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Platform News – EU ship recyclers join voices to promote clean and safe practices

Posted on 10/03/201730/08/2018 by admin_ec

Five European ship recycling yards announced yesterday that they have joined forces to effectively raise awareness of existing best practice and the fact that there is capacity in Europe to properly recycle ships. The newly established European Ship Recyclers Group (ESR), set up under the umbrella of the International Ship Recycling Association (ISRA), aims at reaching out to ship owners that are looking for clean and safe ship recycling. The NGO Shipbreaking Platform can only welcome this step and vows to support their efforts in attracting more business as long as they maintain sustainable practices.

The European Union approved 18 ship recycling facilities with a total capacity of 1.1 million LDT under the EU Ship Recycling Regulation in December last year. All 18 facilities are located within the EU and the newly established ESR represents five of these yards - from France (Port of Bordeaux), Belgium (Galloo), Denmark (Smedegaarden), the Netherlands (Scheepssloperij) and Spain (DDR). The European Commission is currently revising 18 additional applications from facilities located outside the EU. To make it on the EU list of approved facilities, yards need to prove that they are able to contain pollutants, ensure safe working conditions and the environmentally sound management of all wastes derived from the recycling activities. Facilities that operate on tidal beaches are not expected to make it on the EU list.

Whilst ship recycling facilities in Europe, as in the US and China, currently operate under-capacity because they are unable to compete with the higher prices offered by the beaching yards in South Asia, the EU list comes with a promise of raising the profile of yards that have already invested in infrastructure and technologies to ensure safe and clean practices.

Ship owners are regrettably quick in rejecting European recyclers under the false pretext that there is no capacity in Europe. European yards today primarily recycle government-owned and smaller vessels, but questioned by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform in 2013, almost all European yards expressed that a promise of an increased market share of the commercially owned vessels would prompt investments to enlarge their facilities, or use currently dormant locations, to enable the recycling of also the largest ships.

To effectively push ship owners towards using EU approved yards, the NGO Shipbreaking Platform is calling for an incentive that will help close the financial gap between dirty and dangerous shipbreaking and proper ship recycling. The shipping industry needs to internalise the environmental and human costs of shipbreaking. The recently proposed Ship Recycling Licence does exactly that [1] and received support from the European Economic and Social Committee that in October adopted an opinion calling for “a financial mechanism to end beaching”.

"Ship owners cannot continue to ignore European recyclers and companies that have the capacity and will to provide solutions that can put an end to the scandalous conditions we are witnessing in South Asia. Only last week two more workers were killed at the shipbreaking yards in Chittagong, Bangladesh – the destination where most end-of-life gross tonnage was scrapped in 2016. [3] Commitment to use EU listed facilities is what we expect from any shipping company that calls itself socially responsible."

Ingvild Jenssen - Policy Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Press Release – EU’s leverage & insurance policy on dirty shipping needed

Posted on 28/02/201730/08/2018 by admin_ec

Burning heavy fuel without any exhaust gas aftertreatment systems is shockingly still standard practice on open sea, despite both regulatory and technical means at hand to limit the threat to human health, environment and global climate caused by such shipping emissions. The EU must take a lead by designating all its waters as emission control areas for ship born sulphur, nitrogen and particle emissions. Such a step would not only lead to a significant uptake of cleaner fuels but also enable the use of particulate filters and nitrogen catalysts, therefore reducing air pollution levels in port cities and along shipping routes significantly. The EU must also back the growing calls [1] for an international ban on the use of heavy fuel oil by Arctic shipping by 2020.

Shipping mind-bogglingly remains the only sector of the economy not contributing to EU climate targets and yet it is uncontestably an industry responsible for emitting significant amounts of CO2. Forecasts show EU-related ship CO2 emissions will increase by 86% in 2050 compared to 1990 levels. By 2050, international shipping could be responsible for 17% of global CO2 emissions if left unregulated. Environmental NGOs therefore welcome that the European Parliament has decided to include shipping in the EU Maritime Climate Fund/ETS from 2023 if the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) fails to deliver on a global deal.

Devastating human and environmental impacts are also caused by ships at the end of their operational life. European ship owners shamefully continue to top the list of companies that sell their ships for dirty and dangerous scrapping on beaches in South Asia [2]. A new EU law aims to ensure that EU-flagged ships are recycled in EU-approved facilities. However, in a system where owners can easily swap the flag of their ship and where all vessels sold to South Asia pass through the hands of cash-buyers - middle men specialising in hazardous waste trafficking - legislation based on flag state jurisdiction will be easy to circumvent.

