The International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) is a not-for-profit organisation, involved in all aspects of preparing for and responding to ship-source spills of oil, chemicals and other substances in the marine environment.
ITOPF was established in 1968, in the wake of the TORREY CANYON incident, to administer the voluntary compensation agreement, Tanker Owners’ Voluntary Agreement concerning Liability for Oil Pollution (TOVALOP), which assured the adequate and timely payment of compensation to those affected by oil spills. TOVALOP came to an end in 1997. As a result, the remit of the Federation changed and the membership and funding arrangements correspondingly altered.
ITOPF now devotes considerable effort to a wide range of technical services, of which the most important is responding to spills of oil and chemicals. ITOPF’s small response team is at constant readiness to assist at marine spills anywhere in the world. This service is normally undertaken on behalf of our Members (tanker owners) or Associates (other shipowners) and their oil pollution insurers (normally one of the P&I Clubs) or at the request of governments or international agencies such as the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds (IOPC Funds). Other technical services we provide include damage assessment, contingency planning, training and information. The Federation maintains an extensive library, a comprehensive Geographic Information System and a number of databases, and produces technical publications and videos.
ITOPF is based in London (see location map), with a staff of 25, of whom 13 are available to respond to spills.
- About ITOPF
- What We Do
- History
- Membership & Funding
- Staff
- Location Map