The European Commission's New Proposal on Sustainability

and what it means for the yacht industry.

In 2024, the European Commission announced significant changes to sustainability rules for all industries, presenting the yachting industry, among others, with a challenge: within two years, all EU member states were directed to implement laws requiring increased due-diligence and reporting of sustainability metrics from EU-based corporations. The new rules were intended to help consumers understand what products and services are considered "sustainable" and make companies responsible for their supply lines, ostensibly protecting both human rights and the environment. Non-EU companies which conduct a minimum level of business in the EU would also, under the 2024 rules, be required to submit reports and monitor their supply lines. Support, at the time, was split: just over half the member states voted in favor; the rest abstained — a functional vote against.

On February 26 of 2025, however, the Commission adopted a proposal — referred to as the Simplification Omnibus — to roll back some of those requirements, easing the pressure on firms based in EU member states. The need for a stronger economy was a major theme of EU discourse in 2024, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen acknowledged that the new rules would require revisions at the end of last year. The rollbacks adopted in February include pushing back implementation to 2028, as well as axing the number of firms required to submit the new sustainability and supply-line reports: under the new proposal, only firms with 1,000 employees or more will be legally responsible — a reduction of about 80%, down to approximately 6,000 companies. The supply-chain monitoring requirement has also been significantly cut to include only a firm's direct suppliers.

The proposal still requires a vote, which some members have asked European Parliament President Roberta Metsola to hold before April. Further adjustments, either increasing or decreasing regulations, may still be made.

For the yachting sector, these proposed changes will exempt the majority of shipyards, but only ease the pressure for others: Fincantieri, Azimut Benetti, and Lürssen, all EU-based, each have well over the 1,000-employee minimum — meaning the firms would have to begin collecting data for the new reports in fiscal year 2027. Large boating-adjacent firms based outside the EU, such as Garmin, may also be impacted.

Business leaders have largely reacted to the new proposal positively, while climate activists have expressed disappointment. Despite the relaxed requirements, however, many EU-based shipyards and yachting firms have been making their own inroads into sustainability, catering to increased interest from buyers in reducing their carbon emissions.