Concerns are rife that the new shipping policy of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) will spike the cost of fueling ships to about $70 billion yearly. The 2020 sulphur regulation, which will ban ships from using any marine fuel with sulphur content above 0.5 pct effective January 1, 2020, may impose a heavy burden on owners, as the annual fuel costs for the shipping industry are likely to jump by up to $60 billion, including by $10 billion for the containership sector alone.
As a result, liner companies are transferring a huge portion of the operating costs to shippers, a move that will increase the cost of shipping. However, there are fears in some quarters that some owners might flout the regulations and not invest in compliant fuels, as paying a fine for non-compliance would be much cheaper.
Stakeholders have therefore clamoured for strict monitoring and sanctions for erring shipping firms, as shipping firms jostle to meet the deadline, even as liner giants are now introducing fuel adjustment surcharge ahead of the 2020 sulphur cap. OOCL, Hapag-Lloyd, MSC, CMA CGM, and Maersk Line have already established the surcharge, while Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM), the latest firm in that line, said the surcharge would be introduced in January 2019, to compensate for the rising fuel.
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