PRESS RELEASE: In support of the IMO’s programme of events to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the adoption of the IMO Convention, IACS Council Chair, Mr Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, was delighted to speak at the IMO’s High-Level Forum held in London yesterday. “With the decision to reduce GHG emissions by 50 per cent by 2050, the IMO has reached an important consensus and has set an ambitious target for shipping. In classification, working with the industry to create a safe and sustainable future is at the heart of what we do. We at IACS look forward to working closely with the IMO and the wider maritime community, in discussing how to reach this goal,” says Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, IACS Chairman and CEO of DNV GL – Maritime. “Decarbonisation and digitalisation are two of the key drivers transforming the maritime industry today. For the IMO, this means that the regulatory landscape needs to be continually adapted to match the rapid rate of innovation we see in shipping. Making sure that there is a close correlation between international rules and the current state of technology is no easy feat. The IMO has done valuable work in addressing the challenges our industry currently faces. One of the things that has significantly reduced the administrative burden on all stakeholders is the possibility of using electronic certificates. The IMO developed the relevant guidelines to make this possible,” he adds.
IACS’ engagement with the IMO as its principal technical advisor is deep and long-standing. IACS not only provides technical advice and guidance to the IMO Member States, but is also heavily involved in assisting in the practical implementation of the instruments adopted by the IMO Member States. The IMO Secretary-General’s message introducing the 2018 World Maritime Day theme noted that “IMO’s greatest achievement has been to create a level playing field, through global regulations uniformly implemented . . . [in a way that] encourages innovation and efficiency.” Since its admission to the IMO in 1969, IACS is pleased to have played a fundamental supporting role in the delivery of that achievement through the development, implementation and maintenance of Unified Interpretations (UIs). In the last ten years alone, IACS has advised the IMO on the development of over 130 UIs. These are developed in order to address matters which in the IMO agreed texts are either left to the satisfaction of the flag State Administration or ambiguous. Without such unified interpretations, global and consistent implementation of IMO requirements would simply not be deliverable.
