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BIMCO Tags Ship-efficiency Retrofit Barriers

[ October 16, 2026   //   ]

BIMCO has adopted a contractual framework intended to make it easier for shipowners and charterers to agree on investments in energy-saving equipment during a time charter.

The Energy Saving Device Retrofit Addendum 2026 provides a mechanism for allocating the cost, installation time and fuel-saving benefits associated with retrofit projects. BIMCO said the addendum is intended to address a longstanding misalignment between the party funding an improvement and the party receiving its operational benefits.

When a shipowner pays to purchase and install energy-saving equipment, some or all of the resulting fuel savings may accrue to the charterer during the charter period. That division can reduce the owner’s incentive to proceed with a project even when it could lower fuel consumption, operating costs and emissions.

“The new addendum addresses a long-standing commercial challenge,” said Stinne Taiger Ivø, BIMCO deputy secretary general and director of contractual affairs. “Energy-saving technologies have become increasingly sophisticated, but investments in retrofit projects have been complicated by a misalignment of commercial interests between owners and charterers.”

Rather than prescribing a single cost-sharing model, the addendum allows the parties to negotiate terms appropriate to an individual project. It also addresses the time required to install the equipment and the allocation of benefits generated during the charter.

BIMCO developed the addendum as a technology-neutral framework that can be used for existing and future energy-saving systems. It also includes provisions intended to accommodate changing environmental regulations and compliance programs.

“The shipping industry is under increasing pressure to cut emissions and improve energy efficiency,” said Nicholas Fell, chair of BIMCO’s Documentary Committee. “Our objective has been to create a practical tool that can help unlock investments in retrofit solutions and support the industry’s decarbonization efforts.”

Shipping companies are evaluating efficiency retrofits as they face tighter emissions requirements and higher operating costs. The commercial arrangements governing those projects can be particularly important under time charters, where responsibility for capital investment and fuel expense may fall to different parties.

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