Thursday, April 18, 2013

The National Transport Authority will no longer issue permits for outboard two-stroke engines from December, with the exception of commercial vessels.

Boats that are already registered and licensed are given until the end of 2016 to replace the two-stroke engines with 4-stroke engines, which are more environment-friendly.

The regulations are the first federal steps in the direction of banning the two-stroke engines from the marine leisure industry, with the argument that the engines cause significant pollution to the marine environment.

The move was long awaited and applauded by experts in the field. "Use of two-stroke engines should be reduced so as to protect the environment from hydrocarbons and toxic emissions," agrees Ali Aldaboos, Executive Director  of  Operations, Dubai Maritime City Authority (DMCA).

In 2006, Dubai Marina Motor Yacht Club took the lead and barred all two-stroke engine operated watercraft from its waterways.

However, there is also concern over the practicality of the phase-out, as owners of watercrafts using the two-stroke engines will have to pay up for the alteration.
"The impact on private boat owners is huge and I can imagine the impact on the numerous marinas in the UAE will equally huge," says Steven O'Brien, a maritime expert.

"It will cost anywhere from around Dh80,000 up to replace two-stroke engines with new four- stroke ones and I can imagine that with this now being law, the suppliers will probably push their prices up because there will be a high demand for four-stroke engines.  Also there will be literally thousands of perfectly serviceable two-stroke engines that are rendered useless and will in all likelihood be dumped."

However, according to Ali the current presence of two-stroke engine-operated watercraft is already limited. "The percentage of two-stroke engines on personal water craft is less than 20% and so the effects of emissions by two-stroke engines to Dubai marine environment are very minimal.

Sam Ibrahim, BRP Commercial Manager at MTM Powersports agrees. "When it comes to jet skis, they are mostly the pre-2000 models that use a two-stroke engine. These models are hardly sold anymore. The stand-up jet skis have two-stroke engines too, but these are less commonly used."

According to T.G., who used to work for Yamaha for years, two-stroke engines are something of the past. "I recall that most of the watercraft we sold contained four-stroke engines. It is more attractive for the owner as well, because these engines consume less gas than the two-stroke engines."

However, watercraft with two-stroke engines are sold at lower prices, which may be reason for customers to ask for these engines specifically.

But this is something of the past. DMCA, which is to take over the registration and licensing of power boats in Dubai, intends to enforce the new regulations to minimize the use of two-stroke engines while renewal of the license as soon as it is in the authority to do so. "We are confident that Dubai and UAE will be two-stroke free environment in the near future," says Ali.

© Emirates 24|7 2013