Lower Saxony’s environment minister Christian Meyer visited Emder Werft und Dock GmbH (EWD) in the port of Emden to learn about the company’s plans for ship recycling.
According to the company's release, the company EWD Benli Recycling GmbH & Co. KG has become the first in Germany to receive authorization to recycle ships, industrial facilities and offshore wind power installations.
The minister was welcomed by the two managing directors of EWD Benli Recycling GmbH & Co. KG, Björn Sommer and Dr. Sebastian Jeanvré, who outlined the approval process completed by the company.
According to the company, it is currently handling several inquiries. “I am very pleased that in the port of Emden future-oriented planning and construction can now take place, so that ships can finally be recycled sustainably here instead of in distant countries,” said minister Meyer during his visit.
EWD specializes in recycling old vessels, such as small coastal units, smaller passenger ships, or industrial and offshore installations. The approval covers the recycling of “state ships not in commercial use (naval and government vessels), inland waterway vessels, coastal vessels and seagoing vessels” and includes all steps of ship recycling, beginning with the removal of pollutants prior to dismantling.
“In recent decades we have had to watch environmental disasters unfold because decommissioned industrial ships were sent mainly to Southeast Asia, where they decayed under the worst environmental and social conditions,” Meyer said.
“Lower Saxony, together with Bremen, has long advocated for domestic ship recycling and raw material recovery in Germany through the environment ministers’ conference, and the global environmental requirements have finally been tightened with the Hong Kong Convention.”
The minister added that EWD Benli Recycling GmbH & Co. KG becoming the nationwide pioneer in the reuse of ships is a success story for the state. The Lower Saxony parliament had also expressed support for expanding ship recycling in the region.
Emder Werft und Dock GmbH (EWD) is a German shipyard and engineering company headquartered in Emden, Lower Saxony. It operates as a service provider for shipbuilding, repair, and industrial projects, and is registered as a limited liability company under German law.
EWD Benli Recycling GmbH & Co. KG is a German limited partnership with a limited liability company as general partner, specializing in recycling operations. Its business scope covers dismantling and material recovery from industrial facilities, ships, and offshore installations, with its headquarters located in Emden, Lower Saxony.