According to Lloyd’s Register, new amendments to the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code will enter into force on 1 January 2025 with voluntary implementation from 1 January 2024.
The amendments are relevant to all shipowners, ship operators, ship managers, ship masters, designers, shipbuilders, and manufacturers.
New cargoes
The amendments introduce new individual cargo schedules with specific carriage requirements for the following Group B cargoes (cargoes that possess a chemical hazard which could give rise to a dangerous situation on a ship):
- DIRECT REDUCED IRON (D) (By-product fines with moisture content of at least 2%)
- ELECTRIC ARC FURNACE DUST, PELLETIZED
- ‘FISH MEAL (FISH SCRAP), STABILIZED Anti-oxidant treated’
The following cargo schedule has been removed from the code:
‘FISH MEAL (FISH SCRAP), STABILIZED UN 2216 Anti-oxidant treated’
What LR advises shipowners and ship operators to do now
Certification that includes the new Group B cargoes can be requested from Lloyd’s Register after the voluntary application date.
Other changes to the IMSBC Code
These include:
- Addition of Group A cargo schedules for ‘Baryte, Flotation Chemical Grade’, ‘Crushed Granodiorite Fines’, ‘Dunite Fines’, ‘Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag Powder’ and ‘Magnesite Fines’.
- Addition of Group C cargo schedules for ‘Brown Fused Alumina’, ‘Dunite’, ‘Potassium Nitrate’, ‘Sodium Nitrate’ and ‘Sodium Nitrate and Potassium Nitrate Mixture’.
