Regional authorities of Shanghai, Zhejiang and Jiangsu Provinces have recently issued formal notices that ships calling at the provinces’ ports on or after 1 October 2018 will be required to use fuel with a sulphur content not exceeding 0.5% while navigating and berthing within the provinces’ waters and port areas.
Since 1 January 2018, ships have been required to use fuel with a sulphur content not exceeding 0.5% while berthed at all ports within the three ECAs. Ships must switch to compliant fuel within one hour of arriving at their berth and use compliant fuel until not more than one hour prior to departure. The changes affecting ships operating within these emissions control areas (ECAs) which had been expected to take effect on 1 January 2019 will now take effect three months before that date, as follows:From 1 October 2018, ships will be required to use fuel with a sulphur content not exceeding 0.5% at all times while operating inside the Yangtze River Delta ECA.
From 1 October 2018, any fuel change-over operation will need to be completed prior to the entry into, or commence after exit from, the Yangtze River Delta ECA.
The Secretariat has been advised that the situation in the Pearl River Delta and Bohai-rim Waters ECAs remains unchanged, ships will be required to use compliant fuel at all times when inside these ECAs from 1 January 2019.
Source: Chamber of Shipping
