Initial IMO Strategy on GHG reduction: An overview

Under the identified “levels of ambition”, the initial strategy envisages, for the first time, a reduction in total GHG emissions from global shipping by at least 50% by 2050 compared to 2008, while, at the same time, pursuing efforts to phase them out completely.

The strategy also includes a specific reference to “a pathway of CO2 emissions reduction consistent with Paris Agreement temperature goals”. According to IMO’s Roadmap”, agreed in 2016, the strategy is due for revision by 2023.

The IMO decision received a cautious optimism by industry stakeholders across the globe. Although governments, companies, organizations and institutional bodies hailed the move as a game-changing development in the fight against global warming, there are concerns regarding which will be the clear plan towards this effort and reminding that ‘what comes next will be harder’.

As expected in a multilateral negotiation, the final decision is a compromise between the 70-100% emission cuts, targeted by Pacific Islands and Europe, and the 50% by 2060 proposed by Japan and other states. The final decision however enjoyed almost unanimous support from the parties.

Either as a change to the landscape of the market or as a new era towards an environmentally friendly encounter of the planet, the GHG deal stresses that shipping is a step closer to facing the very real scenario of decarbonising and investing in new technologies!