Historic agreement achieved at the IMO MEPC 80

Piraeus, 10.7.2023

Historic agreement achieved at the IMO MEPC 80

The Union of Greek Shipowners welcomes the 2023 IMO Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Strategy on reduction of GHG emissions from ships. This historic agreement includes a net zero target by or around 2050, as also proposed by the industry, and ambitious indicative checkpoints for 2030 and 2040.

“Global measures for our global industry are the sine qua non for tackling climate change. We are firmly committed to the decarbonisation of our sector. We, thus, strongly support the recent adoption at the IMO of more ambitious goals”, stated the President of UGS, Ms. Melina Travlos.

Availability of alternative drop-in fuels that are safe and fit-for-purpose will be vital in enabling the existing fleet to achieve the revised decarbonisation pathway, especially given the short time to the 2030 checkpoint, whilst continuing its key role in the smooth operation of global trade.

The availability and distribution of these alternative fuels and technologies will depend mainly on multiple out-of-sector stakeholders (namely, fuel producers and suppliers, engine manufacturers, shipyards, ports and others).

As a parallel step, it is imperative that IMO ensures that the transition to alternative fuels and technologies is safe for the ships and their seafarers and also that it urgently adopts a levy-based economic measure regarding GHG emissions, alongside the simple, goal-based fuel standard as proposed by the industry. This will be a practical method which is necessary in order to help reduce the cost gap between conventional and alternative low-carbon fuels and without which their availability and utilisation will not be satisfactory.

“Shipping, as always, stands ready to embrace technological innovation, once adequately developed and matured. Hence, we call on governments and all relevant stakeholders to support the IMO’s revised GHG strategy by ensuring that the necessary safe fuels and technologies become available globally in sufficient quantities within the required timeframe”, Ms. Travlos added.