India's cabinet has approved ratification of the IMO’s Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, giving the treaty a key step toward enactment from a leading vessel demolition market.
The decision was taken in a meeting on 20 November chaired by Prime Minister Narenda Modi after the Indian cabinet approved a proposal for enactment of the Recycling of Ships Bill.
There are more steps for the bill to pass, including approval by both houses of the Indian parliament, followed by signature by Modi.
Still, move has been warmly welcomed by ship recycling experts as India is the leader in the global ship recycling industry, with a share of over 30% of the market.
“India was always the key to unlocking Hong Kong Convention’s entry into force and after a number of years waiting for India’s ship recycling industry to mature and embrace the technical standards of the convention,” said Nikos Mikelis, a key figure at the IMO in developing the convention and currently a non-executive director at GMS, a cash buyer of ships for recycling.
“Having witnessed that remarkable transformation, it is now most rewarding to receive news that India’s cabinet has adopted the convention as India’s own standard.”
GMS chief executive Anil Sharma described the move as “a hallmark moment towards the accession of the Hong Kong Convention by the largest ship recycling destination in the world today”.
'Giant step'
“With this giant step, the Indian government has ensured that not only on the micro-end, will the industry continue to operate while keeping worker health and the safety of the environment at heart,” Sharma said.
“But on the macro-end, a growing number of shipowners seeking SOC [Statement of Compliance]-based green-recycling options can be certain that the authorities have added another layer of security for their incoming vessels.”
Sharma, whose company is considered the largest buyer of ships for demolition, said India's bill will ease restrictions on non-EU yards hit by the bloc's more Ship Recycling Regulation.
India's bill aims to restrict the installation and use of hazardous materials and means that vessels will be surveyed and certified on the basis of the inventory of hazardous materials.
Under the convention, ship recycling facilities will need to obtain authorisation to operate, and only authorised yards will be permitted to import ships for recycling.
Vessels will need ship recycling plans (SRPs) and a ready for recycling certificate to be scrapped in India.
The move by India's executive body comes four months after TradeWinds reported that officials had already taken a decision in principle to ratify the convention, which brings a series of measures aimed at protecting demolition yard workers and cleaning up the facilities' environmental footprint.
The Hong Kong Convention will go live after ratification by 15 states, representing 40% of world gross tonnage and 3% ship recycling capacity.
In January Turkey, another major shipbreaking nation, became the seventh nation to ratify the convention.
