Sulphur decision on hold

Key decisions on the bunker industry’s future have been shelved until an IMO meeting called for the end of next month. The IMO’s Bulk Liquids and Gases (BLG) sub-committee, meeting in London last week, agreed to streamline the options being discussed rather than make definitive recommendations.

The most controversial proposal, a call to phase out residual bunker fuel in favour of distillates, will go forward to the next round of discussions, but in an altered form.

It has been designated the ‘Global Option’ in the BLG’s report. It sets targets for reducing sulphur emissions that in practice are likely to be met by burning distillate product or by using abatement technology (scrubbers).

Two other options are going forward to the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) meeting from March 31 to April 4. They are (1): Lowering sulphur limits for fuel used in Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECAs) and (2): Lowering the global sulphur limit for bunker fuel as well tightening the SECA regimes and allowing even stricter ?mini SECAs? close to sensitive coastal areas.

Bryan Wood-Thomas, the chairman of the BLG working group reviewing ways to update MARPOL Annex VI, said that the three options presented by the group were “not intended to constrain debate”. He said “nothing should preclude the development of hybrid proposals” during future discussions.

The working group?s report explained why it was leaving the debate open. “Given the tremendous importance of this issue and the significant environmental, human health and economic consequences of a decision on this matter [it was felt] appropriate that policy decisions on this matter be taken at Committee [MEPC] level,” it said. The working group said instead that its role had been “to set the table for discussions” and that as part of that task it had reduced six proposals for updating MARPOL Annex VI to three.

MARPOL Annex VI is the IMO protocol dealing with ways of reducing emissions from ships.