Maersk Line has stated that it foresees costs spiralling out of control due to the environmental standards outlined in the IMO’s 2020 plans for shipping lines to use cleaner fuel.
The world’s largest liner fears the new rules could cost it up to US$2 billion.
Given the rising global climate, the IMO has created a drastic plan to cut sulphur emissions by 2020.
Simon Bergulf, Director for Regulatory Affairs, Maersk, told Bloomberg: “I wouldn’t call it a perfect storm, but it’s close.”
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Despite $2 billion seeming an almost unbelievable figure, Maersk already spent around $3.3 billion on fuel in 2017, meaning its 2020 fuel bill would be well over $5 billion, and pushing $6 billion.
The IMO has also stated that fuel prices will definitely rise, with high crude prices and investment in R&D among issues that will combine to drive up the cost of complying with IMO 2020 to be impactful.
At present it is not clear whether all liners will adhere to the rule.
While the new restrictions are global in scope, many liners are already struggling to break even, with some major casualties going broke in recent years, meaning there is a chance many liners will still use cheaper fuels.