To Beach or Not to Beach

21 Aug 2015: The uncertain future of vessel recycling.  Benjamin Franklin once said “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes”. In the world of shipping, only half of this statement is generally true. Most shipowners worldwide have historically managed to avoid paying taxes, but merchant vessels do have a finite lifespan. Vessels trading in international commerce typically retire when they are between 15 and 25 years old. In exceptionally good markets a vessels’ life is extended by a few years and when charter rates are very low, it makes commercial sense for ship owners to retire their vessels early. The method of scrapping, demolition or recycling has varied through history, but since the mid-1980s, the key locations for ship recycling are located in the Indian sub-continent and about 95% of these vessels are “beached”. A growing realization that working conditions at many ship recycling locations are hazardous has led to increasing pressure from environmental groups to change recycling methods. However, not much has changed in the industry in the last several decades. Will the future be different? Download here