- Sustainable marine fuels: maritime sector remains the problem child
- France: the far-right threat to Europe
- EU: no decision on oil embargo
- BMWK considers European raw materials procurement
- EU announces Global Gateway summit
- Dow to take minority stake in German energy hub
- Rosatom subsidiary will proceed with Finnish nuclear project
- Baerbock: Serbia must support EU sanctions
- Gazprombank to convert Hungarian gas payments from euros to rubles
- EU Justice Commissioner Reynders targeted with spy software
- Apple faces extra EU antitrust charge in music streaming probe
- Carole Dieschbourg: ‘Getting climate protection right’
Shipping continues to be the problem child of decarbonization. The maritime sector is lagging behind, and the Commission’s proposal for the Fit for 55 dossier on sustainable marine fuels is considered too unambitious. Now the EP rapporteur for the dossier is causing friction with his colleagues, as Lukas Scheid has learned.
Is it going to be tight? How close will it be? Five years ago, Emmanuel Macron became president by a clear margin, while far-right Marine Le Pen lost the runoff. However, this time around this is not a foregone conclusion, as Tanja Kuchenbecker analyzes.
Yesterday, at the EU foreign minister meeting, there was no decision on an oil embargo for the time being. But: “Nothing is off the table, including sanctions against oil and gas,” said High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell.
Minister of Economic Affairs Habeck pulls out a chair: The round table “Expansion of production capacities for the energy turnaround” with solar and wind energy industry is supposed to clear the way for renewables.
A huge scandal under normal circumstances: the espionage attack on EU Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders. Last year, his and Commission employees’ telephones were tapped – software from a manufacturer whose services were also used by Poland and Hungary was suspected. A case with political explosive power.
Carole Dieschbourg, Minister of Environment, Climate and Sustainable Development of Luxembourg, is being hailed by the press as the “voice of Europe” today. Read the Profile to find out about her political principles.
Lisa-Martina Klein
Feature
Sustainable marine fuels: maritime sector remains the problem child
75 percent of the EU’s external trade and 31 percent of its internal trade in terms of volume are conducted by water. In addition, according to the EU Commission, there are 400 million ship passengers in the member states each year, including around 14 million on cruise ships. Ships were responsible for 13.5 percent of all transport-related greenhouse gas emissions in the EU in 2018. The potential for saving emissions is correspondingly large – although not as large as for road traffic (71 percent) or aviation (14.4 percent).
Nevertheless, the maritime sector is lagging behind in decarbonization compared to road or air. The UN World Shipping Organization (IMO) is not exactly known for its progressiveness in this regard. And so, there are huge expectations for Europe to lead the way. However, the Commission’s proposal has already fallen short of these expectations.
The Fit for 55 FuelEU Maritime dossier calls for the average annual carbon intensity of ships to fall by 2 percent by 2025, 6 percent by 2030, and 75 percent by 2050 (compared to 2020). The targets are to be achieved through the use of more sustainable fuels. However, there are significant limitations to this proposal: It only applies to commercial vessels with a total tonnage of more than 5,000 metric tons. The scheme also covers 100 percent of voyages within the EU, but only 50 percent of voyages between EU ports and ports in third countries.
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