01AUG2019 - NEWS - Investors getting nervous about IMO 2020 tanker pitch

It’s either the calm before the IMO 2020 storm or the calm before a ‘goose egg’ for tanker owners and their investors.The IMO 2020 rule requires all ships without exhaust gas scrubbers to burn fuel will no more than 0.5 percent sulfur starting January 1, 2020. This change is expected to significantly boost demand for both crude oil and product tankers as more ultra-low-sulfur marine fuel is required around the globe. Some expected early glimmers of tanker rate upside to be seen by now. Those glimmers have yet to materialize, which is starting to elicit apprehension – particularly given tanker shipping’s long track record of disappointments.