IMO ‘on track’ to deliver an ambitious package of policies for reducing GHG emissions from shipping

Support for a climate ambitious and equitable transition grows as several African countries join a diverse coalition of countries backing a universal price on GHG emissions

London, 27 September 2024 – The 17th Intersessional Working Group on GHGs has concluded with a number of important developments, that can be used to guide expectations on the nature of measures the IMO is expected to adopt in 2025. The meeting progressed the drafting of a new Chapter 5 in MARPOL Annex VI, taking different detailed drafting proposals from several submissions from different member states and observer (NGO) organisations, and reaching an agreement of a common structure that retains most of the options for later finalisation. Good progress has therefore been made, which should enable the IMO to keep to the timeline in the revised strategy - which results in entry into force of the new policy measures in 2027.

Dr Tristan Smith, Professor of Energy and Transport at the UCL Energy Institute said: “There is majority support for many of the policy design specifications that are important for both a climate-ambitious and an equitable energy transition for international shipping.”

There remains a clear and growing majority of member states that support a Well to Wake (WTW) framing over a Tank to Wake (TTW) framing of emissions – important for the business case and supporting investments of different future fuel/energy alternatives to fossil fuels. Converting these into a final text remains a significant workload, but this can now be done from a single broadly supported draft of this critically important new chapter of MARPOL.

Marie Fricaudet, PhD Student at the UCL Energy Institute, said “In terms of the key policy options, support for a universal GHG price/levy has grown further, a clear majority of those who voiced an opinion, or 39 member states, expressed the importance of the IMO adopting such a measure. New support and openness to consider further came from a number of African countries (including LDCs), as well as continued strong support from a number of SIDS and other LDCs and developed countries.” 

The overlapping topics of impact on states (economic impacts on GDP arising because of the policy measures adopted), and a just and equitable transition remain key concerns/issues expressed as important for the finalisation of the measures. Climate vulnerability and food security concerns were expressed by many. Addressing disproportionate negative impacts on states and supporting a just and equitable transition have broad and high support amongst member states (50 member states), equal to the broad and high support (also 50 member states) supporting revenue use in-sector (e.g. supporting shipping’s energy transition).

Dr Annika Frosch, Research Fellow at the UCL Energy Institute, said: “There remains a clear consensus that shipping’s energy transition should be incentivised through a combination of a fuel standard (GFI limit), and a GHG pricing mechanism, and that ships underperforming relative to a fuel standard should be financially penalised and ships overperforming relative to a fuel standard should be financially supported.”