Press Release – Platform publishes list of ships dismantled worldwide in 2016

Posted on 01/02/201715/01/2022 by admin_ec

The list of all ships dismantled around the world in 2016, which the NGO Shipbreaking Platform has compiled and analysed, shows no improvements of the shipping industry’s management of its end-of-life vessels. Far from it: the Platform today releases data that indicate an increase in the number of ships sold for polluting and unsafe shipbreaking on the beaches of South Asia. In 2016, a total of 668 vessels were broken on tidal beaches, that is as much as 87% of all tonnage dismantled globally.

"The shipping industry is nowhere close to ensuring sustainable ship recycling practices. Last year, we saw not only an increase in the market share for dangerous and dirty shipbreaking, but also a record-breaking number of EU-owned vessels on the South Asian beaches. A jaw-dropping 84% of all European end-of-life ships ended up in either India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. Beaching yards are not only well known for their failure to respect international environmental protection standards, but also for their disrespect of fundamental labour rights and international waste trade law."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

A higher number of ships beached means that workers, the environment and local communities in South Asia are exposed to ever increased hardship. 2016 saw the worst catastrophe in the history of the industry: on 1 November, at least 28 workers were killed instantly and more than 50 injured when an explosion and a massive fire shook a tanker beached in Gadani, Pakistan. The death toll in the Bangladeshi yards, which the Platform was able to document, reached 22 in 2016, with another 29 workers having suffered serious injuries. Whilst accident records in Indian shipbreaking yards are kept a secret, the Platform was informed of at least two fatal deaths in Alang.

DUMPERS 2016 - Worst practices

The worst dumper prize goes to IDAN OFER, son of shipping magnate Sammy Ofer. Idan Ofer owns QUANTUM PACIFIC GROUP and has a controlling stake in It may seem a big surprise for a country whose industry is proud of green technology and engineering solutions, but GERMANY is responsible for the worst shipbreaking practices amongst all shipping nations when one compares the size of its fleet to the number of ships broken irresponsibly. German owners, banks and ship funds had a staggering 97 ships rammed up on the beaches of South Asia out of a total of 99 vessels sold for demolition: 98% of all obsolete German ships ended up on a beach! That not being enough, close to 40% were broken in Bangladesh, where conditions are known to be the worst. Amongst the most irresponsible owners are Hansa Mare with 12 ships, Alpha Ship, F. Laeisz and Peter Doehle with 7 each, and Dr. Peters, König & Cie, Norddeutsche Vermögen and Rickmers with 6 each.

The German shipbreaking practices come with a high death toll. During the breaking period of the RENATE N. at Seiko shipbreaking in Chittagong, Bangladesh, three workers were killed and three more injured (see “Accidents” in the Platform’s South Asia Quarterly Update). The vessel owned by Neu Seeschifffahrt had been traded through cash buyer Wirana. Even the UN Special Rapporteur on Toxics and Human Rights expressed serious concerns in a submission to the German Government, criticizing the substandard practices of German owners. In November, another Bangladeshi worker was killed during the demolition of the only 10 year-old, loss-making container ship VIKOTRIA WULFF.

“It is not the first time that shipbreaking workers pay with their lives for the failed business practices of German ship owners and their ship funds. Due to numerous bankruptcies resulting from short-sighted and high-risk investment, insolvency administrators appointed by the courts quickly trade the unprofitable ships to the beaches of South Asia, and the bill for the shipping industry’s greed is paid by people and the environment”, comments Patrizia Heidegger.

GREECE was responsible for the highest absolute number of ships sold to South Asian shipbreaking yards in 2016: 104 ships in total. Since the Platform has started to compile data in 2009, Greek shipping companies have unceasingly topped the list of owners that opt for dirty and dangerous shipbreaking. Backed by the Greek government, they continue to refuse liability for the damage done to workers and the environment. A Greek ship beached in Pakistan in December 2016 caused the death of five workers in January when a fire broke out on the GAZ FOUNTAIN owned by Athens-based Naftomar.

The worst corporate dumper prize goes to the UK-based ZODIAC. The company is operated out of London and owned by Eyal Ofer, son of late shipping magnate Sammy Ofer. Zodiac alone has sold 12 ships for breaking on the beaches in 2016, mostly to Bangladesh, and the company has been linked to severe accidents. During the demolition of Ofer’s ship SNOWDON, beached in Pakistan in October, a worker was killed in January this year. Eyal’s brother Idan, owner of the QUANTUM PACIFIC GROUP and holder of a controlling stake in the ISRAEL CORPORATION, received the worst dumper award in 2015 for selling most of his end-of-life vessels to Bangladesh breakers – a more than dubious practice for a family that wants to be known for its philanthropy.

