EMEA News
St. Petersburg to Utilise European System to Verify Bunker Sulfur Content
Big Port St. Petersburg's Harbourmaster, Alexander Volkov, says the port authorities intend to become part of Europe's THESIS-S system in order to verify the sulfur content in bunkers meets Emission Control Area (ECA) rules, PortNews IAA reports.
Volkov made the announcement while speaking at the Ninth Russian Forum "Current State and Prospects for Development of Russian Bunker Services Market," noting that the port has been in talks with the EU authorities on how St. Petersburg can connect into THESIS-S.
The remote sensing system, which receives data from sensors located in the Baltic Straits, is used to detect sulfur content in the emissions of passing vessels for the purpose of emission control area (ECA) enforcement.
Volkov explained the authorities of Big Port St. Petersburg hope to use the system in order to identify vessels that may be in violation of ECA rules, ordering further bunker samples from suspected ships.
In November, the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) said a study conducted by the two organisations to explore the feasibility of the use of drones for emissions monitoring in European ECAs will see test flights leave out of Hamburg, Germany in July.
Last week, the European Community Shipowners' Associations (ECSA) stressed the importance for emissions reduction schemes for shipping to be implemented globally, warning against moving ahead with a regional European scheme.
