Emissions verification company, Verifavia, has become the first independent verifier to receive accreditation from the Panama Maritime Authority to carry out the IMO’s Data Collection System (DCS) verification procedure for vessels registered in Panama.
The authorisation by Panama will allow Verifavia to offer independent verification services to ships to prove compliance with the IMO’s DCS requirements on CO2 emissions. Verifavia is already approved to verify vessels in compliance with the EU’s Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) through this authorisation granted by Panama, Verifavia will now offer IMO DCS and EU MRV verification to the world’s largest ship registry. This includes over 8,000 registered vessels accounting for approximately 222.1m gross tones and representing 18 per cent of the global fleet.
Julien Dufour, CEO, Verifavia Shipping, commented: “We are extremely proud to be the first IMO DCS verifier and so far the only one to be authorised by the Panama Maritime Authority – the world’s largest ship registry. Our focus, since inception, has been to support ship owners and operators in navigating the requirements and challenges of environmental regulations such as the EU MRV and IMO DCS by upholding the highest levels of flexible service.”
He continued: “With this authorisation and our latest strategic cooperation agreements, owners and operators of vessels flagged in Panama, Liberia, and The Antigua and Barbuda registry will benefit from obtaining a top-class verification service at a reasonable price from a single point of contact and a single verification audit, based on the same primary data and procedures – further streamlining the reporting verification process.”
Under the approval by the Panama Maritime Authority, Verifavia Shipping will be responsible for the review of the Data Collection Plans (DCPs) submitted which outline procedures, systems, and responsibilities to monitor fuel oil consumption data, hours underway, and distance travelled.
The company is also authorised to provide a recommendation for the issuance of the Confirmation of Compliance, which it will submit to the respective shipping companies. Verifavia is able to provide IMO DCS to clients of Recognised Organisations (ROs) through subcontracting agreements.
