Two Chinese ship recycling yards, the world’s largest facilities, have applied for the EU’s future list of approved ship recycling facilities.
Representatives from Zhoushan Changhong International Ship Recycling and Xiagang Changjiang Ship Recycling, which have capacities of 1.1 million and 1.2 million LDT respectively, submitted official documents to the European Commission at a ceremony in Brussels on Wednesday.
Under new regulations adopted in November 2013, only facilities on the EU’s list will be permitted to recycle ships flying the flag of an EU member state. The rules will come into force by the end of 2016 at the latest.
Li Hongwei, owner of both yards, commented: “We welcome the initiative of the European Union and invite them to audit and inspect our yards at any given time. We are pleased to improve and invest further to achieve the highest level required.”
Tom Blankestijn of ship recycling facilitator and consultancy Sea2Cradle stated: “With the experience of executing close to 100 projects these yards have developed into the best in the world, offering the highest standards on Health Safety and Environment in the industry.
“We are very proud that these are the first yards, also from outside the OECD, to apply for EU approval”, he added.
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