ZeroNorth partners with Vitol to facilitate EUA purchases, accelerating green shipping

Technology company ZeroNorth, in partnership with energy and commodities company Vitol, has today announced that customers will be able to request to buy European Union Allowances (EUAs) for EU Emissions Trading System compliance through the ZeroNorth platform.

The ZeroNorth platform’s Emissions Analytics solution already enables users to calculate their EUA exposure, but this additional functionality enables users to submit a request to Vitol for the purchase of allowances in the same workflow, saving them considerable time and effort.

ZeroNorth’s Emission Analytics module will facilitate EU ETS exposure management between owners and charterers by improving alignment on data collection, validation and reporting.

The platform will support customers who may not have their own capacity to purchase EUAs, lowering the barrier to entry for compliance with EU ETS rules. This also opens a new opportunity for the industry, as traditionally EUA providers might charge a high commission fee, and banks require a large volume of EUAs for transactions. With today’s news, customers can request to buy EUAs in low volumes through a direct link from the ZeroNorth platform.

Shipping companies must surrender their first EUAs by 30 September 2025 for emissions reported in 2024. Initially, the share of emissions that must be covered by these EUAs is 40% of reported emissions in 2024, rising to 70% for 2025’s emissions and then 100% by 2027 and beyond.

Søren Meyer, CEO, ZeroNorth, said: “We are proud to partner with Vitol on this new functionality for the ZeroNorth platform, which we believe will considerably smooth the process of enabling customers to work with Vitol to purchase their EUAs for ETS compliance.

“EU ETS is transformative in terms of its mandate to reduce emissions from shipping. We understand that for some customers – and particularly those that lack the scale or processes to navigate the regulation – solutions are needed to help smooth their emissions reductions pathway. That’s why we have chosen to work with Vitol’s Carbon Desk, a leader in this space, and make it easier for customers of all sizes to seek to purchase the EUAs they need to have a positive impact on shipping.”

Ian Butler, Head of Energy Transition – Shipping, Vitol, added: “Vitol’s Carbon Desk has deep experience in carbon compliance markets, and with shipping entering the EU-ETS this year, we hope our partnership with ZeroNorth will enable their customers to simplify their compliance workflows. We look forward to working with ZeroNorth users who may need to purchase EUAs, in an increasingly complex shipping environment.”

Shipping firms regulated by the EU ETS must possess an approved monitoring plan to oversee and document yearly emissions. ZeroNorth’s Emissions Analytics software enables users to generate emission reports for each vessel under their jurisdiction, alongside a consolidated emissions report at the corporate level, which amalgamates voyage data for ETS compliance.