Cost of shipping will from next year go up by 20 percent due to the implementation of the International Maritime Organisation sulphur cap regulation.
The regulation requires that sulphur content in commercial ship fuel should not exceed 0.5 percent; a 3 percent reduction in the current 3.5 percent
IMO regulations to reduce sulphur oxides emissions from ships first came into force in 2005, under Annex 6 of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (known as the MARPOL Convention).
Since then, the limits on sulphur oxides have been progressively tightened.
The intended reduction would have major health and environmental benefits for the world, particularly for populations living close to ports and coasts.
The Marine Pollution Act (Act 932), which was passed in 2016, compels shippers in Ghana to conform to this regulation.
But CEO of the Ghana Shippers Authority, Benonita Bismarck said this will be costly.
“It is a global convention that we have all signed to and we have to bear the cost. Cost of operations will increase by between 10 -20 percent, but that should not be an overburdening of the shipper,” she explained.
On the policy, an inter ministerial committee has been put in place to facilitate its implementation.
The committee comprises, the energy and transport ministries, NPA, GMA, among others.
The Ghana Maritime Authority is the agency mandated to ensure compliance by ships in Ghana’s territorial waters.
Some shippers have expressed concerns about the cost the implementation of the new cap will have on shipping
Globally, over 24 billion dollars will be required to implement this new regulation by January 2020.
By Grace Hammoah Asare|3news.com|Ghana