Container lines have reduced their exposure to the EU’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) by using non-EU ports located close to Europe, wrote Sea-Intelligence. The analyst said it looked at the 2026 Asia‑Europe networks to assess the impact of the fully phased-in system.

Major regional transshipment hubs like Tangiers in Morocco and Port Said in Egypt are being designated as non‑qualifying “last ports of call”, said Sea-Intelligence. This port-of-call strategy is helping reset the distance calculation so ocean carriers are able to report shorter sailing distances. Sea‑Intelligence reports that this strategy is reducing the ETS‑chargeable distance by an average of 11% compared to 2025 networks.

Alan Murphy, CEO at Sea-Intelligence, noted that MSC and Premier Alliance have not changed their ETS sailing distance. Instead, the overall 11% reduction is “driven almost entirely by Gemini Cooperation and Ocean Alliance, with their new networks achieving a nearly 20% additional reduction each compared to their 2025 distances,” he said.

Under the ETS rules, carriers must surrender carbon allowances for 100% of emissions occurring between two EU ports, and 50% for voyages between an EU and a non‑EU port.

Source: Sea-Intelligence