The Department of Merchant Shipping has announced the enactment of the Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Law 2017,(1) which transposes the EU Marine Equipment Directive (2013/52/EC) into national law.(2)
The EU Marine Equipment Directive aims to:
- enhance safety at sea and prevent marine pollution through the uniform application of the relevant international instruments relating to marine equipment to be placed on board EU ships; and
- ensure the free movement of such equipment within the European Union.
To this end, the directive:
- introduces a simpler system for the transposition of EU legislation;
- strengthens the requirements for the notification and control of conformity assessment bodies; and
- enhances market surveillance.
The new Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Law covers equipment placed or intended to be placed on board a Cyprus ship, for which Department of Merchant Shipping approval is required regardless of whether the ship is situated in the European Union when the equipment is installed.
Further, the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works has issued an order(3) under Article 2 of the new law setting out the relevant international conventions that fall within its scope of application – namely:
- the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea 1974;
- the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships 1973 and the 1978 Protocol thereto; and
- the Convention on International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea 1972.
The term 'international conventions' includes an up-to-date version of the international conventions and protocols ratified by Cyprus together with the relevant codes in force which establish specific approval requirements by the competent authority of equipment to be placed on board ships.
The previously enacted Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Laws 2002 and 2006(4) have been repealed by the new law. However, Article 38 of the new law provides that the Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Order 2016(5) and the Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Notification 2016(6) will remain in force until they are replaced by new subsidiary legislation issued under Article 9 of the new law.
For further information on this topic please contact Costas Stamatiou at Elias Neocleous & Co LLC by telephone (+357 25 110 110) or email ([email protected]). The Elias Neocleous & Co LLC website can be accessed at www.neo.law.
Endnotes
(2) Repealing EU Directive 96/98/EC.
(3) Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Order PI 135/2017.