EU Approves German Recycling Yard
The European Commission adopted the 15th edition of the European List of Ship Recycling Facilities which includes the first shipyard approved in Germany, located in Emden.
The list renews the inclusion of four EU shipyards in Denmark, Estonia, Lithuania and Spain. Another in Türkiye has also been renewed.
Three shipyards have been removed from the list, including a Finnish shipyard that chose not to renew its authorisation, and one in Northern Ireland that failed to provide the necessary information for renewal. The Commission also found that one shipyard in Türkiye did not comply with the EU Ship Recycling Regulation, specifically regarding shoreline protection.
Inclusion on the European List allows facilities to work with large vessels flying the flag of an EU Member State while guaranteeing compliance with strict environmental, safety and labour standards.
Ship recycling also plays a key role in advancing the circular economy, enabling the recovery of large quantities of high-quality steel and other valuable materials. By keeping these resources in use for longer, approved facilities help cut demand for virgin raw materials and support more sustainable industrial value chains.
The updated European List now contains 41 ship recycling facilities: 30 in Europe (EU, Norway and the UK), 10 in Türkiye and 1 in the United States. Several of these shipyards can recycle large vessels.
European ship owners possess around 30% of the world's fleet in tonnage.
Since 31 December 2018, the EU Ship Recycling Regulation requires all large seagoing vessels sailing under an EU Member State flag to use approved facilities from the European List.
