E-fuel producers urge IMO to adopt framework with e-fuel multiplier - T&E
Twenty-six global e-fuel producers have called on the IMO to strengthen its net-zero framework (NZF) by adding an e-fuel multiplier to reward the uptake of green hydrogen-based fuels.
IMAGE: Methanol-capable vessel, Laura Maersk, docked at European Energy's e-methanol plant in Kasso, Denmark. X of @Maersk
The letter, accessed by Transport & Environment, called for the adoption of the framework this week.
But it also argued that “without additional prioritisation for e-fuels in the relevant implementation guidelines,” the current version risked incentivising “pay-to-pollute strategies” and encouraging investment in transitional alternatives such as LNG, biofuels and blue fuels.
Signatories included European Energy, Liquid Wind, ET Fuels, HIF Global, Green North Energy and Moeve, among others, with projects across Africa, the Americas, Europe, South Asia and Oceania.
The letter noted that only 13% of the estimated 73 million mt/year of green hydrogen production planned for 2030 was linked to offtake agreements.
It warned that many green hydrogen projects might not reach Final Investment Decision (FID) without stronger policy signals and could struggle to become operational — a challenge reflected across the broader e-fuels sector.
An e-fuel mandate with a targeted reward system could create demand signals and provide the certainty needed to unlock investment, the producers wrote.
They proposed introducing an e-fuel multiplier, described as a “temporary, self-activating, non-monetary and low-burden mechanism that counted each unit of certified e-fuel multiple times (at least twice) towards GHG Fuel Intensity (GFI) compliance.”
Such a temporary mechanism, the letter added, could help reduce first-mover risk and stimulate offtake agreements by offering greater rewards during the ramp-up phase.
It also recommended that the reward methodology should differentiate between fuels and technologies, recognising their varied costs, environmental performance and production pathways.
“E-fuel producers need policy certainty to get green shipping fuels off the ground,” said Alison Shaw, IMO manager at Transport & Environment.
“The current IMO Net-Zero Framework leaves e-fuels competing with cheaper and unsustainable options like fossil gas and first-generation biofuels. The message from producers is clear: to decarbonise shipping at scale, incentives for green e-fuels are essential. Without targeted incentives, shipping’s energy transition risks stalling before it begins,” she added.
By Konica Bhatt
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