According to Lloyd’s List, the 2025 ranking of world-leading classification societies brings a notable shift in the maritime industry’s landscape. For the first time, American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) overtakes DNV to become the largest class society in terms of gross tonnage in service — a milestone that reflects both growing capacities and changing dynamics. Meanwhile, China Classification Society (CCS) climbed from sixth to fifth place, replacing Bureau Veritas (BV) in the top-five.
This reshuffling underscores a broader transformation. Classification societies are no longer just certifiers of seaworthiness, they are becoming central actors in the shipping industry’s technological, environmental, and regulatory evolution.
What’s driving the change
Innovation and new propulsion paths
Under the leadership of ABS’s outgoing chairman and CEO, Christopher Wiernicki, the society pushed for bold innovation. At the 2025 London International Shipping Week, Wiernicki urged the maritime sector to ask, “Does it make us safer?” — a guiding principle that underpinned new technical notations. In 2025 ABS updated its containership lashing-system notation (CLP-V(PARR)) to include a seasonality factor, giving operators better flexibility under varying sea conditions.
More strikingly, ABS granted “Approval in Principle” (AiP) for two nuclear-powered vessel designs: a 15,000 TEU containership concept using molten salt reactor technology, and a floating nuclear-power barge for port support or coastal power supply. ABS also floated proposals for offshore “floating nuclear data centers” to serve burgeoning AI and cloud-computing infrastructure needs.
Simultaneously, ABS advanced other fuel pathways: dual-fuel solutions for LNG, methanol or ammonia, and safety advisories for ammonia as marine fuel. It also developed simulation models to address lithium-ion battery thermal-runaway risks aboard vehicle carriers.
Sustainability, decarbonisation & digitalisation across the board
Other societies in the top 10, such as DNV, ClassNK, BV, Korean Register of Shipping (KR), and Rina, reaffirmed their commitment to supporting decarbonisation, regulatory compliance, digital transformation, and new-technology adoption.
DNV forecasts substantial growth in vessels delivered with alternative-fuel capabilities, projecting that by 2030, such ships could consume roughly 50 million tonnes of non-oil fuels annually — a major step toward global emissions reduction.
ClassNK opened a Tech Expertise Centre in Piraeus, Greece, expanding its presence in a key maritime hub and boosting support for emerging technologies, emissions-based certification, and “smart ship” solutions.
BV and others are enabling next-generation technologies such as ammonia bunkering vessels, hydrogen/fuel-cell propulsion, and wind-assisted propulsion, highlighting how classification societies increasingly serve as enablers — not gatekeepers — of maritime innovation.
Broadening advisory and lifecycle services
Ranking societies are also evolving beyond traditional survey roles. For instance, DNV and others emphasise advisory services, regulatory forecasting, and alternative-fuel readiness assessments, acknowledging that the shipping industry now requires more than certification: it needs strategic guidance.
What it means for shipowners, regulators and the industry
The 2025 ranking is more than symbolism. It reflects real shifts in where power and influence lie in global shipping. With ABS at the top, backed by bold moves into nuclear propulsion and aggressive support for alternative fuels, the maritime industry may be entering a new era. Classification societies are increasingly acting as architects – influencing design, technology adoption, and fuel decisions – not just auditors.
For shipowners, this could mean broader options: more flexible notations, earlier access to new fuel- and propulsion-technologies, and classification societies offering advisory services across the lifecycle of vessels. For regulators and policymakers, it may signal a need to engage more with class societies, given their growing role in shaping which technologies become mainstream.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, the shift reflects the maritime industry’s adaptation to global demands: decarbonisation, sustainability, regulatory complexity, and the pressures of digitalisation. Classification societies, once dependably conservative, are becoming innovation enablers.
A sea change indeed
The new 2025 ranking of the top 10 classification societies captures a moment of transformation. The dominance of ABS, and the rise of CCS, shows that influence is realigning. But more broadly, it reveals that classification societies are pivoting from traditional certifiers of safety and seaworthiness, to strategic partners in sustainability, technology and design.
In a shipping world confronting climate change, regulatory overhaul, and rapid technological progress, class societies are reinventing themselves, and by doing so, helping steer the future of maritime transport.