Climate: CO2 emissions of container ships have increased

CO2 emissions of container ships that had run in the EU last year have increased significantly. This emerges from EU data, which also grasp trips outside of Europe. The Danish analysis company Sea-Intelligence assumes that the Huthi militia has contributed to the increase: Because the militia attacks merchant ships, the ships drive longer detours-which harms the climate.

According to the data, container ships listed in the EU database caused 52.8 million tons of CO2 last year. That corresponds approximately to the CO2 emissions of Greece. In the previous year comparison, emissions rose by 46 percent.

Estimate: 18 million additional tons of CO2

“This increase is clearly due to the crisis in the Red Sea,” says Sea-Intelligence from Copenhagen in an analysis available to the German press agency. The company assumes that the detours driven led to an excess of an additional 18 million tons of CO2 in container shipping. With an increase in trade, the development cannot be explained alone.

The CO2 emissions of the container ships have been at a high since the start of the 2018 data collection, as SEA-intelligence announced. Between 2018 and 2023, emissions fell year after year.

The responsible German authority, the German emission trade office in Berlin, said on request that it could not determine whether the detours of the ships led to the increase in emissions.

Foreign ships are also recorded

In the database, all larger ships are recorded with an EU cover. More specifically, the statistics contain trips to ships that have hit an EU port, for example to unload goods. Departures are also collected. The law includes all flag states. This means that emissions of panamic and Chinese ships are also registered.

The basis of the database is the MRV Sea Transport Ordinance of the EU, which came into force in 2015. The ordinance has been committed to monitoring CO2 emissions since 2018. At the beginning of 2025, stricter requirements became effective.

Container ships bypass the Red Sea

The Huthi, which is supported by Iran, attack in the Red Sea and in the neighboring Gulf of Aden merchant ships with alleged reference to Israel. As a result, container shipping in the Red Sea has largely broken into. Instead, many of the ships drive the wide detour around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.

Huthi’s attacks on ships began in November 2023, more than a month after the beginning of the Gaza War. There are different information on how many ships have already been attacked. The UN Sea shipping organization IMO spoke of around 50 attacks in May 2024. International media now give far higher numbers.