Ships with toxic waste/Clash between institutions

2024-08-21 15:23:00, Aktualitet CNA

Ships with toxic waste/Clash between institutions

Port of Durres

The Ministry of Tourism and Kurum have reacted regarding the containers with toxic waste that left from the port of Durrës for Thailand and then turned back, after the media revealed the scandal.

In its response, the Ministry of Tourism has stated that it has not given any authorization and as a result the company has not submitted data on the destination of the cargo, while it has emphasized that the law enforcement institutions have engaged and are conducting joint investigative actions with the Union Anti-Fraud Office European (OLAF).

The Ministry of Environment declares that the waste of the KURUM company was loaded in Durrës in containers owned by the international line MSC, it is suspected that they were transported to the Port of Trieste.

The complete reaction of the Ministry of Tourism

"In response to your interest regarding the suspicions about the irregular transport of a quantity of goods containing waste from the technological process, we clarify that for this case the Ministry of Tourism and Environment has not given any authorization and therefore the company has not presented data on the destination of the cargo.

As above, we inform you that the Albanian law enforcement institutions have been engaged since the first notification of these suspicions and have carried out joint investigative actions with the European Union Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) and have referred the case to the prosecution bodies.

Volumes of goods which are suspected to contain waste from the technological process carried out by international companies operating near the metallurgical complex in Elbasan, have been loaded into container units near the Rifuxhio Goods Terminal in Durrës, which is operated by the German concessionaire company EMS.

Subsequently, these container units, owned by the international line MSC, are suspected to have been transported to the Port of Trieste via international container ships. In this port of the European Union, the container units have not been objects of controls and have been allowed to continue their route by being transported on ships operated by another well-known international operator (Maersk), destined for Southeast Asia.

It is worth noting that international conventions, and domestic legislation consistent with them, provide a series of obligations for producers and transporters of such waste. The implementation of these obligations is also the subject of ongoing investigations.

The Albanian environmental, port and customs authorities have been operating for years with very strict protocols in terms of authorizations for the processing and transport of dangerous goods, in accordance with the relevant international conventions. Moreover, this readiness of our national institutions has been verified and certified by continuous international inspections throughout the last years, ranking Albania as a safe country.

The Albanian institutions remain in contact and cooperation with the European partners to carry out full and transparent investigations of all the circumstances and all the logistical links that have carried out this suspected transport from Europe to Southeast Asia", the Ministry of Tourism responded to the media.

After that, there was also a reaction from Kurum, which clashed with the Ministry of Tourism in its statements.

Kurum International denies that the waste is its own and that it exported the cargo.

"Kurum International has never exported hazardous waste, so even in this case this shipment in question was not exported by Kurum International. This fact is easily verifiable by the relevant institutions, the General Directorate of Customs and Albanian ports.

Kurum International, based on the environmental permit it owns, respects all national and international rules and laws, including the Basel Convention, for the treatment of hazardous and non-hazardous industrial waste generated during the production process, the object of the company's work. the Kurum company said.

There has also been a reaction from the Customs Directorate which declares that the ships with waste did not depart from Albania, but are the international transit of the zinc concentrate product from Kosovo.

According to her, the zinc concentrate originates from Kosovo and is sent by the company "Apelbaum sh.pk". As for the final destination, according to "Customs", the host of the waste is the company "ACHRO AG".

"Based on the disinformation that has been spreading for days in the media and is being used for political reasons and to smear the work of the Albanian Customs Administration, we clarify the following:

The case cited by the media is not an export from Albania but an international transit of zinc concentrate product from Kosovo. So, the product is zinc concentrate originating from Kosovo with the sending/exporting company Apelbaum shpk with the address Rr. Fehmi Agani, Pristina/Kosovo; The receiving/importing company is ACHRO AG based in Steinhausen Switzerland.

The Swiss firm ACHRO AG is the orderer according to the BILL OF LOADING (B/L) of the shipping company MAERSK for the transport of this product (LOW GRADE ZINC CONCENTRATE) to the receiving firm GUANGXI LOGISTICS INDUSTRY INTERNATIONAL TRADE CO. LTD, NANNING, China.

Above we reiterate that:

• It is not a product originating from the Republic of Albania;

• It is not an export from Albania but an international transit between a company from Kosovo and a Swiss company without the involvement of any company from Albania.

ADSH, as in previous cases but also in this case, is exchanging intensive information as well as cooperating closely in a joint investigation with OLAF (EU Anti-Fraud Office) as well as other law-enforcement bodies", the Directorate declares. of Customs./ CNA