Ship owners sell their vessels to South Asian yards via cash-buyers, companies that specialise in the trade of end-of-life tonnage. Cash-buyers promise ship owners not only the highest price, but also to rid them of their responsibility to properly deal with the end-of-life management of their ships. [2] Ships contain large amounts of toxic materials such as oil sludge, asbestos and paints laden with heavy metals and would yield less profit at end-of-life if sold to a recycling facility that firmly follows environmental and occupational health and safety standards.

The data compiled by the Platform also show that ship owners continue to shield themselves from responsibility through the use of cash buyers such as GMS and Wirana. These scrap dealers reflag end-of-life vessels to last-voyage flags of convenience, such as Palau, Comoros and St Kitts and Nevis, and sell them off for the highest price offered by the worst yards.

"Looking at the flags used at end-of-life, it is clear that legislation based on flag state jurisdiction will not be able to bring substantial change to the current practices: who believes that a non-compliant flag and a cash buyer benefitting from the worst conditions will enforce improvements in shipbreaking yards? The global shipbreaking crisis can only be solved through measures that go beyond flag state jurisdiction. That is why we call on the EU to demand a ship recycling licence from all vessels visiting EU ports."

Ingvild Jenssen - Policy Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

In 2017, the EU will publish a list of ship recycling facilities around the world that comply with high standards for environmental protection and workers’ safety. The list will be the first of its kind and an important reference point for sustainable ship recycling. German container line Hapag-Lloyd has already committed its end-of-life ships off the beach, and has announced that it will only use EU listed facilities. A financial incentive affecting ships trading with the EU is however needed to ensure that irresponsible ship owners are directed towards the facilities listed as approved by the EU. A proposed Ship Recycling Licence scheme is now being discussed. The many scandals involving European shipping companies are also a driver behind the strong interest that various financial institutions have started to show in ship recycling: to ensure responsible business practices some are now setting criteria for shipping companies they finance while looking at the EU Ship Recycling Regulation for guidance.

For the list of all ships dismantled worldwide in 2016, click here.
For detailed figures and analysis on ships dismantled in 2016, click here.
For background information on global ship dismantling practices, click here.

Platform News – No more dead workers!

Posted on 20/12/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

The Berge Stahl, one of the world’s largest iron ore bulkers, made its last visit at the Port of Rotterdam last week. The NGO Shipbreaking Platform calls on the ship owner, Berge Bulk, and the Dutch authorities to ensure the responsible recycling of the 30 year old vessel. Berge Bulk, founded and lead by James Marshall and headquartered in Singapore, is one of the world’s largest operators of dry bulkers and has recently sold several of its end-of-life ships to substandard shipbreaking yards on the beaches of South Asia. At least two workers were killed and four more injured at Seiko Steel shipbreaking yard in Bangladesh earlier this year while the bulker company’s Berge Matterhorn was under demolition there. The Berge Stahl has called at Rotterdam’s ore terminal 249 times over the last 25 years. It was for a long time the largest dry bulk vessel in the world and considered to be the Port of Rotterdam’s unofficial ‘flag ship’. The Port of Rotterdam bid farewell to its iconic ship last week.

"Both the Port of Rotterdam and the Dutch authorities must have an interest in the responsible recycling of its ‘flag ship’ that made many in the port proud and regularly attracted fans. We call on Berge Bulk, a company so far known for irresponsible shipbreaking practices with fatal consequences to see this as an opportunity to review its scrapping practices and commit to responsible recycling. For a company that claims that ‘sustainability is at the core of everything we do’ and promises ‘people first’ and ‘clean planet’, ship recycling in a modern facility off the beach is mandatory. Dead workers and a polluted environment in Bangladesh do not go well together with the desired clean image."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Apart from the fatal and severe accidents at the yard that was cutting down the Berge Matterhorn in Bangladesh, the Berge Vik and the Berge Prosperity ended up on the beaches of Gadani, Pakistan, in May last year. The destination has recently been shaken by the worst explosion in the history of the shipbreaking industry that resulted in at least 28 workers dead and more than 50 men severely injured.

Given the age of the vessel and the current low freight rates, experts assume that the Berge Stahl is soon going for demolition. When the vessel arrived in Rotterdam, the Platform alerted the Dutch authorities to ensure that the ship, which becomes hazardous waste under European and international environmental law once there is an intent to sell it for scrap, will not be illegally exported to the infamous shipbreaking beaches of India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. While the authorities have taken the case very seriously, Berge Bulk was able to reassure them that the vessel will continue to be operated and will go for dry docking in China. The Platform is now closely monitoring every move of the ship.

