TradeWinds’ Ship Recycling Forum in Hamburg last week stoked up heated debate on recycling standards despite the absence of one of the industry’s most provocative groups.

Industry lobby group NGO Shipbreaking Platform felt unable to attend the event this year because of an ongoing “defamation” legal spat with GMS, a cash buyer of ships for demolition.

But there was a sense of urgency with less than a year before the European Union's Ship Recycling Regulation (SRR) comes into force. Indian, Turkish and US yards are now bidding for approval from the European Commission to demolish European-flag ships.

The TradeWinds forum heard Indian yards have made considerable progress to meet the European standard. About 70 yards have won statement of compliance certification with the as yet to enter into force Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, on which the European regulation is based.

However, Europe still has its concerns over recycling in India.

Despite the progress at yards, owners do not seem to be keeping pace. Ship Recycling Industries Association India secretary Nitin Kanakiya said there are only 35 out of 5,000 owners willing to price demolition sales at a level that rewards yards for their higher standards. He accused owners of “hypocrisy”.

“There is a game of convenience being played out,” he observed.

Bangladesh is also starting to play catch up with PHP Family becoming the first to achieve Hong Kong Convention certification.

The forum heard the Bangladesh Ship Recycling Act 2018, which became law in February set a target for the country's yards to reach the standard of the Hong Kong Convention in the next five years.

Pakistan yards are starting to look towards improvement too, the TradeWinds forum heard.

PHP Family is matching the progress made in India, while India’s Shree Ram Group claimed it had managed to successfully dismantle a ship on the beach without polluting the intertidal zone.

While the EC pushes on with its own recycling legislation, European owners, including Alfred Hartmann, were calling for it to be replaced by the Hong Kong Convention.