by Anil Jacob, Head of Fleet Performance at BSM
Published on 27 May 2026
Despite the volatility in global politics, the shipping industry’s decarbonisation agenda is moving on with existing regulations firmly in place and more coming into force. One of them is the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (UK ETS), while the IMO Net Zero Framework continues to simmer quietly in the background. So how is the industry responding to additional decarbonisation regulations?
The UK ETS will enter into force for maritime transport on 1 July 2026, with a few differences compared to the EU ETS. The scheme covers emissions from domestic UK voyages as well as emissions generated while at berth and during port operations in the UK. In addition to carbon dioxide (CO₂), the UK ETS will also include methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O), reflecting a broader greenhouse gas approach.
There are talks between the UK and the EU about possibly aligning or even linking their ETS systems. But until that actually happens, with the UK ETS coming into force, shipowners and managers will have to deal with another layer of monitoring, reporting and administration. And when the IMO’s Net Zero Framework eventually comes into force, it is widely expected to initially sit alongside existing regulations, rather than replace them.
During the 2025 reporting cycle alone, we supported close to 180 vessels with EU ETS, FuelEU Maritime and MRV related activities and coordinated the handling of around 420 IMO DCS cases. Our work ranged from data validation and verifier coordination to submission management and regulatory guidance, helping ensure timely and accurate compliance across fleets.
This year, a key area of support for our clients is also the provision of pooling arrangements to ensure compliance with FuelEU Maritime. As the regulation introduces increasingly stringent GHG intensity limits, pooling has emerged as a practical and cost‑effective mechanism to balance compliance positions across fleets and operators. We have made timely pooling arrangements for a large number of vessels where we support the full pooling process from evaluating individual vessel surplus and deficit positions, to coordinating nominations, documentation and verifier engagement. We also managed to make the necessary rectifications for the ice-class ships to ensure their compliance following some confusion with the calculation methodology for this class.
Working closely with our clients throughout these different processes, we can see how the industry is adapting and steadily maturing. What began as uncertainty for many is now giving way to a more pragmatic mindset. Ongoing political uncertainty appears to be sharpening priorities rather than blurring them. The collaboration between owners, managers and service providers is becoming more focused on what is truly needed to achieve compliance: greater attention to cost efficiency, clearer contractual responsibilities and liability and more structured, data driven decision-making. We observe a growing acceptance that decarbonisation compliance is no longer an abstract policy discussion, but a market reality that must be managed with the same discipline as any other commercial or operational exposure.
We welcome this pragmatic approach and look forward to deepening our engagement with clients as regulatory requirements continue to evolve. Our focus is on making compliance smarter and more efficient cutting through complexity, clarifying what truly matters and eliminating effort that delivers no real value.
Alongside this, we work in close partnership with OceanOpt, our Schulte Group performance optimisation and emissions management arm. This collaboration combines BSM’s advisory strength with advanced digital and technical capabilities, allowing us to deliver high‑quality performance and compliance support also to vessels beyond our managed fleet.
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