Drewry IMO2020 Survey: Only 66% of Shipowners Believe 0.50% Sulfur Cap Will Be Enforced as Planned from 2020

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Monday April 9, 2018

Despite repeated assurance from the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that there will be no delay to the start of IMO2020, one third of shipowners responding to a recent survey by Drewry indicated they are still not convinced a global 0.50% sulfur cap on marine fuel will come into effect as planned from January 1, 2020.

When asked "Do you expect the IMO global emission regulations to become enforceable as planned as from 2020?", 66% said "yes", over one-quarter of respondents thought that the regulation would need to be extended due to a lack of readiness, and the remainder said they were unsure.

The Survey encompassed the views of shipowner/operators from a variety of sectors, including tankers, dry bulkers and containerships.

The view is perhaps not without some justification, with nations including Saudi Arabia as recently as February still pushing - unsuccessfully it should be noted - for a formal delay to the start of the new cap.

Elsewhere in the survey, when it came to compliance respondents echoed the widely held belief that using low sulfur fuel would be the compliance method of choice for the majority of vessels, with 66% saying distillates would be used and some 13% indicating they would use a non-LNG alternative fuel for compliance.

8% of respondents said they would look to use LNG.

Ship & Bunker News Team
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