Save The Date – Ship Recycling Lab 2026: Transformation Through Innovation

After the successful organisation of two editions of the Ship Recycling Lab: Transformation Through Innovation back in 2022 and 2024, the NGO Shipbreaking Platform, still recognising the need for visionary solutions for ship recycling, is ready to host its third edition of the Lab on 14 -15 October 2026 in Marseille, France.

The event will bring together forward-thinking stakeholders from the maritime, recycling and steel sectors, financial institutions and policy makers to showcase and exchange ideas for best practices and strategies for ship demolition, design, waste management and material recovery in line with ethical circular policy goals.

Providing visibility to companies that have developed solutions, including innovative cutting techniques, new state-of-the-art waste handling procedures, cradle to cradle concept design, and clean steel breakthrough technologies aimed at achieving a zero-carbon steel making process, the Lab intends to set the bar for tomorrow’s ship recycling.

Come join us and 100+ progressive stakeholders for networking opportunities, inspiring keynote speaker sessions, thought-provoking presentations and interactive panel discussions.

Early bird tickets are now on sale! Get them fast before they run out!

Ship Recycling Lab 2024, Lisbon, Portugal

Platform News – Workshop on Best Available Techniques in ship recycling held at University of Strathclyde, followed by a visit to Kishorn Dry Dock

The NGO Shipbreaking Platform successfully organised a workshop on Best Available Techniques (BAT) in ship recycling at the Technology and Innovation Centre, University of Strathclyde, followed by a visit to Kishorn Dry Dock and Port between 12–14 November 2025.

The event, part of the Safe, Healthy and Environmental Ship Recycling (SHEREC) project, brought together experts, industry stakeholders, and policymakers from the UK to explore innovative approaches to ship recycling and possibilities for enhancing capacity in the country.

Discussions highlighted the importance of advancing circularity, including the use of AI-based solutions, optimised material recovery, the concept of ship material passports and how advanced technologies can strengthen competitiveness.

Building on the theme of innovation, Johannes Thrane from Afdecom and John Jacobsen from Circles of Life presented the OPPSIRK project, which focuses on upcycling steel from decommissioned ships for direct reuse in the construction sector. Anıl Sefer Günbeyaz from the University of Strathclyde shared further case studies on circularity in the maritime sector, and emphasized the added value of having a ship material passports to support better material recovery and broader decarbonisation efforts.

Focusing on capacity to recycle ships in the UK, Steve Welham presented Kishorn Port and Dry Dock’s ongoing expansion and unique deep sea access capabilities. Mike Dixon from Wolvinston Group reflected on lessons learnt from Atlas Decom’s efforts to establish a new ship recycling yard at Inchgreen Dry Dock and why it never recycled a vessel. Bill Cattanach from the North Sea Decommissioning Authority outlined the complex challenges of recycling floating oil and gas structures, particularly those contaminated with Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM). He underlined the need for fully licensed UK-based facilities to safely carry out such operations in compliance with international law and national regulations.

Finally, Rafet Emek Kurt from the University of Strathclyde shared his award-winning work on developing SHIELD (Safety Human Incident & Error Learning Database), a human factors tool used to analyse and ultimately prevent maritime accidents, and how it could be used to better understand underlying accidents in also the ship recycling sector.

The workshop concluded with a visit to Kishorn Port and Dry Dock.

"The workshop reinforced that advancing BAT, circularity, and sustainable practices in ship recycling requires policy support, technological innovation, stakeholder engagement, and strong human-centred approaches. Many ships will be heading for scrap in the coming years of which the UK could sustainably recycle, all whilst contributing high quality scrap for the decarbonisation of its steel production."
Ekin Sakin - Policy Officer - NGO Shipbreaking Platform