(Oct 17): A plan to make the shipping industry pay for its carbon emissions was hanging in the balance on Friday after the US piled pressure on nations to scrap the idea.

Any failure to adopt the charge, or a delay to vote on it, would mark a setback for multilateral environmental regulations ahead of next month’s COP30 climate summit in Brazil.

Countries have been meeting this week at the UN’s International Maritime Organization in London to decide on the charge, which would raise billions of dollars each year to support the use of alternative fuels. While the plan had wide backing in April, the US has been pushing countries not to adopt it.

On Friday, Singapore — previously a supporter of the plan — proposed that nations delay voting on the charge. That was backed by Saudi Arabia, which was already against the rule. The countries’ stances increase the possibility of a vote not taking place this week.

“As we all can see, this room is immensely tense and divided,” an official from Liberia said, praising Singapore’s request for a delay. The IMO requests that meeting attendees are not named.

At one stage, the gathering saw dozens of officials tightly crowded around IMO secretary general Arsenio Dominguez, who’s from Panama. “This is not a typical IMO meeting,” he said earlier.

Singapore’s move was another sign of wavering. On Thursday, Bloomberg reported that top shipping nation Greece was planning to switch its vote to abstain, from yes. Liberia abstained from the previous vote back in April.

The Trump administration has made wide-ranging threats if it goes ahead, describing the measure as a tax on Americans. On Thursday the US president said on Truth Social that America will not adhere to the IMO’s proposed global carbon tax “in any way, shape, or form.”

The IMO said in response to questions about timing — in the event of any delay — that it couldn’t speculate on how long a postponement might be.

By Jack Wittels