China bans open-loop scrubbers in ports
Discharge of wash water from open-loop exhaust gas cleaning devices are prohibited in port waters within the country’s inland as well as coastal shipping ECAs. The ban also applies to the entire ECA of the Bohai Sea in northern China, while restrictions in other coastal ECAs will be announced in due course
Beijing’s decision is adding another layer of uncertainty over the prospects of the devices, with many of the world’s largest ports located in China and more shipowners also having embraced the abatement technology to meet the 2020 global sulphur rules