UPDATE: IMO: 0.5% Global Sulfur Cap to Take Effect from 2020

by Ship & Bunker News Team

MEPC 70 today agreed that a 0.5 percent global sulfur cap on marine fuel will be implemented from 2020.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has announced that the Marine Environment Protection Committee at its 70th session (MEPC 70) today agreed that a 0.5 percent global sulfur cap on marine fuel will be implemented from 2020, rather than the proposed delayed date of 2025.

The International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA) said that while MEPC reached the decision on the 2020 implementation date by consensus, and most countries speaking during the debate session supported the 2020 date, a "significant number" of countries wanted to delay implementation until 2025 due to doubts about sufficient availability for 2020.

Several countries also expressed a desire for a phased introduction of the new rule, an idea that had been proposed by IBIA.

But with a "hard" 2020 date now decided, the implementing resolution will be formally adopted on Friday.

IMO, meanwhile, says it will provide more details on the development at a later date.

As Ship & Bunker has reported, the decision promises to be one of the most influential forces that will shape marine fuel markets over the next decade and beyond.

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