IMO has presented its latest work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping to the UN climate change conference (COP 25) in Spain (2-13 December). IMO's initial GHG strategy contains a commitment to cutting GHG emissions from shipping as a matter of urgency and to phasing them out entirely as soon as possible. The COP heard that IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) has approved draft amendments to strengthen the energy efficiency design requirements for new ships; and an intersessional working group meeting has considered various mandatory proposals aimed at reducing the carbon intensity of existing ships. Further development of concrete proposals is expected at the next intersessional working group and MEPC meetings in March-April 2020.
IMO also reported to the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technical Advice (SBSTA 51) on the continued successful execution of two important capacity-building projects (GloMEEP and the global GMN network for energy-efficient shipping), which are supporting developing countries in the implementation of IMO's energy efficiency measures; and the initiation of a third, GreenVoyage-2050 project, to support global efforts to demonstrate and test technical solutions for reducing GHG emissions in shipping and enhance knowledge and information sharing to support the Initial IMO GHG Strategy.
Meanwhile, IMO's mandatory requirement for data collection on fuel oil consumption of ships is reaching its first full year of reporting; and the fourth IMO GHG study has been initiated, to provide an updated inventory of GHG emissions from international shipping.
In addition to its work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping, IMO is regulating climate change mitigation technologies, including carbon capture and storage in sub-seabed geological formations and marine geoengineering, through the London Convention and the London Protocol, to ensure protection of the marine environment (read more here).
Download IMO COP 25 statement here. IMO will participate in a number of side events during the COP 25 summit.
Opening IMO's biennial IMO Assembly (25 November-4 December), IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim made a specific call on Member States for "concrete action" to deliver IMO's GHG reduction strategy.