REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Mid-term evaluation of Regulation (EU) No 911/2014 on multiannual funding for the action of the European Maritime Safety Agency in the field of response to marine pollution caused by ships and oil and gas installations
Date: 2018-07-31
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, European Maritime Safety Agency, hydrocarbon, marine pollution, offshore oil structure, oil pollution, operation of the Institutions, pollution from ships, prevention of pollution

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 31.7.2018 COM(2018) 564 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Mid-term evaluation of Regulation (EU) No 911/2014 on multiannual funding for the action of the European Maritime Safety Agency in the field of response to marine pollution caused by ships and oil and gas installations  {SWD(2018) 394 final}  
 
 
INTRODUCTION  

In accordance with Regulation (EU) No 911/20141, article 7, the Commission has to report to 
the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  on  the  implementation  of  the  Regulation  and  to 
carry out a mid-term evaluation of the European Maritime Safety Agency's (EMSA) measures 
to respond to marine pollution caused by ships and oil and gas installations. 

The report and its annex present the results of the use of the Union contribution as well as an 
evaluation of the Agency’s ability to fulfil its responsibilities in an effective and cost-efficient 
manner.  

These  results will be useful for the Commission  and the Administrative Board  of EMSA to 
discuss  any  relevant  reorientation  regarding  the  allocation  of  resources  and  the  activities 
within the annual and multiannual programming exercise of the Agency. 

BACKGROUND  

The marine environment, coasts and citizens have been affected by major oil spills in the past. 
Tankers such as the Torrey Canyon (1967), Amoco Cadiz (1978), Erika (1999) and Prestige 
(2002) resulted in environmental disasters. Deepwater Horizon (2010) in the Gulf of Mexico 
highlighted  the  major  risks  that  are  also  associated  with  oil  and  gas  installations  and 
exploratory drilling. The raised awareness of the socio-economic and environmental impacts 
of  oil  spills2  has  promoted  a  significant  evolution  over  time  of  preparedness  and  response 
structures in Member States and industry. 

In the aftermath of the Prestige disaster, which highlighted the existing shortage of at sea oil 
recovery  capacity  in  Europe  at  the  time,  there  was  a  decision  to  take  action  at  EU  level  by 
setting  up  a  top-up  capacity  to  help  coastal  States  around  Europe  to  respond  quickly, 
effectively  and  efficiently  to  a  major  oil  spill.  The  European  Maritime  Safety  Agency  was 
mandated in 2004 to provide this top-up capacity to Member States. It should not substitute 
national  capacities  (either  at  national  level  or  at  regional  level)  but  provide  the  necessary 
additional capacities in case of a major incident. 

Following  the  Deepwater  Horizon  disaster  involving  an  offshore  oil  drilling  rig,  the  same 
logic  was  applied  that  EMSA  could  intervene  in  case  of  major  incident  not  replacing  the 
prime responsibility of the oil and gas industry to have its own response means. 

In recent years, there has not been any such major disaster in EU waters mainly as a result of 
the  progress  made  in  terms  of  prevention  and  safety  levels  being  a  joint  effort  of  private 
stakeholders, national maritime administrations, international regulation and EU policy. The 
development  and  effective  implementation  of  the  EU  maritime  safety  acquis,  allowing 
uniform enforcement of strict standards was a game changer regarding potential oil spills and 
marine pollution in EU waters.  

1 Regulation (EU) No 911/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 on multiannual 
funding  for  the  action  of  the  European  Maritime  Safety  Agency  in  the  field  of  response  to  marine  pollution 
caused by ships and oil and gas installations (OJ L 257, 28.8.2014) 
2 As an example, the study published by Fundación Barrie de la Maza on the impact of the Prestige spill in 2003 
estimated the coastal clean-up operation as costing around €2.5 billion, with around €2.2 billion spent during the 
first  two  years.  The  total  economic  damage  over  ten  years  was  estimated  by  various  authors  (Professional 
Economist Associations of Galicia) at around €5 billion.  

1 

 
 
                                                            
However, several incidents illustrated the relevance of maintaining a diverse and effective oil 
spill  response  capability,  such  as  the  sinking  of  the  Agia  Zoni  II  tanker  in  Greek  waters  in 
September 2017. There is also evidence regarding continued risks associated to oil transport 
and  offshore  oil  and  gas  activities,  with  the  continued  increase  in  the  volume  of  seaborne 
transport and the expansion of exploratory drilling and extraction. 

EMSA POLLUTION RESPONSE ACTIVITIES 

According to its founding Regulation3, EMSA is tasked to: 

Support on request with additional means in a cost efficient way the pollution response 

 
mechanisms of Member States; 
 
the field of marine pollution from ships and oil and gas installations. 

