A key IMO environmental meeting has confirmed that 1 March 2020 will be the final day ships will be allowed to carry fuel with a sulphur content over 0.5% unless they have been fitted with an exhaust gas scrubber.
The Marpol Annex VI regulation kicks in from January 2020 after which ships will not be able to burn fuel with a sulphur content of more than 0.5%.
But to ensure full compliance after 1 March ships will now not be allowed to even carry such fuel unless they are using alternative abatement technology.
There had been some uncertainty over the March date but confirmation will help owners schedule the switch over from heavy fuel oil to low sulphur fuel oil.
After a day of debate over the issue the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) will now adopt the amendment into Marpol Annex VI by the end of this week.
A debate over whether and an experience building programme should be included in to initial phase of the IMO 2020 regulation to assess potential implementation problems is still ongoing at the IMO MEPC meeting.
The US caused some surprise last week when it decided to back the proposal which has been tabled by the Bahamas, Liberia, the Marshall Islands, Bimco, Intertanko, Intercargo and others.