"The vessel’s story is a very good example of why a European Ship Recycling License is necessary to ensure responsible ship recycling in the future. The Berge Stahl has been coming to Rotterdam for 25 years on a very regular basis delivering iron ore for German steel producer Thyssen. If Berge Bulk had set aside funds over 25 years through a mandatory Ship Recycling License, the ship owner would now have a strong incentive to recycle it in an EU-approved facility in order to be able to recover the accumulated moneys – even though the CEO sits in Singapore and could easily circumvent the European Ship Recycling Regulation by swapping the ship’s current flag, Isle of Man, to one outside the EU. We call on European lawmakers to effectively regulate the end-of-life fate of ships that have such close ties to EU trade by supporting financial incentives such as the Ship Recycling License."

Ingvild Jenssen - Policy Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Press Release – Danish opposition parties call on Government to stop beaching of Maersk vessels

Posted on 15/12/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

The Danish Environment Minister, Esben Lunde Larsen, had to answer to the Parliament yesterday following questions put to the Government by all the opposition parties. The long list of questions had been drafted two months earlier, prompted by the revelations of Maersk’s shipbreaking practices in South Asia by the Danish investigative journalists, Danwatch, and the daily newspaper Politiken. All opposition parties called on the Danish Government to ensure that Maersk’s end-of-life vessels cannot be broken down in beaching yards.

Apart from a semi-attempt to filibuster by reading out the already available written answers and paraphrasing the Hong Kong Convention, the Minister insisted on quoting technical details and the obligation to follow the law. He was unable to give political direction on how the Government would work to stop Danish companies’ use of the polluting and dangerous beaching practices in South Asia and on Maersk’s threat to swap the Danish flag for a non-EU flag if the EU does not approve ship recycling on the beaches of Alang. The MPs present, representing the spectrum of Danish opposition political parties (including Social democrat member of parliament, Christian Rabjerg Madsen, and the head of Socialistisk Folkeparti, Pia Olsen Dyhr, as well as Ida Auken from Radikale Venstre, Christian Poll from Alternativet, and Marie Reumert Gjerding from Enhedslisten) and the Chair (Pia Adelsteen from Dankse Folkeparti), incessantly pressed the Minister to answer concrete and direct questions on the Danish government’s position on beaching, Maersk’s threat to flag out, and whether the government is pressing the EU Commission to list beaching yards in Alang on the upcoming EU list of accepted facilities world-wide.

If ships were broken on beaches in Denmark there would be an uproar, the MPs stated. They asked the Minister to outline how he thought safe working conditions and protection from pollution could ever be ensured when dismantling a vessel in the intertidal zone of a beach, and clearly requested the Minister to provide strong political support to end beaching. To all the questions and comments, the Minister however repeatedly appealed to his ignorance about the shipbreaking industry and to the literal text of the EU guidelines under the Ship Recycling Regulation. Whilst the Minister admitted that flagging out to circumvent EU law is not compatible with responsible business practices, he refused to answer how he would make sure that Danish shipping companies only use facilities that are on the upcoming EU List of approved recycling practices, and which is not expected to include facilities that use the beaching method. Clearly, Minister Lunde Larsen, in the two months he had to prepare before the meeting with the MPs, chose to only be briefed by the interested lobby groups who promote beaching practices; most notably the biggest company in Denmark, Maersk.

The insistent drilling by the MPs to the Minister on the government’s position on beaching left no time for Esben Lunde Larsen to answer all questions. The MPs would have particularly liked to go into more depth on issues related to the government policy to enhance the ship recycling industry in Denmark, and crucially on the government’s engagement to investigate on the illegal export of the Maersk-owned oil production and storage tanker, North Sea Producer, from the UK to Bangladesh. At the end of the meeting, Pia Olsen Dyhr (SF) called for another meeting with the Minister to discuss these issues more in detail.

Platform News – Worker killed in yard breaking German-owned container ship “Viktoria Wulff”

Posted on 12/12/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

On 4 December, worker Shah Jahan was killed on the spot at Arefin shipbreaking yard in Chittagong, Bangladesh, where German container ship “Viktoria Wulff” (IMO 9252101) is currently being dismantled on the beach. The 35-year old man, who was made to work without any safety measures, was struck on the head by a heavy iron piece.

German ship owner Wulff went bankrupt in August and the insolvency administrator is currently selling off the company’s remaining vessels. The “Viktoria Wulff” became the youngest container ship to be sold for demolition at an age of only 10 years without a previous accident.

"The story of the ‘Viktoria Wulff’ is characteristic for the failed business practices of German KG ship owners as well as ship funds. Nearly 600 ships have been sold due to insolvencies and financial problems since 2008, many of which ended up on the South Asian beaches. The bill for the ship owners’ and investors’ greed for profit is paid by workers and the environment in destinations like Bangladesh, where ships end up without any consideration of the human and environmental costs. It is a scandal that German liquidators, who are appointed by the courts, sell end-of-life ships to substandard breaking yards risking peoples’ lives through deals that are in clear breach of international and even domestic Bangladeshi law just to sort out the books for German ship owners."

