A coalition now made up of 34 nations and the European Commission has filed papers calling on a key International Maritime Organization committee to decide in November to set the United Nations' body towards a goal of zero-carbon emissions over the next three decades.

The debate at the Maritime Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) is scheduled to begin just days after the closing of the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, where pivoting to a zero-carbon future is a key agenda point.