[Carl n Susan]

My friend, and a member here, is a Chief Engineer on one of the world's largest tug boats. He has been telling us for years that the marine industry is replacing (or scrapping) their Bunker C engines in anticipation of the new emission standards.


Governing bodies around the world, e.g., California, European Union, have established Emission Control Areas (ECA) that limit the maximum sulfur of fuels burned in their ports to limit pollution, reducing the percentage of sulfur and other particulates from 4.5% m/m to as little as 0.10% as of 2015 inside an ECA. As of 2013 3.5% continued to be permitted outside an ECA, but the International Maritime Organization has planned to lower the sulfur content requirement outside the ECAs to 0.5% m/m by 2020.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_oil )

The ECAs cover most of the oceans and a shipper desiring to operate in those areas will have to comply.