Stephenson Harwood LLP Advises the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation on groundbreaking vessel retrofit fund

Stephenson Harwood LLP is proud to announce its role as legal advisor to the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) on the world’s first “pay-as-you-save” vessel retrofit fund, a pioneering initiative designed to accelerate maritime decarbonisation.

The Fund for Energy Efficiency Technologies (FEET), aims to remove financial barriers to retrofitting vessels with energy-saving technologies, enabling shipowners to upgrade their fleets and reduce emissions without heavy capital expenditure upfront. This innovative approach, offering leases without vessel-related collateral being required, and incorporating a repayment mechanism linked to verified fuel and regulatory savings, is set to unlock retrofit opportunities and support global sustainability goals.

An international, cross-disciplinary team at Stephenson Harwood LLP, led by maritime decarbonisation experts Haris Zografakis and Rachel Hoyland, provided comprehensive legal advice to GCMD throughout the project. The team supported GCMD during an initial pilot project exploring how barriers to vessel retrofitting could be overcome and played a key role in the realisation of an available solution through the formation of FEET.

GCMD’s CEO, Prof. Lynn Loo commented:

“FEET is one of GCMD’s many impactful initiatives. Identifying viable ways to finance retrofits is a crucial piece of the broader decarbonisation puzzle. GCMD is grateful to have Haris, Rachel and the team at Stephenson Harwood provide assistance on the legal and contractual aspects of the project. Their input has been invaluable not only in navigating the fine and complex legal issues, but also in shaping overall strategy, stakeholder engagement and assessing commercial feasibility”.

Our work for GCMD on this very important project is testament to our team’s market-leading position in maritime decarbonisation, and the firm’s expertise in the energy transition and transport & trade, two of our key areas of focus. Nick Austin, Practice Area Leader for Maritime & Offshore, pointed out that:

“Over a period of several years, our firm has acted for clients across the entire spectrum of maritime trade – shipowners, charterers, banks, insurers, but also start-ups and non-profit entities - helping them to navigate the legal and contractual complexities of new fuels, energy efficiency, retrofits, regulatory compliance, new carbon products, and many more. Our firm recognises decarbonisation not only as a specialist area of expertise, but also as a growing and indispensable part of our offering to our clients”.

Specialist expertise was drawn from across Stephenson Harwood’s global network. The team included Emma Nowell and Joanna Tuft (London, Marine, Trade & Offshore group) advised on ship mortgages, security, and enforcement issues; Penelope Shen and Brian Ho (Hong Kong, Corporate team) contributed invaluable perspectives on funding documentation; and Sheetal Sandhu and Claris Saw (Singapore, Virtus Law LLP, Corporate team) provided expert guidance on Singaporean company and commercial law.

For more information about FEET please visit GCMD’s website.

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