FAQ

There are several phases covered by the EU Maritime MRV and EU ETS maritime inclusion:

• The first phase for the maritime sector starts on January 1^st 2024 with inclusion of cargo and passenger ships weighing over 5000 GT with ships already included in the EU maritime MRV in 2023. Submission of allowances will take place in September 2025.
• The next phase of the EU ETS maritime inclusion is for offshore ships weighing over 5000 GT. These start to be part of the EU MRV shipping scope from January 2025. The EU ETS shipping inclusion starts from January 2027. Submission of allowances will then take place in September 2028.
• There is also a third and final phase of the maritime inclusion which is for offshore and cargo ships weighing between 400 and 5000 GT. This phase will currently only be part of the MRV scope from January 2025. It is not yet known whether this phase will become part of the EU ETS. As soon as there is clarification on this, we will notify the shipping companies which will be covered.

Each shipping company will be associated with the administering authority of one EU Member State. On February 1^st, 2024, The EU Commission published ships weighting over 5000 BT to the administering of one EU Member State. Thereafter this list will be updated and republished every second year. This will be done in accordance with the rules spelled out in the EU ETS Directive, i.e.

• In the case of a shipping company registered in an EU Member State, it will be the EU Member State in which the shipping company is registered;  
• In the case of a shipping company that is not registered in an EU Member State, it will be the EU Member State with the greatest estimated number of port calls from voyages performed by that shipping company in the last four monitoring years; 
• In the case of a shipping company that is not registered in an EU Member State and that did not carry out any voyage falling within the scope of the EU ETS Directive in the preceding four monitoring years, the administering authority will be the EU Member State where a ship of the shipping company has arrived or started its first voyage falling within the scope of the EU ETS Directive.

Shipping companies that are not registered in the EU/EEA have been and will be distributed to the various EU Member States based on a final attributions list adopted by the EU Commission. The administrators in the EU Member states will then contact the respective shipping companies in order to open a compliance account, (Maritime Operator Holding Account – MOHA). 

Furthermore, shipping companies will need to surrender allowances in the EU Member State corresponding to their Administering Authority. For this purpose, shipping companies will need to open a Maritime Operator Holding Account in that EU Member State. 

In order to open a Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) in Denmark, the shipping company (the registered ship owner in THETIS-MRV) must appear on the final attribution list from the EU Commission, which was publicized on February 1^st, 2024. Please note that there will only be one MOHA, per registered ship owner. 

MOHA can only be opened in Denmark if the company is part of the EU ETS Maritime inclusion concurrently with the COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) 2019/112.

If your company is not the registered ship owner in THETIS-MRV or ISM Company, you cannot open a MOHA in Denmark. For opening a MOHA in Denmark the shipping company must , in THETIS-MRV, be registered in Denmark. It is not enough that the ship has a Danish flag. If your shipping company is not on the final attribution list from the EU Commission, we advise you to follow the below guidance:

Is your shipping company and associated ship(s) registered in THETIS-MRV?

1. If no: If your shipping company does not have a THETIS-MRV account, your shipping company must firstly get a THETIS-MRV account created. Please check the EMSA website and guidelines for creating an account in THETIS-MRV. We also refer to the THETIS-MRV Helpdesk for help and guidance for registration in THETIS-MRV.
2. If yes: have you updated THETIS-MRV with the latest company and ship(s) information. Make sure that all company and ship information in THETIS-MRV are correct and thereby updated. Updating in THETIS-MRV with correct information about the ship(s) and the company's registered ownership is crucial in connection with the EU ETS maritime inclusion. The Danish Emission Trading Registry cannot help the shipping company to set up a MOHA in Denmark until there is a confirmation in THETIS-MRV, that the company must be administered in Denmark. We therefore recommend that you update the latest company and ship details in THETIS-MRV as soon as possible.

If all the information in THETIS-MRV is updated correctly and the registered ship owner is Danish, then there can be a technical error or something else regarding the rules and allocation. If so, we advise you to contact the THETIS-MRV helpdesk: thetis@emsa.europa.eu.

Updating THETIS-MRV with correct information regarding the ship and the company's registered ownership is important in connection with the EU ETS maritime inclusion. It is therefore important to update company and ship information in THETIS-MRV as soon as possible.

In case of a new shipping company not yet listed on the EU Commission’s published list, the rules spelled out in Article 3gf of the EU ETS Directive shall apply. This means that, on the basis of these rules, shipping companies will be able to identify which is their Administering EU-member state The THETIS-MRV Helpdesk will assist the shipping company in assigning its responsible administering EU-member state in the system. The company will then be added to the list at its next update, which happens every second year.

