Single-Hull Tankers - European Union Adopts New Regulation

August 2003

On 22 July the Council of the European Union adopted a new regulation regarding the phase-out of single-hull tankers, the Condition Assessment Scheme and a ban on the transport of heavy grades of oil on single-hull tankers. 

The new Regulation* needs to be signed formally by the President of the European Parliament. This will probably take place in early September. The Regulation will then be published in the Official Journal, and will take effect 20 days thereafter, i.e. late September/early October 2003.

As the Regulation was adopted without debate, the text should be identical to that adopted by the European Parliament on 4 July 2003. This means that the Council's decision does not reflect what was agreed or progressed at the 49th session of IMO's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) a few days earlier. 

With a special additional session of the MEPC scheduled for December 2003 to adopt revisions to MARPOL 73/78**, one question is whether the European Union will amend the new 2003 version of Regulation 417 after the IMO assembly? This could be done in either of the following ways:

• For changes of substance there would be a need for a new round of formal amendments to Regulation 417 proposed by the Commission and duly adopted by both the European Parliament and Council
• Articles 10 and 11 for Regulation 417 allow for amendments through a Committee to take into account decisions made by the IMO, in so far as such amendments do not broaden the scope of Regulation 417.

The new amended Regulation will take effect for all the Member States of the European Union and of the European Economic Agreement. It will also take effect for the Accession Countries (the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Slovak Republic, and Slovenia) when they become full members of the European Union in May 2004, unless there are national rules for earlier implementation of EU measures.

Once in force (anticipated to be end of September/early October) the resolution will have the the following effect in all Member States of the European Union and the European Economic Agreement:

• All Category 1 tankers delivered in or before 1980 will lose the right to fly the flag of these countries. Such tankers will also not be permitted to enter or leave ports or offshore installations or anchor in areas under the jurisdiction of these Member States. (For Category 1 tankers delivered in 1981, the final year will be 2004; and 2005 for those delivered in 1982 or later.)
• All Category 2 and 3 tankers delivered in 1975 or earlier will be denied the right to fly the flag of these countries and will not be permitted to enter or leave ports or offshore installations or anchor in areas under the jurisdiction of these Member States.
• No single-hull tanker, regardless of flag, will be permitted to enter or leave ports or offshore installations or anchor in areas under the jurisdiction of these Member States if carrying heavy grades of oil.

As from 2005, all Category 2 and 3 tankers over 15 years of age will have to pass a Condition Assessment Scheme in order to fly the flag of these Member States, or – regardless of flag – be permitted to enter or leave ports or offshore installations or anchor in areas under the jurisdiction of these Member States. There are exemptions for tankers below 5,000 dwt and for ice strengthened tankers. 

The Regulation will include definitions of the term ‘heavy grades of oil’ and ‘double hulls’. 

* An amendment to the existing EC Regulation 417/2002

**The timetable given in Regulation 13G in Annex I to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 thereto (MARPOL 73/78) has already been revised following the Erika incident in December 1999.