Considerations on COM(2024)453 - EU position in the International Maritime Organization during the 109th session of the Maritime Safety Committee on the adoption of amendments to the International Code of Safety for Ships Using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels (IGF Code) - Main contents
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dossier | COM(2024)453 - EU position in the International Maritime Organization during the 109th session of the Maritime Safety Committee on the ... |
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document | COM(2024)453 ![]() |
date | November 26, 2024 |
(2) | The Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), at its 109th session from 2 to 6 December 2024 (‘MSC 109’), is expected to adopt amendments to the International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels (IGF Code). |
(3) | It is appropriate to establish the position to be taken on the Union’s behalf at MSC 109, as the envisaged amendments to the IGF Code are capable of decisively influencing the content of Union law, namely Directive 2009/45/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (1). |
(4) | The amendments to the IGF Code concern a variety of issues, including pump suction wells, safety relief valve discharge, fuel preparation rooms, structural fire protection and hazardous zones. The Union should support those amendments because they will enhance the safety of ships, including passenger ships, using natural gas as fuel. Those amendments provide an equivalent level of protection of the piping system and the tank inlet from the safety relief valve discharge lines during normal operation and emergency. In addition, those amendments also acknowledge the existence of small wells of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuel tanks. |
(5) | The Union is neither a member of the IMO, nor a contracting party to the IGF Code. The Council should therefore authorise the Member States to express the position of the Union at MSC 109. |
(6) | The scope of this Decision should be limited to the content of the proposed amendments, to the extent that they are capable of affecting Union common rules and fall under the exclusive competence of the Union. This Decision should not affect the division of competences between the Union and the Member States, |