[160418.EN.BIZ] BIMCO, International Chamber Applaud IMO Emissions Strategy

THE two global shipowners and ship management associations, BIMCO and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), have applauded the ship emissions strategy adopted on April 13 in London by the UN's International Maritime Organisation.

The strategy sets a target of 50 per cent green house gas emission reduction by 2050, using 2008 as the starting date with a view to reducing them to zero by the year 2100.

"The IMO has done something no one has done before - set an absolute target for emission reductions for an entire industry," said Lars Robert Pedersen, deputy secretary general of the Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO).

Said ICS secretary general Peter Hinchliffe: "This is a ground breaking agreement that sets a very high level of ambition for the future reduction of CO2 emissions.

The ICS acknowledged that some governments would have preferred to see the adoption of even more aggressive targets, but it argued that a 50 per cent total cut by 2050 can only be achieved with the development and widespread use of zero CO2 fuels.

Said Mr Pedersen: The target is ambitious, but not impossible. "In BIMCO we believe that the industry can deliver on this target - even if we don't exactly know how, yet.

"Now we have to focus on the mid-to-long term. We have to find the technology and procedures that will drive us towards zero GHG emissions," he said.

Said Mr Hinchliffe: "The industry is very encouraged by the willingness of governments to move to a position that demonstrates that IMO is the only body that can meaningfully address the CO2 emissions of international shipping."

Source : HKSG.