Crunch Time For Climate Action: Fossil Fuels Or A 1.5°C Future?

March 2025, London, UK — With the survival of island nations hanging in the balance, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) will reconvene in London on March 31 and April 1, for a crucial two-day Intersessional Working Group on Greenhouse Gas (ISWG-GHG 19) meeting. Talks on a greenhouse gas levy will trigger a reckoning, as Pacific nations—backed by a growing global alliance—demand bold climate action, setting the stage for a decision at the Marine Environment Protection Committee 83 (MEPC 83) on 7-11 April on the future of shipping’s climate responsibility.

MEPC 83 is scheduled as the decision-making point for agreeing the measures, including a price on shipping’s GHG emissions, to implement the IMO’s 2023 Strategy for Reducing Shipping Emissions. Under the unanimously agreed Strategy, IMO member states agreed to fully decarbonise the sector by mid-century. It was also agreed that the transition away from fossil fuels must be just and equitable, leaving none behind.

The 6PAC+ alliance—a group of Pacific, African, and Caribbean States, backed by major allies—emphasizes that this meeting is a make-or-break moment for securing a universal greenhouse gas (GHG) levy of $150 per tonne of CO2-equivalent. This is the minimum price needed to close the cost gap with alternative fuels and trigger large-scale commercial production by the 2030s.

ISWG-GHG 19 is a test of IMO’s credibility,” said Ambassador Albon Ishoda, Marshall Islands Special Envoy for Maritime Decarbonization. “Without a universal GHG levy, IMO’s climate targets are meaningless. This is the fastest, most effective, and lowest-cost way to ensure a just and equitable transition, where no one is left behind.

“Delays cost lives. The time for action is now."

The meeting follows the failure of member states to reach consensus at the latest Intersessional Working Group on GHG in February. This left key decisions unfinished. This intersessional meeting marks the final opportunity to forge agreement before MEPC 83 on April 7-11.

Why the Levy Matters: Survival, Justice, and Climate Action

For the 6PAC+, this fight is not just about climate ambition—it is about survival. Rising sea levels, intensifying storms, and eroding coastlines are already threatening the homes and livelihoods of millions across the Pacific and other vulnerable regions.

The universal GHG levy is the most widely supported and effective option on the table. It ensures the shipping industry transitions away from its reliance on Fossil Fuels, pays its fair share for the damage caused by its pollution and will generate vital revenues for climate-vulnerable nations to transition, supporting developments in port infrastructure, capacity building, and seafarer training.

Momentum for the universal levy is growing: Over 50 nations in a rising coalition from the Pacific, Caribbean, Africa, Latin America, and Europe backed by industry leaders like the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) back a GHG levy as the IMO’s economic measure. Yet, political divisions remain, especially over the starting price and revenue distribution. Important differences still remain over the entry price of the levy and the ultimate use of the revenues it generates, with ICS offering a starting point of around $20/tonne CO2-e, the EU suggesting $100/tonne CO2-e and the 6PAC+ arguing that $150/tonne CO2-e is the minimum price to keep the Paris Agreement target of 1.5 C alive.

Meantime a small but powerful lobby of BRICS and petro-states oppose any form of levy, arguing instead for some form of credit trading scheme, with revenues largely recycled within the industry. As the 6PAC+ has repeatedly pointed out such schemes are always regressive with revenues moving from poor southern buyers to already well established traders in developed and emerging economies.

Dangerous distractions, such as complex credit trading schemes, risk derailing ambition, but the 6PAC+ has made clear: half-measures cannot replace real action.

ISWG-GHG 19 offers IMO member states a chance to align their positions and put forward a unified, ambitious plan for decision at MEPC 83. The world cannot afford further delay.

Scheduled for April 7 to 11 in London, MEPC 83 will determine whether the shipping sector aligns with the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C target or risks irrelevance in global climate efforts.

The 6PAC+ alliance calls on all IMO member states to stand with the most vulnerable and deliver a decision that is ambitious, fair, and just for all. In the words of Marshall Islands President Hilda Heine "There is no more room for delay. The world is watching — and history will remember what we decide here.”

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