The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has failed to adopt what would have been the world’s first-ever global, legally binding carbon price for the shipping industry, delaying the crucial decision for another year.
The proposed agreement, discussed during the IMO’s meeting in London, would have required all large vessels, including cargo and cruise ships, to cut their carbon emissions by 17% by 2028 or pay a pollution fee. The measure aimed to accelerate the industry’s transition from heavy fossil fuels to cleaner, renewable energy sources.
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Currently, the global shipping sector — one of the world’s most polluting industries — contributes about 3% of total global carbon emissions, largely due to its reliance on heavy fuel oil. The pollution from these fuels not only worsens ocean health but also threatens millions living in coastal regions.
Reacting to the outcome, Delaine McCullough, Shipping Programme Director at the Ocean Conservancy, described the failure to adopt the deal as a “major setback for people and the planet.”
She noted that the delay in implementing climate action in the shipping sector has grave human and environmental consequences, linking shipping emissions to 250,000 premature deaths and 6 million cases of childhood asthma annually.
“The agreement would have driven a sector-wide switch from dirty fossil fuels to zero-emission alternatives, including wind power and renewable energy-based fuels,” McCullough said. “A world without this agreement is dirtier and more dangerous for people, wildlife, and the ocean.”
While acknowledging that the proposal was not perfect, she emphasized that it represented an important step toward achieving the IMO’s net-zero emission target by 2050, an upgrade from its previous goal of halving emissions under the 2018 Greenhouse Gas Strategy.
McCullough urged member states to strengthen the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) — the IMO’s main energy efficiency measure — when it comes up for review in April 2026, stressing that improving operational efficiency, including simply reducing ship speeds, could lead to immediate emission cuts.
Environmental advocates warn that further delays could jeopardize the sector’s ability to meet its 2030 climate targets and undermine global progress toward carbon neutrality.
