Timing of postponed IMO meetings to be decided by Council

Several IMO meetings IBIA planned to take part in have been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently all meetings scheduled up until the mid- June have been postponed “until further notice” and it remains unknown if or when they will be rescheduled.

In response to the exceptional circumstances, the IMO’s Council has conducted an extraordinary session by correspondence. Council decided to convene another extraordinary session by correspondence to approve a revised schedule of postponed meetings. It will be held as soon as it is better understood when IMO will be able to resume normal operations.

Postponed IMO meetings IBIA intended to participate in include the 75th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee and the intersessional working group on GHG (The ISWG-GHG) the week prior to MEPC 75, the 44th session of Facilitation Committee, and the 102nd session of the Maritime Safety Committee.

Other scheduled IMO meetings IBIA plans to attend in 2020 include III 7 in July, where port State control issues are discussed, CCC 7 in September, which will discuss amendments to the IGF Code to address safety provisions for low-flashpoint oil fuels, MEPC 76 in October and MSC 103 in November.

If it becomes impossible to hold all the IMO’s scheduled 2020 meetings, there are indications that MSC, MEPC and the ISWG-GHG could be given priority.

Unni Einemo
unni@ibia.net