Executive summary
Regulations and standards belong to the group of obvious policy instruments to support the transition to zero emissions for the IWT fleet. In fact, the legal certainty associated with regulations and standards significantly influences the ability to invest in new technologies (energy carriers / converters). Appropriate regulations and standards allow to:
- reduce risks for ship owners willing to invest (and help companies plan their investments),
- reduce operating costs (initial investment, running costs and insurance costs),
- facilitate the acceptance of new technologies by mitigating safety and environmental risks, and
- stimulate market structuring and enable a wider adoption of technologies and clean forms of energy (it reinforces market potential for technology suppliers and may result in economies of scale).
More generally, regulations and standards influence the costs and duration of the transition process to zero emissions for the IWT fleet. In synergy with financial support, a consistent and effective regulatory framework is needed to level out the operational advantages of conventional fossil fuels and related technologies over renewable fuels and thereby improve the business case for cleaner solutions for the fleet.
The purpose of this report is to identify the regulations and standards related to vessels and technologies (energy carriers / converters) which are missing nowadays to effectively support the transition towards a zero-emission IWT fleet in Europe.
The scope of this report is limited to fleet-related regulations and standards: vessel design, including energy converters, energy used, and vessel operations including bunkering, charging and swapping. It covers regulations and standards enacted by the EU, but also those of the River Commissions (such as CCNR or DC) and UNECE which co-exist alongside EU law. In terms of technologies considered (energy carriers / converters), this report takes into account the study published by the CCNR on the energy transition towards a zero-emission inland navigation sector as well as the roadmap for reducing inland navigation emissions adopted in December 2021.
In terms of methodology, a desk study of existing regulations and standards was initially conducted to clarify the general impact on the IWT fleet, the specific gaps for new energy sources as well as gaps in terms of missing regulations for effective emission reduction policies. Then, interviews and discussions (with policy makers, classification societies, technology and energy suppliers, shipyards, IWT sector) allowed to improve the analysis further and prepare recommendations. In particular, the findings of this report were also examined during the third (10-11 February 2022) and sixth (23-24 March 2023) PLATINA3 stage events to ensure acceptance and support by the main impacted stakeholders. This report was elaborated with guidance from the PLATINA3 Advisory Board, as well as representatives of the European Commission’s DG MOVE.
This report includes 42 recommendations to effectively support the transition towards zero emissions for the fleet. In this respect, the recommendations are summarised in table format on the following pages. They include:
- 21 recommendations for the vessel regulations,
- 11 recommendations for fuel regulations and
- 10 recommendations for the operational regulations.
| no V=vessel, F=fuel, P=operation/police | Who | What | When | Priority |
| V1 | EC, CCNR, DC, Moselle Commission, Sava Commission, National administrations | facilitate the financing and commissioning of pilot vessels using alternative technologies, subject to the sharing of the experience collected for the regulatory work | Continuous | I |
| V2 | CESNI, EC, CCNR | investigate the opportunity to introduce efficiency and greenhouse gas emission limits, possibly both for existing vessels and newly built vessels, in line with emission reduction target | 2023-2025 | I |
| V3 | CESNI and EUROMOT | update regularly their FAQ document on NRMM and ES-TRIN | Continuous | I |
| V4 | EC | review opportunity to further reduce exhaust emission limits for inland navigation vessels, taking account of existing related Union and international standards and propose any necessary legal changes | 2025 | II |
| V5 | EC, CCNR, CESNI | consider introducing a phasing out of existing engines in ES-TRIN to achieve minimum air pollutant emission standards | 2030 | II |
| V6,8 | EC, engine manufacturers classification societies | facilitate the use of marinized engines (clarify the accepted inducement strategies and possible use on board vessels transporting dangerous goods) | Continuous | II |
| V7 | EC | review the extent to which the engine emissions measured during type-approval tests using corresponding test cycles reflect engine emissions in real operating conditions and propose any necessary changes. | 2025 | II |
