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ASBESTOS DEMANDS 'NOT FEASIBLE'

by Janet Porter, Lloyd's List

23 January 1999 -- P&O Nedlloyd, the liner company which has found itself at the centre of the growing debate over ship scrapping, has said it is eager to find some way of improving conditions of those working in the industry in China and the Indian subcontinent.

The Anglo/Dutch company, which has been the target of protests by Greenpeace, has some sympathy with the environmentalists.

However, P&O Nedlloyd and Greenpeace remain at loggerheads over the planned scrapping of the elderly Encounter Bay, which is now waiting to be dismantled in China, and meetings between the two sides have ended in deadlock.

Greenpeace insists all asbestos should be removed from the ship before it is delivered to the breakers, and wants P&O Nedlloyd to postpone scrapping plans until this can be done.

But Greenpeace's demands are not feasible, according to P&O Nedlloyd director Rutger van Slobbe, since removing the asbestos would be a violation of fire safety regulations.

The Encounter Bay and her sisterships which have already been scrapped were built some 30 years ago when asbestos was the only available fireproof material. This applies not just to containerships but other vessel types as well.

If Greenpeace discourages shipowners from scrapping old or substandard tonnage, then unwanted ships could find their way into unscrupulous hands and either remain in service beyond their normal working life, or be illegally scuttled, Mr van Slobbe warns.

Nevertheless, P&O Nedlloyd and other leading ship operators that want to scrap outdated tonnage acknowledge that conditions at breakers' yards are way below standards that would be acceptable in the west, and are urging all concerned to seek ways of improving safety.

Mr van Slobbe believes the ship scrapping industry would be an ideal candidate for development aid, in the form of both financial assistance and technical know-how.

Ship demolition is now high on the agenda of the European Community Shipowners' Association as well as national shipowner bodies, the International Maritime Organisation and the International Labour Organisation, and P&O Nedlloyd is hoping all these interested parties will co-ordinate their efforts to find some solution.

Greenpeace's campaign against P&O Nedlloyd and other container lines comes at a time when the number of boxships heading for the scrapyard is expected to increase considerably, given the age profile of the fleet and weak market conditions in the liner shipping trades.

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