Want to charge up ferry decarbonisation? Fund Onshore Power Supply

Dedicated funding mechanism

Johan Roos, director of Regulatory Affairs at Interferry, clarified the claim: "We already know exactly what we need to do to decarbonise our sector without an excessive need for basic R&D. Overly narrow eligibility criteria for support risk excluding many practical and readily deployable OPS and fleet-retrofitting projects.” Added Mr Roos, “Application procedures have also often been so cumbersome that operators are not prepared to invest themselves in project application and administration, just to potentially see a minor financial contribution.”

With ferry newbuilds costing hundreds of millions of dollars, and designed to remain in service for decades, decarbonisation cannot rely on fleet replacement alone. The industry’s path forward relies heavily on retrofitting existing, structurally sound vessels with modern battery systems. This commercial reality requires direct, easily accessible capital support rather than complex research grants.

The definitive solution is a pragmatic approach to regulatory revenue, with funds redirected back into the system where they are collected. The EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) functions de facto as a heavy tax on ferry and shortsea services, collecting approximately €10Bn annually from the maritime industry – of which more than 10% comes from roro and ropax vessels. As the sector prepares for the upcoming review of the EU ETS scheduled for publication, a golden opportunity emerges to adapt the legal framework.

Interferry is actively engaging with the European Commission to ensure that revenues generated by maritime transport are ringfenced for the maritime sector. Rather than disappearing into non-related governmental projects, these funds should be directed via a dedicated mechanism to support direct infrastructure deployment.

"We are calling for the creation of a mechanism that directly supports ship operations and port development," noted Mr Roos. "A system allowing green investments in shore-side electrical infrastructure, grid upgrades in port cities, and upscaling production of low-carbon fuels to be offset against ETS compliance obligations would better reflect the capital-intensive reality of our industry. If we are required to surrender ETS allowances, the money must be reinvested to close the price gap between conventional operations and low-carbon solutions."

Legislative review

Furthermore, the upcoming legislative review must address the administrative burden. True optimisation requires streamlining data requirements and establishing clear legislative guardrails to ensure that regional systems such as the EU ETS act only as transitional measures, to be withdrawn once a global mechanism is finalised at the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

Transitioning the global ferry industry to all-electric operations is an achievable goal, but it cannot be accomplished by shipowners acting in isolation. It requires ports to invest in high-capacity charging infrastructure, grid owners to guarantee resilient grid access at competitive, predictable pricing from the energy companies, and states to provide clear financial pathways.

Reflecting on the scale of the challenge and the opportunities ahead, Interferry chief executive Mike Corrigan said: “The ferry industry is fully committed to the target of complete electrification wherever feasible. The willingness to invest is there, the shipboard technology is ready, and the newly published EU maritime and port strategies prove that the political recognition has finally arrived. The primary hurdle remains landing the necessary electrical capacity at the pier.”

Mr Corrigan called on maritime stakeholders to collaborate on maritime electrification to make fully electric ferries a reality. “There is still an immense amount of work to do to build up a resilient, high-capacity electrical infrastructure across global port networks. However, with billions in ETS revenues available to be properly directed, the funding possibilities are right in front of us. If governments, ports, grid operators, and shipowners work together, we can bridge the infrastructure gap and turn the vision of a zero-emission ferry industry into an everyday operational reality.”