Regional Expert Meeting on the Possible Designation of the Mediterranean, as a whole, as a Nitrogen Oxides Emission Control Area (Med NOx ECA), pursuant to MARPOL Annex VI – Nov 20, 2025

    Regional Expert Meeting on the Possible Designation of the Mediterranean, as a whole, as a Nitrogen Oxides Emission Control Area (Med NOx ECA), pursuant to MARPOL Annex VI
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    The Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC), in close cooperation with the International Maritime Organization (IMO),  and the United Nations Environment Programme / Mediterranean Action Plan (UNEP/MAP), successfully convened the Regional Expert Meeting on the Possible Designation of the Mediterranean Sea, as a Whole, as a Nitrogen Oxides Emission Control Area (Med NOX ECA).

    The Meeting was held in Malta on 18-19 November 2025 and was financed by the IMO's Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP) and the Mediterranean Trust Fund (MTF).

    The Meeting gathered over 40 participants from 20 out of 22  Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention, as well as representatives from relevant regional and international organisations. The target audience for the Meeting were Government officials responsible for ratification, implementation and enforcement of MARPOL Annex VI. Some participants represented authorities/organisations responsible for the regulation of shipping, and other participants represented authorities/organisations in charge of issues related to the marine environment.

    Beyond raising awareness on the effective implementation and enforcement of MARPOL Annex VI and related Guidelines in the Mediterranean region, through a series of presentations from REMPEC Consultants, as well as representatives from the IMO, the Meeting reviewed and discussed the draft Final Technical and Feasibility Study to assess the relevant existing and ongoing studies, as well as to examine the possible designation of the Mediterranean Sea, as a whole, as an Emission Control Area for Nitrogen Oxides, pursuant to MARPOL Annex VI, including health and socio-economic impacts on the Mediterranean region and the individual Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention, together with the draft final recommendations, including the draft final roadmap, hereinafter referred to as, the draft Technical and Feasibility Study, prepared by REMPEC, under the coordination of the MAP NOX Technical Committee of Experts (NECA TCE).

    The draft Technical and Feasibility Study, was financed by the IMO’s ITCP, the voluntary contribution from the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs as well as the MTF. It is aimed at assisting the Mediterranean coastal States to prepare a submission to IMO proposing the designation of the Med NOX ECA and to provide the evidence needed to address the criteria set out in Appendix III of MARPOL Annex VI, relating to the designation of Emission Control Areas (ECAs).

    Throughout the consultative session, the national experts assessed the expected environmental benefits of reducing NOX emissions, including improved air quality, public health gains, and support to national and regional climate and pollution reduction commitments. The Meeting also examined the technical feasibility, potential entry into force dates, compliance mechanisms, and potential economic impacts associated with the possible designation of a Mediterranean NOx ECA, pursuant to MARPOL Annex VI.

    The Meeting also held discussions on challenges and opportunities arising from MARPOL Annex VI and the possible designation of a Med NOx ECA and identified a number of challenges and opportunities emanating from such a designation.

    The discussions built on the significant progress made within the Mediterranean Action Plan framework toward strengthening air pollution controls at sea and the experience gained in the Mediterranean region, through the recent entry into effect of the Med SOX ECA, on 1 May 2025.

    Participants highlighted the importance of coordinated regional action, harmonized regulatory approaches, and continued capacity-building to ensure effective implementation should a NOx ECA proposal be formally advanced to IMO. REMPEC will now consolidate the outcomes of the Meeting, including expert recommendations and priority considerations, to support the next steps in the decision-making process within the UNEP/MAP system, on the possible designation of the Med NOX ECA.

    Furthermore, the Meeting agreed on conclusions and recommendations to be submitted to the Seventeenth Meeting of the Focal Points of REMPEC to be tentatively held in 2027.Inter alia, the Meeting:

    • emphasised the urgency of ratification, transposition into national laws, and effective implementation of MARPOL Annex VI;
    • appreciated the efforts made by Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention, which had not yet ratified MARPOL Annex VI, and urged them to complete the ratification process and effectively implement MARPOL Annex VI, as soon as possible, at least by the date of the submission of the MED NOX ECA proposal to IMO;
    • endorsed the final draft Technical and Feasibility Study, including the revised roadmap, as amended by the Meeting;
    • recommended, taking into consideration the various challenges and diverse capacity building within the region, highlighted during the Meeting, that the earliest possible entry into the force date of a possible Med NOX ECA, should not be earlier than 2032; and
    • also requested the Secretariat to continue to provide technical assistance and capacity building, including financial support and resource mobilisation, to the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention, which so requested, to ratify and effectively implement MARPOL Annex VI, in synergy with the IMO and other relevant stakeholders.

    REMPEC will continue to facilitate dialogue and technical cooperation to ensure that any future proposals for a Med NOX ECA are informed, transparent, and aligned with the region’s environmental and economic priorities.

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