Updating THETIS-MRV with correct information on the ship(s) and the company's registered ownership is important in connection with the EU ETS maritime attribution. It is therefore important to update company and ship information in THETIS-MRV as soon as possible. 

You can contact THETIS-MRV Helpdesk via thetis@emsa.europa.eu.

No, to ensure stability, once assigned to an EU Member State, a shipping company remains assigned to that EU Member State regardless of subsequent changes in the shipping company’s activities or changes in registration, until those variations are reflected in an updated attribution list which will be updated every two years.

Although shipping companies will remain assigned to the EU Member State attributed to them until the release of an updated list, please note that ships may be transferred between companies, following the sale/purchase of a ship or simply a change of responsibility due to MRV and ETS compliance obligations, e.g. between a shipowner and an ISM company. Such cases will qualify as a change of company within the MRV Regulation. A reporting period is for a full year, starting in January end ends in December. In case the change of shipping company occurs during a reporting period this means that the new shipping company should submit a revised monitoring plan, while the previous shipping company should submit a partial emissions report.

The Danish regulations limit the ability to open trading accounts to companies or persons registered in Denmark, and at least one account representative must have a permanent address in Denmark, regardless of business activity. Each EU Member State has their own legislation stating if they accept companies from outside their own country to open trading accounts. Unfortunately, we do not have an overview of the other EU member State legislations.

Non-EU shipping companies which are not registered in the EU/EEA, can only open a Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) in Denmark if they have been attributed to Denmark, based on the final attributions list adopted by the EU Commission - published on February 1^st, 2024.

On February 1^st, 2024, the EU Commission published a list assigning the shipping companies with ships weighting over 500 BT and covered by the EU ETS Maritime inclusion, to the EU Member States by which they must be administered. Thereafter this list will be updated and republished every second year. 

The Danish Business Authority has contacted the shipping companies on the final attribution list and thereby attributed to Denmark, in order to open Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA).

Please contact The Danish Business Authority if your shipping company has ship(s) weighing over 5000 TB and is on the final attribution list and you have not received the letter to open a shipping operator holding account in Denmark or have questions. Please note, if your shipping company is attributed to Denmark, you must contact the Danish Emission Trading Registry within 40 working days of the list being published (February 1^st, 2024) to start the opening of MOHA in Denmark.

Shipping companies can already open a Trading Account to start buying allowances. 

Regarding the opening of a Compliance Account, Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA): the shipping companies which are on the final attributions list published on February 1^st, 2024 by the EU Commission, must open a Maritime Operator Holding Account in the EU member state to which they have been assigned to. Please note, if your shipping company is attributed to Denmark, you must contact the Danish Emission Trading Registry within 40 working days of the list being published (February 1^st, 2024) to start the opening of MOHA in Denmark.

If your shipping company is on the final attributions list by the EU Commission (as of February 1^st, 2024) and you, as the Legal Ship Owner (legal registered owner), wish to delegate the responsibility for the EU ETS maritime compliance, a mandate document must be prepared containing information about delegating the obligation of the EU ETS maritime compliance mandate to an ISM Company. This document must be signed by both the legal Ship Owner and the mandated ISM Company. If the document is in a language other than Danish, Norwegian, Swedish or English, a legalized English translation must be sent.  

The mandate document must include the following information: 

• The company name and IMO company name, IMO identification number of the mandated ISM Company  
• The country of registration of the ISM Company as is in THETIS-MRV  
• The name and the IMO company identification number of Legal Ship Owner (legal registered owner)
• Information about the contact person of the shipowner: 

1. First name
2. Last name
3. Job title,
4. Business address
5. Business telephone number
6. Business email address 

• The date of delegating the mandate from the shipowner to the ISM Company
• The IMO ship identification number of each ship included in the delegation of the mandate. 
   

What should you do with the final and signed mandate document? 

• If the delegated ISM company person is NOT registered in Denmark, the mandate document must be sent to The Danish Emission Trading Registry as soon as possible. Please note that THETIS-MRV must be updated by the Legal Ship Owner (legal registered owner) with the updated changes that maritime compliance responsibility is authorized to the ISM company.
   
• If the delegated ISM company is registered in Denmark, the mandate document must be sent, together with all the mandatory documentation, in connection with the opening of the Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) in Denmark. We advise that the Legal Ship Owner (legal registered owner) informs The Danish Emission Trading Registry about the change as soon as possible. 

