The shipping sector is now the first industry with internationally mandated targets to reduce emissions. Approved by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee during its 83rd session (MEPC 83) from 7–11 April 2025, the new measures include a new fuel standard for ships and a global pricing mechanism for emissions.
These measures, set to be formally adopted in October 2025 before entry into force in 2027, will become mandatory for large ocean-going ships over 5,000 gross tonnage, which emit 85% of the total CO2 emissions from international shipping.
Arsenio Dominguez, IMO Secretary-General, insisted the landmark deal struck last week would keep the industry on track to reach net zero by 2050.
“The approval of draft amendments to MARPOL Annex VI mandating the IMO net-zero framework represents another significant step in our collective efforts to combat climate change, to modernize shipping and demonstrates that IMO delivers on its commitments,” commented Arsenio Dominguez.
The European Commission welcomed the agreement at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), despite the fact – as it said – that it “does not yet ensure the sector’s full contribution to achieving the Paris Agreement goals.”
As reported by the Global Maritime Forum, member states agreed to a package of technical and economic elements, including a global fuel standard that sets GHG intensity reduction targets for each year through 2035 and agreed on the penalties for failing to meet the targets.
The measures also put in place a credit trading scheme through which vessels with lower emissions can generate credits to sell to owners of higher-polluting vessels.
Revenues generated by the penalties will be used to fund a reward mechanism for zero- and near-zero emission fuels and can potentially support a just and equitable transition.
This includes areas such as availability, uptake, and transfer of zero-emission fuels and technologies, seafarer training, capacity building, and addressing disproportionate negative impacts on developing states.
The agreed measures are considered as not “strong enough” and “a lot of work remains to be done,” according to various shipping sources.
“As currently designed, measures are unlikely to be sufficient to incentivise the rapid development of e-fuels such as e-ammonia or e-methanol, which will be needed in the long run due to their scalability and emission reduction potential. A failure to begin investing in these fuels now would put the target of at least 5% zero- and near-zero emission fuel use by 2030 and the industry’s entire 2050 net-zero goal at risk,” the Global Maritime Forum said in its statement on Friday.
“While the targets are a step forward, they will need to be improved if they are to drive the rapid fuel shift that will enable the maritime sector to reach net zero by 2050. While we applaud the progress made, meeting the targets will require immediate and decisive investments in green fuel technology and infrastructure. The IMO will have opportunities to make these regulations more impactful over time, and national and regional policies also need to prioritise scalable e-fuels and the infrastructure needed for long-term decarbonisation,” says Jesse Fahnestock, director of decarbonisation at the Global Maritime Forum.
The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) cautiously welcomed the agreement, mentioning that “that this may not be the agreement which all sections of the industry would have preferred, and we are concerned that this may not yet go far enough in providing the necessary certainty. But it is a framework which we can build upon.”
“We will be studying the technical detail over the coming weeks, and will continue to support the IMO process so that we have a system that also works in company board rooms as well as the governments’ negotiating rooms,” Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping said.
Platten also added: “Today will hopefully be remembered as a historic moment for our industry. If formally adopted, shipping will be the first sector to have a globally agreed carbon price, something which ICS has been advocating for since COP 26 in 2021, when the industry agreed a net zero 2050 target.”
Platten noted he hoped it would provide the certainty which energy producers urgently need to de-risk their huge investment decisions.
The World Shipping Council praised it as an “unprecedented global agreement” which gives shipping clarity on critical next step to decarbonization.
“This is a major milestone for climate policy and a turning point for shipping. Our industry has long been labelled as ‘hard to abate,’ but record industry investment and a new global measure can turn the tide on that,” said the World Shipping Council president and CEO Joe Kramek.
WSC’s Vice-President and lead IMO representative Bryan Wood-Thomas commended the ability of IMO to reach agreement on one of the most challenging issues in the history of the Organization.
“Building on the World Shipping Council’s Green Balance Mechanism, the agreement creates a two-tiered regulatory measure that applies emission fees proportional to the GHG intensity of the energy used by a ship. Most importantly, the regulations also provide a mechanism that encourages the use of cleaner zero and near-zero fuels and energy sources,” Bryan Wood-Thomas said.
“The production of clean fuels and energy sources will create economic opportunities across the globe and have environmental benefits that will last for generations. However, there is considerable work remaining to ensure we have the rules and guidance necessary to use the fuels that will power the world’s fleet in future years.”
