Infographic: Are You HFO Ready?

On 1 July 2024, the IMO’s Arctic heavy fuel oil (HFO) ban on the use and carriage of HFO will take effect. While at first glance this looks like great news for the Arctic environment, and the people and wildlife who depend on it, it is not so simple. The regulation includes significant loopholes allowing countries to grant waivers and shipping companies to make use of exemptions to the ban which will allow HFO to still be used up to July 2029. With shipping in the Arctic increasing this has dire consequences for the Arctic in terms of of both HFO spills and for black carbon emissions linked to Arctic meltdown.

The Clean Arctic Alliance is calling on IMO member states to implement the Arctic HFO ban and enforce it fully with immediate effect without resorting to loopholes, and for the shipping industry to seize this landmark opportunity to demonstrate its willingness to embrace a cleaner future instead of hiding behind the use of exemptions and to switch to readily available, relatively cleaner distillate marine fuels or to alternative forms of propulsion. This would demonstrate that the shipping world is willing and ready to go above and beyond the call of duty.