In relation to the 16 March 2020 Circular from the Federal Transport Authority (FTA) in the United Arab Emirates, MSC is discussing the matter with the FTA and would like to provide the following context to our customers and partners.

MSC has a very large fleet of 520 container ships and is fully committed to implementing the UN IMO 2020 low-Sulphur regime. All vessels requiring compliant fuel were supplied in advance of the implementation date.

This includes MSC JOANNA, which has used only compliant low-Sulphur fuel since IMO 2020 came into effect.

MSC has also made – and is still making – significant investments in the fleet with the installation of IMO-approved exhaust gas cleaning systems (EGCS).

These “scrubber” technologies clean the emissions from traditional marine fuel and are being used across the container shipping industry today. They even have the potential to produce lower Sulphur emissions than fuel with 0.5% Sulphur content.

Many of the shipyards where EGCS installation has been taking place are in areas affected by the current COVID-19 pandemic and this has generated a large backlog of installations for shipowners.

In particular, Chinese shipyards were closed or partially closed for a significant period of time following the extended Lunar New Year holiday as the country grappled with the new coronavirus outbreak. This has impacted shipowners’ schedules for retrofitting ships, as has been widely documented in the media.

MSC JOANNA is one of those ships which has been subject to an EGCS delay and has been carrying traditional marine fuel in a sealed tank to be ready for testing while we wait to find out when the  installation will take place: it is currently scheduled for June 2020.

MSC would like to point out to customers and partners that our fleet, our business and the vital transport and logistics services we provide to the world economy are continuing to operate despite the COVID-19 pandemic and despite the temporary global setback for shipowners around EGCS installation.

We have sufficient arrangements in place for compliant low-Sulphur fuel to maintain our commitment to IMO 2020 and we will implement orders for EGCS as part of a planned diversification strategy where appropriate in due course.

MSC has made available further information about its approach to IMO 2020 and managing environmental emissions in its annual sustainability reports and on the webpage msc.com/sustainability.

Accredited media representatives may contact the MSC press office in Geneva, Switzerland:

Giles Broom
Global PR & Internal Communications Manager
MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company
m: +41 (0)79 754 8827
e: media@msc.com