A bareboat charterer cannot be considered as the ship owner under EU ETS and MRV. Therefore, it is not possible to get the EU ETS responsibility as a bareboat charterer. As a bareboat charterer the only way to be responsible for compliance with ETS and MRV is if that bareboat charterer is delegated to assume the EU ETS responsibility as an ISM Company. In that case, the registered owner of the ship(s) must document this in a Mandate Document, which includes information about delegating the obligation of the EU ETS maritime compliance mandate to an ISM Company. This document must be signed by both the legal registered Ship Owner and the mandated ISM Company. If the document is in a language other than Danish, Norwegian, Swedish or English, a legalized translation in one of the previously mentioned languages must be sent.

Please see detailed information about the Mandate Document under the question 'What should I do if, we as the Legal Ship Owner want to mandate the maritime compliance responsibility to an ISM Company?'

As mentioned above, the bareboat charterer cannot be considered as the ship owner under EU ETS and MRV. But a shipowner can ask a third party to fulfil tasks on their behalf. Therefore, a bareboat charterer could agree to get a Power of Attorney from the ship owner mandating that they can act on behalf of the registered owner as an Account Representative. 

Yes, if your shipping company is on the final attributions list by the EU Commission (as of February 1^st, 2024), then you can open a MOHA, Maritime Operator Holding Account in Denmark. The Danish Business Authority has contacted the shipping companies on the final attribution list, which was published on February 1^st, 2024. Danish shipping companies which have a company digital mailbox are contacted by this. Other companies are contacted via e-mail.

Please contact The Danish Business Authority if your shipping company is on the final attribution list and you have not received the letter to open a shipping operator holding account in Denmark or have questions. Please note, if your shipping company is attributed to Denmark, you must contact the Danish Emission Trading Registry within 40 working days of the list being published (February 1^st, 2024) to start the opening of MOHA in Denmark.

No, trading is possible between all accounts in the EU  ETS Registry, regardless of which countries the accounts are registered in and whether they are trading or compliance/holding accounts.

Compliance accounts - For those who are covered by the EU ETS

All companies covered by the EU ETS which are either registered in Denmark or has Denmark as administrating EU Member State, must have a compliance account in Denmark’s section of the EU ETS Registry. Hence the flag of the ship is irrelevant. Compliance accounts for the maritime sector will be named Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA).
The compliance account is used for the registering of the specific company’s emission of greenhouse gases, and once a year, companies must surrender emission allowances that correspond to their emissions of greenhouse gases in the preceding year. For the EU ETS Maritime Inclusion compliance will be in September 2025. Compliance accounts can also be used for conducting transactions to buy or sell allowances. The Danish Business Authority will contact the companies concerning the opening of a compliance account. 
 

Trading accounts – For all

Any legal or physical person can apply to open a trading account – it’s a voluntary account. The account is used for trading of emission allowances which can be traded freely. Hence a ship manager may for instance have a trading account to be able to buy or sell emission allowances.

Both types of accounts require the appointment of at least two account representatives who can conduct transactions. And that at least one account representative must have a permanent address in Denmark, regardless of the business activity.

A shipping company can both have a compliance account, Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) and a trading account. As a starting point, the expectation is that the allowances on an account are owned by the company to which the account belongs. Please note that the allowances are a financial instrument and thereby covered by MIFIR and MAR.

No, unfortunately it is not possible to change the type of an account from a Trading Account to a Compliance Account.

The purpose of trading accounts is only trading or voluntary climate reduction, and they cannot be used to comply with compliance obligations under the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme.

No, shipping companies can trade with the, the same allowances as used by the industry, power sector and aircraft operators.

• EUA - EU General Allowances
• AEUA - EU aviation allowances
• CHU - Swiss general allowances
• CHUA - Swiss aviation allowances

Ships subject to the EU ETS can use these types of allowances to account for their emissions. EUAs are allowances specifically created by the European Union for the EU ETS Scheme and can be obtained by various sectors such as industrial and aviation.

EU allowances can be bought on the primary market through auctions on the European Energy Exchange (EEX), which currently contracts with the EU and its 27 EU member states to manage this system.

Purchase and trading with allowances requires an account in the EU ETS Registry.   Maritime Opening of Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) is only possible if your shipping is attributed to Denmark on the final attributions list by the EU Commission. 

All Danish companies which have VAT registration including shipping companies which are not on the final attribution list, can buy EU allowances by opening a trading account in the Danish Emission Trading Registry. Regarding the opening of a trading account, a company can request the opening of a trading account with The Danish Business Authority. Provided that this meets the conditions and provides all the necessary information that is required. Account holders themselves must enter into agreements with whom they wish to trade with, as well as enter into agreements themselves regarding price, number of allowances, transaction date, etc.

No, shipping companies will need to surrender allowances  corresponding to the amount of aggregated emissions data at company level to be reported under the EU ETS Directive. Carbon credits or certificates cannot be used for EU ETS compliance purposes and cannot be traded in the EU ETS Registry.

