US moves to sink IMO net zero shipping plan before next MEPC round
In the US, Splash247 reports the Trump administration has formally asked the IMO to abandon its Net Zero Framework, reopening a shipping fight that was merely postponed last October rather than settled. The US submission ahead of MEPC 84 calls the package “flawed,” warns of economic fallout for shipping and consumers, and argues the resumed extraordinary session should not go forward because a March 2027 entry into force is no longer legally workable.
That hard line lands as other major states try different ways to reshape the same package. Splash reported that Japan is looking for a compromise by dropping mandatory payments into the IMO fund and easing fuel intensity targets, while China is pushing back against what it sees as unfair lifecycle accounting for e-fuels and pressing for onboard carbon capture to stay in play.
The framework itself was approved in principle at MEPC 83 in April 2025 but delayed by a year in October 2025, leaving this year’s IMO meetings to decide whether the plan survives in diluted form, or gets torpedoed outright.
Category: Sustainable Marine Fuels
