Clean Arctic Alliance has publicly called on shipping companies already carrying cargo across the Arctic to be transparent about their choice of fuel. While the IMO’s Polar Code already recommends ship operators “not to use or carry heavy fuel oil in the Arctic”, it is not binding. With an Arctic HFO ban on the way, The Clean Arctic Alliance wants to know – which shipping companies will become flagships for a HFO Free Arctic?
The Clean Arctic Alliance has good news to share regarding real progress towards a ban on the use and carriage of heavy fuel oil (HFO) as marine fuel in Arctic waters.
As climate change impacts the Arctic, momentum is building to rid the region of the world’s dirtiest fuel: heavy fuel oil. Several countries are calling for a ban from Arctic shipping – but more support is needed.
The Clean Arctic Alliance is organising a side-event at MEPC72 on Tuesday, 10 April at 1745: The Climate Crisis: A message from the Arctic. The aim is to increase awareness among IMO delegates about the local and global consequences of the current changes taking place in the Arctic, and to demonstrate the necessity for IMO to agree an ambitious strategy to reduce greenhouse gases from shipping globally and a regional ban on HFO in the Arctic.
A number of shipping companies, including Maersk, Hapag Lloyd and Klaveness, have indicated that they will likely move to low sulphur fuels, and some fuel companies are quietly happy to sell a more expensive, 0.5% sulfur product, while hoping for low numbers of scrubber installation.
With the Arctic facing such challenges, it important to act swiftly to put in place the best possible protection for the region. In early July, the Clean Arctic Alliance attended the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 71) in London, where we welcomed an agreement made by member nations to move forward on a proposal to identify measures to mitigate the risks posed by the use of heavy fuel oil (HFO) and its carriage as shipping fuel in Arctic waters.
Shipping companies are under pressure to phase out use of heavy fuels, as world’s first hybrid battery-powered cruise ship set for launch in 2018
Master mariner and naval architect Niels Bjørn Mortensen discusses the risks of using heavy fuel oil as a shipping fuel in the Arctic.
Polar explorer and Arctic Commitment signatory Ranulph Fiennes calls on the IMO to implement a ban on the use of heavy fuel oil in Arctic waters.
Join us at MEPC71 to discuss the risks associated with the use of heavy fuel oil (HFO) in Arctic shipping.