissions profile for the specific green fuel blend selected,” Crawford-Brunt noted.

“Regulations like FuelEU Maritime and EU ETS will become increasingly impactful on voyage costs to and from the EU. All contracting parties, their brokers and traders need to be able to estimate these additional costs quickly to avoid facing high financial penalties.”

Photo credit: Baltic Exchange
Published: 17 March, 2025

Digital platform

Hapag-Lloyd uses StormGeo digital solutions for FuelEU Maritime compliance

StormGeo shares how it is supporting Hapag-Lloyd’s sustainability journey with its s-Log and s-Insight digital solutions to comply with the new FuelEU Maritime regulation.

Published

2 weeks ago

March 7, 2025

Admin

Voyage optimisation and weather intelligence solutions provider StormGeo on Thursday (6 March) shared how it is supporting Hapag-Lloyd’s sustainability journey with its s-Log and s-Insight digital solutions to comply with the new FuelEU Maritime regulation.

The following is an excerpt of the article:

As the shipping industry continues its journey towards a decarbonized future with the new FuelEU Maritime regulation, Hapag-Lloyd relies on StormGeo’s future-proof digital solutions and services to stay compliant and achieve its long-term sustainability goals.

Operating around 300 container ships with a total transport capacity of more than 2.3 million TEU, Hapag-Lloyd is one of the world’s most prominent and leading liner shipping companies – and the largest fleet sailing under the German flag.

In addition to being one of the largest in the industry, Hapag-Lloyd is also one of the greenest. The company was the first to ever convert a large container ship to dual-fuel propulsion capable of using LNG and by end of 2025 will have a fleet of 13 LNG dual-fuel vessels in operation, thereby reducing CO2 emissions significantly. Furthermore, up to 50 of their ships already run on biofuels, such as bio-LNG and FAME, capable of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80% compared to conventional fuels.

Navigating FuelEU Maritime Compliance

With these sustainability initiatives, Hapag-Lloyd has taken crucial steps toward compliance with the FuelEU Maritime regulation that came into effect on January 1st, 2025. This EU-driven initiative dictates that shipping companies must decarbonize their operations by reducing the GHG intensity of their vessels and increasing the use of sustainable fuels, such as biofuels, green methanol, ammonia and others.

To become fully compliant, Hapag-Lloyd demands a robust biofuel-compliant reporting system that can efficiently align biofuel consumption data with the specific demands outlined in the new regulation.

With these 300 vessels requiring proper data reporting, validation, and verification by their emission verifier DNV, Hapag-Lloyd relies on StormGeo’s s-Log and s-Insight solutions to accurately monitor, report, and validate GHG intensity for FuelEU Maritime compliance and all other GHG emission reduction schemes (EU ETS, CII, MRV, IMO DCS, CCWG, and ESI).

“It’s crucial for us to work with partners like StormGeo, who share our commitment to drive the shipping industry toward a more sustainable future,” says Heribert Riesenhuber, Director Fleet Energy Management at Hapag-Lloyd Hamburg Head Office. “Our decade-long partnership has yielded great solutions for environmental compliance that have benefited not only us but the industry at large, and we’re excited to continue our work with StormGeo to advance our decarbonization goals and tackle new reporting requirements, such as FuelEU Maritime.”

The Role of Digital Tools in Shipping Decarbonization

Hapag-Lloyd leverages a comprehensive solution for the entire FuelEU Maritime compliance process, enabled by StormGeo’s ship-to-shore data reporting system s-Log to easily accommodate biofuel reporting in anticipation of the new regulation – in addition to the data validation system s-Insight and direct access to regulatory and industry experts.

With these solutions, Hapag-Lloyd can accurately calculate the GHG intensity of biofuels used across its fleet according to the specific requirements of the FuelEU Maritime regulation.

The data reporting system collects all fuel consumption data, including biofuels, and runs strict validation rules to identify and flag any reporting errors, improve data quality, and increase accuracy. The validated consumption data is then calculated into GHG intensity data, which can automatically be shared with all major emission verifiers globally, including DNV, through APIs.

Through its Hamburg-based Fleet Performance Center, StormGeo’s experts are available to support Hapag-Lloyd throughout the entire process, including proactive discussions with verifiers.

“Our collaboration with Hapag-Lloyd is an example of the power of partnerships in the decarbonization of the shipping industry,” says Till Braun, Strategic Account Manager and Sales Director at StormGeo. “Sustainable maritime operations require close collaboration between different industry players, and we’re excited to work with and learn from Hapag-Lloyd and their partners to simplify compliance and enable proactive sustainable strategies for the benefit of the industry as a whole.”

Note: The full story on how StormGeo is supporting Hapag-Lloyd’s sustainability journey can be found here.

Photo credit: Hapag-Lloyd
Published: 7 March, 2025

FuelEU

Gasum FuelEU Maritime pool data to be verified by DNV Emissions Connect solution

Gasum’s pooling service will use DNV’s Emissions Connect solution to gather and validate emissions data and DNV will verify pool compliance at the end of the year.

Published

3 weeks ago

March 3, 2025

Admin

Gasum supplies Equinor platform supply vessel with bio-LNG bunker fuel

Energy company Gasum on Tuesday (25 February) has signed an agreement with DNV, whereby DNV will verify the accuracy of Gasum’s FuelEU Maritime pooling service.

DNV is the world’s leading classification society and a recognized advisor for the maritime industry, headquartered in Norway. Gasum and DNV have a long-standing relationship as Gasum has for years been using DNV’s Fuel Boss system for managing LNG deliveries.

Gasum will use DNV’s Emissions Connect tool to gather and validate consumption and emissions data in real time from all vessels in the pool. This requires the installation of a very simple and cost-effective plug and play device on board each vessel.

Additionally, DNV will, at the end of the year, verify the balance of the pool for EU reporting purposes. This is a new requirement that has risen as a result of the FuelEU Maritime regulation, and DNV is up to the task due to its long experience in similar verification processes.

DNV’s role extends only to the pool and all pool members can still continue using their preferred verifier for their vessels.

Jani Arala, Solution Lead at Gasum, said: “In managing a pooling service like this, data is critical. Everything comes down to the validity of the data we collect as it enables us to keep the pool tightly in balance at all times. DNV’s Emissions Connect is the most reliable and easy to use tool on the market for gathering the data. DNV is a fantastic collaborator for us for this brand new service, because the company is trusted by all players in the industry and we have a long history together.”

Helge Hermundsgård, Head of Sales Emissions Connect at DNV, said: “DNV is proud to support Gasum’s FuelEU Maritime pool with our Emissions Connect solution, enabling effective pool compliance management throughout the year.”

“With increasing regulatory pressure, shipowners need reliable data and transparent processes to navigate FuelEU Maritime requirements efficiently. We look forward to supporting this initiative and continuing to provide trusted solutions for a more sustainable maritime industry.”

Photo credit: Gasum
Published: 3 March, 2025