International Maritime Organization failed to reach agreement on globally binding measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in maritime transport

Following complex negotiations and a rare vote, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) decided to postpone the final adoption of the long-discussed regulation package on maritime transport emissions by at least one year. The decision means that the proposed regulation will not come into force as originally scheduled in March 2027.

The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) met in London on 14–17 October 2025. The extraordinary session of the Committee was to reach a final decision on globally binding Net-Zero Framework to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping. 

However, its adoption was postponed by at least one year. In the decisive vote, 57 IMO Member States supported the postponement, while 49 countries, including Finland, voted against it. A further 21 Member States abstained. 

According to the jointly agreed EU policy, Finland was in favour of adopting global regulation at this session. Finland finds that this global emission reduction measure would have evened out the imbalance in international regulation of maritime emissions and levelled out the competitive environment, between the EU and the rest of the world, for business and industry that depend on shipping. Without globally coordinated action, the emission reduction targets set by the IMO cannot be met. 

The goal of the IMO is to reach carbon neutrality in maritime transport by or around 2050 in a way that considers national circumstances. By 2030, greenhouse gas emissions from ships must be reduced by at least 20 per cent compared to 2008. The interim target set for 2040 is a reduction of at least 70 per cent.

What’s next?

The outcome of the session represents a setback both for efforts to reduce emissions from maritime transport and for the future of multilateral cooperation between states. The decision leaves the shipping industry without a global economic policy instrument or fuel standard that would be legally binding, both of which are considered crucial for the demand for more sustainable fuels and propulsion technologies.

The future of negotiations within the IMO on this matter remains uncertain. It is not yet clear what the starting point for further discussions will be. However, negotiations on certain technical guidelines specifying the proposed regulation package are expected to continue this week at the working group level. 

Inquiries:

Ministry of Transport and Communications:

Eero Hokkanen, Ministerial Adviser, Alternate Permanent Representative of Finland to the IMO, tel. +358 50 476 0401, eero.hokkanen(at)gov.fi

Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom:

Anita Mäkinen, Chief Specialist, Alternate Permanent Representative of Finland to the IMO, tel. +358 40 162 4592, anita.makinen(at)traficom.fi