Regulatory Update: Emissions Trading

The latest Regulatory Update podcast the focus is on the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme and its implications for shipowners within the bloc and those whose ships call at EU ports. Paul Bartlett, a correspondent for Seatrade Maritime News (SMN) talks with SMN, Editor, Marcus Hand, and stresses the need for urgency but also explains the risk that regional emissions trading schemes could well undermine the IMO’s global efforts. He also outlines some of the reasons why shipowner groups are concerned about the EU’s go-it-alone approach, talks about the development of new fuels and their life cycle emissions assessment, and questions why no-one mentions nuclear power for ships. The technology exists today, it has been successfully tried and tested on a number of ships, and is a clean source of energy with no emissions. In other developments, shipping’s own endeavors on decarbonisation are making remarkable progress, he concludes.