ETS Management in Time Charter Relationships: Lessons Learned

The EU ETS has now been with us in shipping for nearly two years. Everyone involved—owners, charterers, managers—has had to adapt quickly. Contract clauses and workflows were created and refined, reporting routines tested in practice, and the first surrender phase is about to be concluded.

But what have we really learned so far?

The Core Pain Points

1. Accounting & Settlements

Traditional accounting systems are not built to handle EUAs as a means of payment. This creates challenges in designing auditable settlement workflows—something that is non-negotiable for listed companies and large operators.

2. Communication Overload

Discussions about ETS data between owners and charterers often become messy, dragged across endless email chains. This slows down decision-making and increases the risk of errors.

3. Flexible Payment Cycles

Every counterparty seems to have its own preferences for payment and settlement cycles—monthly, quarterly, or yearly. Without a system that can flexibly accommodate all options, ETS management becomes a manual, time-consuming task.

4. Data Quality & Reliability

Faulty reporting data remains one of the biggest hurdles. Noon reports, aggregated data from reporting systems, and verifier-issued figures often don’t match. Data discrepancies between owners and charterers are common, and once statements are exchanged, retroactive corrections can create significant friction. 

5. Biofuels Reporting

The introduction of biofuels has added complexity. Proof of Sustainability (PoS) certificates are often received with after the ship has started to burn the fuel, making it difficult to align ETS reporting and settlement timelines.

How Ankeri Solves These Challenges

At Ankeri, we’ve spent the past 20 months continuously improving our ETS Management Module to meet evolving needs. The goal: build a modular, flexible, and automated system that addresses the exact pain points above.

1. Consolidated Data Through the Data Connections Hub

• Ingest data from multiple sources: Noon Reports, aggregated ETS numbers from reporting tools, and validated numbers from verifiers.

• Use validated data as the primary source for compliance reporting, while using Noon Reports as a benchmark to monitor data quality.

• Track changes in underlying data—even if a report has already been sent to a counterparty, ensuring full transparency.

• Keep a complete audit trail of all ETS statements, making it easy to trace back the sequence of events.

2. Separation of Compliance vs. Commercial View

• Compliance reporting must always reflect the actual source data (MRV, verifier reports). Manual adjustments in compliance statements are not allowed.

• For commercial settlements, however, counterparties need flexibility to deviate from reported numbers. Ankeri’s workflows allow both views to coexist.

• Ankeri helps by automatically deducting off-hire periods and bunker usages during off-hire periods from ETS statements.

3. Automated & Flexible Settlements

• Generate ETS statements with one click.

• Configure settlement workflows for monthly, quarterly, or yearly cycles depending on counterparty preferences.

• Track received EUAs and link them to settlement documentation for auditable records.

The Result: Simpler and Smarter ETS Management

By combining modular data consolidation with flexible workflows, Ankeri enables shipping companies to move from error-prone manual processes to streamlined, automated ETS management. What we have learned is that having the charter parties contracts and payment structure already managed within the system helps aligning hire settlements and EUA. 

With Ankeri, ETS statement generation is no longer a burden—it’s a one-click process. Settlements are transparent, auditable, and flexible. And most importantly, the system creates a single source of truth for both compliance and commercial perspectives.

What’s been your biggest challenge with ETS management? Let’s share experiences and solutions.

Book a demo with us today.