Nearly 200 shipping companies on Monday urged the world’s largest maritime nations to adopt International Maritime Organization rules that would introduce the first global fee on greenhouse gases, ahead of a vote in London next month.
The appeal was issued in a joint statement coordinated by the Getting to Zero Coalition and managed by the Global Maritime Forum, in advance of an extraordinary session of IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee.
“Given the significance of the political decision being made, we think it is important that industry voices in favor of this adoption be heard,” said Jesse Fahnestock of the Global Maritime Forum.
The draft Net-Zero Framework, agreed in April, combines a marine fuel standard with a mandatory pricing mechanism for ship emissions. Revenue would be directed to a new IMO Net-Zero Fund to support deployment of low- and zero-emission solutions and provide assistance to developing countries.
Industry views are divided. The Chamber of Shipping of America said U.S. shipowners prefer a single global regime to a patchwork of regional rules that could “double charge” vessels. By contrast, the U.S. government has rejected the framework, calling it “a global carbon tax on Americans” and warning of possible countermeasures including tariffs, visa restrictions and port levies.
The IMO meeting is scheduled for Oct. 14–17 in London. Final adoption requires an elevated majority under IMO procedures. Member states endorsed the framework’s main elements in April; the October session will decide on entry into force and finalize guidelines on pricing and fuel standards.
Ocean shipping transports over 80% of world trade by volume and accounts for about 3% of anthropogenic greenhouse-gas emissions. If approved, the IMO package would establish the first system to combine mandatory emission limits and pricing across an entire global industry.
International Maritime Organization (IMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations, headquartered in London, responsible for regulating shipping safety, security, and environmental performance through binding international conventions and standards.
Getting to Zero Coalition is a multi-stakeholder alliance launched in 2019 that brings together companies and organizations from the maritime, energy, finance, and infrastructure sectors to promote the commercial deployment of zero-emission vessels by 2030.
Global Maritime Forum is an independent nonprofit organization based in Copenhagen, Denmark, that convenes leaders from across the maritime sector to address global challenges, and which manages the Getting to Zero Coalition.
Chamber of Shipping of America is a U.S. trade association representing companies that own, operate or charter oceangoing vessels engaged in international and domestic shipping.