Maritime emissions and compliance solutions provider OceanScore has substantially expanded its FuelEU Pooling Marketplace amid a substantial fall in its OceanScore Pool-Price Index (OPX) – said to be widely used in shipping as a reference for pooling costs in contracts and commercial planning – to €190 per ton of CO₂e by mid-April 2026, before increasing again to above €225 in May, down from levels above €230 just six months ago.
At the same time, the number of active surplus offers in the FuelEU Pooling Marketplace has grown significantly, featuring more than a dozen active offers in recent market rounds –providing options across different volumes, counterparties and pricing levels. The fact that the OPX shot up to almost €300 in the last week of trading 2025 compliance balances in late April puts those coming late at a significant disadvantage, highlighting once more that solid planning and timely execution are crucial for a successful compliance strategy.
The first months of FuelEU implementation show that pooling is not a static or purely technical process. Price levels have shifted rapidly, surplus availability has changed over short time periods, and some pools have opened and closed within just weeks. In parallel, a growing oversupply of surplus is making it harder for providers to find buyers, while buyers benefit from access to a broader range of alternatives.
OceanScore MD Albrecht Grell said: “Pooling is not just about having a surplus or deficit position, it is about having access to the market at the right time, with the right counterparties and sufficient transparency on pricing.”
In response, OceanScore has upgraded the FuelEU Pooling Marketplace – which is available as a standalone solution for shipping companies seeking access to pooling opportunities and market data – across several dimensions:
- OPX is now published weekly, reflecting short-term price movements and providing more granular data for assessing timing and negotiation terms
- Higher number of offers and counterparties improves market access across volumes and positions
- Enhanced pricing transparency provides clearer visibility across transaction types and counterparties
Amid an evolving market, the need for support varies significantly across companies, regions and operating models. OceanScore has therefore also expanded both:
- self-service capabilities, allowing faster and more independent interaction with the market
- managed services, including counterparty matching, transaction and KYC support as well as process execution
This enables participants to choose the level of involvement that fits their internal capabilities and commercial strategy. For customers using OceanScore’s Compliance Manager, the marketplace is fully integrated into existing compliance workflows, enabling direct alignment between exposure management, pooling decisions and settlement processes.
OceanScore currently supports more than 100 customers and over 2,500 vessels globally. The FuelEU Pooling Marketplace is actively used by a growing number of shipping companies to access surplus, identify buyers, gain greater market transparency for commercial decisions, and define effective pooling strategies.
Grell added: “With increasing volatility and growing surplus availability, access to market data and counterparties is becoming critical. The upgrades reflect what we see in practice: companies need both transparency and broad market access to manage FuelEU compliance effectively.”
Image: Fuel EU Pooling screenshot (source: OceanScore)
