Web Alert: EU bans breaking of ships on beaches

​The EU Parliament voted in favour of the new EU ship recycling regulation that bans the breaking of EU ships on beaches.  Ships registered under the flag of an EU member state are only allowed to be dismantled in facilities that are listed by the European Commission and that meet the new regulation’s requirements. Inventories of hazardous materials for all ships visiting European ports are also required by the new regulation.

The new legal framework does not foresee a financial incentive to comply with the new rules and does nothing to prevent shipowners, in order to avoid falling under the requirement of the law, from changing the vessels registration to a non- EU flag before sending their ships for breaking.

The EU ship recycling regulation will be published in the Official Journal towards the end of this year or beginning of 2014 and will be applicable at the earliest two years and at the latest five years after its entry into force.