Patrizia Heidegger- Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

This is not the first case of fatal accidents in the shipbreaking yards of South Asia that the Platform was able to link to bankruptcies of German ship owners. Last year, the Platform, together with broadcaster NDR, revealed the case of the “King Justus” which was sold after the insolvency of König & Cie. A worker was killed breaking the ship on the beaches of Alang, India. At the time, the Environment Minister of North German state Lower Saxony also criticised NordLB, a bank with a major shipping portfolio overseen by the State Government, for its involvement in the financing of the ship.

In Bangladesh, fatal accidents in the shipbreaking industry remain very frequent, a situation that is widely known – but largely ignored – by the shipping industry, insolvency administrators selling off unwanted ships, as well as by the brokers and cash buyers setting up the end-of-life deals. German owners have had at least 32 old ships ramped up on the beaches of Bangladesh this year. With 83 end-of-life vessels sold to beaching yards in South Asia in 2016, German ship owners top the list of global dumpers together with Greek shipping lines. Several end-of-life sales were in direct breach of the European Waste Shipment Regulation that bans the export of hazardous waste to developing countries. The “Viktoria Wulff” was most probably traded through an anonymous cash buyer using the end-of-life flag St Kitts and Nevis before it was beached in Chittagong.

"Only in 2016, at least 19 shipbreaking workers were killed and another 11 severely injured in the Bangladesh yards. The accident rate remains shockingly high and is not coming down, despite the promises of the yard owners and cash buyers. The shipbreaking yards have to be moved away from the muddy beaches to clean and safe ship recycling facilities using quays and docks where cranes can be operated to safely move cut steel sections. Otherwise, the death count of beaching will not come to a halt."

Patrizia Heidegger- Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

In an attempt to hide the accident, the yard management kept the body of Shah Jahan inside the premises, but fellow workers and locals rushed to the site and started demonstrating. The body was consequently sent to the morgue of the Chittagong Medical College Hospital. The following day, the worker was quickly buried without a post mortem. Platform member organisations in Bangladesh attended the funeral and now seek to support the victim’s relatives. The family and the yard owners have settled for a one-off payment and a monthly allowance to help them cover their living costs. However, money will not be able to replace Shah Jahan who leaves behind a wife and a young child.

Platform News – Maersk incited business partner to opt for worst breaking practices for 14 ships

Posted on 28/10/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

A third report by the investigative journalists of Danwatch, “Maersk and the shadowy deals”, reveals that the Danish container ship giant has incentivised the sale of 14 ships to substandard shipbreaking yards on the beaches of Bangladesh and India in 2013/2014. At the same time, Maersk prided itself with a progressive ship recycling policy and its cooperation with state-of-the-art yards in China. The report in Danish was released last week and has created a media uproar in Denmark. The story has been widely featured on TV2, daily newspaper Politiken and other major outlets. It triggered critical reactions from a wide range of stakeholders and forced Maersk to admit that such shady deals should never have been made.

Late in 2013, Maersk sought early termination of a charter party for 14 ships due to the vessels’ poor rentability and the general overcapacity in the container ship market. Maersk had previously been the owner of the vessels before they sold them to a finance construct in Germany, MPC Flottenfonds III, in 2009. Maersk then continued operating them based on a long-term charter. In 2014, the Platform investigated that the 14 vessels operated by Maersk had ended up in some of the worst shipbreaking yards in Bangladesh and India, and contacted Jacob Sterling, then Head of Sustainability at Maersk. He said: “We encourage other ship owners to recycle their ships in a responsible way, including those that we charter ships from.” In an article, Sterling also stated: “NGOs argue that beaching must end now. We agree”.

Sterling’s response regarding the chartered ships was a lie: a quick look into Maersk’s addendum to the charter contract is enough to understand that. First, Maersk explicitly asked the German owner through a clause in the contract to ensure the immediate demolition of the vessels in order to get them off the market. Second, Maersk demanded in another clause that the vessels had to be sold for the highest price available on the scrap market – without any consideration of environmental or social standards. With the latter clause, Maersk put pressure on the ship fund to sell the 14 vessels for a minimum price of 447 USD per ton, a price that corresponded at the time to the prices offered in South Asian beaching yards. No facility operating under safe and sound conditions would have been able to pay such a high price. Moreover, the contract between Maersk and MPC states that if MPC were to sell the vessels for a lower price, Maersk would have to pay the difference. And, crucially, if MPC managed to sell for a higher price, it was under an obligation to pay Maersk the difference in profit earned. The MPC case is likely not an isolated one. The Platform found that Maersk had sold another three older ships to Greek owner Danaos and immediately chartered them back on a long-term basis. Also these three vessels ended up in beaching yards.

