Main decisions of the IMO MEPC 79

RINA has published a report from the 79th session of the IMO Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC 79) was held from 12 to 16 December 2022.

The main decisions taken are summarized below on the basis of the information obtained while participating in the debate.

AMENDMENTS TO MANDATORY INSTRUMENTS

Amendments to MARPOL Annexes I, II, IV, V, VI and Form of the Supplement of IOPP Certificate, entering into force on 1 May 2024

MARPOL Annexes I, II, IV, V and VI include the possibility for States, the coastline of which borders on Arctic waters, to enter into regional arrangements for port reception facilities.

The relevant Guidelines for the development of a regional reception facilities plan has been amended accordingly.

The Form of the Supplement of IOPP Certificate includes new references in the title of section 5 “Construction”.

Amendments to MARPOL Annex V entering into force on 1 May 2024

The amendments to MARPOL Annex V extend the obligation to carry a Garbage Record Book to all ships of 100 GT and above.

Amendments to MARPOL Annex VI entering into force on 1 May 2024

The amendments to MARPOL Annex VI modify:

1. Regulation 14 and Appendix VII to designate the Mediterranean Sea as a new Emission Control Area for Sulphur oxides (Med SOX ECA), expected to be effective from 1 May 2025;
2. the Form on the “Information to be included in the bunker delivery note”, including the information on the Flashpoint (°C); and
3. the Form on the “Information to be submitted to the IMO Ship Fuel Oil Consumption Database” (Appendix IX) to include more information on the ship's carbon intensity performance, such as:

• "Year of delivery" instead of "Year of building contract” since it is more relevant in the context of the CII;
• “Attained EEDI” and “Attained EEXI”;
• “Applicable CII: AER or cgDIST”;
• “Required annual operational CII”;
• "Attained annual operational CII before any correction";
• “Attained annual operational CII”;
• “Operation carbon intensity rating”;
• “CII for trial purpose”.

The Form on the “Information to be submitted to the IMO Ship Fuel Oil Consumption Database” (Appendix IX) can be early implemented (i.e. from 1 January 2024) in line with the implementation of CII requirements.

DECARBONIZATION ISSUES

The Committee progressed on the review of the IMO Initial Strategy on GHG, which should be adopted at MEPC 80 in July 2023, discussing on the levels of ambitious for 2030 and 2050, a new target in 2040, list of candidates measures and impact on States.

Moreover, the following issues were briefly debated and referred to MEPC 80 for further consideration:

• additional corrective factors for CII (e.g. steam driven LNG carriers, electrical consumption of refrigerated cargo carriers, short voyage, stay in port, waiting time);
• new and separate reference line for self-unloading bulk carriers; and
• inclusion of Carbon Capture and Storage Systems in the regulatory framework.

Green Corridors

ʺGreen Shipping Corridorsʺ have been included in the IMO Resolutions encouraging Member States to voluntary committee to address GHG emissions though the development of national action plans and cooperation between port and shipping sectors (Res. MEPC.366(79) and MEPC.367(79)).

Such measure – although voluntary – is considered as a useful tool in facilitating and incentivizing the reduction of GHG emissions from ships.

In fact, Green Corridors would allow interested Member States, industry and ports to voluntarily work together to create the conditions along specific shipping routes and corridors, for trials on low- and zero-emission technologies and fuels.

DRAFT AMENDMENTS APPROVED IN VIEW OF THEIR ADOPTION AT MEPC 80

Draft amendments to the BWM Convention

The draft amendments to the BWM Convention include modifications to the Form of Ballast Water Record Book (BWRB), deleting the duplication of the information contained in the International Ballast Water Management Certificate and reviewing the BWRB items to improve clarity on how to record the operation of the ship.

Additional guidance for recording the operations will be finalized and approved concurrently with the BWM Convention amendments at MEPC 80 in July 2023.

RECOMMENDATORY INSTRUMENTS ADOPTED/APPROVED

2022 Guidelines on the method of calculation of the Attained Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) for new ships (Res. MEPC.364(79))

The revised Guidelines include the following:

• the default values for “Lower Calorific Value”, “Carbon Content” and conversion factor (CF) for ethane;
• changing the format of the equation for the shaft generator (para. 2.2.5.2), without changing the calculation result; and
• clarification for new ship with multiple load line certificates or with a load line certificate containing multiple load lines, specifying that the highest deadweight value should be used to calculate and verify the required and attained EEDI. For existing vessels that may have previously received multiple EEDI assessments for several deadweights that correspond to multiple load lines, all those EEDI assessments shall remain valid.

Unified interpretation of MARPOL Annex VI (MEPC.1/Circ.795/Rev.7)

The unified interpretation clarifies – inter alia - the following:

• similarly to biofuel and biofuel blends, synthetic fuel (i.e. fuel oil from synthetic or renewable sources similar in composition to petroleum distillate fuels) and blends containing up to 30% of synthetic fuel are exempted from NOx emission assessment and blends over 30% are allowed to be used without further NOX assessment in engines, on the condition that there are no changes to NOX critical components or settings/operating values set out in the engineʹs approved Technical File;
• how new and existing ships should report the EEDI data, specifying – inter alia – that ships for which EEDI data have already been reported prior to 1 April 2022, are not required to report the data again;
• the boil-off gas consumption is to be reported in the Data Collection System;
• the entries relevant to the attained CII and rating in the “Statement of Compliance related to fuel oil consumption reporting and operational carbon intensity” are not to be populate for 2023, being not available;
• the application of SEEMP Part III requirement in case of ship delivered at the end of year (i.e. on 1 October or later);
• if a ship results for data collected in a calendar year YYYY to be rated as E, or D for the third year, the corrective action plan should be verified in year YYYY+1 and developed to achieve the required annual operational CII for data collected in the calendar year YYYY+2.

DESIGNATION OF NORTH-WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN SEA AS PSSA

The Committee agreed in principle to designate the North-Western Mediterranean Sea as a particular sensitive sea area (PSSA), on the basis of the assessment carried out by the Technical Group on the Designation of PSSA and provided that the associative protective measures are developed and approved.

Further regulatory work on this issue will be carried out by the NCSR Sub-Committee for subsequent adoption by MEPC at a future session.

OTHER RESOLUTIONS AND CIRCULARS APPROVED/ADOPTED

• Res. MEPC.363(79) - Amendments to the 2012 Guidelines for the Development of a Regional Reception Facilities Plan
• Res. MEPC.365(79) - 2022 Guidelines on the survey and certification of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI)
• Res. MEPC.368(79) - Amendments to 2014 Standard specification for shipboard incineratorsž
• BWM.2/Circ.66/Rev. 4 - Unified interpretation of the BWM Conventionž
• MEPC.1/Circ.885/Rev.1 - Revised procedure for assessing impacts on states
  of candidate measures