Four days of closed-door talks in London have raised hopes for a relatively ambitious deal to cut shipping emissions.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) noted "constructive discussions" and "a sincere willingness of the group to make concrete further progress".
Shipping accounts for 3% of global emissions, and observers believe the chances of an agreement have increased despite concerns about US tactics.
Em Fenton, senior director of the NGO Opportunity Green, who attended the meetings, stressed "a strong spirit of solidarity in the face of attempts to undermine trust, ambition and fairness of a multilateral agreement".
The IMO Net-Zero framework has retained its position as a basis for further work.
38 countries directly supported a carbon pricing mechanism and related revenues, while 17, mostly oil-producing states, opposed it.
Potential revenues from the framework are estimated at 10–15 billion dollars per year and could incentivize the transition to zero and near-zero fuels, as well as support a just transition in developing countries.
What happens next will be shown by the December meeting, but current signals point to a continuation of the dialogue.
The next technical discussions are scheduled for November, followed by the MEPC 85 session.
