OpeOluwani Akintayo
10 February 2018, Sweetcrude, Lagos — The International Maritime Organisation, IMO, has said it will not allow non-compliant fuel on board shipping vessels as from 2020, according to Danish Shipping.
IMO’s Sub-Committee PPR, Pollution Prevention, and Response have since this week, been discussing how to ensure that the global sulphur requirements are implemented and enforced effectively.
According to IMO’s Secretary-General, Kitack Lim, there is no turning back.
The global Sulphur requirements will enter to force in 2020, adding that the move is for benefit of the environment and public health.
IMO countries have agreed to submit to the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee that as from 2020 it should be prohibited to have fuel on board with a content of sulphur of more than 0.5 pct. unless the ship has a scrubber installed to clean the exhaust.
“Danish Shipping is very pleased with the clear signal IMO has sent this week. Effective enforcement is something we have worked long and hard for together with our members and a handful of sister organisations. Therefore, it was also very positive that a joint international industry proposed a ban as a prelude to the meeting of IMO and it was very helpful that the Danish authorities were at the forefront of support, “said Maria Skipper Schwenn, Executive Director at Danske Shipping.
She refers to the concrete proposal of ICS, BIMCO and a number of other international industry organisations that was tabled prior to the meeting.
“This week has been a good example of how the IMO countries take responsibility for both the environment and the shipping industry’s competitiveness. Concerns from both NGOs and shipping organisations have been heard and IMO has shown its ability to act just as a global regulator of a global industry should do,” said Maria Skipper Schwenn.
“This was the first step towards making enforcement of the sulphur requirement more simple. Now IMO begins to work on the practical implications surrounding the implementation in order to ensure that bunker suppliers, ship owners and authorities have the right instruments and guidance to comply with the sulphur regulation. A one-week long meeting dedicated to the implementation of the sulphur requirements has been planned for July 2018,” she said.
The proposal is now being submitted for discussion at the next MEPC meeting, which will take place in April, and later incorporated into the IMO’s MARPOL Convention.
Final adoption will be in October 2018.