The 84th session of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) was held in London between 27 April and 1 May. The decisions taken in the committee, where the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure represented Turkey, were shared. According to the statement made by the General Directorate of Maritime Affairs, the committee addressed the issue of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from ships (NZF). While the European Union (EU) supported the view of preserving the current NZF structure and strengthening it with technical guidelines, the Arab League countries supported the view of revising the system more comprehensively. The USA maintained its stance against mechanisms involving carbon pricing. It was decided that the Intersessional Working Group on Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Ships would reconvene on 23 September and 23 November.
At the committee meeting, Turkey submitted 5 proposals regarding the definition of NOx emissions for combined cycle gas turbines, the GFI register annual administrative fee for onboard production of blue hydrogen from LNG, and the IMO Net-Zero Fund distribution criteria. In the proposal made by Turkey regarding combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT), it was stated that the current ‘MARPOL Annex VI’ only covers diesel engines during the CCGT emission definition and that the exclusion of gas turbines would require serious technical and legal changes. Regarding the onboard production of blue hydrogen from LNG, an information paper on this system by Turkey, as well as papers on the IMO LCA guideline for this system, were forwarded to the GESAMP-LCA Working Group for review. On another matter, regarding the Net-Zero Fund distribution criteria, a proposal was made for revenue distribution criteria to consider not only the ship’s flag but also countries’ shares based on ship ownership. The IMO decided to discuss the matter at the next meeting.
Air pollution and energy efficiency
Within the scope of air pollution and energy efficiency, the NOx Technical Code (NTC 2008) was updated. Under the new regulations for engines using carbon-free fuels, the method of determining coefficients based on fuel type in emission calculations was updated. Biomethane was added to the natural gas category in fuel classification.
Detailed regulations on data access and anonymisation within the scope of the IMO DCS were postponed to MEPC 85. The Secretariat was requested to conduct an analysis of the IT costs and technical impacts of the new data requirements. The proposal regarding the fuel verification method (ECI) was not accepted as it did not find sufficient support.
While the onboard measurement guidelines (2026) for CH4, N20 measurements and OCCS, methane and N20 emissions were adopted, a revised work plan was adopted for the development of regulations on onboard carbon capture systems. The Correspondence Group was re-established to continue technical studies.
/Regulations for dual-fuel engines were expanded under EEXI, while systems using methanol and ethanol were included in EEDI calculations. The 2026 EEDI Survey and Certification Guidelines were adopted for the certification process. While new methods for performance verification for wind-assisted ships were developed; additional work was requested for ferries to clarify technical details regarding hybrid propulsion systems.
Ballast water management
While the 2026 version of the G4 Guideline was completed, it was preferred to regulate treated ballast through a guideline rather than a regulation. On the other hand, the D-4, D-2 transition was preserved, and technical matters were referred to the correspondence group.
Dayanıklılık testinin ise ayrı bir bölüm olarak tanımlanmasına karar verildi. Sistem değişikliklerinde minör/major tanımları netleşti. Zorlu su koşullarına ilişkin geçici rehberin korunmasına karar verilirken, dezenfeksiyon yan ürünlerine yeni çalışma başlığı eklendi.
MARPOL Annex VI değişikliği
MARPOL Ek VI kapsamında yeni Emisyon Kontrol Alanı’nın (ECA) Kuzey-Doğu Atlantik olarak belirlenmesi kararlaştırılırken, NOx düzenlemesi ile yeni gemiler için Tier III zorunluluğu getirildi. Ayrıca IMO yakıt tüketim veri tabanına erişim genişletilerek, raporlama süreçlerinde tarih aralıkları netleştirildi. Motor operasyonu ile çoklu operasyon profilleri sisteme dahil edildi. IAPP sertifikası ile yeni kayıt alanları eklenerek, NOx test döngüleri ve ağırlıklandırmalar yeniden tanımlandı.
Düzenlemelerin 1 Mart 2027’de kabul edilmesi, 1 Eylül 2027’de yürürlüğe girmesi bekleniyor.
