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Verifavia, an emissions verification company for the transport sector, has announced that it has commenced a pre-verification gap analysis audit for Greek-based Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd. (Dynacom).

The tanker operator is taking steps to meet the requirements of the EU's Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) Regulation (2015/757), which came into force on 1st July 2015. The regulation is the industry's first step towards cutting CO2 emissions from maritime transport in the European Union (EU). From August 2017, all ship owners and operators operating ships with a gross tonnage (GT) of more than 5,000 within the EU will be required to submit a Monitoring Plan (MP) to verifiers, outlining their plans to monitor and report their carbon emissions, fuel consumption, and associated transport work. The data collected will be made publicly available for over 12,000 vessels visiting EU ports every year, and compliance is non-negotiable.

Working with Dynacom, Verifavia Shipping Hellas has started a gap analysis audit of the tanker operator's procedures and operations using its M/T Gladiator oil tanker as the base vessel. The audit will involve a thorough assessment against the specification of the EU MRV Regulation and Delegated & Implementing Acts to ensure that the vessel is on course to achieve MRV compliance. Once all gaps have been closed, Verifavia says it will review the final version of the MP and issue Dynacom with an MRV-Ready certificate.

Nikolas Theodorou, Managing Director, Verifavia Shipping Hellas, remarked: "Our team of EU MRV technical experts will continue to work in close partnership with Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd to support them on the road to 'MRV-Ready' status. Having already spent a full day on site at their head office in Glyfada, we were extremely impressed with the wealth of information and depth of existing detail already held by Dynacom. These details will undoubtedly assist the company in reporting its carbon emissions and transport work in accordance with the regulation. We are fully confident in the accuracy of the data and process gaps identified by Verifavia, as well as the efficiency and attention with which these shall be diligently closed by Dynacom in order to achieve MRV compliance."

Commenting on the pre-verification gap analysis process, Dynacom said: "We very much value the collaborative approach taken by Verifavia to date, and have every confidence in the team's expertise to support us in achieving EU MRV compliance. We found the one day site visit very insightful, interactive, and an overall worthwhile exercise. We feel fortunate to be engaged with an experienced, independent verifier and are looking forward to implement the feedback gathered to help us close the gaps and meet the requirements of the EU MRV regulation."

Verifavia Shipping says it has completed a series of pre-verification gap analyses for several shipping companies, including Greek-based NEDA, as well as Greek-based information and communication technology (ICT) solutions providers SetelHellas, and DYNAMARINe.

"The Shipping MRV regulation is new and unfamiliar, and with eight months to go until the first legal deadline, owners and operators must act now to ensure they have the right systems, capabilities, and understanding to effectively and efficiently comply with the regulation," Verifavia stressed.

Image: The MT Gladiator, operated by Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd.