Shipping Industry Questions Practicality of Cyprus Fuel Emissions Bill

Highlights

• Cyprus Shipping Chamber warns new 2025 law could burden fuel suppliers with strict reporting and fines.
• Renewable fuel targets set for transport and shipping by 2030 under new draft legislation.
• Verification, reporting, and penalties may create operational and financial challenges for local suppliers.

The Cyprus Shipping Chamber (CSC) has expressed worry about a proposed law called the Sustainability and Fuel Emissions Amendment Law of 2025, which aims to tighten rules on renewable fuels and emissions in the transport sector.

Updating the previous 2022 and 2024 fuel sustainability laws, it aligns Cyprus legislation with European Union directives, including Directive (EU) 2023/2413 and Regulation (EU) 2023/2405, which cover renewable energy in transport and sustainable aviation fuels.

Under the draft law, EU member states must ensure that renewable energy makes up at least 29 per cent of transport energy consumption by 2030, or that greenhouse gas emissions intensity decreases by at least 14.5 per cent compared to the reference level of 94 grams CO2 per megajoule.

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Apart from those caveats, advanced biofuels, biogas, and non-biological renewable fuels should be 1 per cent of transport energy by 2025 and 5.5 per cent by 2030. For shipping, the indicative target for non-biological renewable fuels is 1.2 per cent of total energy by 2030.

The regulation introduces stricter verification rules for fuel sustainability, closer monitoring of compliance, and the creation of an EU-wide database to record fuel sustainability data, as well as provides methodologies to calculate transport targets and sets penalties for non-compliance.

For aviation, fuel suppliers must use sustainable and synthetic fuels, submit annual reports, and face fines for missed targets or false reporting.

The CSC welcomed the chance to participate in the public consultation but highlighted concerns about the practicality of the verification processes. The chamber stressed that procedures, documentation requirements, and timelines must be clear.

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To this end, it suggested digitalisation and alignment with existing European databases, such as the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) system, to prevent duplicate reporting. Local suppliers should be registered with valid certification under ISCC or other EU-recognised systems.

The draft rule also allows laboratory checks of ship fuel samples and sets administrative fines up to €200,000, with the potential detention of ships if sulphur limits are exceeded.

The CSC said that penalties are substantial and that sampling, testing, and appeal procedures must be transparent, fair, and allow supplier participation.

It also added that out-of-specification samples may occur due to human error, residues in pipes, or poor sampling practices, and additional tests may be needed to determine the actual sulphur content.

The chamber also raised concerns about annual reporting requirements, which include energy consumption, renewable content, and sustainability and emissions criteria.

It warned that reporting may require significant investment in systems and training. The shipping sector already follows strict reporting rules under EU Regulation 2015/757. Introducing extra reporting may create duplicate oversight, inconsistencies, and reduce regulatory effectiveness.

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Finally, the CSC suggested simplifying and harmonising reporting obligations, separating supplier and shipowner responsibilities, exempting transit fuels, introducing a transition period without sanctions, and offering incentives for green fuel investments.

According to the chamber, new requirements should be proportionate, targeted, and aligned with international shipping practices.

Ends/

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Source: Cyprus Mail