Bahrain steps into large-scale ship recycling through ASRY venture with India’s Priya Blue

Bahrain has officially entered the large-scale ship recycling sector as the Arab Shipbuilding and Repair Yard Company (ASRY) partners with India’s Priya Blue Group. The joint venture commenced operations with the arrival of its first vessel at the Bahrain-based facility, marking a strategic shift in Gulf maritime industrial capabilities. This collaboration combines ASRY’s extensive shipyard infrastructure with Priya Blue’s specialized expertise in sustainable ship dismantling, aiming to capture a larger share of the global ship recycling market in the Middle East.

The facility operates under strict adherence to the Hong Kong International Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. Compliance departments must ensure that all vessels destined for this yard maintain an updated Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) as mandated by the IMO. Furthermore, operations must align with MARPOL Annex I regarding oil residue management and SOLAS Chapter XI-1 requirements for vessel safety during the decommissioning process. Adhering to these international standards is essential for mitigating environmental risks and ensuring legal compliance during the entire recycling lifecycle.

This development creates new technical oversight roles for chief engineers and second engineers tasked with preparing vessels for final decommissioning. These officers must ensure that all machinery, fuel systems, and hazardous materials are properly documented and purged according to the ship’s IHM. Understanding the specific safety protocols required for the handover process at the ASRY facility is now a critical competency for senior engineering staff managing the end-of-life transition for aging merchant fleet assets.