News
21/08/26
US signals support for LNG in IMO net-zero rules
Sao Paulo, 21 August (Argus) — The US could support an International Maritime
Organization (IMO) net-zero framework (NZF) that recognises LNG and bio-LNG as
qualifying fuels, Federal Maritime Commission chairman Laura DiBella said,
signalling Washington's possible position for the IMO's Marine Environment
Protection Committee (MEPC) extraordinary session in December 2026. The
statement suggests the US could work with a revised NZF rather than oppose any
global framework for cutting shipping emissions. This could ease market concerns
that Washington might reject all versions of the framework and obstruct the
IMO's attempt to advance maritime decarbonization. Any viable version of the
IMO's NZF must allow the "maximum range" of alternative fuels, including LNG and
bio-LNG, DiBella said in a statement. "Efforts toward emissions reductions must
be linked explicitly to demonstrated viability and realistic availability of
alternative fuels, not a pre-determined, rigid implementation date or limited
fuel options," she said. Alternative fuels must meet agreed criteria for
affordability, global availability and scalability, while conventional and
transitional fuels should remain in use, she added. The US has opposed the NZF
in its current form , arguing that it could impose high costs on shipping,
energy producers and consumers, while favoring expensive fuels that have not
shown sufficient availability or commercial viability. A US submission ahead of
the IMO's MEPC 84th session in late April in London called for an approach
without carbon taxes, fuel-type restrictions or penalties against existing
propulsion technologies . But DiBella's comments show conditions under which US
concerns could be addressed, with LNG and bio-LNG at the core of that position.
Discussions on emissions cuts must include both fuels, which could
"realistically supply over 60pc of global maritime fuel by 2050", DiBella said.
Bio-LNG can use existing LNG infrastructure and serve the expanding fleet of
LNG-fuelled vessels, avoiding some costs of building a new fuel supply chain,
she added. A global fuel standard could also provide long-term demand certainty
to support investment and expand bio-LNG supply, particularly in the US, DiBella
said. The policy challenge, therefore, is not to abandon alternative fuels
because future demand may increase their price, but rather it is to design a
framework that allows supply and infrastructure investment to grow alongside
demand, she said. The US is the world's largest natural gas producer and LNG
exporter. US dry gas output rose by more than 4pc to a record 39 trillion ft³ in
2025, while LNG exports increased from around 500mn ft³/d in 2016 to 15bn ft³/d
last year The US Energy Information Administration expects exports to exceed
18.1bn ft³/d in 2027, supported by new liquefaction capacity. The IMO approved
the NZF at MEPC 83 in April 2025, including a global marine fuel standard and a
greenhouse gas emissions pricing mechanism. But members adjourned the
extraordinary MEPC session on formal adoption in October 2025 and agreed to
reconvene after 12 months to allow more time to build consensus. By Gabriel
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