The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represented the shipping industry at the 2015 Paris Climate Change conference (COP21), said the sector remains committed to reducing CO2 emissions per tonne/kilometre by at least 50 per cent before 2050, compared to 2007, across the entire global merchant fleet.

"I am sure IMO member states will now proceed with new momentum to help the industry deliver ever greater CO2 reductions," said ICS secretary general Peter Hinchliffe, reported London's Tanker Operator.

The ICS will engage in discussions at an IMO meeting in April 2016 about the possibility of agreeing a CO2 reduction target for shipping. ICS is also pushing for IMO to finalise a global CO2 data collection system for ships, which ICS would like to see mandatory as soon as possible, prior to IMO deciding on the necessity of additional actions such as developing a market based measure.

"IMO is the only forum which can take account of the UN principle of 'differentiation" while requiring all ships to apply the same CO2 reduction measures, regardless of their flag state. Unilateral or regional regulation would be disastrous for shipping and disastrous for global CO2 reduction," said Mr Hinchliffe.