The NGO Shipbreaking Platform has issued its latest South Asia Quarterly Update to provide an overview about the shipbreaking industry in Bangladesh, India and Pakistan during July- September 2016. It informs about the vessels broken on the beaches of South Asia, accidents, recent ontheground legislative and political developments with the aim to relay the news about the negative impacts of substandard shipbreaking practices, as well as positive steps for environmental justice and the protection of workers’ rights.
This edition includes details about the catastrophic explosion that occurred in Pakistan in November and other tragic accidents in both the Bangladeshi and Indian ship breaking yards, NGO’s follow up of the North Sea Producer case as well as the ongoing investigations on the Pakistani blast.
Overview
44 end of life ships were sold for breaking in the third quarter of 2016, according to the data collected and analysed by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform. Eighty five per cent of end of life ships ended up on South Asian beaches, making this quarter one of the worst in the last years in terms of the small percentage of ships recycled in non beaching yards.
Out of 122 vessels that reached the shores of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh this quarter, bulk carriers counted the highest number, adding 41 ships to the total of 293 bulk carriers broken so far this year. India was the preferred final destination between July and September 2016.
EUbased shipping companies were the last beneficial owners of 52 ships sold to South Asia in the third quarter of 2016. For the first time, German owners topped the list with 25 ships sold to South Asian breakers, followed by Greek owners that sold 17. Also Chinese and South Korean owners rank high on the list all selling several vessels to Bangladesh where conditions are known to be extremely dire.
Last but not least, watch the video featuring NGO’s South Asian members who were interviewed in June by the European Economic and Social Committee.
Find out more by reading NGO’s Shipbreaking Platfrom Quarterly Update #11
Source: NGO Shipbreaking Platform
