London, 1 May, 2026:- As this week’s meeting of the International Maritime Organization’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (IMO, MEPC 84, April 27-May 1) closes today, the Clean Shipping Coalition welcomed support from the majority of member states for the IMO’s Net-Zero Framework (NZF) despite pressure from US, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Panama, Liberia, and other petro-states, but called out the threat of further delays to adoption, which is now scheduled for early December.
The NZF will be discussed at two IMO intercessional meetings, one in September and another immediately prior to December’s MEPC 85, which will itself immediately precede a resumed Extraordinary Session 2, during which the NZF is scheduled for adoption.
“Most IMO member states have demonstrated support for the Net-Zero Framework, with many calling for its urgent adoption”, said Delaine McCullough, President of the Clean Shipping Coalition and Ocean Conservancy’s Shipping Program Director. “Clearly, the NZF must be adopted as soon as possible, without interference from those who would seek to undermine or slow the process. Any further delay to the NZF is unacceptable – it already represents years of negotiation and consensus – the IMO has no other option capable of meeting goals of its own GHG Strategy or attracting wider support.”
Net Zero Framework
The IMO’s Net-Zero Framework is aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships, in line with the 2023 GHG Strategy. The NZF includes a global fuel standard (GFS), requiring ships “to gradually reduce how polluting its ship fuel can be (i.e. how much greenhouse gas is emitted for each unit of energy used, across a fuel’s life cycle)”. It also includes a mechanism for setting prices on the GHGs ships emit, to encourage the shipping industry to lower emissions as per the global fuel standard.
“We welcome the news from this weeks’ IMO meeting that the Net-Zero Framework remains on the table. It’s a critical foundation for decarbonising shipping”, said Anaïs Rios, Senior Shipping Policy Officer, Seas At Risk. “But what started off as a legitimate framework, with a carbon pricing at its core for a chance at a just transition, has been weakened along the way. Recent events have exposed the truth. Our dependence on fossil fuels is not just a climate risk, it’s an economic and geopolitical liability. However, solutions already exist: Wind propulsion can cut emissions today and ease the reliance on scarce and expensive new fuels. Shipping must play its fair share, and countries must do the same.”
Posted on: 4 May 2026
