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READY FOR SHIPPING: ONBOARD CARBON CAPTURE HAS ARRIVED
DETAIL INFORMATION
It's an ongoing project. IMO has greenlighted a plan to establish a regulatory framework for OCCS, and the E.U. remains open to potential future acknowledgment. However, as both DNV and Carbon Ridge emphasize, the major limitations involve port infrastructure, storage accessibility, carbon accounting, and the financial feasibility of transferring captured CO2 from the ship into a certified value chain.
The regulation is in progress, but it hasn't been completed.
During MEPC 83 in April 2025, the IMO sanctioned a strategy for creating a regulatory framework for onboard carbon capture and storage (OCCS), reinstated a correspondence group focused on measurement and verification, and directed the technology towards establishing a more formal structure by 2028.
In Europe, FuelEU Maritime started on January 1, 2025, but the European Commission was straightforward about the exclusion of OCCS: it had limited maturity, few demonstrated results, and lacked an international framework for traceability and long-term sequestration.
This places the industry in a known situation. The technology is advancing quicker than the regulations.