Cyprus Shipping Chamber strongly supports development of European clean shipping fuel supply chain

The Cyprus Shipping Chamber (CSC) has expressed its strong support to the joint statement by The Clean Maritime Fuels Platform, representing the European shipowners and the fuel suppliers, stressing the critical need to establish a European supply chain for clean shipping fuels, highlighting the urgency of coordinated efforts to accelerate the transition to sustainable maritime energy solutions.

With the European shipping sector requiring an estimated €40 billion in annual investments through 2050, as outlined in the Draghi report, ensuring the large-scale production and availability of renewable and low-carbon fuels is essential, it said in a press release. Such investments will be pivotal in meeting international climate targets while reinforcing Europe's leadership in green shipping innovation, it added.

The Clean Maritime Fuels Platform highlights significant investment barriers, such as high production costs, technological risks, and a mismatch between producers’ long-term pricing expectations and users’ need for flexible contracts.

Addressing these issues is crucial to unlocking the necessary funding and policy support for a competitive and sustainable European maritime fuel market, CSC said.

As such in its statement, the Clean Maritime Fuels Platform urges the Commission to:

• Include renewable and low-carbon fuels and innovative technologies needed by shipping in the upcoming Clean Industrial Deal;
• Harness the Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP), to de-risk investments needed to ramp up the production and distribution of clean fuels for shipping;
• De-risk projects through public financial support from the EU and national ETS revenues to strengthen the EU’s industrial base for clean fuels;
• Facilitate the role of ports as energy hubs through fuels infrastructure mandates.

"The Cyprus Shipping Chamber remains committed to supporting initiatives that will accelerate the decarbonisation of the Shipping Industry, advocating for policies that enable the widespread availability of clean fuels and ensuring a resilient, future-ready Shipping sector," it concluded.