This insight examines what the “5–10% problem” actually means in practice. While small improvements in fuel efficiency can deliver significant cost and emissions benefits, demonstrating those improvements is far from simple. Ships operate in dynamic environments where weather, cargo loads, routing decisions and operational behaviour all influence fuel consumption, making it difficult to isolate the effect of a single efficiency technology.
The “5-10% problem” refers to the difficulty of accurately measuring and proving small efficiency gains in shipping operations, typically those in the range of 2-10%. While these may sound like small figures, when proven, the savings are huge, both in terms of cost savings and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction, and consequently, the return on investment (ROI) is already substantial.
Many technology providers claim that their solutions deliver between 5-10% in savings, but quantifying the gain is extremely complex. This is largely due to the fact that the tools and models to measure them aren’t precise enough to separate real savings from noise.
Our research has found that the critical issue with these stated claims is the absence of proof. Most of the time, performance claims are stated without clear scientific evidence or independent verification. Interviews revealed that vendors often draw on a one-off trial or modelling scenario to claim that their solution can offer “up to 10% in fuel savings.” But pilots are often short, vendor-controlled, conducted under limited operating conditions, and rarely documented. They seldom use long-term, fleet-wide data provided by third parties, leaving buyers struggling to decipher between genuine performance improvements and inflated claims.
Over time, this difficulty in separating real results from hype has eroded trust. The 5-10% claim has become a red flag for many owners. Instead of accelerating adoption of new technologies, unverified 5-10% claims have fueled skepticism, slowed investment, and even undermined the industry’s drive toward decarbonisation.
According to Jean Cristofari, CEO & Co-Founder of Spinergie, the 5-10% range often cited in press releases and maritime news articles has become the de facto benchmark vendor quote.
Hearing 5-10% fuel savings so often without solid proof has led to a credibility gap. As a result, instead of accelerating the adoption of new technologies, these claims fuel scepticism, slow investment, and undermine the industry’s collective drive towards decarbonisation.
This erosion of credibility is what we call the 5–10% problem.
Several major factors drive the 5-10% problem. These include commercial and market incentives, behavioural and cultural factors, complex systems that make verifying savings difficult, and weak and inconsistently applied standards.
Download ‘The 5-10% Illusion’ and explore why the maritime industry’s reliance on unverified efficiency claims is eroding trust, and discover a framework to restore measurement discipline.