Provide Member States and the Commission with technical and scientific assistance in 

Oil pollution response services 

The network of EMSA stand-by oil spill response vessels has been built up and maintained 
through  annual  procurement  procedures  starting  in  2005.  This  service  is  based  on  the  long 
term  chartering  of  commercial  vessels,  which  are  adapted  to  become  occasional  oil  spill 
response vessels. When they are not required to respond to a spill, they undertake their normal 
commercial  activities  provided  that  they  remain  within  a  24  hours  radius  allowing  them  to 
intervene  quickly  in  case  of  an  emergency.  The  service  supplements  the  resources  and 
arrangements that have already been set up at national and regional levels. 

Following  the  extension  of  its  mandate  in  2013  to  respond  to  pollution  from  oil  and  gas 
installations, the Agency upgraded the response capacity of its fleet of vessels. This was done 
mainly by adding some dispersant spraying capacities on some arrangements in areas where 
this response technique is accepted by the coastal States or by improving the capacity of the 
vessels to deal with vaporous and explosive atmospheres4. EMSA made available dispersant 
stockpiles and seaborne dispersant application systems, which are intended primarily for use 
in the event of major pollution events originating from oil and gas installations, but may also 
be deployed in the case of ship-sourced pollution. 

Another  evolution  of  the  Agency’s  response  capacity  has  been  the  implementation  of  the 
Equipment  Assistance  Service  programme.  This  programme  aimed  to  make  EMSA’s 
pollution  response  toolbox  more  diverse  through  the  provision  of  specialised  stand-alone 
equipment. As of 2016, two stockpiles of such equipment have been established in the North 
Sea and the Baltic Sea.  

At  the  end  of  2016,  EMSA’s  oil  pollution  response  capability  comprised  the  following 
arrangements: 

 

 
 

17 fully equipped stand-by oil spill response vessels for mechanical recovery of oil, 4 
of which equipped in addition with dispersant spraying capability; 
4 dispersant stockpiles; 
2 Equipment Assistance Service stockpiles. 

3 Regulation (EU) No 100/2013, amending the Agency’s Founding Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002 establishing a 
European Maritime Safety Agency (OJ L 39, 9.2.2013) 
4 Fresh and continued releases of oil from offshore installations create vaporous and explosive atmospheres. In 
order to be able to intervene near the source of the spill, ships and equipment need to be adapted to deal with a 
flashpoint below 60° and to avoid creating a hazard. 

2 

 
 
                                                            
The distribution of EMSA’s pollution response arrangements at the end of 2016 is shown in 
Figure1. 

Figure 1: Distribution of EMSA’s pollution response arrangements in European waters at the end of 2016 

source: EMSA 

CleanSeaNet 

Further to oil spills resulting from accidents, illegal, either incidental or deliberate, discharges 
of oil (and other substances) in the marine environment is a major source of marine pollution 
which  is  less  visible  but  not  less  damageable.  With  the  adoption  of  Directive  (EC)  No 
35/2005 on ship-sourced pollution5, the task of detecting spills including illegal discharges at 
sea was incorporated into EMSA's activities as part of the response capability of the Agency. 
As  a  result,  the  satellite  based  oil  spill  detection  and  monitoring  service  CleanSeaNet  was 
established in 2007.  

When a possible oil  spill is detected in  national waters, an alert message  is delivered to the 
relevant country. In cases of high alert level spills, EMSA Maritime Support Service may call 
the  coastal  State  to  ensure  that  the  alert  has  been  received  and  to  offer  additional  support. 
Analysed  images  are  available  to  national  contact  points  in  near  real  time,  in  less  than  30 
minutes  after  the  satellite  acquires  the  image.  The  service  includes  the  identification  of 
potential  polluters  by  combining  the  image  taken  by  the  satellite  with  vessel  traffic 

5 Directive 2009/123/EC of 21 October 2009 amending Directive 2005/35/EC on ship-source pollution and on 
the introduction of penalties for infringements (OJ L280, 27/10/09) 

3 

CobhFerrolSinesAlgecirasGenoaMarsaxlokkVallettaLimassolTriesteSunderlandPiraeusOstendVigoConstantaHomebaseResponsevesselResponse vessel with dispersantsDispersant stockpileEAS stockpileEU member countriesEU candidate countriesEEA/EFTA coastal countriesGothenburgGdanskLas PalmasAberdeen 
 
 
                                                            
information.  After  receiving the enriched information  the national authority then decides on 
the  appropriate  operational  response,  for  example,  sending  an  asset  such  as  an  aircraft  to 
check the area and verify the spill, or requesting an inspection of the vessel in the next port of 
call. 

