EMEA News
First IMO 2020 Carriage Ban Violation Reported in UAE Waters
The United Arab Emirates has banned a ship from its waters for a year, in what appears to be the first legal action against a vessel for a breach of the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) ban on the carriage of non-compliant fuels that came into effect at the start of the month.
The MSC Joanna, operated by MSC Mediterranean Shipping and registered in Panama, was found to be carrying more than 700 mt of high sulfur fuel oil when boarded at Jebel Ali, the UAE's Federal Transport Authority (FTA) said in a circular Monday.
The authority did not specify when the incident took place.
A spokesman for MSC was not immediately available for comment.
The vessel had been given repeated warnings to debunker the non-compliant fuel before arrving in UAE waters, the FTA said.
The ship has now been banned from operating in UAE waters for a year, and its captain will be prosecuted, the FTA said.
