The global maritime sector is at a turning point. While shipping remains the most carbon-efficient mode of transport on a per-tonne basis, it is also responsible for nearly 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions—a figure that will continue to rise without significant intervention. The challenge ahead is clear: if the shipping industry is to meet its decarbonisation targets, the fleet must evolve. Shipbuilding plays a central role in this transformation, not only by developing new vessels equipped for alternative fuels but also by ensuring that existing ships can be retrofitted with energy-saving and low-emission technologies.
The transition to a lower-emission fleet is already underway, but progress is uneven. More than half of the current orderbook consists of vessels designed for alternative fuels, yet only 7% of the global fleet is capable of running on them. Retrofitting efforts remain limited, and the widespread adoption of advanced technologies is constrained by high costs, supply chain challenges, and uncertainty around future fuel availability. Meanwhile, global shipbuilding capacity remains concentrated in a few regions, and the sector faces growing competitive pressures as it adapts to new demands. Addressing these challenges requires a balanced and coordinated approach. Industrial strategies must be designed to support innovation without distorting markets, ensuring that investments in alternative fuels, digitalisation, and energy efficiency technologies remain both commercially viable and globally competitive. Expanding access to ship finance can help shipowners, shipbuilders and fuel suppliers accelerate the adoption of low-emission solutions.
The OECD Shipbuilding Committee provides a unique platform which aims to contribute to establishing normal competitive conditions in the shipbuilding sector and to address other key issues. With its renewed mandate for 2024-2028, the Committee is indeed deepening its focus on the economic implications of maritime decarbonisation and ensuring that policy measures encourage innovation while maintaining fair competition in the global shipbuilding sector. One key area of work is the ongoing discussion on possible more liberal export credit terms for low- and zero-emission vessels, which has the potential to reduce financial barriers and incentivise investment across the sector.
This report provides a timely assessment of the shipbuilding industry’s role in maritime decarbonisation, exploring the impact of technology developments and policy measures on the sector’s future. Ensuring a successful transition will require close cooperation between actors across the maritime ecosystem and supply chain—from shipowners, shipbuilders, marine technology designers and fuel suppliers, to policymakers and financial institutions. The choices made today will not only determine the carbon impact of shipping but also shape the long-term competitiveness and resilience of the global shipbuilding industry.
H.E. Ambassador Halvor Hvideberg,
Permanent Representative of Norway to the OECD,
Chair of the OECD Shipbuilding Committee