The Trump administration has called for the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) 2020 fuel regulations to be phased in more slowly, according to Reuters.
It is feared that new rulings from the IMO, which forbid ships from using fuels that contain more than 0.5% of sulphur, will cause a massive rise in fuel prices.
Despite the recommendation of some shipping companies, as well as nations such as Panama and Liberia, the IMO has refused to delay the implementation of new regulations.
Maxim A. Dulebenets discusses the importance of optimising berth schedules for sustainable shipping in a recent Port Technology technical paper
Businesses discovered to be breaking these rules will be punished by significant fines, levied by IMO member states.
A White House representative, commenting on IMO 2020, told the Wall Street Journal: “The United States supports an experience building phase, which has been proposed by several other countries, in IMO 2020 in order to mitigate the impact of precipitous fuel cost increases on consumers.
A few reactions:
1) These rules deliver HUGE health benefits by reducing SO2
2) Industry has known about them for YEARS
3) Many have invested billions to comply, incl many US refiners & shippers
4) There's waiver authority in case lack of fuel availabilityhttps://t.co/5Vn14kdxgB— Jason Bordoff (@JasonBordoff) October 18, 2018
“The administration wants to ensure that IMO 2020 occurs in a manner that is not harmful to consumers and the global economy.”
While Trump’s government does not wish to postpone IMO 2020, it does support a “phase-in” approach that would delay full compliance with the regulations until a later date.
Robert Campbell, Energy Aspect analyst, said: “Given that the IMO rulemaking process takes nearly two years to run its course, it is unclear how any proposed phased implementation could be accomplished at an international level.”
