ReCAAP: Piracy in Asian waters significantly up

The European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) was extended to cover emissions from shipping as of 1^st January 2024.

The EU ETS is limited by a 'cap' on the number of emission allowances. Within the cap, companies receive or buy emission allowances, which they can trade as needed. The cap decreases every year, ensuring that total emissions fall.

Each allowance gives the holder the right to emit:

One tonne of carbon dioxide (CO2), or;
The equivalent amount of other powerful greenhouse gases, nitrous oxide (N2O) and perfluorocarbons (PFCs).
The price of one ton of CO2 allowance under the EU ETS has fluctuated between EUR 60 and almost EUR 100 in the past two years. The total cost of emissions will vary based on the cost of the allowance at the time of purchase, the vessel’s emissions profile and the total volume of voyages performed within the EU ETS area. The below is for illustration purposes:
~A 30.000 GT passenger ship has total emissions of 20.000 tonnes in a reporting year, of which 9.000 are within the EU, 7.000 at berth within the EU and 4.000 are between the EU and an outside port. The average price of the allowance is EUR 75 per tonne. The total cost would be as follows:
~~9.000 * EUR 75 = EUR 675.000
~~7.000 * EUR 75 = EUR 525.000
~~4.000 * EUR 75 * 50% = EUR 150.000
~~Total = EUR 1.350.000 (of which 40% is payable in 2024)
For 2024, a 60% rebate is admitted to the vessels involved. However, this is reduced to 30% in 2025, before payment is due for 100% with effect from 2026.
Emissions reporting is done for each individual ship, where the ship submits their data to a verifier (such as a class society) which in turns allows the shipowner to issue a verified company emissions report. This report is then submitted to the administering authority, and it is this data that informs what emission allowances need to be surrendered to the authority.
The sanctions for non- compliance are severe, and in the case of a ship that has failed to comply with the monitoring and reporting obligations for two or more consecutive reporting periods, and where other enforcement measures have failed to ensure compliance, the competent authority of an EEA port of entry may issue an expulsion order. Where such a ship flies the flag of an EEA country and enters or is found in one of its ports, the country concerned will, after giving the opportunity to the company concerned to submit its observations, detain the ship until the company fulfils its monitoring and reporting obligations.
Per the EU’s Implementing Regulation, it is the Shipowner who remains ultimately responsible for complying with the EU ETS system.

There are a number of great resources on the regulatory and practical aspects of the system – none better than the EU’s own:

‍https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02003L0087-20230605

‍https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/transport/reducing-emissions-shipping-sector_en

‍https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/eu-emissions-trading-system-eu-ets/what-eu-ets_en‍

The number of piracy and armed robbery incidents reported in Asian waters increased significantly in H1 2020 compared to the same period last year, reported Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Centre on July 16th in its half-year summary. There were 51 incidents reported from January to June 2020, compared with 28 for the same period in 2019.

The 51 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships comprised 50 actual incidents and one attempted incident. The 28 incidents in H1 2019 comprised 25 actual incidents and three attempted incidents.

Of the 51 incidents, 49 were incidents of armed robbery against ships and two were piracy incidents.

ReCAAP said that the continued increase of incidents on board ships while underway in the Singapore Strait was a matter for concern. There were 16 such incidents in H1 2020 compared to eight in H1 2019.

There was improvement at the ports/anchorages in China, with no incident reported during January-June 2020, compared to three incidents during the same period in 2019.
The threat of crew abduction in the SuluCelebes Seas and waters off Eastern Sabah remained a serious concern.

ReCAAP executive director Masafumi Kuroki said that it was concerned at the nearly two-fold increase in the number of incidents in Asia, even though most were at a “low severity level.” “Small crimes, if not addressed, can embolden criminals to commit more serious acts,” he said.

Most of the incidents in the Singapore Strait this year have occurred in the hours of darkness and involved bulk carriers, although tankers and tug-boats were also targeted. Items stolen include engine spares, scrap metal and steel construction material on barges. The number of incidents in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore has climbed steadily from one in the first half of 2016 to two in the following year and five in 2018.

The reasons behind the increase in incidents of armed robbery were not clear, but Kuroki said that there was a need for ships to enhance vigilance and for law enforcement to strengthen surveillance and patrol.

Reports of incidents are collated from designated government agencies of ReCAAP’s 20 member states, which include Singapore, India, the Philippines, Japan, Australia and the United States.

https://www.recaap.org/resources/ck/files/reports/half-year/ReCAAP%20ISC%20Half%20Yearly%20Report%202020.pdf

ReCAAP: Piracy in Asian waters significantly up

The European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) was extended to cover emissions from shipping as of 1st January 2024.

The European Union’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) was extended to cover emissions from shipping as of 1^st January 2024.