With just weeks remaining before the IMO 2020 low-sulfur fuel requirement goes into effect, domestic- and foreign-based shipowners trading in the United States are concerned that lax enforcement could leave them at a disadvantage with competitors around the world.

On Jan. 1, the cap on the amount of sulfur allowed in vessel fuel drops from 3.5% to 0.5%. An anticipated surge in over-the-road diesel prices as a result of the regulation has not materialized, but the effects on other parts of the oil supply chain are still in play.

The most popular way the maritime sector plans to comply with the regulation — aside from installing a “scrubber” to lower the sulfur emitted through the smokestack — will be to…