Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2026-04-14 Origin: Site
The Middle East crisis continues to ferment, which has had a significant impact on the EU economy. On the 13th, European Commission President von der Leyen made it clear that the cost of importing fossil fuels in the EU has increased by 22 billion euros since the Middle East conflict. The EU will release a proposal for energy price response measures on April 22, and submit it to the informal meeting of EU leaders for discussion. At the same time, the EU emphasizes that economic intervention measures will remain cautious and strictly control the scale to avoid worsening public deficits. The current international energy market is highly sensitive to geopolitical situations. The introduction and implementation of EU energy measures will have a profound impact on the global shipping and logistics of large engineering equipment such as rotary drilling rigs and pile drivers from multiple dimensions such as cost, route, policy, and supply chain. This will not only bring short-term adjustment pressure, but also stimulate long-term transformation opportunities.
The obstruction of energy supply and price increases caused by the situation in the Middle East are the core incentives for the EU to introduce energy measures, and directly push up the core costs of shipping large equipment by sea. The cross-border transportation of large equipment such as rotary drilling rigs and pile drivers relies on special vessels such as heavy lift ships and semi submersible ships, while about 99% of the global shipping fleet still relies on fossil fuels, with fuel costs accounting for 45% -55% of the overall shipping costs. According to statistics, since the outbreak of the Middle East conflict, global shipping companies have cumulatively borne over 4.6 billion euros in additional fuel costs, with daily additional fuel expenditures reaching 340 million euros. Low sulfur fuel oil prices have doubled compared to early 2026, and liquefied natural gas prices have risen by 72% since early March. The energy measures proposed by the EU aim to alleviate energy price pressure, but it is difficult to change the high-level energy operation pattern in the short term. Shipping companies continue to raise freight rates and charge fuel surcharges to cover costs. The cost of transporting a single rotary drilling rig across the ocean has increased by more than 25% compared to before, further compressing the profit margins of engineering machinery export enterprises.
The energy measures proposed by the European Union, in coordination with the previously released EU Port Strategy, will promote the transformation of European ports into clean energy hubs, which will put forward new adaptation requirements for the transit transportation of large equipment. According to the strategy, EU ports will be upgraded to "multi fuel facilities", with a focus on building sustainable fuel refueling facilities such as hydrogen and ammonia, and accelerating the deployment of shore power systems. It is required that from 2030 onwards, passengers and container ships must use shore power when docking at major ports. During this transformation process, some core ports in Europe will prioritize the construction of clean energy infrastructure. The lifting and loading and unloading resources originally used for the transfer of large equipment will be diverted, and the priority of civil transportation in some ports will be reduced. Ultra wide, ultra-high, and overweight equipment such as rotary drilling rigs have affected the efficiency of transit and unloading in European ports, while also needing to adapt to the requirements of green operations in ports, further increasing the complexity and cost of transportation processes.
One of the core directions of the EU's energy measures is to promote energy transition and emissions reduction, coupled with the fully implemented EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS), the compliance cost of large equipment for European shipping has significantly increased. Starting from 2026, the EU ETS will officially cover the shipping industry comprehensively, and shipping companies will be required to bear 100% of the cost of CO ₂ emission quotas for ships. Greenhouse gases such as methane and nitrous oxide will also be included in the regulatory scope. Shipping giants such as Maersk and Hapag Lloyd have collectively raised climate surcharges, with an average increase of about 45%. The export of large equipment such as rotary drilling rigs to Europe requires the use of ships anchored at EU ports for transportation, and the related emission costs will be directly transmitted to the equipment transportation process, resulting in further increases in the transportation cost of individual equipment. In addition, the European market has strict emission requirements for equipment such as rotary drilling rigs, which must meet emission standards such as Euro3, Euro5, Tier4, etc. Equipment that does not meet these standards will face obstacles in customs clearance, further exacerbating the pressure on European transportation.
Von der Leyen made it clear that the EU's economic intervention measures will remain prudent and kept to a minimum to avoid worsening public deficits, which means that EU energy measures are difficult to fundamentally solve the problem of energy supply and price, and the uncertainty of large-scale equipment shipping logistics will continue. The current international energy market is highly sensitive to the situation in the Middle East, and the short-term trend depends on the progress of the game among relevant parties. If the situation recurs, the EU will still face greater input inflation pressure, and energy prices may further fluctuate. This uncertainty makes it difficult for shipping companies to accurately plan transportation capacity and freight rates, and large equipment export companies cannot reasonably predict transportation costs and timeliness. Some companies are forced to temporarily suspend their export plans to Europe, especially those such as Shanhe Intelligent that have won European rotary drilling rig orders. They need to re evaluate transportation costs and delivery cycles to avoid the risks brought by price fluctuations.
The promotion of EU energy measures and port transformation strategies has brought short-term pressure to large-scale equipment shipping logistics, but it has also given rise to long-term transformation opportunities. Driven by high energy costs and emission reduction policies, the economic viability of alternative fuels has gradually become prominent. The price difference between electric fuel and marine light diesel has narrowed to about 5%, approaching the "parity range", providing the possibility for energy transformation of large equipment transport ships. At the same time, the EU supports the construction of clean energy infrastructure in ports and promotes the green transformation of the shipping industry through methods such as the return of carbon emissions trading system profits and funding from the European Fund. For large-scale equipment export enterprises such as rotary drilling rigs, they can rely on this trend to accelerate the research and development of green equipment that meets EU emission standards, such as the environmentally friendly rotary drilling rig developed by Shanhe Intelligent for the European market. At the same time, they can optimize transportation plans, select shipping companies and routes that are suitable for EU green port requirements, and enhance their export competitiveness to Europe.
Faced with the dual impact of EU energy measures and the situation in the Middle East, large equipment export enterprises and logistics companies need to proactively adjust their strategies to reduce operational risks. On the one hand, closely monitor the progress of EU energy measures and energy price fluctuations, lock in cabin space and fuel costs in advance, and reduce losses caused by price fluctuations through long-term agreements; On the other hand, optimizing transportation routes to Europe, prioritizing European ports that have completed green transformation and have complete shore power facilities, improving transit efficiency, while ensuring that exported rotary drilling rigs and other equipment meet EU emissions and CE certification requirements to avoid customs clearance obstacles. In addition, enterprises can strengthen cooperation with professional large-scale logistics enterprises, optimize equipment packaging and binding schemes, learn from the experience of Shanhe Intelligent Rotary Drilling Machine with drill pipe transportation, reduce transportation costs and transit losses, while expanding diversified transportation channels, reducing dependence on single routes and ports, and maximizing the impact of shipping uncertainty.
