AP Moller-Maersk and the government of Bahrain are working to create a ship recycling facility in the gulf region.
Bahrain’s ministries of Transportation & Telecommunications and of Industry & Commerce will be working with ASRY, the Arab Shipbuilding & Repair Yard, Maersk, APM Terminals and local steel maker SULB to develop the conditions to enable tonnage to be recycled in the country.
ASRY is a large ship and offshore structure repair and maintenance facility in the north of Bahrain.
Ahmed Hassan, Maersk head of asset strategy, said Bahrain is preparing for an expected increase in recycling demand by 2028, and his company has plenty of recent experience to share.
“Maersk brings invaluable expertise, with a track record of recycling as many as 22 vessels globally over the last eight years without a single incident or loss of time due to incidents,” he said.
Under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) the two ministries will provide regulatory support for ASRY, which will ensure there is the correct equipment for the recycling process.
Maersk will act as technical and operational adviser, offering expertise on implementing sustainable practices and responsible standards.
SULB will use the steel from the ship recycling and process and recycle it for local and international markets.
Maersk said it has its own recycling standards, which it has applied all over the world, independent of geography, which include its interpretations of the guidance laid out in the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe & Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships.
“They exceed requirements on several parameters, including downstream waste management, standards on labour and human rights, anti-corruption, etc,” the company said.
“We are proud to bring our technical and operational knowledge to the Kingdom of Bahrain and share it with like-minded stakeholders that will help the industry address the capacity challenges we are staring at in the future.”
The Hong Kong Convention comes into force in June 2025, bringing in sustainable and responsible ship dismantling processes.
All the major ship recycling countries are signatories to the convention. However, the European Union has its own regulations, which include a list of approved facilities that European-flagged vessels can be recycled at. No Asian yards are on this list.
