Member states of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) took a further step in London to find concrete measures for implementation of the IMO climate protection targets for shipping worldwide. The IMO environmental working group held a meeting once again this week to introduce short-term measures for ships to reduce CO2 emissions without any further delay. In the course of the five-day negotiations, the more than 150 IMO states made substantial progress in discussions on the further contribution of the shipping industry towards combating climate change.
For the first time, a majority of ambitious states, particularly from Europe, decided to cooperate closely with core states from Asia and South America in order to be able to adopt concrete CO2 reduction measures as early as next spring at the meeting of the IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC). Numerous IMO states indicated that they were in favour of measures that should be formulated as openly as possible and define clear objectives on the one hand, but leave shipping companies the option of choosing from a number of operational and technical measures to achieve a rapid reduction of CO2 emissions from ships on the other. In line with this approach, the objective of reducing emissions would be firmly defined, but the “how” would remain the prerogative of each individual company, which would thus be able to fully exploit the different potentials of each type of vessel and give rise to incentives for innovation and efficiency. The international community will now examine the further definition of concrete measures to be taken.
“We explicitly endorse the initiative of the international community to define measures to reduce CO2 emissions from our ships as quickly as possible,” said Ralf Nagel, Chief Executive Officer of the German Shipowners’ Association. “We hope their negotiators will be able to reach a consensus without delay so that our companies can adapt to the many changes in good time. The policy for the decarbonisation of shipping is both correct and important. However, it is imperative for us to find an international solution in order to reduce CO2 emissions from ships. In contrast, special regional approaches are to be avoided since they distort competition and ultimately have no sufficient effect on the climate. This is because shipping - the most international mode of transport of all - simply cannot be confined to national borders,” Nagel added.
In 2018, the IMO members had adopted an ambitious roadmap to lower CO2 emissions. This roadmap provides for the shipping sector to at least halve its global CO2 emissions by the year 2050 (reduction in absolute terms compared to 2008). By the year 2100 at the latest, ocean-going ships should no longer emit any CO2 at all. “German shipowners fully subscribe to the objective of achieving climate-neutral ship operation as soon as possible,” Nagel said. The newly elected President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, recently announced her intention to include shipping in the European emissions trading system. The German Shipowners’ Association takes a critical view of this initiative and advocates a global solution instead.
About the German Shipowners’ Association
The German Shipowners’ Association (Verband Deutscher Reeder, VDR) is responsible for representing the common business and social policy interests of German shipping companies at federal and state government level as well as in relation to European and international bodies. Founded in 1907, the VDR merged with the Association of German Coastal Shipowners in 1994. With a membership of around 220, the VDR represents the majority of Germany’s merchant fleet. For more details, visit www.reederverband.de.
