MEPC 80: Consensus grows for net zero by 2050 at IMO – SASHA

The final text of the IMO's revised greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) target includes a net zero emission target "close to 2050", Aoife O’Leary of Skies and Seas Hydrogen-fuels Accelerator (SASHA) Coalition tells ENGINE.

PHOTO: Opening of the 80th Session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) at IMO HQ this week. IMO

O’Leary says that the final text is leaning towards a net zero emission target close to 2050, "But the important thing is that 2050 is in there."

According to sources ENGINE have spoken with, the IMO working group's proposed timeline for achieving a net zero emission target "by 2050 at the latest" would be more legally binding than other timelines options it drafted last week.

The other two timelines for net zero maritime GHG emissions put forward by the working group include:

• “by or around mid-century, mindful of different national circumstances”;  
• And the last timeline is a semantic cousin of the second: “by or around 2050, taking into account different national circumstances”

O’Leary believes that even though the final text mentions a net zero emission target “close to 2050”, it is still viable because the year 2050 has been specified rather than using more ambiguous “by or around mid-century”.

She further claims that “the IMO has agreed to strive for 10% of shipping’s energy sources to be zero emission by 2030, while at the same time stating that 2027 will be the earliest that any measures to achieve this will be put in place.”

IMO delegates have held “intensive informal negotiations” over the past two days, a person familiar with the talks tells ENGINE. The negotiations took place behind closed doors between representatives from IMO member states through most of Wednesday and delegates started to get more clarity on the proposed revision draft yesterday, another source says.

The IMO is expected to adopt a revised GHG strategy later today.

By Nithin Chandran and Debarati Bhattacharjee

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