Business

IBIA: Revision of EGCS guidelines completed

Revised guidelines on scrubber air and water discharge performance made more stringent; to be adopted after the MEPC meeting in early April.

Published

6 years ago

March 10, 2020

Admin

MEPC 74 International Maritime Organization Flickr

The International Bunker Industry Association (IBIA) on Monday (9 March) published a news update on the IMO’s revision on EGSS guidelines which is expected to be adopted in early April; it was written by Unni Einemo, Director at IBIA:

Revised IMO guidelines for the approval and certification of exhaust gas cleaning systems, or scrubbers, are due for adoption at the next meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 75).

Regulation 4 of MARPOL Annex VI on “Equivalents” allows for the use of alternative compliance methods if they provide at least the same reduction in sulphur oxide emissions as using compliant fuels (maximum 0.10% sulphur content in emission control areas and maximum 0.50% outside ECAs). The EGCS Guidelines specify the criteria for the testing, survey, certification and verification of EGCS to ensure they meet the emission equivalence requirement, while also meeting discharge water quality criteria.

They also cover continuous monitoring requirements for emissions to air and for discharge water quality. Discharge water criteria include minimum pH, maximum PAHs (Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons) concentration; provisions to minimise suspended particulate matter, including heavy metals and ash, and to prevent discharge of nitrates beyond specified levels.

The draft 2020 EGCS Guidelines, updating the 2015 EGCS Guidelines, were finalised at the Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR 7) in February. In general, requirements to ensure scrubbers perform in line with limits on emissions to air and discharges to water have been made more stringent.

It is expected that MEPC 75 will adopt them in early April and require the revised guidelines to be applied to new exhaust gas cleaning systems installed after a date to be decided by the Committee. That could be as soon as the date of adoption plus six months. If so, the revised guidelines would apply when approving systems installed from early October this year onwards. Existing systems approved under the 2015 EGCS Guidelines would not need to be approved again, meaning these should not be affected by changes to requirements around installation of the EGCS and its associated monitoring equipment.

The Guidelines also provide for discharge water data collection. In this regard, it was agreed that Administrations will be invited to apply these when sampling washwater from EGCS that have been approved in accordance with the earlier versions of the EGCS Guidelines. The guidelines also note that discharge water quality criteria should be reviewed in the future as more data becomes available.

The draft 2020 EGCS Guidelines do not include an annex in the 2015 version regarding how to deal with a temporary failure of a single monitoring instrument and recommended actions, as this was dealt with in MEPC.1/Circ.883, issued by MEPC 74 last year.

Photo credit: International Maritime Organization
Published: 10 March, 2020

Legal

Singapore withdraws remaining 127 charges against Hin Leong founder OK Lim

Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges on 17 July.

Published

12 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Founder of collapsed oil trader Hin Leong Trading, Lim Oon Kuin, also known as OK Lim, has had the remaining 127 charges against him withdrawn, according to The Straits Times on Monday (20 July).

OK Lim was issued a stern warning and a district court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for these charges, including those for cheating, on 17 July. The discharge means Lim cannot be prosecuted again for the same offences.

Lim, 84, is currently serving a 13½-year prison sentence after the High Court reduced his original 17½-year jail term in March 2026. He was convicted in 2024 on two cheating charges and one count of abetting forgery in a case prosecutors described as one of Singapore’s most serious trade finance frauds.

Lim was convicted in May 2024 of two charges of cheating the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and one count of abetting forgery that proceeded to trial out of a total of 130 criminal charges.

He was first charged in court on 14 August 2020, and was subsequently handed further charges in court on 25 September 2020, 30 April 2021 and 24 June 2021 for his role in perpetuating fraud on various financial institutions.

A total of 130 charges were eventually brought against him for cheating and forgery-related offences.

Photo credit: Sora Shimazaki
Published: 21 July, 2026

Winding up

Singapore: Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd to be wound up voluntarily

Coastal Logistics was reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

Published

12 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

Several resolutions for Coastal Logistics Pte Ltd were made during an extraordinary general meeting held on 14 July, according to a notice in the Government Gazette on Friday (4 July).

The following resolutions were duly passed during the meeting:

As Special Resolution

That it has been proved to the satisfaction of the meeting that the Company cannot by reason of its liabilities continue its business and accordingly the Company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1)(b) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (No. 40 of 2018);

As Ordinary Resolutions

that Mr. Wong Pheng Cheong Martin and Ms. Koay May Yee, both care of FTI Consulting (Singapore) Pte Ltd, One Raffles Quay, #27-10 South Tower, Singapore 048583 be appointed as the joint and several Liquidators of the Company for the purpose of such winding up; and
that the Liquidators be at liberty to open, maintain and operate any bank account(s) or account(s) for monies received by them as Liquidators with such bank(s) as they deem fit; and
that a Committee of Inspection will not be formed.

Manifold Times previously reported Nicholas James Gronow, director of Heng Tong Fuels & Shipping and Coastal Logistics, filed statutory declarations for both companies stating the firms cannot continue their businesses due to liabilities.

Both companies were reportedly affiliated with troubled Singapore bunker player Coastal Oil (Singapore) Pte Ltd.

In 2019, several vessels owned by both firms entered the sale & purchase (S&P) market in Singapore.

Photo credit: Drew Beamer
Published: 21 July, 2026

LNG Bunkering

PIL’s LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

Published

12 hours ago

July 21, 2026

Admin

PIL's LNG dual-fuel boxship “Kota Elok” arrives in Singapore on maiden call

Singapore-based Pacific International Lines Pte Ltd on Monday (20 July) said its first 13,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container vessel, Kota Elok, recently made her maiden call to Singapore on 15 July.

As the first of 13 new 13,000 TEU vessels joining its fleet, Kota Elok is equipped to operate on liquefied natural gas (LNG) and low-sulphur fuel oil that helps reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

The vessel also incorporated energy-saving features and digital technologies to reduce fuel consumption and enhance operational performance, as well as a bow windshield to improve aerodynamics, contributing to improved fuel efficiency and lower emissions over the course of long-haul voyages.

“Following Singapore, Kota Elok will continue her voyage on our East Coast Service 1 (ES1) route to South America, calling at ports in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina before returning to Asia,” the company said in a social media post.

Kota Elok also became PIL’s first vessel to receive Lloyd’s Register certification for compliance with the IACS UR E26 and UR E27 cyber security requirements.

Developed by the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), UR E26 and UR E27 are mandatory cyber resilience requirements for newbuild vessels contracted from 1 July 2024.

Photo credit: Pacific International Lines
Published: 21 July, 2026