Lloyd’s Register Launches Educational Webinar Series to Guide Industry Through Hong Kong Convention Compliance
London, July 5, 2025 — In a decisive move to support the global maritime industry in its transition to the newly enforced Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships (HKC), Lloyd’s Register (LR) has launched a comprehensive webinar series designed to help shipowners, operators, and recycling facilities understand and meet the intricate requirements of the international treaty.
The new webinar programme, announced in Class News 11/2025, is part of Lloyd’s Register’s broader initiative to facilitate compliance and promote responsible end-of-life ship recycling practices worldwide.
A New Era for Ship Recycling
The HKC, adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in 2009 and brought into force on 26 June 2025, is the first global convention to regulate the full lifecycle of a ship, from design to demolition, with a strict focus on environmental and occupational safety. Its implementation marks a historic step toward eliminating dangerous and exploitative shipbreaking practices—especially in regions where informal beaching yards have long been criticized for putting workers and ecosystems at risk.
The Convention introduces binding requirements for all parties in the ship recycling value chain. It mandates that:
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All ships must maintain a certified Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) throughout their operational life.
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New ships delivered after June 2025 must comply immediately with HKC standards.
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Existing ships must be certified by their next scheduled harmonised renewal survey, but no later than 26 June 2030.
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Recycling facilities must be authorized by their respective national authorities and must prepare a ship-specific recycling plan for every vessel they dismantle.
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A Final Survey must be conducted prior to recycling, confirming the ship is ready for dismantling and the facility is compliant with HKC requirements.
With the entry into force of the HKC, the maritime industry now faces the challenge of navigating multiple overlapping regulatory frameworks—including the EU Ship Recycling Regulation (EU SRR) and the Basel Convention (BC)—that govern hazardous waste and ship dismantling procedures.
LR’s Response: Practical Compliance Guidance
To address these complexities, Lloyd’s Register’s new webinar series provides expert-led guidance on the three central pillars of the HKC:
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Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM): Requirements for developing, maintaining, and verifying an IHM across the life of a vessel.
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Final Survey Requirements: Mandatory inspections and documentation before a vessel is recycled.
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Recycling Facility Certification: Criteria and processes for ship recycling yards to achieve HKC-compliant authorization.
Each session offers a deep dive into implementation timelines, immediate regulatory obligations (such as those beginning from 26 June 2025), and scenarios covering various vessel types and operational contexts. These include ships flagged to countries that have not ratified the HKC, dual compliance with EU SRR, and considerations for ships calling at European ports.
The programme’s intent is to provide clarity for an industry in flux—where compliance now involves not only adherence to IMO standards, but coordination with regional and national regulations that may impose stricter or overlapping requirements.
Supporting Services for HKC, EU SRR, and Beyond
Beyond education, Lloyd’s Register has also rolled out a comprehensive suite of services tailored to shipowners and ship recycling yards navigating the HKC framework. These include:
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IHM Certification: Ensuring vessels meet both HKC and EU SRR compliance standards. LR supports IHM compilation for newbuilds and existing fleets, as well as updates to reflect material changes throughout a ship’s life.
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Final Surveys: Conducted at the ship recycling facility to issue the International Ready for Recycling Certificate, a key requirement under the HKC.
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Recycling Facility Authorization: Guidance and verification services to help yards meet national standards aligned with HKC protocols.
Additionally, LR offers strategic advisory and due diligence services, including:
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Audit During Recycling (ADR): A third-party oversight programme that monitors the actual recycling process for adherence to safety, labour, and environmental standards.
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End-of-Life Consultancy: Advising shipowners on when and how to prepare vessels for recycling, yard selection, compliance strategy, and risk assessment.
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Facility Development Support: Technical and commercial feasibility studies for yards aiming to become HKC-authorized.
Expert Insight: Bridging Regulation with Operational Reality
Jennifer Riley-James, Lead Regulatory Specialist at Lloyd’s Register, emphasized the need for global industry alignment and expert interpretation during this transitional phase.
“The Hong Kong Convention is a significant moment for global ship recycling standards, and the maritime industry needs expert guidance to navigate this complex new landscape,” Riley-James stated. “This webinar series delivers the practical knowledge and regulatory insight that ship owners, operators, and recycling facilities require to achieve full compliance while maintaining operational efficiency.”
Riley-James highlighted that the HKC’s global nature and intersection with other regional rules require practical knowledge, not just regulatory theory. Stakeholders must prepare for inspections, certification schedules, and potential business impacts if non-compliance leads to delayed scrapping or restricted port access.
LR’s Global Role in Ship Recycling
With more than 15 years of experience in ship recycling advisory, Lloyd’s Register has played a pivotal role in shaping the regulatory ecosystem now governing global recycling. It has acted as an advisor to regulatory development within the IMO and EU, and has supported the implementation of recycling frameworks in India, China, and Turkey—countries that together account for the majority of global ship recycling tonnage.
As a member of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), LR continues to advocate for technically sound, enforceable recycling rules that uphold both environmental protection and maritime commercial viability.
LR’s depth of experience positions it as a global leader in IHM certification, regulatory training, and compliance services—capabilities that are now critical as more than 15,000 ships are expected to be recycled globally over the next decade under the HKC regime.
Navigating the Transition
Industry stakeholders are being urged to act early. While the final deadline for IHM compliance on existing ships is 26 June 2030, the current five-year window represents a massive operational challenge, especially for shipowners with large, diverse fleets.
Similarly, recycling facilities in nations that have ratified the HKC must undergo rigorous authorization procedures to become eligible to receive ships for dismantling. This not only involves adapting their infrastructure and worker training protocols but also implementing environmental monitoring, waste management systems, and transparency mechanisms.
By equipping these stakeholders with clarity, tools, and global best practices, LR’s initiative goes beyond compliance—it aims to build industry-wide capacity for ethical, safe, and sustainable ship recycling.
With the entry into force of the Hong Kong Convention, the global maritime sector stands at a pivotal juncture. While the regulation brings long-awaited standardization and environmental safeguards, it also introduces new layers of complexity and administrative rigor.
In this context, Lloyd’s Register’s new webinar series serves as a timely and critical resource. By offering actionable guidance, certification support, and advisory services, LR is helping the industry not just meet the letter of the law—but embody the spirit of responsible maritime stewardship.
As the sector embarks on this transformative journey, initiatives like LR’s are setting the tone for a safer, greener, and more transparent era of ship recycling.
