Asia/Pacific News
India Mulls End to Bunker Duty and Penalties for Ship-breakers
India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) was Tuesday said to be considering removing bunker duty and penalties incurred by ship-breakers on bunker fuel left inside ships delivered for dismantling, Indian media reports.
Currently, ship-breakers are required to pay import duty as well as a penalty when ships are received with bunkers remaining in their fuel tanks.
It is understood that the government views this as the unauthorised importation of oil products since, technically, only Indian Oil Corp. is allowed to import such products into India.
Although Indian breaker yards are said to request that ships arrive with empty tanks, it is common for them to arrive with quantities of bunkers remaining on board.
"A ship already in its old age has to carry more than required fuel because it is difficult to predict what the nature of sea will be," said on senior Shipping Ministry official.
The DGFT's consideration of the issue coincides with a fall in the number of ships being broken in India and is seen as an effort to assist the industry which is understood to be a multibillion dollar industry, employing thousands in India.
In December, the Indian Coastal Conference Shipping Association called on the Indian government to extend a bunker duty exemption for export-import operators.
