Korean Register (KR) announced that it is serving as the Coordinator of two International Maritime Organization (IMO) expert groups in key marine environmental areas: ammonia effluent management and response procedures for nitrogen oxides (NOx) reduction strategy failures.
As international pressure to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships intensifies, ammonia-fueled vessels are gaining traction as a zero-carbon alternative to conventional marine fuels. However, ammonia’s high toxicity means that ammonia effluent can be generated during vessel operation, and the absence of internationally agreed management standards continues to create uncertainty across the industry.
To proactively address this regulatory gap, KR established a joint working group in June 2025 in collaboration with the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF), the Korea Testing & Research Institute (KTR), and five major Korean shipbuilders — HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, HD Hyundai Samho, Samsung Heavy Industries, and Hanwha Ocean — to build the necessary technical and regulatory foundations.
Building on this groundwork, KR partnered with MOF to present relevant technical considerations and lead expert session discussions at the 13th session of the IMO Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR 13) in February 2026. As a result, IMO decided to advance
