The Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) will meet for its 2nd extraordinary session in person at IMO Headquarters in London (with remote participation enabled) from 14 to 17 October 2025. The meeting will be chaired by Dr. Harry Conway (Liberia), with Mr. Hanqiang Tan (Singapore) as Vice-Chair.
MEPC/ES.2 highlights
- Consideration and adoption of amendments to mandatory instruments – MARPOL Annex VI; IMO Net-Zero Framework
The Committee will consider, with a view to adoption, draft amendments to MARPOL Annex VI, including the IMO Net-Zero Framework, which was approved by MEPC 83.
The IMO Net-Zero Framework (NZF) comprises a new set of international regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships, in line with IMO’s 2023 GHG Strategy. It includes two key elements: a global fuel standard and global GHG emissions pricing mechanism
In order the IMO NZF To become legally binding, amendments to the MARPOL Convention must go through several steps, known as the “tacit acceptance procedure.” These include:
submission, drafting, approval , circulation, adoption, deemed acceptance, entry into force, enforcement
The IMO Net-Zero Framework was approved by the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 83) in April 2025. The draft legal text was then shared with Member States for review, aiming for formal adoption at a special MEPC session in October 2025.
Once adopted, the regulations are expected to enter into force 16 months later (i.e. in March 2027) at which point governments will be responsible for enforcing them.
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The IMO Net Zero Framework sets up a global system where ships, regardless of their flag, must use cleaner fuels or technologies. If their GHG fuel intensity is too high, they will pay a price corresponding to the greenhouse gases they emit above certain thresholds. Ships will get rewarded for using cleaner fuels.
Ships must report their GHG Fuel Intensity (GFI) to the IMO each year. Each ship must keep its emissions below set GFI limits, which gets stricter every year.
If a ship exceeds set thresholds (there are two tiers of compliance), it must balance the excess “deficit” by using:
- Surplus units (transferred from other over-compliant ships or banked from previous years); or
- Remedial units (acquired by paying into the IMO Net-Zero Fund).
If a ship emits below a certain threshold, it can bank or trade its surplus units.
If a ship fully switches to zero or near-zero emission fuels, it qualifies for financial rewards.
- Reduction of GHG emissions from ships
The Committee will consider a draft work plan to prepare for the entry into force of the IMO Net-Zero Framework.