"In 2014, we believed that Maersk was an industry leader with regards to sustainable ship recycling practices. In Maersk’s CSR reports, we could read about their much publicised cooperation with Chinese ship recycling yards, we were shown futuristic videos on ‘total vessel recycling’ and the Head of Sustainability made strong ‘off the beach’ statements. Getting hold of the charter contract opened our eyes to the reality: Maersk actively incentivised business partners to sell to the highest bidder, inevitably offering the lowest standards. Maersk was fully aware that these ships would be broken in some of the worst yards in Bangladesh and India and even had a direct financial interest in that by earning an extra profit."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

"Maersk had no other choice but to apologise publicly for both their shady deals and the illegal export of their floating storage and production tanker, the North Sea Producer, from the UK to Bangladesh. Maersk admitted to the media that they should not have made such deals. However, apologies for the worst practices now seem to be the strategy to make the current breaking practice in Alang, India, look like a good solution."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Danwatch’s investigations at Maersk’s Shree Ram yard in Alang have shown severe shortcomings related to fundamental labour rights, environmental safeguards and basic health and safety standards. Maersk’s support of the beaching yards in Alang stalls any development in India to move ship recycling to modern industrial platforms. Such a transition was already supported by the Government of Gujarat and investors in the 1990s when the Pipavav dry dock was built in order to bring the Indian ship recycling industry to an acceptable level. However, the shipping industry’s profits on the beaches of Alang have consolidated the beaching yards’ monopoly in India, while innovative new businesses from India have been stifled.

"We and other key stakeholders maintain: the future of shipbreaking is not on the beaches of South Asia, but in modern ship recycling facilities. Maersk should lead the way in supporting innovative companies, rather than scotching development in India by supporting a method which is banned in Europe. While India’s space programme is launching satellites for the US and Canada, the shipping industry wants us to believe that Indian companies can dismantle ships only on a beach?"

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

NOTES

[1] The Platform has sent a letter to the UK Environment Minister on 25 October.

[2] In addition to the Danwatch report, see also coverage in Danish TV2 and Politiken.

[3] The North Sea Producer was used as an oil and gas floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel in the North Sea at the MacCulloch oil field, 250km north-east of Aberdeen, for ConocoPhillips. When the MacCulloch field was closed, the FPSO was brought to Teesport in Middleborough.

[4] Conquistador Shipping Corporation is domiciled at P.O. Box 583, Morton House - Government
Road Charlestown, Nevis. Offshore leaks documentation clearly indicated this is a typical post box company address. See also this link. In order to disguise their involvement in the sale of end-of-life vessels, cash buyers usually use anonymous post box companies, often located in the state whose flag of convenience is used for the last voyage. Similarly, the contracts with the local shipbreaking yard, or papers for the authorities, are signed by local agents so that the name and signature of the cash buyer does not appear on any document.

Platform News – Maersk involved in illegal toxic waste trafficking

Posted on 27/10/201624/01/2022 by admin_ec

The Maersk-owned floating oil production and storage tanker, North Sea Producer, left the UK in May 2016 and was directly towed to Bangladesh, where it arrived on 14 August 2016. Two days later, the North Sea Producer was beached at the Janata Steel shipbreaking yard in Chittagong. The vessel is likely to contain large amounts of highly contaminated residues including NORM (natural occurring radioactive material). It is currently being torn apart on a tidal beach, sadly known for the human rights abuses and environmental pollution caused by substandard shipbreaking. The tanker’s export from the UK for demolition in Bangladesh was illegal under the European Waste Shipment Regulation. The NGO Shipbreaking Platform calls on the UK Government to hold the Maersk-owned North Sea Production Company responsible for illegal trafficking in hazardous waste [1].

The case has recently been high up on the agenda of Danish media [2], prompting both policy makers and investors of Maersk, including Nordea, and pension funds PFA and KLP, to react. Whilst Maersk claims that they sold the vessel for further operational use, they have so far been unwilling to reveal which company from the oil and gas sector bought the vessel and claimed to be able to operate it. Taking the current market conditions into account, it was highly unlikely that Maersk was able to find a new owner for the North Sea Producer within the oil and gas sector.

The North Sea Producer was owned and operated by UK-based North Sea Production Company, a joint venture between Danish Maersk and Brazilian oil & gas company Odebrecht, with 50% ownership each. Having operated in the North Sea as an FPSO [3], the vessel is likely to contain large amounts of residues that are contaminated by NORM and sulphur in addition to the various other hazardous materials in its structure and tanks. The Bangladesh shipbreaking yards are not equipped with any infrastructure that could safely remove and dispose of such toxic wastes. The North Sea Producer was allowed into Bangladesh based on a fake certificate stating that the tanker did not contain any hazardous materials. The import of end-of-life ships containing hazardous waste into Bangladesh is banned, but circumvented with such false documents.

