At its extraordinary meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee, the IMO decided to postpone for one year the adoption of the Net-Zero Framework (see this link for the news item discussing its adoption in April 2025), which regulates the intensity of GHG emissions from ships, as well as the international carbon pricing mechanism for maritime transport.
Our team analyses the main implications:
- Greater regulatory uncertainty for shipowners, operators and other members of the maritime logistics chain, who will have to deal with investments, technological adaptation and strategic planning without a firm timetable.
- Shipping companies and maritime service providers must actively monitor developments in the framework: the standard affects ships >5,000 GT (responsible for 85% of maritime emissions) and includes well-to-wake intensity metrics (emissions from production to consumption) and a mechanism for payments or transferable units.
- For the auxiliary sector, shipyards, clean fuel suppliers, and technological innovation, the postponement may mean both a temporary delay in new tenders and projects and a window of opportunity to prepare more competitive proposals in light of the new regulatory landscape.
- In the European context, the IMO framework will have to coexist with, and eventually harmonise with, instruments such as the FuelEU Maritime Regulation, so this postponement could create legal or commercial misalignments for Spanish and European companies involved in maritime trade.
The decision to postpone the adoption of the Net-Zero Framework for one year does not imply an indefinite delay, and the IMO will continue to work in the coming months to implement this measure.