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Igor Patrick

Brazil is banking on China to support a landmark UN effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions generated by international shipping as governments prepare for a decisive October vote on the plan.
One of the staunchest supporters of the International Maritime Organisation’s proposed Net-Zero Framework, Brasilia is waiting for China to clarify its position on implementation of the plan, Ports and Airports Minister Sílvio Filho told reporters on Wednesday.
The situation is setting up a stand-off with the administration of US President Donald Trump, which generally opposes any environmental mandates.
The framework will require large ocean-going vessels that do not meet fuel-efficiency standards to pay for their carbon emissions starting in 2027.
Ships over the base-level target will be charged US$380 per tonne of greenhouse gases, measured in carbon dioxide equivalent, while those missing the stricter Direct Compliance target will pay US$100 per tonne.
Revenue from the system will be used to reward the application of cleaner fuels and support a “just transition”, helping developing countries adopt new green technologies.
It still needs formal adoption at an extraordinary IMO session set for October. If approved, companies would have to meet the full emissions requirements starting in 2028.
Filho said Brazil fully supports the framework. He outlined Brazil’s position during a Brazilian Foreign Press Association media briefing on US opposition to the climate initiative.

Negotiated in London, the IMO framework was approved by 63 countries, including Brazil, China and the European Union, while 16 opposed and 24 abstained.
The United States rejected the proposal outright, while China shifted course and supported it after years of resisting tougher climate measures.
The US has called the plan a “global carbon tax on Americans” that would raise energy and transport costs while benefiting competitors such as China. US officials have threatened retaliation against countries that back the deal, including possible tariffs and visa restrictions.
With the US opposing the framework, Filho said that Brazil is looking to other major players for support and that Chinese Ambassador to Brazil Zhu Qingqiao will meet Brazilian officials next week to “bring alternatives” and give the ministry a clearer position on implementation of the IMO agreement.
“We are working to reach consensus in October. Brazil is favourable; we are supporting this understanding,” Filho told reporters. “We expect China’s collaboration to also move this agreement forward.”
China has historically resisted ambitious climate measures at the IMO. For years it opposed strict deadlines such as achieving net-zero emissions “by 2050”, as specified in the agreement, preferring looser language like “around mid-century”.
It rejected proposals for a carbon tax on shipping, arguing such a tax would disproportionately burden developing nations and shift responsibility for climate actions away from richer countries.
Beijing has also criticised a “well-to-wake” method of counting fuel emissions, which takes into account the full life cycle of a fuel, from production and transport to its use on board a ship. Instead, China favoured a narrower “tank-to-wake” approach that only measures what comes out of a ship’s exhaust.
But in April, during fractious negotiations in London, China shifted course and voted in favour of the Net-Zero Framework.
At the same event on Wednesday, Anderson Pomini, head of the Santos Port Authority, said the difference between Washington and Beijing could already be seen on the ground.
Located in São Paulo state, Santos is home to Latin America’s largest port and the main gateway for Brazilian agricultural exports, such as soybeans, sugar and meat to China.

Pomini said that while the US has threatened retaliation, Chinese companies investing in Santos have complied with local sustainability rules.
He pointed to COFCO, a Chinese agribusiness firm building a nearly US$1 billion terminal in the port, which has joined an environmental programme and financed the recovery of degraded land for public use.
“One country imposes itself through threats of retaliation, while the other, although it raises complaints, adapts,” Pomini said, referring to Washington’s position.
“Meanwhile, the Chinese are adapting here in the Port of Santos to our rules that include environmental preservation,” he added.
He added that cooperation with Chinese firms at Santos went beyond infrastructure. The companies, he said, had signed onto the port’s sustainability certification effort, which encourages environmental best practices, and have contributed to community projects such as the redevelopment of a waterfront park.


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Brazil seeks China’s support to salvage maritime emissions pact opposed by Trump

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Plan aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping

Plan aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping