The big picture
The introduction of the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) in Shipping comes as no surprise. It is the latest push by the European Union to help Shipping accelerate its progress towards carbon-neutral transport.
It is also a further initiative in the EU's broad plan to reduce carbon emissions by levelling the costs between fossil and carbon-neutral, or less carbon intense fuels, and incentivising energy efficiency of the world fleet in general. The EU has already introduced MRV, CII (IMO), and now ETS in 2024. This will be followed by the Fuel EU Maritime in 2025 and mandatory green corridors will probably then be next in line.
Historically regulations have failed to impact Shipping’s overall emissions and efficiency in general, so you might ask what is different this time around?
Well, the EU ETS carries a big stick.
GHG emissions cost money now — lots of it. Shipping companies could easily lose thousands of dollars by working with incorrect data and not accounting correctly for their emissions. Severe penalties are waiting for non-compliant shipping companies. All this is topped off by the complexity of the EU Cap and Trade system, which exposes shipping companies to the high price volatility of GHG emission allowances.
Combine that with the complex commercial and operational nature of the shipping Industry, and you end up with an issue that needs to be dealt with carefully, consistently - and as efficiently as possible.
Managing EU ETS compliance
Managing the EU ETS regulation and compliance as a shipping company calls for a number of steps to be completed, namely:
1) Homogeneous collection and consolidation of validated high-quality data streams from noon reporting tools to on-shore systems, verifiers, and charterers.
2) Aggregation of data complying with the defined EU ETS business rules - which can be different every year.
3) Access to and integration of charter party clauses in workflows for commercial, operational, technical, and financial teams.
4) Real-time tracking of EUAs (European Union Allowances) exposure/liabilities and the corresponding EUA settlement processes with contractual counterparties.
5) Data driven communication, regular exchange of emissions data, which includes geographical vessel performance data, between Owners, Charterers and Verifiers.
Ankeri believes that the only sensible long-term strategy for shipping companies to meet these demands is the adoption of a purpose-built solution built on a future-proof data platform.
The Ankeri approach to EU ETS
Ankeri is a leading provider of maritime data handling and sharing software infrastructure.
Embedded in Ankeri's Data Connections Hub (DCH) is a data-engineering-as-a-service model that empowers shipping enterprises and their employees to handle complex data-related projects without programming knowledge.
Dedicated workflow applications built on top of that unified data pool have already proven to unlock value by optimising commercial decisions, and productivity gains, by allowing commercial teams to handle more complex tasks faster, repeatedly. This includes tools for vessel total cost of ownership evaluations, profitability assessments of retrofits and CII Management, just to name a few.
Ankeri’s tech stack (shown above) consists of a data consolidation and management foundational layer that becomes an enabler for multiple value add-on applications for productivity improvements, to meet compliance, or for making better commercial decisions. Finally, the infrastructure’s top layer allows shipping companies to share operational or commercial data in a secure and collaborative way.
For Ankeri, it therefore makes perfect sense to support EU ETS Management as the next in line, high-value, low-effort product that unlocks additional value from a harmonised and accessible data pool.
The Ankeri tech stack simplifies EU ETS Management and Compliance while strengthening the shipping companies' adaptability for future regulatory measures.
Introducing the Ankeri ETS management product bundle
Ankeri’s modular approach allows us to provide a product bundle that is fit for complying with EU ETS in the most efficient, future-proof and cost-effective manner possible.
The building blocks include:
Ankeri Data Connections Hub provides full flexibility to administrate granular data streams without programming skills. We connect to every noon reporting system and let you decide how many data points you share with whom and for how long. DCH allows you to monitor data connection quality, too.
Ankeri Performance Module has embedded all the EU ETS business logic (including outermost regions, transshipment ports, biofuels, ice class exemptions etc). You can drill down from your high-level EUA fleet exposure overview to individual vessel legs and port stays. You can at any time look up each vessel’s fuel consumption and accumulation of GHG emissions and EUAs. The system calculates how many EUAs are required to offset the emissions that occurred.
Ankeri Chartering Module keeps all your contract data in one place. ETS clause liabilities get transferred to concrete system action based on the available vessel performance data. EUA invoices can be created and shared with the relevant counterparty. EUA reimbursement settlement statuses are available in a user-friendly dashboard.
Ankeri Workspaces allows you to share and collaborate on all EU ETS data with your counterparties in a protected digital environment. Avoid endless e-mail chains and Excel attachments. With Ankeri Workspaces, you can share functionality to contextualize your data, which supports conflict resolution. It is much better to talk about consumption based on weather and speed when visualized on a map. You can also share vessel profiles and contract data. Ankeri Workspaces are the future infrastructure for cross-organisational data collaboration.
Ankeri's integrated flexible and proven tech stack is the ideal solution for effective EU ETS Management and simultaneously a fast-track for your digitalisation journey. All while offering simplification of your internal software landscape. Working with Ankeri on ETS Management delivers significant add-on value beyond just EUA accounting.