The EU’s emissions regime reaches full force and the IMO edges closer to a global carbon price, even as the industry’s attention remains fixed on the strait.

2026 is the year maritime carbon costs become real
From January 2026, the EU ETS reached full compliance for maritime transport, with shipping companies now required to surrender allowances for 100% of verified emissions, and coverage expanded to include methane and nitrous oxide alongside CO₂. The European Commission will conduct a review of the EU ETS for maritime transport this year. At the IMO level, the Net-Zero Framework approved at MEPC 83 in April 2025, proposing global fuel intensity limits and a carbon pricing mechanism, was delayed for formal adoption until October 2026, but the direction of travel is clear. The cost gap between conventional and green fuels remains wide, with sustainable methanol priced at roughly double conventional fuel oil, but the regulatory trajectory is compressing the timeline for shipowners to factor carbon costs into fleet strategy. Ammonia-ready newbuildings, such as EMF’s Green Harmony Vessels, represent the pragmatic response: conventional economics today with the option to convert when green fuels scale.