CELEX: 51994PC0239
Language: en
Date: 1994-06-02
Title: Amended proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) on the implementation of IMO Resolution A.747(18), on the application of tonnage measurement of ballast spaces in segregated ballast oil tankers

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                 COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
                                                            C0MC94) 239 f Inal-SYN 481
                                                            Brussels, 02.06.1994
                                        Amended proposal for a
                                    COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)
                        on the implementation of BMO Resolution A. 747(18),
                     on the application of tonnage measurement of ballast spaces
                                    in segregated ballast oil tankers
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                      (presented by the Commission pursuant to Article 189 A (2)
                                           of the EC-Treaty)
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 ---pagebreak---                                            *L
                                 EXPLANATORY HEHOBAMDim
At its Plenary Session of 3 May 1994 the European Parliament has approved, subject to
three amendments, the Commission's proposal for the Regulation on the implementation of
IMO Resolution A.747(18), on the application of tonnage measurement of ballast spaces in
segregated ballast tankers (SBT) '.
The Commission has accepted all the amendments adopted by the European Parliament for
the reasons outlined below.
The amendment to the 8th recital improves the text since it provides a better explanation
of the present practice of many port and harbour authorities and pilot authorities over-
charging modern environmentally friendly oil tankers as compared to older vessels which
constitute a bigger threat to the environment.
The amendment to the 9th recital improves the text of the proposal by describing more
accurately the possible consequence on their competitiveness for those ports which imple-
ment the regulation in a concerted way.
The amendment to article 4 consists of 2 changes.
i)       The amendment to article 4 paragraph 1 restricts the range of the proposal to port
         and pilotage organizations only, not including other legal persons who charge levies
         to oil tankers. Those excluded are of little economic significance in terms of added
         fees (well below 1%) but are a complex network of operators differing from port to
         port. Harmonisation of their tariff system would be out of proportion with the
         objective of the Regulation.
ii)      With the other amendment to article 4 a new paragraph 2 is introduced. The
        purpose of this is to take into account those ports which have already installed and
        implemented a percentage rebate system in their tariff system for modern oil
        tankers. Present financial reduction systems are embodied in the text now as an
         alternative to the regime of the IMO resolution. By this alternative (with the figure
         of 20% for the rebate), the overall economic effect to the market is largely the
         same as that reached by following the IMO-resolution's regime individually for
        every oil tanker. The feature of the alternative system is that it is easier to incor-
        porate in the administration of a number of port authorities.
Following these amendments, the Commission has consequentially amended the twelfth
recital and it has introduced a new recital.
       OJ. NoC5, 07.01.1994, p.4.
 ---pagebreak---                                            3
                                   Amended proposal for a
                            COUNCIL REGULATION (EC)
             on the implementation of IMO Resolution A. 747 (18),
          on the application of tonnage measurement of ballast spaces
                            in segregated ballast oil tankers
                    -Original text                            Amended text-
                                         Recital  8
 Whereas the charging of dues on the             Whereas in particular the charging of
 volume of the segregated ballast                dues on the tonnage of oil tankers'
 tanks   of    oil    tankers       is    an     segregated ballast tanks not used for
 operational disadvantage for those              the carriage      of   cargo     is an
 who have taken an important step                unjustifiable financial surcharge on
 towards a cleaner environment;                  those who have taken an important
                                                 step towards a cleaner environment;
                                        Recital 9
Whereas,   for    economic        reasons,     Whereas,    for. economic       reasons,
individual harbour authorities are             individual harbour authorities must
reluctant to be put in a competitive           not    be  put    a_t a      competitive
disadvantage if they were the only             disadvantage if they are prepared to
ones enacting the IMO Resolution;              enact the IMO Resolution;
 ---pagebreak---                -Original text-                          -Amended text-
                                    Recital  12
Whereas for the purpose of the              Whereas for the purpose of the
protection    of      the       marine      protection      of      the     marine
environment from pollution from             environment from pollution from
oil tankers of a conventional               oil tankers of a conventional
design, the marine environment,             design, the marine environment,
the Community and its Member                the Community and its Member
States and the industry are best            States and the industry are best
served   through       an      unified      served    through        an    unified
implementation in the Community             implementation in the Community
of internationally agreed rules             of internationally agreed rules
addressing   all persons who                addressing all persons who
charge levies on oil tankers,               charge levies on oil tankers,
inter alia, ports and harbour               ports and harbour and pilotage
and pilotage organisations in               organisations in the Community;
the Communi ty;
                               Recital 15 bis (new)
                                            Whereas     systems        have   been
                                            already established in some
                                            Member States in order to reduce
                                            the levies for environmentally
                                            friendly vessels on another
                                            basis than the IMO Resolution
                                            A. 747 (18) ; whereas in the spirit
                                            of     that      Resolution,        an
                                            alternative scheme for tonnage
                                            based fees, should be foreseen
                                            consisting     in a percentage
                                            differential from the normal
                                            tariff, so that the average
                                            difference will be at least the
                                            same as that which is envisaged
                                            by the Resolution;
 ---pagebreak---                                                   f-
                     -Original text-                          -Amended text-
                                       Article 4
When determining tariffs for oil              1. In determining the tariffs for oil
tankers, public or private persons            tankers on the basis, partially or
shall exclude the tonnage of the              wholly, of the overall capaçity of a
segregated ballast tanks of an oil            vessel,   the port       and   pilotage
tanker which complies with the                authorities shall exclude the tonnage
requirements   of   Article        3, as      of the segregated ballast tanks of an
indicated under the heading 'Remark'          oil tanker which complies with the
of    the    International        Tonnage     requirements of Article 3(2), as
Certificate (1969).                           indicated under the heading 'Remark'
                                              of    the    International      Tonnage
                                              Certificate (1969) of the vessel.
                                              2. As an alternative to paragraph 1,
                                              the port and pilotage authorities may
                                              choose to adopt a system whereby they
                                              accord segregated ballast oil tankers
                                              a percentage rebate in theirfees,
                                              provided that the difference between
                                              the fees for segregated, ballast oil
                                              tankers and those for non-segregated
                                              ballast oil tankers is not less than
                                              20%.
 ---pagebreak---                                             VL;
                                                                     BSN 0254-1475
                                                              COM(94) 239 final
                                                      DOCUMENTS
EN                                                                        14 07
                                 Catalogue number : CB-CO-94-252-EN-C
                                                             ISBN 92-77-69739-3
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