IMO Council Backs Dominguez for Second Term as Climate Deal Stalls

The IMO Council has endorsed Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez for a second four-year term, just weeks before member states make a fresh attempt to rescue the stalled Net-Zero Framework.

The decision came Wednesday at the Council's 138th session in London. If the IMO Assembly formally approves it in late 2027, Dominguez's mandate would run from January 1, 2028, through December 31, 2031.

"I am deeply grateful to the Members of the Council and all Members of the Organization for their continued trust and support," Dominguez said in an IMO statement.

It's a generous verdict on a tenure with two large open files. The UN maritime agency has failed to adopt its flagship climate package and is watching commercial shipping take casualties in the Middle East at a rate nobody in the industry finds tolerable.

What happened to the Net-Zero Framework?

The framework — a package of global fuel standards and greenhouse gas emissions pricing for international shipping — won initial approval in April 2025. Formal adoption collapsed in October 2025 under pressure from the United States and other oil-producing countries, which objected strongly to the emissions-pricing mechanism.

Delegates voted to adjourn the extraordinary Marine Environment Protection Committee session for one year. That put the proposed regulations in limbo, a significant blow after years of negotiations aimed at guiding shipping's transition away from fossil fuels.

Supporters argued globally coordinated rules were essential to cut shipping emissions and avoid a patchwork of competing regional requirements. Dominguez defended the process after the setback, insisting the framework remained alive.

A year on, the divisions remain unresolved. Negotiators reconvene later this month ahead of MEPC 85, running November 30 to December 3, with a special session provisionally scheduled for December 4 to consider adopting the framework. For carriers and shippers, that December date is the one that matters — it decides whether a single global fuel rule emerges or regional regimes continue to fill the vacuum.

How dangerous is the shipping picture?

Meanwhile, the IMO's own figures show 129 maritime incidents confirmed in the Strait of Hormuz and the wider Middle East since the Iran war began in February, with 24 seafarers killed as of November 5. The tally covers vessels damaged, sunk or detained in one of the world's most strategically important maritime regions.

Opening this week's Council meeting, Dominguez condemned the threats facing commercial shipping in the Middle East and other conflict zones, including the Red Sea and Black Sea. The IMO has repeatedly called for the protection of seafarers and the restoration of safe navigation. Its ability to influence the underlying military and geopolitical conflicts, however, remains limited — a fact the casualty count makes plain.

What does the endorsement change?

In practical terms, continuity. Dominguez, a Panamanian naval architect and longtime maritime diplomat, became the IMO's tenth Secretary-General on January 1, 2024, succeeding Kitack Lim. He previously directed the organization's Marine Environment Division and held several senior diplomatic and administrative posts.

The Council's backing signals continued confidence despite the setbacks, positioning him to lead the agency through mounting pressure on the international regulatory system governing commercial shipping. The geopolitical divisions complicating the climate agenda are the same ones complicating the IMO's core mandate of safe and secure shipping.

The real test arrives before any second term begins: whether December's special session can produce adoption of the Net-Zero Framework, and whether the incident count in Hormuz stops climbing before the Assembly votes in 2027.