Having recently been fined AUS $15,000 by the New South Wales Environment Protection Authority (EPA) following a breach of the low-sulphur fuel regulations in Sydney Harbour, Carnival PLC has called upon the EPA to review the penalty.
The P&O Cruise ship, Pacific Jewel, was berthed at the White Bay Cruise Terminal on the 26 February 2016 where it was recorded to have had a sulphur level of 0.293%, nearly three times the 0.1% sulphur limit.
Carnival Australia, which operates P&O Cruises, has stated that EPA failed to take into consideration the available technical information that would have confirmed the ship had completed the changeover to low sulphur fuel within the prescribed time period.
According to Carnival Australia, Pacific Jewel transferred and documented the change to low-sulphur fuel as required, and was using this fuel while berthed at White Bay Cruise Terminal. Furthermore, Carnival Australia claims that the EPA had also not taken into account a number of other significant technical indicators that would have confirmed the ship was using low-sulphur fuel.
However, EPA stated that the fuel had been changed over from high-sulphur fuel shortly after the ship had berthed at White Bay, but the sample showed that the fuel being used in the ship’s engine during the EPA’s inspection did not meet the low-sulphur fuel requirements.
EPA has advised P&O Cruises Australia ships will start their changeover from high-sulphur fuel earlier to address the problem.
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