The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has published provisional advice on the implementation of the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) and Basel Convention for cross-border movement of ships for recycling.
The IMO has issued guidance around the implementation of the HKC and Basel Convention after BIMCO, alongside Bangladesh, India, Norway, Pakistan, and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) called for it to do so.
However, BIMCO is calling on more clarity and assurance that shipowners and those operating in compliance with the HKC – which is set to be enforced in June 2025 – will not be sanctioned as a violation of the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal (the Basel Convention).
The provisional guidance notes that states which are part of the HKC but not the Basel Convention should apply the requirements of the HKC. If a state is part of the Basel Convention – including its Ban Amendment – but not the HKC, it should adhere to the obligations of the former.
A situation where a state is part of both conventions is unlikely as the Basel Convention has 191 signatories and all the current signatories to the HKC are parties to the Basel Convention. If this is the case, though, members states must inform the Basel Secretariat that they will apply the HKC’s requirements regarding transboundary movements of ships intended to be recycled at a ship recycling facility that has been authorised in accordance with the HKC and is placed under the jurisdiction of a party to the HKC.
BIMCO argues that although this is a step in the right direction, the provisional guidance will not resolve the fact that there remain regulations that can cause contradicting requirements being placed on one ship.
