Greek government, shipowners still skeptical of IMO’s green bunker rules in International Shipping News 03/06/2026 Greece has remained skeptical about the International Maritime Organization’s Net-Zero Framework, its top shipping official said June 1, as some of the country’s largest shipowners voiced opposition to the regulation in its current form. Greece abstained from an October 2025 vote at the UN agency to delay the adoption of the marine energy rules for a year, which eventually passed. Nearly all other EU member states supported the NZF’s adoption. “We really want a global framework. We really want to cooperate and work with everyone. But we are present with our own policies,” Greek Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Vassilis Kikilias, said during a Capital Link forum during the opening day of the Posidonia shipping exhibition in Greece. Based on recent statements from the Greek government, Athens has aimed to coordinate with the US and Saudi Arabia — which oppose the NZF — to reach consensus with Brussels on “realism” in energy. “We were talking, of course under the IMO, for many, many years, trying to create a new framework for shipping in everything that has to do with fuels,” Kikilias said. “And then, a geostrategic problem erupted in the Strait of Hormuz and completely changed the picture. Now we are not just talking about a transition from a transitional fuel to another possible fuel. Now we are talking about the survival of society.” Fuel markets Iran has taken control of Hormuz, which handles 20% of global oil and LNG flows in normal times, after war with Israel and the US broke out Feb. 28, limiting maritime traffic through the choke point to 90% below pre-war levels. Oil and natural gas prices have increased significantly during the shipping disruption, prompting some environmentalists and policymakers to reinforce the importance of shifting away from fossil fuels to sustainable energy, while others have seen the cost involved in the energy tr