You are using an outdated browser For a better experience using this site, please upgrade to a modern web browser. Subscribe Get Daily Email Subscribe --> Contact Us Sign in Home News & Features Compliance Costs Bunker Prices Bunker Intelligence EMEA News Latest Features World Americas EMEA Asia/Pacific Home News & Features EMEA Study Raises Doubts Over EU ETS Carbon Cost Recovery Study Raises Doubts Over EU ETS Carbon Cost Recovery by Ship & Bunker News Team Friday July 24, 2026 Tweet Follow @shipandbunker The academic research questions whether the EU's statutory reimbursement right. File Image / Pixabay A new academic study has raised questions over whether shipping companies can reliably recover EU emissions trading costs from charterers under the EU ETS . The research argues that, despite the EU's statutory reimbursement right, commercial contracts, not the law, ultimately determine who bears carbon costs across the shipping chain, according to the report emailed by UCL on Friday . The study, by Erasmus School of Law at Erasmus University Rotterdam , found the reimbursement mechanism faces significant practical hurdles. These include complex multi-layered charter chains, uncertainty over the application of English law and the widespread use of arbitration outside the EU, all of which can make the statutory right difficult to enforce. “ For most of the market, effective cost recovery still depends entirely on what is negotiated into the charterparty Hannah Mosmans “The EU ETS gives the impression that shipowners and managers who pay the carbon bill can automatically recover it from the party actually responsible for the ship’s operation or fuel purchase,” Hannah Mosmans , co-author and PhD researcher at Erasmus School of Law, said. “Our research shows that this is largely an illusion once you look at how shipping contracts actually work. “For most of the market, effective cost recovery still depends entirely on what is negotiated into the charterpart