A Lack of Compliant Bunkers Could Lead to Widespread Noncompliance Post 2020, But Not Necessarily Fines

The nonavailability of compliant fuel will not necessarily leave operators open to paying non-compliance fines.

When the new 0.50 percent global sulfur cap for marine fuel comes into effect in 2020, some believe a lack of compliant bunkers will inevitably lead to varying degrees of non-compliance, but ship operators will not necessarily incur penalties as a result.

"Initial frequent shortages of compliant fuels in some ports could result in widespread instances of non-compliance," IBIA's Unni Einemo was quoted as saying this week at the organisation's annual conference.

For the record, the official IMO fuel availability study concluded that there would be enough compliant product to meet demand, but the supply concerns shared by IBIA persist for a number of reasons.

Not least of those is that an alternative fuel availability study presented at the recent 70th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 70) concluded that refiners could have "extreme difficulty" in meeting demand for low sulfur fuels in 2020.

There are also questions over exactly where the compliant fuels will be available; while some major bunker hubs with appropriate refining capacity may have plenty of product, other markets may not, potentially leaving buyers unable to obtain compliant bunkers.

But nonavailability will not necessary leave operators open to paying non-compliance fines.

The current EU sulfur directive, for example, contains a nonavailability clause that sates: The ship shall not be required to deviate from its intended voyage or to delay unduly the voyage in order to achieve compliance.

"The question is whether ship operators are happy to use this clause and lift non-compliant fuels in ports with frequent shortages or even no availability of compliant fuels, or if they will do their utmost to take most of their bunkers in ports with reliable availability of compliant fuels," IBIA wrote in a recent commentary on the matter.

"There's also doubt as to whether all ships will comply at all times when operating on the high seas if there is no risk of getting caught or penalised."

To that end, the Trident Alliance has been one a several voices to stress that effective enforcement of the new rules will be the key to their success.