The Week in Alt Fuels: Net-zero battlelines
Competing proposals from Tuvalu, Brazil, Liberia and a four-country group can take the IMO’s Net-Zero Framework in very different directions. This November, the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) will head back to the drawing board with competing visions for shipping’s net-zero rulebook. While the framework approved at MEPC 83 in April last year remains ...
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) will discuss competing proposals for its Net-Zero Framework at the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) meeting in November. The framework, originally approved in April 2023, sets targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from shipping. The competing proposals aim to strengthen economic measures or remove GHG pricing altogether.
Tuvalu proposes keeping base GHG fuel intensity reduction targets but skipping the 2028 step, with a direct compliance target of 100% from 2029 to 2035. The island nation also suggests tripling the initial Tier 1 remedial unit price to $300/mtCO2e, while scrapping surplus units. This approach would generate significant revenue for zero-emission fuels and a just transition. However, it could lead to higher transport costs in the early years.
Australia, Canada, South Africa, and the UK (ACSA-UK) have a proposal that leaves the NZF largely unchanged but delays implementation by one year. The NZF aims to fund the transition in climate-vulnerable countries by implementing the polluter pays principle.
Liberia's proposal removes GHG pricing and revises the GFI reduction trajectory based on the cost, availability, and market share of low-emission fuels. It retains surplus units as the sole compliance mechanism, which could create uncertainty over future fuel standards and compliance credit prices. Opponents argue this would weaken the stable price signal needed to unlock long-term investment in zero-emission fuels.
Japan submitted a compromise proposal, suggesting to soften GFI reduction targets from 2030 onwards and replacing payments into the Net Zero Fund with a direct contribution mechanism. However, critics worry this may weaken incentives for zero- and near-zero-emission fuels and introduce uncertainty into compliance credit markets.
Debates and discussions over these proposals will continue at the IMO's intersessional GHG working group meetings in September and November, with a final decision expected at MEPC 85 from 30 November to 3 December.
Written by urgent.news from Hellenic Shipping News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
