20 February 2023

CLECAT Newsletter 2023/06

CLECAT NEWSLETTER
 
Brussels News

CLECAT WELCOMES NEW CO2 STANDARDS FOR TRUCKS

CLECAT released a press statement last week welcoming the Commission proposal (+ annexes) revising the Regulation on CO2 standards for heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs), which was presented on 14 February. The Regulation is one of the most important tools to drive the decarbonisation of road freight transport and is timely to bring the emissions of road freight transport in line with the Paris Agreement and Europe’s climate ambition.

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Brussels News

CLECAT MARITIME LOGISTICS INSTITUTE MEETS

Members of the CLECAT Maritime Logistics Institute met last week to discuss the latest developments impacting sea freight forwarders, notably the evaluation of the CBER, the implementation of the OSRA by the FMC or the policy updates on the maritime-related files of the fit for 55 Package.

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Brussels News

CLECAT CUSTOMS INSTITUTE MEETS IN BRUSSELS

CLECAT’s Customs and Indirect Taxation Institute (CITI) met on the 17 February in a hybrid way in Brussels to discuss the recent policy developments in EU Customs impacting on customs agents and freight forwarders.

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MARITIME
 
Maritime

OCEAN CARRIERS COMMIT TO 100% E-BILL OF LADINGS BY 2030

The Digital Container Shipping Association (DCSA) announced last week that its nine ocean carrier members commit to 100% adoption of an electronic bill of lading (eBL) based on DCSA standards by 2030, with an interim target of converting 50% of original bills of lading to digital within five years.

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Maritime

EU BAN ON RUSSIAN PETROLEUM PRODUCTS LEADS TO HIGHER FREIGHT COSTS

On 5 February, the EU ban for refined petroleum products from Russia entered into force, which was decided in June 2022 as part of the sixth package of sanctions adopted by the Council of the EU. However, such effort from the EU to curb Moscow’s revenues from energy exports has led the cost of moving gasoline and other fuels on oil tankers to soar.

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AIR
 
Air

EU SIGNS AGREEMENT TO BOOST AIR SERVICES WITH JAPAN

On 20 February, the Swedish Presidency of the Council, on behalf of the EU, signed an aviation agreement with Japan. The agreement will give all EU air carriers non-discriminatory access to routes between the EU and Japan, thereby promoting open and fair competition.

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CUSTOMS & TRADE
 
Customs & Trade

EU'S EXCISE DUTY TRANSACTIONS FULLY ELECTRONIC

Since 13 February, Member States have started to apply new excise duty rules following an update of the Directive on general arrangements for excise duty. These rules will make the taxation of alcohol, tobacco and energy products fully paperless across the EU.

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SUSTAINABILITY
 
Sustainability

ISO 14083 STANDARD EXPECTED TO BE PUBLISHED IN MARCH

The forthcoming ISO 14083 standard – “Greenhouse gases — Quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions arising from transport chain operations” entered its final preparation stage before its scheduled publication in March 2023. This new international standard is expected to support the industry globally in its carbon reduction efforts by providing the first universal method for logistics emissions accounting.

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Sustainability

EP FORMALLY APPROVES REVISED CO2 STANDARDS FOR CARS AND VANS

On 14 February, the European Parliament in Plenary session formally approved the agreement reached in trilogues over the revision of the CO2 standards for light-duty vehicles, by 340 votes in favour, 279 against and 21 abstentions.

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Sustainability

EP APPROVES AGREEMENT TO ADD ENERGY MEASURES TO NATIONAL RECOVERY PLANS

On 14 February, the Plenary of the European Parliament approved the agreement to include REPowerEU measures in Member States recovery and resilience plans, with the aim to be more independent from Russian fossil fuels and speed up the green transition.

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GENERAL
 
General

TURKISH LOGITICS OPERATORS DISTRIBUTE HUMANITARIAN AID IN AREAS AFFECTED BY THE EARTHQUAKES

In the aftermath of the earthquakes in southeast Turkey, CLECAT’s associate member UTIKAD, representing freight forwarders and logistics companies in Turkey, started immediate coordination activities for the distribution of humanitarian aid, working around the clock to get domestic and international aid to the affected areas.

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EVENTS
 

CLECAT Meetings

CLECAT ICS2 Q&A session
24 February, Online

Board Meeting
27 February, Online

21st Intermediary Task Force (ITF) meeting
28 February, Zeebrugge

Trade Contact Group meeting
28 February, Brussels

ESPORG Conference on SSTPA
1 March, Brussels

CLECAT Air Freight Institute
14 March 2023, Online

CLECAT Supply Chain Security Institute
14 March 2023, Online

CLECAT session: High-Capacity Transport in support of sustainable road freight
9 May, Munich

International IP Enforcement Summit
14-15 June, Sofia

EU Meetings

European Parliament

European Parliament Plenary
13-16 March 2023, Strasbourg

European Parliament Environment Committee
1-2 March 2023, Brussels

European Parliament Transport Committee
1- 2 March 2023, Brussels

Council of the EU

Informal meeting of transport ministers
27-28 February, Stockholm (Sweden)

Environment Council
16 March, Brussels