IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee has reached agreement on the entry into force date of new, stricter requirements for ships’ emission of NOx in emission control areas (NECAs).
At the last session of the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee, uncertainty arose about the entry into force of regulations on ships’ NOx emissions. A number of countries, headed by Russia, questioned the technical possibilities of implementing the regulations and, consequently, obtained support for postponing the entry into force until 1 January 2021.
Since then, a number of countries, including the Unites States, Denmark and Japan, have been working together to retain 2016 as the entry into force year. These efforts made had a great impact on the result of the negotiations.
The year 2016 will be retained for the NECAs already designated, while the entry into force date of new NECAs will depend on when they are decided upon. The United States is the first country where the regulations will apply from 2016.
