EU Sulphur Directive re 0.

1% sulphur fuel in port official transitional period for enforcement

The European Commission (EC) has adopted a Recommendation on the safe implementation of the use of low sulphur fuel by ships at berth in ports of the European Community, having recognised that there may be operational problems and safety risks associated with the use of the required fuels in ships that have not undergone technical adaptations,. From 1 January 2010, ships at berth in European Community ports will be requested to use marine fuels with a sulphur content not exceeding 0.1% by mass (Article 4b of Directive 1999/32/EC as amended by Directive 2005/33/EC). This has not changed. However, in consideration of their recent safety concerns, the Commission adopted 21 December 2009 a Recommendation aimed at Member States, which invites them, while enforcing the Directive, to consider the existence of detailed evidence of the steps taken by ships to ensure safe compliance with the Directive. Member States may consider the existence of an approved retrofit plan when assessing the degree of penalties to be applied to non-complying ships. The cut-off date for this transitional relief will be announced when the full text of the Recommendation is published (which we are expecting 28 December) we will post it here on this page. INTERTANKO intervention INTERTANKO warmly welcomes this move, coming after five years of continuous pressure from INTERTANKO, OCIMF and others in the shipping industry to highlight the potential operational and safety problems of such a move. If so requested by a Member during the transitional months, INTERTANKO is prepared to intervene directly with any government and/or any charterer creating a problem with any Member who has in place a programme and timeframe for compliance including a record of communication with boiler/machinery makers showing a plan for follow-up action. Hazard identification As part of the detailed evidence required to ensure compliance with the EU Directive, we believe that tanker owners will be expected to provide a HAZID assessment document. INTERTANKO and OCIMF have jointly published a Guidance booklet which provides a simple check list of items which should be part of a Risk Assessment and a

Hazard Identification (HAZID) assessment for boiler systems in oil tankers covering the switching to, and long term-operation on, low sulphur marine gas oil (LSMGO). It is strongly recommended that such a HAZID assessment be conducted in cooperation with the equipment/installation manufacturer or experienced entity and the classification society of each system type.