Hong Kong Convention on Ship Recycling

Every year, several hundred large ships, tankers, bulkers, container ships, end their lives beached at Alang, Chittagong or Gadani, cut up by hand, with asbestos, PCBs, oil and workers without protection. The Hong Kong Convention, adopted in 2009 under the auspices of the International Maritime Organization, tries to put a framework around it. It entered into force on June 26, 2025, twenty-four months after Liberia and Bangladesh deposited their ratifications, which met the tonnage and country thresholds. Each ship must keep an up-to-date inventory of hazardous materials, the IHM, drawn up at construction and updated in service, and recycling yards must hold an authorization from the State where they are. Regulation (EU) No 1257/2013, in force for ships flying an EU flag, is stricter: it sets a European list of approved yards, and bans beaching. For insurance, the effect is on scrap value, which sets the floor on the value of an old ship, and therefore on the constructive total loss: a ship that can no longer be sent to the beach is worth less. Shipowners' and sellers' liability policies look at liability when a ship is sold to a buyer who sends it to the beach, and banks require recycling clauses.