Once aggregated and emissions data at company level have been verified and submitted to the administering authority, shipping companies must surrender the equivalent number of allowances in the Union Registry by September 30^th of that year. I.e. Shipping companies must surrender their first EU ETS allowances by September 30^th, 2025, for emissions in 2024. The share of emissions that must be covered by allowances gradually increases each year, i.e.: 

• 2025: 40% of emissions reported for 2024 must be covered by  allowances.

• 2026: 70% of emissions reported for 2025 must be covered by  allowances. 

• 2027 and beyond: 100% of reported emissions must be covered by allowances.

EU allowances issued on or after 2013 do not expire, which means that EU allowances are valid indefinitely and may be banked for future years. However, an allowance that has been surrendered cannot be retrieved.

There is no limit to the number of EU allowances which can be bought or sold. EU allowances are made available to the market throughout the year.

For accounts in the EU ETS Registry there are two types of transactions: trusted transactions and direct transactions. 

No service charges are linked to the individual transactions, but an annual service charge for each account is payable to the Danish Business Authority. 

in Denmark, there is a reverse obligation to pay VAT on the purchase price of EUAs. This is also the case in most EU countries.

Shipping companies must begin monitoring their emissions from January 1^st, 2024. The monitoring period ends on December 31^st, 2024, and emission verification must be completed by March 31^st, 2025. Allowances for 2024 must be surrendered by September 30^th , 2025. 

To read more about the Monitoring Plan you can visit the Danish Energy Agency website or the EU Commission´s website. 

No. Account representatives must actively surrender allowances based on verified emissions data. 

Once aggregated, emissions data at company level have been verified and submitted to the administering authority, companies must surrender the equivalent number of allowances in the Union Registry by September 30^th of that year.
 
Once aggregated, and emissions data at company level have been verified and submitted to the administering authority, The Danish Energy Agency shipping companies must surrender the equivalent number of allowances in the Union Registry by September 30^th of that year. I.e. Shipping companies must surrender their first EU ETS allowances by September 30^th, 2025, for emissions reported in 2024.

The shipping company is responsible for surrendering allowances corresponding to emissions from their ships during the time they were under their responsibility. 

Shipping companies that fail to surrender allowances are liable to an excess emissions penalty of EUR 100 (corrected for inflation) per tonne of CO2 equivalent and are still liable for the surrendering of the required allowances. Names of the penalised companies are also disclosed to the public.

EU Member States may set out additional penalties that are effective, proportionate and dissuasive. Moreover, in case a shipping company has failed to comply with surrendering obligations for two or more consecutive reporting periods, and where other enforcement measures have failed to ensure compliance, the competent authority of the EU Member State of the port of entry may, after giving the opportunity to the company concerned to submit its observations, issue an expulsion order.

In practice, this means that the EU Member State will detain the ship until the company fulfils its obligations.

A reporting period is the period from January 1^st until December 31^st of any given calendar year. Hence, for voyages starting and ending in two different calendar years, the respective data must be accounted under each reporting period. Following the example above, this means that the number of emissions until December 31^st, 2024, as monitored by the shipping company, will be reported as part of the 2024 emissions report. While the number of emissions corresponding to the part of the voyage as of January 1^st, 2025 will be accounted for in the 2025 emissions report.

Administering authorities will ensure that all companies under their responsibility surrender sufficient allowances in due time. Information about the compliance status of regulated entities will be derived from the Union Registry and be made accessible to the relevant authorities.

In case the responsibility for the purchase of the fuel and/or the operation of the ship is assumed by an entity other than the shipping company pursuant to a contractual arrangement, the shipping company is entitled to reimbursement from that entity for the costs arising from the surrendering of allowances. EU Member States must take national measures to ensure that the shipping company is entitled to reimbursement in such situations and must provide the corresponding access to justice to enforce that entitlement.

Although this entitlement to reimbursement should be made effective by EU Member States regardless of contractual arrangements, shipping companies and entities responsible for the purchase of the fuel and/or the operation of the ship are expected to develop contractual clauses to pass on the ETS surrendering costs as appropriate. ‘Operation of the ship’ for the purposes of this provision means determining the cargo carried or the route and the speed of the ship.

Nevertheless, the shipping company remains the responsible entity for surrendering allowances.

Yes, EU allowances are seen as a financial regulated instrument, which is why a license is required to trade such products, unless you fall under exceptions, such as that these products are traded to bring this entity into compliance with EU ETS requirements. All companies that trade with EU allowances must be LEI registered, regardless of what the purpose of the trade is, whether the allowances are to be used for compliance or is simply a trade.