The Yacht Club de Monaco’s (YCM) SEA Index has expanded its CO₂ certification initiative to smaller pleasure boats, which was originally developed for vessels over 24 metres. In collaboration with Lloyd’s Register, the framework has been extended to assess emissions across a wider part of the recreational boating sector.
Introduced under the “Monaco, Capital of Advanced Yachting” initiative, the SEA Index was created as an environmental performance assessment tool in the yachting sector. The certification has now been applied to more than 130 vessels using its CO₂ emissions assessment methodology.
The expansion allows pleasure boats from 10 metres, including monohulls and production catamarans, to be assessed through the programme. New benchmarks models have been developed for displacement, semi-displacement and planing monohulls, as well as production catamarans up to 35 metres.
According to YCM, the models are based on datasets aligned with international maritime energy efficiency principles, with assessments reflecting each vessel’s design and operating profile.
The expanded certification allows shipyards and boat builders to assess environmental performance during the early stages of design, while providing owners and buyers with comparable CO₂ emissions information across different boat sizes. Ports, marinas and financial stakeholders can also apply the assessment framework when considering environmental performance across the recreational boating ecosystem.
SEA Index supports a network of yacht owners and captains, marinas and ports, alongside maritime industry stakeholders such as banks, insurance companies, shipyards and technology providers. The network covers 25 marinas across the Mediterranean, Seychelles and Saint-Barthélemy, along with 87 marinas that are members of the Japan Marina & Beach Association.
Bernard d’Alessandri, president of the SEA Index and YCM general secretary, said: “This development marks a significant milestone for the SEA Index® and the nautical industry as a whole. By applying our methodology to recreational boats from 10 metres, including production boats and catamarans, we are making environmental assessment more inclusive and accessible. Our goal is to help establish a credible, transparent framework for everyone to support improvements in the environmental performance of the recreational fleet worldwide.”
Dr. Chris Craddock, global lead – marine asset and operational performance at Lloyd’s Register, said: “The SEA Index® methodology has been refined to better reflect the diverse operational profiles of production yachts and superyachts, and the significant differences in hydrodynamic performance associated with different hull shapes and speed regimes. By benchmarking vessels against specific reference curves, established using rigorous methodologies aligned with IMO decarbonisation measures, the SEA Index® offers a fair, transparent and internationally consistent framework for assessing environmental performance across the entire yachting sector.”
