With exactly six months remaining for the implementation of the 2020 sulphur cap, IMO hosted a roundtable industry meeting at its London Headquarters on 21 June, where a wide a range of industry participants were updated on the latest guidance, treaty amendments and other instruments emanating from IMO to support the rule.
The IMO Secretariat highlighted the latest decisions emanating from IMO’s MEPC 74, including adoption of guidelines on consistent implementation, PSC and other guidance; and from the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC 101), including the adoption of Recommended interim measures to enhance the safety of ships relating to the use of oil fuel.
Industry participants reported on their work, including:
- the latest version of the ICS Guidance to Shipping Companies and Crews on Preparing for Compliance with the 2020 ‘Global Sulphur Cap’ which will be published in the first week of July 2019;
- a Joint Industry Project developing industry guidelines with a focus on safety to support implementation, including training;
- updated charter clauses developed to address sulphur 2020 and fuel issues;
- investment by the oil refining industry in new blends of fuel oil to meet the limit; and
- potentially linking sulphur 2020 provisions with current ship inspection programmes.
Participants expressed their commitment to enhancing collaboration, including further information sharing among stakeholders, as appropriate, to make a smooth transition to the 0.50% limit, recognizing the benefits for human health and the environment.
The issues discussed included:
- Availability of compliant fuel oil: Views were exchanged on the general availability of fuel to meet the 0.50% limit, with ships expected to begin taking on 0.50% low sulphur blended fuels from October/November onwards, in order to be ready for 1st January 2020. The roundtable participants urged the need for the oil refinery and bunker industry to continue, and strengthen where possible, their efforts to provide sufficient compliant fuels as early as possible to allow more ships to test trial for experience gaining. There was also a need for more information on the new fuel products to be made widely available.
- Fuel oil safety: Potential safety issues with new blends of fuel oil have been recognised and IMO guidelines provide advice on steps to take to address those risks. It was noted that ISO has been developing a Publicly Available Specification (PAS) related to the 0.50% limit. The PAS will provide additional guidance on the application of the existing ISO 8217 specification for fuels for use in marine diesel engines and boilers, for example, compatibility and stability of new blends of fuel oil. The participants highlighted the need to provide further information on arising safety issues and to enhance crew training in anticipation of the new fuels being made available before the end of 2019, and to highlight the safety aspects in particular.
- Enforcement and compliance: Participants acknowledged the adoption of relevant 2019 Guidelines for PSC under MARPOL Annex VI chapter 3. The IMO Sub-Committee on Implementation of IMO Instruments (III 6) meets 1-5 July and could provide an opportunity for information sharing by PSC regimes.
- Reporting to IMO and information sharing: Participants recognized the need to further improve reporting and information sharing through the IMO Global Integrated Shipping Information system (GISIS). Work is already under way to review the current MARPOL Annex VI module to provide greater scope for data entry and to make the module more user friendly.
- Raising awareness: An open source free to access e-learning course is being developed through the joint industry project, for use by seafarers and others. The course will offer three modules, the first will focus on IMO Guidance on the development of a ship implementation plan for the consistent implementation of the 0.50% sulphur limit. A new IMO leaflet outlines the requirement, answers the most frequently asked questions about the rule and provides a list of the instruments supporting implementation, best practice guidance, PSC and sampling guidelines and others. IMO will publish a compilation of all related guidance, best practices and so on, as a single IMO publication (hard copy and electronic formats) later this year.
- IMO conference on 2020 and alternative fuels: IMO plans to hold a conference in October 2019 with wide participation from stakeholders, to provide updates on planning for 2020. The conference will also include a session on the latest developments regarding alternative fuels and low carbon technologies.
The roundtable included representatives from IMO Secretariat and: International Chamber of Shipping (ICS); BIMCO; Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF); International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO); International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO); IPIECA; The Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST); International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA).