1.10.2003 Official Journal of the European Union L 249/1 (Acts whose publication is obligatory) REGULATION (EC) No 1726/2003 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 22 July 2003 amending Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 on the accelerated phasing-in of double-hull or equivalent design requirements for single-hull oil tankers THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu- nity, and in particular Article 80(2) thereof, Having regard to the proposal from the Commission (!), Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee (), Having consulted the Committee of the Regions, Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251 of the Treaty (), Whereas: (1) Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 (*) establishes an acceler- ated phasing-in scheme for the application of the double-hull or equivalent design requirements of the Marpol 73/78 Convention to single-hull oil tankers, to reduce the risk of accidental oil pollution in European waters. (2)  The Commission and the Member States should make every effort to ensure that rules similar to those contained in this Regulation amending Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 can be established in 2003 at a worldwide level, through an amendment of the Marpol Convention. Both the Council and the Commission welcome the will- ingness of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) to hold an additional meeting of the Marine Envir- onment Protection Committee (MEPC) in December 2003 to facilitate an international solution regarding the accelerated phasing-out of single-hull oil tankers and the introduction, in the short term, of a ban on single-hull oil tankers carrying heavy grades of oil. (3)  The Community is seriously concerned that the age limits for the operation of single-hull oil tankers in Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 are not sufficiently strin- gent. Particularly in the wake of the shipwreck of the (") Not yet published in the Official Journal. () 0] € 133, 6.6.2003, p. 97. () Opinion of the European Parliament of 4 June 2003 (not yet published in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 22 July 2003. (*) OJ L 64, 7.3.2002, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC) No 2099/2002 (O] L 324, 29.11.2002, p. 1). ®) category 1 single-hull oil tanker Prestige’ of the same age as ‘Erika’ (26 years) those age limits should be further lowered. The communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and to the Council on the safety of the seaborne oil trade proposed age limits of 23, 28 and 25 to 30 years respectively for three categories of single- hull oil tankers, and the final end-dates of 2005, 2010 and 2015 respectively, for such tankers. The initial proposal from the Commission provided that the regula- tion should apply to oil tankers from 600 tonnes dead- weight and above. The limits eventually included in Regulation (EC) No 417/2002 were, following negotia- tions, less stringent on all accounts. The communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and to the Council on improving safety at sea in response to the ‘Prestige’ incident stated that the Commission intended to propose a regulation prohibiting the transport of heavy fuel oil in single- hulled tankers bound for or leaving ports in the Member States. The Council conclusions of 6 December 2002 invited the Commission to present as a matter of urgency a proposal concerning an accelerated phasing-out of single-hull tankers and incorporating the condition assessment scheme for tankers, regardless of the design, from the age of 15 years. The Council further agreed that heavy grades of oil should only be transported in double-hull oil tankers. The accelerated phasing-out of single-hull vessels will lead to a significant increase in the number of vessels for scrapping, and an effort should be made to ensure that scrap vessels are processed in a way which is safe for human beings and the environment. The condition assessment scheme is designed to detect structural weaknesses in ageing oil tankers and should therefore, from 2005, apply to all oil tankers above the age of 15 years.