BIMCO ETS clauses for voyage charter parties
The three 2023 voyage clauses that allocate emission allowance cost, and how each differs.
BIMCO publishes three alternative ETS clauses for voyage charter parties, all adopted and published on 8 December 2023: an Emission Scheme Freight Clause, an Emission Scheme Surcharge Clause, and an Emission Scheme Transfer of Allowances Clause. The parties choose one to suit the trade.
The Freight Clause builds allowance cost into the freight rate. The Surcharge Clause has the charterer pay an agreed surcharge corresponding to the vessel’s in-scope emissions while the owner remains responsible for surrendering the allowances. The Transfer Clause has the charterer transfer actual allowances rather than money. All three are scheme-neutral, defining Emission Scheme to cover the EU ETS and any similar system imposed by a lawful authority.
The full article will set out each clause, the surrender obligation and who carries it, the interaction with the time charter Allowances Clause of 2022, the companion clauses for contracts of affreightment, SHIPMAN, memoranda of agreement and BARECON, and the gap where no FuelEU voyage clause exists.