• How can a shipping company open an account in the Union Registry? (SV 001)

  Registry account

  All actors participating in emissions trading must open an account in the Union Registry, which is provided by the European Commission. The administration of the German part of the Union Registry as well as the processing of account applications is carried out by the German Emissions Trading Authority (DEHSt). A maritime operator holding account is opened for each shipping company as defined in the Emissions Trading Directive and thus may contain several ships. The surrender transactions of the acquired emission allowances can only be carried out via this account type.

  According to the current status, the opening of these maritime operator holding accounts in the registry should be possible starting from April 2024. Once the Registry Regulation has been amended to take into account the maritime sector we will provide further information on setting up and using the accounts on our website. The European Commission is expected to adopt the regulation in the fourth quarter of 2023.

  Trading account

  A trading account (or several) can already be opened in the Union Registry.

  The account opening is subject to fees according to the Special Fees Regulation BMU - BMUBGebV, Section 5 (link below). In addition, there are extended requirements for the verification of account holders (see Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/1122, Annex IV) (link below).

  Once a maritime operator holding account has been opened by a shipping company, emission allowances can be received from a trading account. The process of setting up the accounts will be equivalent to setting up accounts in the already existing EU ETS 1. Instructions can be found on our website under Union Registry (link below).

  Further information

  • Besondere Gebührenverordnung des Bundesministeriums für Umwelt, Naturschutz und nukleare Sicherheit für individuell zurechenbare öffentliche Leistungen in dessen Zuständigkeitsbereich
  • Delegierte Verordnung (EU) 2019/1122 der Kommission vom 12. März 2019 zur Ergänzung der Richtlinie 2003/87/EG des Europäischen Parlaments und des Rates im Hinblick auf die Funktionsweise des Unionsregisters
  • Union Registry
• Which sea journeys fall within the geographical scope of the EU ETS 1 (geographical scope)? (SV 008)

  100 per cent of emissions from journeys within the European Economic Area (EEA) and from port calls are covered by emissions trading. Emissions from journeys between a port within the EEA and a third country are only subject to a 50 per cent surrender obligation, regardless of the direction of transport (see Article 3 ga Directive 2003/87/EC). Journeys begin and end in ports of call (see also FAQ 2 on the term ‘Port of call’ and exceptions).
  
  

  Further information

  • What counts as a ‘port of call’ under the EU ETS 1 and what exemptions are there?
• Who can a shipowner mandate to assume the EU ETS 1 obligations? (SV 045)

  A shipowner may delegate the responsibility for the operation of its ships and the compliance with the EU ETS 1 obligations to another person or organization by a mandate. The basic requirement is that the assigned person or organization represents the shipowner as an ISM Manager.. It is therefore necessary for the ISM manager to hold a ‘Document of Compliance’ (ISM-DOC), that identifies him as ISM-certified and that he has assumed all duties and responsibilities under the ISM Code for the ships concerned from the shipowner. If this is the case, then this ISM manager can assume responsibility for the compliance with the EU ETS 1 obligations from the shipowner (see Article 1(3) (EU) 2023/2599). Following proper authorisation in accordance with this provision (mandate), the ISM manager is deemed to be a shipping company within the meaning of Directive 2003/87/EC (see Article 3(w)) Directive 2003/87/EC). A mandate template can be downloaded via the link below.

  Further information

  • Mandate for compliance with EU ETS 1 obligations

All FAQ on maritime transport