IMO 2020 – Can the industry cope with tighter restrictions?

In October 2016, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) announced that by January 1 2020, a global limit on sulphur content in fuel oil used on ships will be limited to 0.5%. The aim of this was to significantly reduce the amount of sulphur oxide from ships and to reduce the environmental impact of greenhouse gas emissions. The new 0.5% limit is a dramatic reduction from the current global sulphur content limit of 3.5%, which has been in effect since the 1 of January 2012. Tighter restrictions are already in place in Emission Control Areas (ECAS) established by the IMO, in which sulphur content is limited to 0.1%.

Martin Tallett, president of EnSys Energy & Systems Inc. has suggested however that the industry will struggle to cope with the stricter regulations suggested by the IMO. Martin previously presented research to the IMO in 2018 in which he explained his concerns if tougher standards were to be enforced by 2020. Martin has also recently discussed these potential issues.

“The main difference is that global demand level has gone up since 2016,” he said “We don’t believe the refining industry can produce all of the fuels that would be needed to achieve 100 percent compliance. It’s going to be potentially rather chaotic and stressed.”

However, the Netherlands based research and consultancy company CE Delft had previously carried out a fuel availability study for the IMO, concluded at the time that there would not be global shortages. 

In the study, CE Delft stated: “The main result of the assessment is that in all scenarios the refinery sector has the capability to supply sufficient quantities of marine fuels with a sulphur content of 0.50% m/m or less and with a sulphur content of 0.10% m/m or less to meet demand for these products, while also meeting demand for non-marine fuels.”

For more information, visit: www.imo.org and www.ensysenergy.com

18th June 2018