Port sulphur limit requirements clarified

EU Directive 2005/33/EC requires that, with effect from January 1, 2010, member states must take all necessary steps to ensure that ships at berth in EU ports do not use marine fuels with a sulphur content exceeding 0.1% by mass. Although reports have been circulating in the industry that, because of the potential safety risks associated with the switchover on ships with unmodified boilers, the deadline may have been put back, IBIA stresses that such is not the case.

IBIA chief executive Ian Adams said, “We have heard various rumours, including one which suggests that the deadline for implementation of the EU directive has been postponed by six months. Nothing could be further from the truth. The directive came into force on January 1, and applies to all ships operating to EU ports.

“Ships are not exempt on the ground that the fuel changeover is unsafe because modifications have not been made to its boilers, or to the ship itself. Clearly in such cases the expectation is not that the ship should engage in an unsafe practice but simply that it will not berth. Similarly, there is no automatic dispensation for ships which have made arrangements to carry out the necessary modifications but have not yet implemented them.