New ship recycling company in Middle East offers early bird shares

Al Jubail-based ship recycling company, Wreckdock, is offering investors the chance to buy discounted shares in its new sustainable ship and offshore recycling venture.

The company has announced its plans to build four new dry docks – 350 to 500 meters long – with eight quays, where heavy-duty cranes, magnets and other machinery will support the recycling of end-of-life assets. The facilities could allow assets to be dismantled and materials recycled within two weeks, the company said.

The process, based on circularity and the conversion of demolition waste into raw materials that can be traded to accredited customers, will be based on strict environmental regulations. The facility will comply with international shipping regulations including IMO’s Hong Kong Convention (HKC), EU Ship Recycling Regulation (EU SRR) and BIMCO Recyclecon.

In a statement, Wreckdock explained its business model. Responsible recycling processes can protect the environment from pollution from oil, gasoline and other chemical and polluting materials, it said. In doing so, it can limit risks to the environment and stop what it calls “irresponsible scrapping and recycling of end-of-life ships on beaches in Asia.”

All incoming ships are assigned a recycling project plan in which experts create requirements taking into account the inventory of hazardous materials. All materials are collected, processed and recycled before being sold to buyers in international markets. Wreckdock also says it is engaged in global trading and supply of steel products, financial buying and selling, and international trading in ferrous and non-ferrous metals and oil.

The development comes at a pivotal moment for the global ship recycling business. Many older vessels that do not meet acceptable IMO carbon intensity requirements may prove viable for retrofits. But recycling facilities for many owners are currently limited to shipyards validated by the HKC and the EU SRR.

Many recycling facilities in the Indian subcontinent are not yet accredited to HKC requirements, and none have been certified by EU regulators to date. Many owners’ options are therefore limited to Turkish hammers in Aliaga or small, high-cost plants in other regions where there are often weak or non-existent markets for recycled materials, especially steel.

The wreckdock venture is the second new recycling project to be announced in Gulf waters in just a few weeks. Dutch-based ship recycling company Elegant Exit Company recently announced a collaboration with Bahrain ship repair yard ASRY. The new company is in the process of recycling its first ship at ASRY, the 1,088 TEU container ship Wan Hai 165, built in 1998.

Source: News Network.