Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 157: To ask the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources further to Parliamentary Question No 170 of 17 May 2005 the differential calculation system for fees for oil tankers under the EU Regulation 2978/94; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18573/05]

Pat Gallagher (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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Council Regulation (EC) No 2978/94 of 21 November 1994 deals with the implementation of International Maritime Organisation Resolution A.747(18) on the application of tonnage measurement of ballast spaces in segregated ballast oil tankers. This regulation aims at encouraging the use of segregated ballast tanks in oil tankers. For this purpose, it introduces a differential calculation system for fees for oil tankers to be applied by port and harbour authorities and by pilotage authorities.

Article 5 of the regulation provides that, when assessing fees for oil tankers, these authorities shall exclude the tonnage of the segregated ballast tanks of an oil tanker so as to base their calculations on the reduced gross tonnage of the vessel. Alternatively, these authorities shall ensure that the fee for an oil tanker falling within the scope of the regulation is at least 17% lower than the fee for a tanker without segregated ballast tanks of the same gross tonnage.