NITC Tankers to Undergo EU Emissions Monitoring

Vessels owned by the National Iranian Tanker Company will join an environmental program aimed at monitoring the emissions of tankers berthing at European ports and terminals, the state tanker shipping firm said in a statement.

The program, known as the EU MRV Monitoring Plan, requires shipowners and operators to annually monitor, report and verify carbon dioxide emissions for vessels larger than 5,000 gross tonnage visiting European terminals, ILNA reported. NITC was required to propose a monitoring plan for each of its ships, with the plan to be verified by independent and accredited companies.

The monitoring reports will collect data such as the type of fuel, travel distance and the amount of CO2 emissions for each cargo.           

“Collecting monitoring data will begin from the beginning of next year and ships will be required to meet new environmental standards [within the framework of the EU MRV Monitoring Plan] as of January 2019,” said Akbar Jabal-Ameli, NITC’s technical and operations director.

He added that 41 tankers operated by NITC are part of the scheme aimed at cutting down pollution by vessels that mostly use fuels with high sulfur content.

After the easing of international economic restrictions in January 2016, Iranian vessels regained access to terminals in Europe, a market accounting for nearly 40% of Iran’s crude oil shipments.

Under restrictions imposed over the nuclear dispute, NITC-owned tankers were not allowed to sail to Europe. According to reports, Iran had to change the flag and the names of its tankers to avoid EU restrictions.

NITC has stepped up efforts to improve its environmental standards with international requirements.

In September, the company said it was accredited with a pair of certificates from DNV GL, an international quality assurance and risk management company.

The oil shipping company has been awarded two certificates by Oslo-based DNV GL: “ISO 9001:2015” for quality management system and “ISO 14001:2015” for meeting the requirements of an environmental management standard.

DNV GL is a provider of classification, technical assurance and advisory services to maritime, oil, gas, power and renewables industries based in Oslo.

NITC operates one of the world’s largest tanker fleet ahead of regional rival Saudi Arabia as well as Qatar, Oman and the UAE. It has 42 very large crude carriers, nine Suezmaxes, five Aframaxes and several other ships, with the fleet’s average age at around 8.5 years.