UK Chamber hits out at 'cack-handed' EC ruling on low sulphur

Speaking at a conference of trades union Nautilus in Belfast this week, Platten highlighted challenges facing the ferry industry, and commercial shipping by extension, which were characterised by “an onslaught of rules, regulations and market difficulties.”

“The past few years have seen unprecedented challenges in global markets as well as local economies and too many ferry operators are on a knife edge," Platten stated. "The cack-handed implementation of new sulphur regulations has seen the viability of too many routes called into question."

This Monday, DFDS closed its historic Harwich-Esbjerg route at a cost of 130 jobs, with ceo Niels Smedegaard citing the annual $3.4m needed to comply 2015 sulphur regulations as the root cause, and calling the development “a sad day for us all.”

Joined by ICS, the European Community Shipowners' Association (ECSA) , Intertanko, the Danish Shipowners’ Association (DSA) and a host of UK shipping executives, the UK Chamber is a long-standing critic of the implementation of 0.1% Sulphur, with comments from director David Balston earlier this year arguing that the “unhelpful” European Commission ruling would force more cargo onto roads and actually increase pollution.

“We wait with some trepidation for the next great new idea from the European Commission,” added Platten.

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