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December 30, 2025

IMO Sinks World’s First Global Carbon Tax on Shipping

net zero shipping
© IMO Aerial view of an oil tanker ship at sea. — https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/10/1166131
December 30, 2025

The United Nation’s specialized Agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) voted to postpone decisions regarding global carbon price on international shipping for a year. The decision came after delegates were not able to reach an agreement on the new rules to cut greenhouse gas emissions from ships. Large oil & gas producers like U.S and Saudi Arabia, have strongly opposed a carbon price on shipping, a blow to the EU and other nations like Brazil.

If adopted, the framework would be the first international legal agreement to curb maritime emissions. It introduces a global fuel standard that will progressively lower the annual greenhouse gas fuel intensity of marine fuels, and a greenhouse gas pricing mechanism requiring high-emitting ships to pay for their excess pollution. Ships exceeding thresholds would pay between $100 and $380 per ton of CO₂, generating billions in annual revenue, which would be channelled into the IMO’s Net Zero Fund to finance clean technologies, green fuel infrastructure, and climate adaptation in developing nations.

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