| V9 | EC | evaluate the need to lower the factor A of emission limits for gas engine in NRMM to increase the climate performance of LNG propulsion systems | 2025 | II |
| V10 | CESNI | evaluate the requirements for lithium-ion batteries after several years | 2024-2025 | II |
| V11 | CESNI/CCNR | develop provisions to allow the swappable battery containers for the considering the risks involved | 2023 | I |
| V12 | CESNI | monitor the development in the use of batteries for propulsion and anticipate the spreading of type of batteries other than LIB. | Continuous | II |
| V13 | CESNI | collect experience regarding the approval of the hydrogen tanks and the relevant standards | 2023 | I |
| V14 | CESNI | finalise the requirements for the compressed and liquefied storage of hydrogen | 2023-2025 | I |
| V15 | EUROMOT/CESNI | develop guidelines for the implementation of Articles 34 and 35 of NRMM for engines using hydrogen as fuel (pending a revision of NRMM). | 2023 | I |
| V16 | CESNI | start the development of safety requirements for hydrogen in internal combustion engine | 2024 | II |
| V17 | ADN SC (UNECE-CCNR) | confirm that hydrogen is accepted for propulsion of vessels carrying dangerous goods | 2024-2025 | II |
| V18 | CESNI | monitor the development in the hydrogen carriers | 2025 | II |
| V19 | CESNI | finalise the requirements for the storage of methanol and its use in internal combustion engines (ES-TRIN 2025) | 2023 | I |
| V20 | EUROMOT/CESNI | develop guidelines for the implementation of Articles 34 and 35 of NRMM for engines using methanol as fuel (pending a revision of NRMM). | 2023 | I |
| V21 | ADN SC (UNECE-CCNR) | confirm that methanol is accepted for propulsion of vessels carrying dangerous goods | 2024-2025 | II |
| F1 | Member States, CCNR, DC, Moselle Commission, Sava Commission, EC | coordinate on implementation of REDII revision and FQD as regards obligations for energy suppliers to inland vessels (preferably this coordination takes place at River Commissions level in relation with IWT fleet modernisation issues or even on EU level). | 2023-2024 | I |
| F2 | EC | start policy research/development and impact assessment study for a proposal of “FuelEU IWT” based on the FuelEU Maritime proposal in Fit for 55, aligned with EU Taxonomy technical screening criteria and methodology | 2024-2025 | I |
| F3 | EC | start policy research/development and impact assessment study for a proposal about IWT to be included in ETS (based the approach for road transport in ETS) | 2024-2025 | I |
| F4, F5 | Member States / EC | limit the share of EN590 and fossil LNG in fuel supply, e.g. by means of limits on carbon intensity levels and/or ETS on EU level. | 2030 | I |
| F6, F9, F10, F11 | Member States / EC | promote the share of fuels (HVO or biofuels/e-fuels, hydrogen and methanol) as well as electricity from renewal sources in fuel supply, e.g. by means of limits on carbon intensity levels and/or ETS on EU level | 2030 | I |
| F7 | CEN | investigate need for more strict fuel quality standards for FAME and their blends as well as quality checks in the supply chains of these fuels and enforcement. | 2025 | II |
| F8 | EBU / ESO / national shipowner associations / IVR | launch awareness campaigns on the usage of biodiesel to be aware of possible technical risks and mitigation measures to prevent problems (e.g. as regards filter blockage, water separation) | 2024 | I |
| P1 | CCNR, DC, Moselle Commission, UNECE | examine the need of operational requirements to ensure safety in case of thermal runaway of batteries | 2023 | I |
| P2 | National authorities | facilitate the exchange of good practices between the fire brigades involved in fires with LIB, especially on-board inland vessels | 2023-2024 | I |
| P3 | CEN, CENELEC | develop standards for shore-side battery recharging and battery swapping, taking into account the experience gained in inland navigation and the difference with the maritime sector. | 2026 | I |
| P4 | CCNR, DC, Moselle Commission, UNECE | examine the need of operational requirements to ensure safety of hydrogen | 2023-2024 | I |
| P5 | CEN, CENELEC | develop standards for swapping of racks/containers of compressed hydrogen, taking into account the experience gained in inland navigation and the existing industrial standards | 2026 | I |
| P6 | CEN, CENELEC | develop standards for bunkering of liquefied hydrogen | 2028 | II |
| P7, P10 | National authorities | collect and share the experience gained with the first pilot vessels to feed in the regulatory work | Continuous | I |
| P8 | CCNR, DC, Moselle Commission, UNECE | examine the need of operational requirements to ensure safety of methanol | 2023 | I |
| P9 | CEN, CENELEC | develop standards for bunkering of methanol, taking into account the experience gained in inland navigation and the existing industrial standards | 2024 | I |