Authorities mull barring ships older than 40 years from Russian ports - paper
MOSCOW. Aug 15 (Interfax) - Measures to reduce the number of "decrepit" ships still sailing that were proposed by the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) in the spring have been fleshed out and are being considered by the Russian government, national daily Kommersant reported on Friday, citing materials for an August 6 meeting held by First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev.
"It is proposed to bar access to Russian seaports for vessels older than 40 years as of January 1, 2030," the paper said.
For Russian vessels upward of 30 years old, there are plans to require annual certification for compliance with maritime and navigation safety requirements, and for foreign vessels there are plans to require similar certification issued by an authorized Russian organization.
There are also proposals to charge higher port fees, including environmental ones, for any vessels older than 30 years, and introduce minimum insurance coverage and other financial security of shipowners' civil liability for environmental damage, damage to port infrastructure and so on, the paper said.
It is proposed that the Transport Ministry be authorized to compile a registry of Russian and foreign insurance companies that have the right to insure shipowners, "including ones having confirmed the ability to make payments to Russian legal entities and individuals in the financial system of the RF." Ships that do not have coverage from such insurers will not be let into Russian ports.
It is also proposed to make terminal operators and cargo owners liable for compliance with maritime and navigation safety and environmental protection requirements by vessels received at terminals, the paper said.
Concurrently, there are plans to allocate 197 billion rubles for USC in the 2026-2028 budget to finance subsidized leasing of vessels, and create a mechanism for state support to encourage scrapping of old ships and subsidized financing (no more than 3% interest in rubles) to acquire civilian vessels, the paper said. USC could become an agent for Russian shipowners in placing orders at foreign shipyards for projects financed by the Russian government.
After the August meeting on measures to stimulate updates to Russia's fleet, government agencies were ordered to work with cargo shippers to compile a registry of "decrepit" ships and on its basis present proposals to expand water transport leasing programs.
USC, which is now under the trust management of state bank VTB , proposed to the authorities in March to restrict the use of old, worn-out vessels to boost orders for Russia's shipbuilding industry.
The head of VTB and chairman of USC, Andrei Kostin said in April that, in addition to modernization of existing and construction of new capacity, the future development of the shipbuilding industry requires additional state support in the form of long-term leasing to stimulate demand for the construction of vessels at Russian shipyards. He said shipbuilders discussed the need for state support for demand through leasing with the government. "We now need, it's not that large an amount, I think about 200 billion rubles per year specifically for leasing to ensure the use of the merchant fleet and fishing vessels," Kostin said.
Industry and Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov said in July that he supports the idea of restricting the service life of worn-out vessels along the lines of similar requirements set for extending the service life of aircraft and railway rolling stock, taking into account maritime safety.
