THE three emission control areas established by Chinese authorities have now implemented low-sulphur fuel requirements for all key ports within the areas.

As of January 1, 2017, emissions regulations have come into effect for Tianjin, Qinhuangdao, Tangshan, Huanghua, Guangzhou and Zhuhai, according to a circular from the London P&I Club.

They join the core ports of the Yangtze River Delta, Shanghai, Ningbo-Zhoushan, Suzhou and Nantong which were part of the first phase of emissions regulations in which the ports were subject to a 0.5% fuel sulphur content cap as of April 1, 2016. The other two ECAs include ports in the Pearl River Delta and the Bohai Rim. Vessels will also be encouraged to use fuel with a maximum 0.1% sulphur content when at berth in the ECA, and 0.5% fuel when in ECA waters.

Emissions regulations at Shenzhen port in the Pearl River Delta ECA came into force on October 1 last year. In September 20016, the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region said it would launch an incentive scheme for shipowners to cope with China’s own port emission control area, where vessels at berth are required to switch to low-sulphur fuel. The incentives, or subsidies, are to maintain the competitiveness of the ports encompassed by the ECA.

Ships calling at their terminals must pay more for the cleaner bunker fuel compared with ports elsewhere, according to an official in Shanghai Combined Port Administrative Office (a government body that co-ordinates port development in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai).

Shanghai is proposing a unified subsidy level in the region, which is expected to come out by the end of this year, the official added.

China’s rapid implementation of ECAs at its ports will boost demand for cleaner marine fuels, and subsequently raise fuel costs for owners at a time when most shipping companies are struggling to survive.

Shipowners will have to find ways to accommodate higher bunker prices and decide whether certain trades are still feasible and whether they still want to do them, Hong Kong Shipowners’ Association managing director Arthur Bowring said in an interview.