The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and Comité Maritime International (CMI) have launched an updated campaign aimed at accelerating the ratification of critical maritime treaties, addressing growing concerns over regulatory…
https://gcaptain.com/ics-and-cmi-launch-maritime-treaty-campaign-to-combat-global-regulatory-gaps/
More concerns are being raised about the port fees that the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) proposes be placed on Chinese-built ships.
USTR proposes massive port fees on Chinese-built ships entering U.S. ports
As Peter Sands, chief shipping analyst at Xeneta noted last week, containership operators are looking at their options.
Now the trade association for those operators, the World Shipping Council (WSC) has released its assessment of the likely impact of the port fees should they be...
The U.S. Department of Energy last week announced an order that removes barriers for the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel. The order issued by DOE modifies a prior order issued to JAX LNG in December 2024 under the previous administration that had asserted new oversight for the use of LNG to power marine vessels, also known as LNG bunkering.
JAX LNG is a small-scale coastal LNG facility located at Dames Point near Jacksonville, Florida that provides LNG as fuel to ships,...
https://www.marinelog.com/news/u-s-doe-removes-barriers-to-lng-bunkering/
Operators of Chinese built ships could face a service fee of up $1.5 million for each U.S. port call. As we reported earlier, in response to a petition filed by U.S. unions back in March 2024, then U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Ambassador Katherine Tai found that China’s targeting the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors for dominance is actionable under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974
USTR: China’s dominance of global shipbuilding warrants U.S. action
Section 301 is a key tool...
How much closer are we to IMO GHG reduction regulations that include putting a price on ships’ GHG emissions? Following a week of discussions by an IMO working group, Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), emphasized the need for urgent progress ahead of the critical IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 83) session in April.
“While ICS is broadly satisfied with the progress made on a radical new package of global GHG reduction regulations,...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal/environment/ics-much-work-still-needed-on-imo-ghg-reduction-plans/
With the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) on ship recycling set to take effect this year, shipowners looking to scrap old tonnage will need to ensure compliance with stricter regulatory controls and inspection requirements.
DNV’s latest guidance paper “Safe and Green Recycling for Ship Owners” outlines how owners can work in line with both existing EU Ship Recycling Regulations (EU SRR) and the HKC, coming into effect on June 26, 2025.
The ship recycling process is a key contributor to a circular...
n the latest round of a long running battle, the American Waterways Operators (AWO) has written California Gov. Gavin Newsom asking him to withdraw the 2022 amendments to the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Commercial Harbor Craft Rule.
The AWO letter follows CARB’s withdrawal of its requests to enforce emissions rules for California’s truck and rail industries, leaving only harbor craft subject to CARB’s stringent regulations
Following is the text of the AWO letter
Dear Governor Newsom:
I am...
By as early as 2027, ship operators could face an IMO-imposed charge per tonne of CO2 emitted. The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has released the text of a proposal that has been submitted to an IMO working group. Supported by the ICS and 47 governments, it calls for an annual contribution by ships, per tonne of GHG emitted, to multi-billion-dollar International Maritime Organization (IMO) fund.
According to the ICS, “If fit-for-purpose regulations are approved by IMO Member States in...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal/environment/new-push-for-imo-levy-on-ghg-emissions/
Will the California Air Resources Board’s controversial Commercial Harbor Craft Rule lead to the building of more cutting edge zero-emission vessels, or will it create hazardous conditions on existing vessels retrofitted to meet its requirements? Either way, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has now approved the majority of CARB’s waiver request for the rule, including most of the zero-emission requirements.
This regulation “paves the way for zero-emissions harbor craft such as...
https://www.marinelog.com/news/epa-approves-most-of-controversial-carb-rule-waiver-request/
In a regulatory action that has been long in the works, the U.S. Envionmental Protection Administration has released the pre-publication version of its final rule to establish Vessel Incidental Discharge National Standards of Performance as directed by the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act, or VIDA, which was enacted in 2018.
The national standards of performance cover incidental discharges from non-recreational, non-Armed Forces vessels 79 feet in length and above, as well as ballast water only...
https://www.marinelog.com/inland-coastal/epa-finalizes-vida-incidental-discharge-standards/