Activities with regard to hazardous and noxious substances 

Regarding  chemical  pollution  from  ships,  the  need  to  address  the  risks  associated  with  this 
type  of  pollution  led  to  consultations  with  the  Member  States  and  the  Commission  and  the 
decision that EMSA’s intervention should focus on the rapid provision of expert information 
and  advice  on  chemical  substances  during  an  emergency  to  support  any  requesting  party’s 
decision  making  process.  The  main  challenge  faced  by  responders  when  facing  a  chemical 
incident is indeed access to cargo data and emergency response specialized advice, including 
short risk assessment as chemicals beside being transported in bulk are transported in parcels 
and substances may interact when in contact.  

PURPOSE OF REGULATION (EU) NO 911/2014 

To support this set of marine pollution response actions, the Commission recognised that the 
Agency  should  be  able  to  enter  into  long  term  financial  commitments  in  order  to  offer 
adequate  and  sustainable  operational  support  to  the  Commission  and  the  Member  States, 
using  services  provided  by  industry.  Therefore,  in  2005,  the  Commission  proposed6  the 
creation  of  a  multi-annual  financial  framework  for  the  pollution  response  activities  of  the 
Agency.  The  first  financial  envelope  for  the  period  2007-2013  was  €154  million.  The 
envelope for the current period  2014-2020 is €160.5 million, slightly more in order to cater 
for the extension of the mandate covering oil and gas installations.  

The multiannual perspective set out in Regulation (EU) No 911/2014 aimed at providing legal 
certainty and a stable framework to allow the Agency to conclude multiannual contracts with 
the  industry  both  in  relation  to  stand-by  oil-spill  response  vessels  and  for  organising 
CleanSeaNet. 

RESULTS OF THE MID-TERM EVALUATION 

The analysis carried out by the Commission and supported by an external study7 has shown 
that, in line with its mandate to top-up Member States’ capacities, and also taking into account 
the industry resources, EMSA has focussed on activities that were complementing the existing 
resources  whilst  being  cost-efficient.  In  the  specific  case  of  risks  associated  to  oil  and  gas 
installations, with potentially larger quantity and prolonged release of spilled oil8, the Agency 
was able to adapt its response capacity to the needs of such spills.  

It should still be pointed out that the analysis has been limited by the difficulty to assess the 
effectiveness, efficiency, relevance and added-value of a capacity which is essentially a cover 
in case of major oil spill and for that reason is not activated as long as there is no such major 
incident.  

6  COM(2005)  210  final/2:  Proposal  for  a  Regulation  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  on  a 
multiannual funding for the action of the European Maritime Safety Agency in the field of response to pollution 
caused by ships and amending Regulation (EC) No 1406/2002. 
7 Study on the cost-effectiveness and efficiency of EMSA’s oil pollution response services, Final report intended 
for the European Maritime Safety Agency, Contract EMSA/NEG/08/2016, April 2017. 
8 As a comparison, Deepwater Horizon generated a spill of 800,000 tons of oil compared to 20,000 tons for the 
Erika and 64,000 tons for the Prestige accidents. 

4 

 
 
                                                            
With  regard  to  evaluating  the  socio-economic  and  ecological  impact  of  EMSA’s  action  at 
European level, the assessment of the amount of socio-economic and ecological damage that 
can be avoided thanks to EMSA’s response services should be considered with utmost caution 
as  past  cases  show  that there  is  a  considerable  discrepancy  between  estimated  damages  and 
damages actually assessed and compensated9. 

Oil pollution response services 

Given  the  significant  financing  envelope  allocated  to  the  Network  of  Standby  Oil  Spill 
Response  Vessels,  which  represent  the  larger  part  of  EMSA  pollution  response  budget,  a 
particular effort was made to analyse the efficiency of that capability. The attempts made to 
assess the cost-effectiveness of the existing model of chartered vessels suggest that EMSA’s 
oil  pollution  response  activities  would  be  cost  effective  when  compared  to  the  economic 
consequences  that  would  result  from  the  absence  of  capacity  on  its  part  to  adequately  deal 
with an oil spill and prevent it from reaching the shoreline10. Furthermore it can be concluded 
that EMSA fulfils the requirements of its mandate within (and up to) the budget allocated to it 
for this purpose in a cost-efficient manner. This conclusion is based on the fact that the level 
of  service  currently  provided  by  EMSA  could  not  be  replicated  at  lower  cost  using  any 
feasible alternative model as described in the external study. 

