Eight Countries Now Back Shipping Industry's Decarbonisation Bunker Levy Proposal

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Thursday March 11, 2021

At least eight International Maritime Organization member states now back shipping industry bodies' suggestion of imposing a $2/mt levy on bunker fuel purchases to build a decarbonisation research and development fund.

Georgia, Greece, Japan, Liberia, Malta, Nigeria, Singapore and Switzerland all now support the measure, as well as a variety of shipping industry groups, BIMCO said in a statement on its website on Wednesday.

The proposal, an updated version of which has now been submitted to the IMO, is to use a small levy on bunkers to build up a $5 billion fund to help the shipping industry pay for research into zero-carbon fuels.

"This new $5 billion USD Fund will support a new International Maritime Research and Development Board (IMRB) to commission collaborative programmes for the applied research and development R&D of zero-carbon technologies, specifically tailored for maritime application, including development of working prototypes," BIMCO said in the statement.

"It will also assist CO2 reduction projects in developing countries, including Pacific island nations.

"Zero-emission oceangoing ships deployed at the scale required by 2030 will be near impossible if this proposal is not supported by UN IMO member states."

Ship & Bunker News Team
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