"After the recent revelations on Maersk’s shipbreaking practices in India, we also had to learn that Maersk shamefully exposes workers in Bangladesh to enormous risks. If Maersk sells a contaminated old oil tanker to an anonymous post box company in the Caribbean under the pretense of further operation use, this is at best a total failure of due diligence, if not punishable negligence. We expect the UK authorities to hold all involved companies responsible for illegal hazardous waste trafficking."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

In late April, local newspapers wrote about the sale of the North Sea Producer. The North Sea Production Company was quoted as still being the owner and soon to strike a deal of which the details were confidential. Later, the newspapers stated to have been informed that the FPSO would be reused at the Tin Can Island Port in Nigeria. However, when the ship left Teesport, UK, on 17 May it sailed straight to Bangladesh, with only a few fuel stops for the tug boat Terasea Hawk on its way. Its first stop was in Namibia – way beyond the stated destination in Nigeria.

"It is highly likely that the North Sea Production Company sold the ship directly to cash buyers GMS (Global Marketing Systems), via an anonymous post box company in St. Kitts and Nevis. GMS is one of the world's largest companies that specialises in selling end-of-life tonnage to the beaching yards in South Asia. While GMS has recently been extremely busy in polishing its image with claims of ‘green ship recycling’, the company’s track record – and obvious continued practice – tells another story. GMS continues to strike deals with some of the worst shipbreaking yards in the world, including those in Bangladesh where hazardous waste management capacity is completely absent, where illegal child labour persists, and where workers are killed or maimed in accidents that could have been avoided."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

A Saint Kitts and Nevis-based postbox company, Conquistador Shipping Corporation, [3] became the new registered owner of the ship during its last voyage. Contracts for the vessel with Janata Steel shipbreaking yard were signed with the help of a Chittagong-based agent. It is likely that GMS is behind Conquistador Shipping Corporation which is used for last voyage ship registration. GMS has been involved in similar cases before, such as in 2012 when they used anonymous post box companies in Panama and the end-of-life flag of Belize to illegally export two French ferries, SeaFrance’s Cézanne and Renoir, from France to India.

In the coming years a high number of vessels, including semi-submersible platforms, used by the oil and gas sector operating in the North Sea will be decommissioned. Some of these structures have already ended up on the South Asian beaches for breaking under conditions that are both dangerous and polluting.

"We are asking governments to effectively prevent any future illegal waste trafficking as we have seen with the case of the North Sea Producer. The large number of vessels and structures used in the North Sea that will need to be decommissioned in the coming years should prompt public strategies for the creation of jobs in the EU that promise the environmentally sound recovery of valuable resources."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

NOTES

[1] The Platform has sent a letter to the UK Environment Minister on 25 October.

[2] In addition to the Danwatch report, see also coverage in Danish TV2 and Politiken.

Platform News – Maersk maintains beaching mantra and chooses to ignore facts revealed by Danwatch

Posted on 21/10/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

After investigative journalists have revealed the severe short-comings of Maersk’s shipbreaking practices in Alang, India, the shipping giant blatantly disregards the findings. In an official statement, Maersk defends its new practice of breaking ships on Indian beaches with tooth and nail without even mentioning the grave concerns raised by the Danish journalists [1]. Maersk's strategy seems to be to draw a veil of silence on the bad conditions in Alang whilst trying to squirm themselves out of other scandalous revelations. These include the recent illegal export of their heavily contaminated floating oil production and storage tanker “North Sea Producer” from the UK to Bangladesh and the uncovering of Maersk’s secret contracts that incentivised business partners to sell chartered ships for scrap to the worst yards.

After many years of proudly recycling its end-of-life ships in modern ship recycling yards, Maersk now tries to make the world believe that truly sustainable ship recycling off the beach is not affordable. The world’s largest container ship owner comes forward with this misleading statement while its competitor Hapag Lloyd makes it very clear: the German container ship line stays true to its commitment to clean and safe ship recycling off the beach in EU-approved facilities. Also ship owners from other sectors have been doing very well with their uncompromising approach to ship recycling, including Wilhelmsen, Wallenius, Hoegh, Grieg, CSL and Royal Dutch Boskalis.

