China tightens monitoring of ships’ energy consumption data

Ships above 400 gross mt are now required to provide Chinese authorities with energy consumption data from their previous voyage before departing any Chinese ports.

PHOTO: Aerial view of Zhoushan City, Zhejiang Province. Getty Images

China’s Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) has introduced a ‘Regulation on Energy Consumption Data and Carbon Intensity of Ships’, which mandates the authority to track and collect information on energy consumed by the ships.

Chinese and foreign ships that enter or leave Chinese ports are also required to record their energy consumption data in their ship’s logbook or other relevant documents for at least two years. This data must be kept onboard and should be available during any inspection by MSA.

Similarly, China-flagged ships on domestic voyages also need to submit energy consumption data of previous voyages to MSA or a local authority before leaving port.

The regulation enters into force on 22 December and will mostly apply to China-flagged vessels, with some provisions applicable to foreign vessels. These regulations do not apply to vessels used for sports, fishing or military purposes.

Vessels failing to report the energy consumption data will be fined around ¥2000 ($286).

By Nithin Chandran

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