MEPC 84: Algeria-led proposal resists IMO carbon pricing

IMO’s Net-Zero Framework should not include any “fixed or administered carbon prices,” Algeria and its co-sponsors have proposed.

IMAGE: Delegations at the IMO’s marine environment protection committee extraordinary session in London. X of @IMOHQ

Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Somalia and the UAE have submitted a joint proposal to the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) ahead of its 84th session in April.

The proposal warns that a Net-Zero Framework with economic elements may not reach consensus.

“A framework that imposes sudden or unclear financial burdens will not command sustained support from Member States or industry, and risks undermining confidence in the process,” the proposal states.

Instead, it calls for a revision of the currently approved draft Net-Zero Framework to include a more “balanced framework” that combines “environmental ambition with economic realism” without placing undue strain on economies.

“On this basis, the co-sponsors propose that the Committee take note that the current draft of the IMO Net-Zero Framework, as presented in October 2025, does not reflect the core concerns of many Member States and therefore does not enjoy the consensus needed to ensure effective implementation,” the proposal adds.

Meanwhile, the US has backed this position in its own proposal to the MEPC 84, where it called for a complete scrap of the Net-Zero Framework.

By Konica Bhatt

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