Tag: IMO

IMO has agreed to include the cubic capacity correction factor A reprieve for chemical tanker operators came with the news that the IMO's MEPC has agreed to include the cubic capacity correction factor proposed by IPTA in the EEDI formula.IPTA general manager Janet Strode said that this was an important inclusion within the EEDI that would allow low density cargoes, such as methanol and MTBE, to continue to be loaded as close to deadweight as possible.The MEPC said; "The (working) group agreed to integrate the correction factor into the EEDI calculation guidelines, and doing so would enhance credibility and confidence in the EEDI formula. However, the group considered that the correction factor presented in document MEPC 62/6/13 would require fine tuning."This fine tuning is due to take place at an intersessional working group meeting due to be held next January, 2012.Addressing propulsion and manoeuvrability in bad weather, the working group said; "The group noted that the guidelines for determining minimum propulsion power and speed to enable safe manoeuvring in adverse weather conditions should be developed in a relatively short time, since the guidelines are referred to in the regulatory framework of the EEDI as being voluntary."The committee summed up by ...

S pecial edition of Standard Safety explaines legislation re ECDIS The Standard Steamship P&I Club issues the Standard Safety - Understanding the future of navigation special eddition.This special edition of Standard Safety aims to explain the new legislation relating to Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS)In response to the increasing development and use of ECDIS, theInternational Maritime Organisation (IMO) has made amendments tothe International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea Convention(SOLAS) and the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) code to incorporate new requirements for the mandatory carriage of ECDIS under SOLAS (for ships engaged on international voyages only) and, as a complement, mandatory ECDIS training as required under the Manila amendments to the STCW code.To view more information, click here.Source: The Standard Steamship P&I Club

By the West of England P&I Club The West of England P&I Club issues New Guidelines for the Carriage of Bulk Blends of Petroleum Oil and Bio-Fuels as follows:The IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee has recently approved the "2011 Guidelines for the Carriage of Blends of Petroleum Oil and Bio-Fuels". The new guidelines, contained in the Annex to MEPC.1/Circ.761, are effective from 1 September 2011, when they will replace the existing interim guidelines.The carriage provisions are based on the volumetric composition of the bio-fuel blend; products containing 75% or more petroleum oil are to be carried in accordance with the requirements of MARPOL Annex I, products containing more than 1% but less than 75% petroleum oil are to be carried in accordance with the requirements of MARPOL Annex II and the conditions detailed in the guidelines. Products containing 1% or less petroleum oil are to be carried under the requirements of MARPOL Annex II.Physical blending of petroleum oil and bio-fuel resulting in a single product must only be carried out whilst the vessel is within port limits. Prior to any such operation it is important that detailed instructions of exactly how such blending is to take place are obtained from ...

The question is what flash point limit represents an acceptable safety risk on board ships The international shipping organisation BIMCO and the shipping giant Maersk have suggested that the time has come to review the regulatory minimum flash point limit for marine fuels, in particular for marine distillates.The International Maritime Organization (IMO) SOLAS regulation requires that fuel used on board ships shall have a flash point of not less than 60C. This is also stated as the minimum flash point limit for marine fuels in ISO 8217, the global fuel standard from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).Flashpoint refers to the lowest temperature at which a fuel can vaporise to form an ignitable mixture in air. Lowering the flash point for marine distillates from 60C to 55C would bring it into line with the limit for inland distillate fuels in Europe and potentially open up a wider supply basis for the marine fuels market.Demand for low sulphur marine gas oil (MGO) has been growing due to European Union (EU) requirements for ships at berth to use fuels with maximum 0.1% sulphur content. Demand for this fuel is expected to surge when the sulphur limit in Emission Control Areas (ECAs) falls ...

The convention will enter into force 12 months after ratification by 10 states IntroductionOn May 18 2007 the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) adopted the Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks. The convention fills a gap in the existing international legal framework by providing the first set of uniform international rules aimed at ensuring the prompt and effective removal of wrecked ships.Owners will now be required to take out compulsory liability insurance and strict liability will be imposed on an owner for the costs of locating, marking and removing a wreck. Authorities will also be permitted to commence direct action against an owner's liability insurer. Several countries are currently considering ratification of the convention.The convention is the latest in a series of liability and compensation conventions emanating from the IMO and modelled on the Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage 1992.Scope of application The geographical area of application of the convention is the exclusive economic zone of any state where the state has only limited legislative and enforcement jurisdiction.States may order the removal of wrecks from their exclusive economic zone only if there is specific legal basis under applicable public international law, such as the United Nations ...

On September 29 The IMO launched its Action Plan to promote the 2011 World Maritime Day theme "Piracy: orchestrating the response".The five objectives in promotion of this theme consist of:(1) securing the release of hostages;(2) strengthening the protection of persons, ship, and cargoes;(3) ensuring compliance with adopted measures;(4) promoting cooperation among stakeholders; and(5) building capacity in the affected States.World Maritime Day events are being held worldwide to further this theme.One of the two US observances of this initiative will be the Western Gulf Observance to be held in Port Arthur on September 29.For more information, click here.

Any discharge is prohibited unless the ship uses an approved sewage treatment plant - The Baltic Sea Action Plan milestone makes Baltic the first sea in the world designated by IMO as a Special Area for sewage discharges;- all HELCOM countries active in backing up the proposal;- regulations adopted in record time in July 2011The HELCOM Maritime Group proposal to ban all sewage discharge from passenger ships in the Baltic Sea was adopted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on 15 July 2011. Any such discharge will be prohibited unless the ship uses an approved sewage treatment plant capable of sufficiently reducing nutrients, or delivers untreated sewage to a port reception facility. The elaborate process of reaching the agreement between the Baltic Sea countries, developing the proposal and negotiating it in IMO took less than four years."This achievement is part of the Baltic Sea Action Plan (2007-2021) and I am proud to say that all the nine HELCOM countries were active in backing up the joint stand in IMO. The Baltic is now the first sea in the world designated by IMO as a Special Area for sewage discharges under the international shipping law", says Jorma Kämäräinen from the Finnish ...

Big ferry firms fund EU and IMO lobbying post Global ferry operators' association Interferry is opening a Brussels office with a full-time specialist for European Union and IMO activities. It says the move is a bid to boost the ferry industry's voice on maritime policy and regulations. Interferry has had consultative status at IMO since 2003.Five major European members of the worldwide trade association - Brittany Ferries, DFDS, Grimaldi Group, P&O Ferries and Stena Line - have guaranteed start-up funding for the initiative.Johan Roos, director of sustainability at Sweden's Stena group since 2006, will join Interferry as executive director of EU and IMO affairs in September, working from an office within the Brussels HQ of the European Community Shipowners' Association (ECSA).Interferry's Canada-based CEO Len Roueche says: "This is a landmark in our 36-year history and takes us to a new level in raising our influence on the industry's global governance. We need real input on safety and environmental issues to avoid having potentially ruinous decisions dumped on us. "He adds: "We have had some lobbying successes - such as changes to the High Speed Craft Code - through our IMO consultative status and as members of BIMCO and the International ...

BWM.2/Circ.33 Please find here below the following useful informationGuidance on scaling of ballast water management systems

BWM.2/Circ.32 Please find here below the following useful informationApplicability of the Ballast Water Management Convention to hopper dredgers