More than 100 German police officers have raided the offices of Erck Rickmers Group-controlled companies and other shipowners in a vessel demolition probe.
German daily Bild reported that officers from the State Office of Criminal Investigation visited properties in Hamburg at 10am GMT on Wednesday.
These included work premises and private dwellings, the report said.
The investigation is being led by the public prosecutor's office.
Bild said the raids were connected to the alleged illegal scrapping of vessels in Asia.
Three vessels are cited, which VesselsValue data shows were recycled in Pakistan in August and September 2017.
Sales reported for combined $18m
The 1,744-teu ER Hamburg (built 1998) fetched $4.5m, the 4,444-teu Florida 1 (built 2005) was sold for $9m, and the 2,210-teu Alexandra Rickmers I (built 1997) went for $4.4m.
Erck Rickmers Group (ERG) told TradeWinds investigations were carried out at several Hamburg shipping companies in connection with the recycling of commercial vessels.
The allegations relate to the export of waste abroad, the group added.
The company said only one ship from ERG is affected, however.
This unnamed vessel belonged to about 350 investors, with ERG's stake amounting to less than 1%.
"In 2017, the investors decided to sell the 19-year-old ship to the highest bidder in a difficult market environment," ERG said.
After the sale, the continued operation of the ship was the sole responsibility of the buyer company. The handover to the buyer took place in Port Said, Egypt, in August 2017, ERG added.
"The Erck Rickmers Group welcomes it when violations of environmental regulations are clarified. It is not aware of any violation and is cooperating fully with the investigating authorities," the group said.
Probe continues
A statement by the Hamburg public prosecutor's office confirmed that 22 search warrants were carried out in seven properties in three preliminary investigations.
It confirmed that the searches are linked to allegations that the operators of ships did not properly comply with European Union environmental laws on their sale to buyers in Pakistan.
“The public prosecutor's office assumes that the suspects knew when the ships were sold that they were to be driven onto the beach in Pakistan and scrapped there,” German prosecutor Liddy Oechtering said.
Under EU law governing the disposal of hazardous waste, the fine or threat of imprisonment is up to five years, the statement said.
Investigations are continuing after written documents and electronic data were found that are currently being evaluated.
The investigation is continuing.
ER Capital visited
One office raided was that of ER Capital Holding, which oversees investments in shipping, property and private equity. It was the parent company of ER Schiffahrt before Rickmers sold it in January 2018 to ill-fated German shipping company Zeaborn.
In 2018, ER Capital was listed with 34 bulkers and containerships.
Companies controlled by Rickmers' brother Bertram have not been affected by the police action.
“I’m personally not involved because I’ve never been in these companies,” said Bertram Rickmers, executive chairman of Hamburg-based Brick Holdings.
The police action in Germany is not the first high-profile raid on a shipowner over scrapping.
In 2020, Norwegian authorities raided one of Teekay Offshore Partners’ subsidiaries for suspected violation of environmental regulations over the scrapping of a shuttle tanker on a beach in India.
The Norwegian Environment Agency had notified the subsidiary that it was suspected of “illegal export of waste in the form of the ship Navion Britannia".
In 2018, Teekay Offshore sold the 124,000-dwt shuttle tanker Navion Britannia (built 1998) — then flagged in Panama — for demolition at RL Kalthia Shipbreaking in Alang.
While still adopting the so-called “beaching” method, RL Kalthia was one of the first Indian ship breakers certified under the International Maritime Organization’s Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships.
