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The European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA) says it "regrets" and "deplores" that European port and cargo interests have come out in favour of the European Parliament's recent decision to include shipping in the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) as of 2023 if the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) does not have a comparable system operating by 2021.

In a statement, Patrick Verhoeven, Secretary General of the ECSA, said: "It is most unfortunate and worrying that our partners in the logistics chain are condoning a regional approach. Whilst we recognise and support the pro-active attitude of ports and logistic operators to reduce GHG emissions, we are disappointed that they do not see how the position of Parliament will exactly achieve the opposite of what they also claim to desire: an ambitious and effective global agreement for shipping."

Verhoeven added: "And then we don't even mention the detrimental effects a regional ETS will most certainly have on EU ports that are open to competition from non-EU neighbours, such as Mediterranean hubs and - with Brexit - the North Sea ports. Instead of supporting regional pressure, we invite our service providers and customers to have their voices heard in the IMO. That is where the actual work now takes place."

In October, IMO member states agreed on a global roadmap to develop a strategy - due to be delivered in 2023 - to curb GHG emissions from ships. The ECSA believes, therefore, that the idea of establishing a regional ETS system in the EU beforehand could negatively impact a future IMO-level agreement.

"The request of Parliament to already have a system comparable to the EU ETS operating globally two years earlier ignores and jeopardises the international commitment that IMO countries, including all EU Member States, have signed up to," Verhoeven said.

Image: Patrick Verhoeven, Secretary General of the ECSA.