WRITTEN QUESTION E-0234/03

by Gerardo Galeote Quecedo (PPE-DE)and Juan Ojeda Sanz (PPE-DE) to the Council

(4 February 2003)

Subject: Double-hull vessels for the transport of hydrocarbons

The conclusions of the Council of Transport Ministers of 6 December 2002 stated that heavy grades of hydrocarbons (heavy fuel, tar, bitumen and heavy crude oils) should only be transported in double-hull tankers, and that the Member States would, through administrative agreements, undertake not to accept single-hull tankers carrying the heaviest grades of hydrocarbons into their ports, terminals or anchorage areas.

Some Member States are already adopting national measures to comply with this agreement. What plans does the Greek Presidency have for spurring Member States to honour their commitment?

A specific case is to be found in Algeciras Bay, where Gibraltar is allowing the single-hull tanker Vemamagna, with a capacity of 100 000 tonnes of fuel, to act as a floating fuel depot for other vessels just 600 metres from the Spanish shore.

Will the Greek Presidency contact the British authorities to call for strict implementation of Community rules on the environment with regard to bunkering activities in Gibraltar and encourage them to comply with the agreement prohibiting single-hull vessels?

Reply

(13 May 2003)

In Response to the accident of the oil tanker Prestige, the Council (Transport, Telecommunications, Energy) adopted on 6 December 2002 Council conclusions on ships' safety and pollution prevention. Among other measures, the Council agreed that Member States, through administrative agreements, should undertake not to accept single-hulled tankers carrying the heaviest grades of oil into their ports, terminals or anchorage areas.

The accomplishment of this agreement, as it stands in the Council conclusions, is to be achieved through national measures and therefore lies within the competence of each Member State.

The European Council (Copenhagen, 12/13 December 2002) further underlined that the conclusions of the Transport Council should be implemented in all their aspects without delay. The European Council will address these questions again in March 2003, based on a report from the Commission.

The Council is currently examining a Commission proposal concerning the accelerated phasing-out of single-hull tankers and a prohibition of the transport to or from ports of the Member States of heavy grades of oil in single-hull tankers. The proposal was presented by the Commission on 27 December 2002 in response to the Council conclusions and goes further than said conclusions, in proposing a Community framework for that prohibition.

As regards the presence of the Vemamagna in the Bay of Algeciras, the Council is not competent to answer the issues raised.