The big challenge facing shipping

MANY different topics will be discussed at the various forums and conferences underway as part of Singapore Maritime Week. But there is one huge challenge that is coming ever closer and the signs are that shipping will not be prepared.

It is to be hoped that everybody involved in the shipping industry at any senior level will be aware that last October the International Maritime Organization (IMO) confirmed Jan 1, 2020 as the implementation date for a global limit of 0.50 per cent on sulphur content in marine fuel, down from the 3.5 per cent limit currently in place. The new global limit will not change the 0.10 per cent limit in SOx Emission Control Areas (ECAS) established by IMO in the Baltic Sea-North Sea area; the North American coast and around Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

Ships can meet the requirement by using low-sulphur compliant fuel oil or by using gas, usually LNG. Another alternative fuel is methanol which is being used on some short sea services. Or ships can comply with emission requirements by using approved equivalent methods, such as exhaust gas cleaning systems or "scrubbers" which must be approved by the ship's flag state.