On 17 July the European Commission published its long-awaited review and proposed revisions to the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The Malta Maritime Forum (MMF) and the Maltese authorities have responded positively to these revisions to the ETS while emphasising that further refinement is needed. Much-desired improvements include the removal of ETS charges on certain cargo arriving from non-EU ports that is not destined for the European market. This shall improve the level playing field, together with the simplification of monitoring, reporting and verification rules, as well as alignment measures with FuelEU Maritime. The July Commission review of the EU ETS introduced simplifications and closer alignment between the two regimes, especially in relation to monitoring and reporting, but they remain distinct instruments with different compliance obligations.