Moses Amweelo

In order to reduce shipping’s impact on climate change, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) started in the early 2000s to consider technical and operational measures to improve the energy efficiency of ships. 

In 2011, IMO adopted amendments to MARPOL Annex VI to mandate technical and operational energy efficiency measures to reduce the amount of CO2 emissions from international shipping. 

The Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) and the Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) entered into force on 1 January 2013. Those measures represent the first global mandatory greenhouse gas (GHG)-reduction regime for an international industry sector, and have been driving energy efficiency improvements 

across the global fleet for more than a decade. Goal-based and technology-neutral% regulations have incentivised the use of energy-efficient technologies such as hull air lubrication,
wind-assisted propulsion, waste heat recovery,

etc. IMO Member States have adopted further energy efficiency measures in 2021 to reduce the carbon intensity of international shipping by at least 40 %

in 2030 compared to 2008. 

Continuous improvements in the energy efficiency of shipping remain crucial, and will help to absorb the 

extra cost of alternative low-and zero-carbon fuels. 

The EEDI is an important technical measure aiming at promoting the use of more energy-efficient equipment

and engines for the design of new ships in order to make them less- polluting. The EEDI requires a minimum energy efficiency level per capacity miles (e.g. tone mile) for different ship types and size segments. 

Since 1 January 2013, following a two-year transitional phase, new ship design needs to meet the reference level for their ship type. The level is to be tightened incrementally every five years, and so the EEDI is expected to stimulate continued innovation and technical development of all the components influencing the fuel efficiency of a ship from its design phase. 

The EEDI is a non-prescriptive, performance-based mechanism that leaves the choice of technologies to use in a specific ship design to the industry. As long as the required energy efficiency level is attained, ship designers and builders are free to use the most cost-efficient solutions for the ship to comply with the regulations. 

The EEDI provides a specific figure for an individual ship design, expressed in grams of carbon dioxide per ship’s capacity-mile (the smaller the EEDI,

the more energy-efficient the ship design), and is calculated by a formula based on the technical design parameters for a given ship. 

The CO2 reduction level (grams of CO2 per tonne mile) for the first phase is set to 10%, compared to a reference

line calculated from the average 

efficiency for ships built between 2000 and 2010. It is tightened every five years to keep pace with technological developments of new efficiency and reduction measures until 2025 and onwards when a 30% reduction is mandated for applicable ship types. 

The EEDI was originally developed for the largest and most energy-intensive segments of the world merchant fleet, and embraces emissions
from new ships,
covering the following ship types: tankers, bulk carriers, gas carriers, general cargo ships, container ships, refrigerated cargo carriers, and combination carriers. 

In 2014, Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC)
adopted amendments to the EEDI regulations to extend the scope of EEDI to LNG carriers, ro-ro cargo s
hips (vehicle carriers), ro-ro cargo ships, ro-ro passenger ships and cruise passenger ships having non-conventional propulsion. These amendments mean that ship types responsible for approximately 85% of the CO2 emissions from international shipping are incorporated under the international regulatory regime. 

For a uniform and effective implementation of the regulations, guidelines related to the EEDI
(regulation 22 of MARPOL Annex VI) and survey and certification (regulation 5) were developed by MEPC.  They are available in the Index of MEPC Resolutions and Guidelines and Circulars related to MARPOL Annex VI under the “Guidelines and Circulars related to MARPOL Annex VI” part. The Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) is an operational mechanism to improve the energy efficiency of a ship in a cost-effective manner. 

The SEEMP urges the ship owner and operator at each stage of the plan to consider new technologies and
practices when seeking to optimise the operational performance of a ship. The SEEMP also provides an approach for shipping companies to manage ship and fleet efficiency performance over 

time, using recognised monitoring
tools. 

The 2022 guidelines for the development of the SEEMP 

incorporates best-ractices for fuel-efficient ship operation as well as templates for the development of SEEMPs, which should comprise of

three parts; Part I: Ship management plan to improve energy efficiency,
Part II: Ship fuel oil consumption
data collection plan, Part III: Ship operational carbon intensity plan. 

The Carbon Intensity Indicator 

(CII) rating reflects the operational energy efficiency of ships, building

upon fuel oil consumption from the
IMO Data-collection system (DCS)]

and the SEEMP as a management

 tool. 

The CII framework provides tools for administrations, ports and other stakeholders, including the financial sector, to provide incentives to most energy-efficient ships.

*Dr Moses Amweelo is a former Minister of Works, Transport and Communication. He is currently a lecturer at IUM and UNAM on a part time basis. He earned a doctorate in Technical Science, Industrial Engineering and Management from the International Transport Academy (St Petersburg, Russia).