This  conclusion  is  supported  by  the  various  evaluations  of  EMSA  activities  in  this  field  as 
well as by stakeholder feedback. The added (operational) value of such a framework has been 
confirmed. The technical specifications of the at-sea oil recovery service provided through the 
Network of Standby Oil Spill Response Vessels have been recognised as being fit for purpose. 

The  following  tables  show  how  EMSA  capability  top  up  the  capacity  of  the  national 
capacities.  According  to  its  mandate,  EMSA  has  focused  on  assets  designed  for  spills  of  a 
significant  amount,  an  investment  that  Member  States  could  not  have  achieved  at  national 
level. 

Table 1: Member States’ and EMSA’s oil pollution response vessels 

Storage Capacity 

< 200 m3 

Number of vessels 
Member  States  and 
EFTA (MS) 
172 

200 m3 - 700 m3 

700 m3 - 1500 m3 

> 1500 m3 

56 

23 

19 

Storage capacity (m3) 

EMSA  MS 

EMSA 

0 

0 

1 

17 

8,861 

17,311 

24,935 

70,553 

0 

0 

997 

62,475 

In accordance with its mandate, EMSA has contracted oil recovery vessels with large storage 
capacity  thus  ensuring  less  frequent  need  for  port  calls  to  offload  recovered  oil  thereby 
optimising the at-sea recovery periods. In other words, the Agency’s 17 vessels nearly equal 
the storage capacity of all Member States vessels of comparable capacity. 

9  In  the  Erika  incident  for  instance,  the  overall  damage  resulting  from  the  incident  was  estimated  in  various 
studies to € 1,370 million whereas, based on the compensation paid, the overall recognised damages are in the 
range of € 322.5 million. 
10 In comparison to the average cost per tonne of oil recovered on-shore of € 5,744 (based on the data available 
on historical costs), the total costs per tonne when using of EMSA at-sea-recovery vessels is € 287- 681 / tonne, 
so between 20 to 8 times lower. 

5 

 
 
 
                                                            
Table 2: Member States’ and EMSA’s oil pollution response equipment 

Containment and Recovery Systems 

Weir Booms 

Fire Booms 

Sweeping arms 

Dispersant (tonnes) 

Quantity 

Member States  EMSA 

16 

2 

1 

12 

~ 3,500 

12 

2 

8 

19 

800 

Importantly,  the  evaluation  support  study  has  also  shown  that  the  existence  of  EMSA’s  oil 
pollution  response  services  topping  up  national  and  private  resources  does  not  seem  to  be 
having an adverse impact on the level of preparedness of the EU Member States and EFTA 
countries.  This  has  remained  stable  over  the  period  analysed,  and  appears  set  to  follow  the 
same trend looking ahead towards 2020. 

CleanSeaNet 

As for the satellite based oil spill detection service CleanSeaNet, the evaluation concludes that 
it  is  relevant  and  provides  a  useful  tool  for  Member  States.  It  is  best  situated  at  EU  level, 
covering all European marine waters and beyond, and providing much added-value. It ensures 
a  uniform  assessment  and  overview  of  discharge  trends  and  the  deterrent  effect  of  the  spill 
monitoring  programme.  It  is  relevant  towards  the  needs  and  current  trends  given  the 
continued level of deliberate discharge or incidental spill in EU waters. Furthermore, coupled 
with  the  implementation  of  the  earth  observation  Copernicus  programme,  it  is  in  coherence 
with a broad portfolio of other EU policies in relation to maritime surveillance. 

The  use  of  European  Space  Agency  managed  satellites  has  brought  considerable  cost 
reductions to the service as licenses are available free of charge. Over the period 2014-2016, 
the costs of the service per 1,000 km 2 monitored decreased approximately by 22%. From the 
second  half  of  2016,  EMSA  has  been  ordering  proportionally  more  Sentinel-1  Earth 
Observation  products,  and  this  is  due  to  increase  further  in  the  coming  years.  By  using 
Sentinel 1-A and 1-B, the CleanSeaNet service can provide improved satellite coverage, while 
simultaneously reducing the costs of the service.  

Regarding the impact of the CleanSeaNet service in terms of deterrent effect, the overall trend 
over most of the past decade, as illustrated in figure 2, has been a year-on-year reduction in 
the number  of  possible spills detected per million km2  monitored. The marked  decrease per 
year in the period 2008-2010 coincided with the economic downturn as well as an increase in 
awareness  of  maritime  pollution  related issues and  an improvement  in  the  provision  of  port 
reception  facilities  across  the  continent  while  the  decrease  in  the  period  2010-2015  is  more 
gradual.  