"Maersk’s cant on their competitiveness is ludicrous: whom do they want to fool when they say that the company would risk its existence if it continued to recycle ships in state-of-the-art facilities? If smaller shipping lines are able to do it, why not the world’s largest ship owner? It is a question of properly accounting for the true costs of recycling throughout the life-cycle of a ship. We expect Maersk to ensure sound financial planning and long-term investments rather than short-term profit maximisation at end-of-life."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

Maersk defends its U-turn from state-of-the-art facilities in China towards the beaches in India with the argument that it will assist the Alang yards to improve their standard. As a matter of fact, Maersk has not invested in any infrastructure in the Alang shipbreaking yards - they have even been warned that such investments might be a dead-end and too costly compared to using available docks or slip-ways. When asked, the company is consequently not able to put a number to its investments in Alang. All that Maersk has done is to write up a standard on paper and to employ staff in Alang to supervise its implementation. The Danwatch investigation has shown that Maersk’s yard, Shree Ram, is unable to live up to that standard and that Maersk’s presence at the yard has not helped to rectify the situation.

"Maersk keeps reeling off its narrative that shipbreaking is a significant employer in India. If workers in India are really their main concern, then why has Maersk not fixed the most basic things first: contracts for all workers, decent accommodation for all, adequate personal protective equipment – before putting its ships on the beach? How can they call shipbreaking ‘superior’ in an area that does not even have a hospital to treat severely injured workers? The truth is: it is all about profit over people."

Patrizia Heidegger - Executive Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

NOTES

[1] Four main Maersk claims that Danwatch has proven wrong:

- According to Maersk, its environmental recycling plan foresees that most of the vessel is dismantled without the ship parts being in contact with sand or water. The Platform and other critics have been arguing that the facilities lack large industrial cranes that can be deployed along the side of the ship. Cut sections therefore need to crash down onto the beach and the intertidal zone. During their research at Shree Ram, the journalists found cut sections that had been dropped into the intertidal zone, and were even cut down right on the sand. The claim of ‘no contact between cut parts and sand or water’ remains a myth. Apart from the negative environmental impact of the gravity method, Maersk does not at all address the scraping of toxic paints during the beaching process and the release of heavy metals, such as copper, into the environment.

- Maersk claims that appropriate protective equipment is available and mandatory to use. While the journalists have not checked whether PPEs are available, they have found that adequate protective equipment is simply not used. Workers welding and torch-cutting at Shree Ram were found wearing highly inflammable cotton T-shirt, inadequate or no respiratory protection, no goggles and no hearing protection. The investigations have found that the Maersk supervision on the ground is unable to ensure basic occupational health and safety measures.

- The journalists interviewed ten workers that are employed at Shree Ram. They workers have clearly identified that they work on the demolition of the Maersk Georgia and the Maersk Wyoming. None of them had a contract or any written document concerning their employment relationship. None of the men were aware of their rights. Maersk claims that all Shree Ram workers have contracts and has not been willing to respond to the findings.

- Maersk is aware of the fact that not all of Shree Ram workers are offered decent housing. The shipping giant has accepted this situation when selling the Maersk Wyoming and the Maersk Georgia without demanding basic infrastructure for workers as a precondition for doing business. Similarly, Maersk accepts the lack of a proper hospital at Alang where severe injuries could be treated.

Press Release – European industry, trade unions and NGOs jointly support the EESC’s call for a financial incentive to enhance sustainable ship recycling

Posted on 20/10/201630/08/2018 by admin_ec

"The social and environmental impacts of shipbreaking on the beaches of South Asia can no longer be viewed as an externality and should be accounted for in shipping companies’ individual accounts. Introducing a financial incentive at the EU level is feasible and in line with established legal principles. It also brings with it the promise of ensuring compliance with environmental and social standards aimed at improving ship recycling conditions globally."

Ingvild Jenssen - Policy Director - NGO Shipbreaking Platform

SEA Europe, the European Ships and Maritime Equipment Association is the voice of the European maritime technology industry. SEA Europe promotes and supports European business enterprises which are involved in the building, construction, maintenance and repair of all types of ships and other relevant maritime structures, including the complete supply chain of systems, equipment and services. www.seaeurope.eu

IndustriAll European Trade Union represents 6.9 million working men and women across supply chains in manufacturing, mining and energy sectors across Europe. IndustriAll Europe aims to protect and advance the rights of these workers. www.industriall-europe.eu

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform is a global coalition of 19 environmental, human rights and labour rights organisations working to prevent the dangerous pollution and unsafe working conditions caused when end-of-life ships containing toxic materials in their structure are freely traded in the global marketplace. www.shipbreakingplatform.org

Tag: EU

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Platform News – Maersk maintains beaching mantra and chooses to ignore facts revealed by Danwatch

Press Release – European industry, trade unions and NGOs jointly support the EESC’s call for a financial incentive to enhance sustainable ship recycling