IMO approves draft short-term decarbonisation measures

At its 75th session, IMO’s MEPC agreed draft measures and will recommend them for adoption to the next MEPC session in 2021.

The draft measures, sent to MEPC by an IMO working group in October 2020, include an Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) to address technical aspects of vessel decarbonisation as well as a new operational carbon intensity indicator (CII).

If adopted, the EEXI would be required of vessels above 5,000 gt in the existing fleet from 2023. The measure is related to the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) which is being implemented in phases for some newbuild vessels including tankers, bulk carriers and container ships.

IMO has said the proposed amendments to its International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (Marpol) Annex VI are in line with the ambition of the Initial IMO GHG Strategy, which aims to reduce carbon intensity of international shipping by 40% by 2030, compared to 2008 and to at least halve carbon emissions by 2050.

Environmental non-profits have reacted by condemning the measures for not going far enough to curb the expected growth in emissions from the shipping sector over the next decade.

Clean Shipping Coalition president John Maggs said “As scientists are telling us we have less than 10 years to stop our headlong rush to climate catastrophe, the IMO has decided that emissions can keep on growing for 10 years at least. Their complacency is breathtaking. Our thoughts are with the most vulnerable who will pay the highest price for this act of extreme folly.”