In 2016, the trend reversed, with an increase in the number of possible spills detected. There 
are a number of possible reasons why the trend may have reversed in 2016: the introduction 
of the Sentinel-1 satellites, which resulted in improved detection capabilities, the optimisation 
of CleanSeaNet planning, and, to a lesser extent, an increase in shipping volume which could 
have caused the increase in detections.  

6 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 2: CleanSeaNet 2008 – 2016: trends in possible pollution detected 

Source: EMSA 

Activities with regard to hazardous and noxious substances 

For the activities related to hazardous and noxious substances, which represent a minor part of 
the  use  of  the  Union  contribution,  the  evaluation  concludes  that  although  less  known  to  the 
public, these activities, mostly focused on the providing of expert information to deal with a 
chemical emergency, are relevant and considered valuable by the Member States. On average, 
the latter activate the EMSA expert service five times a year. 

CONCLUSIONS 

Overall,  the  mid-term  evaluation  concludes  that  EMSA  has  established  and  maintains  a 
comprehensive  pollution  detection,  preparedness  and  response  program  in  line  with  its 
mandate  to  top-up  EU/EFTA  coastal  Member  States  capacities  to  respond  to  large-scale 
incidents. EMSA’s pollution response activities have added value, and are still relevant today 
and  coherent  with  preventive  approaches  at  EU  level  and  other  EU  policies,  such  as  civil 
protection policy. For the latter, one area for improvement has been identified with a view to 
offer  enhanced  support  to  Member  States  in  case  of  emergency,  that  is  the  possibility  to 
facilitate the financing pollution response equipment transportation costs through the EU Civil 
Protection Mechanism11. 

11 Decision No 1313/2013/EU 

7 

 
 
 
 
                                                            
EMSA’s pollution response activities  certainly contribute to a better protection of the marine 
environment,  coasts  and  citizens  than  before  these  measures  were  established.  Within  the 
given financial envelope laid out in Regulation (EU) 911/2014, the Agency was able to adapt 
its strategy by exploiting synergies and prioritising activities in order to cater for the extension 
of the mandate to cover potential spills from oil and gas installations. 

Notwithstanding these positive results, EMSA will launch a further risk assessment exercise 
in  2018-2019,  as  recommended  by  its  Administrative  Board.  The  Agency  will  work  with 
regional and national authorities to carry out a sort of stress test of existing capacities, in order 
to identify any longer term evolution needs regarding response options.For the future, the last 
revision  of  EMSA’s  mandate12  to  foster  the  cooperation  on  Coast  Guard  functions  with  the 
European  Border  and  Coast  Guard  Agency  (Frontex)  and  the  European  Fisheries  Control 
Agency  may  have  an  impact  of  the  implementation  of  EMSA's  activities  for  pollution 
response.  The  cooperation  calls  in  particular  for  exploring  the  possible  sharing  of  assets. 
EMSA  has  experienced  the  use  of  several  types  of  ships  for  delivering  its  mandate.  In  the 
context  of  multi-missions  operations,  EMSA  could  contribute  by  providing  some  multi-
purposes  vessels  capable  of  carrying  out  coast  guard,  fisheries  control  and  oil  pollution 
response functions for shared use among EMSA and competent authorities.  

Finally, regarding the Regulation itself ((EU) 911/2014) which indicated the available multi-
annual  financial  envelope  over  the  period  2014-2020  and  will  expire  after  that  date,  it  has 
proven to be a useful tool for enabling the Agency to implement its activities in the field of 
pollution  preparedness  and  response.  The  complex  nature  of  some  of  these  activities, 
combined with the need to have multi-annual contracts with industry, created the initial need 
for  legal  certainty  and  a  longer-term  financial  outlook.  The  Regulation  has  allowed  the 
Agency  to  benefit  from  one-off  investments  in  pre-fittings  vessels  for  oil  recovery  services 
and to create economies of scale for satellite-based services.  

However, with the maturity of the activities and notably the experience gained now with the 
procurement  process  for  the  multi-annual  contracts,  the  need  for  such  a  separate  financial 
Regulation  (and  a  separate  budget  line)  under  the  next  Multiannual  Financial  Framework 
(2020-2027)  does  not  appear  as  essential  to  ensure  the  sustainability  of  the  operational 
services. 

The budget  to  continue  financing these activities, taking  into account  the current  and future 
budgetary  constraints,  will  remain  an  integral  part  of  the  annual  Union  subsidy.  The  legal 
basis for the action is provided by the overall mandate of EMSA and the exact scope of the 
activities is defined through the related Action Plans and the Agency's work programme. This 
ensures a continuity of EMSA measures to respond to marine pollution caused by ships and 
oil and gas installations.  

12 Regulation (EU) 2016/1625, OJ L 251/77 

8