Currents…..

Currents……

BALLAST HOLD-UP: Concern has been voiced over a move by a group of flag states, including the UK, to seek to delay the implementation of the 2004 Ballast Water Management Convention. The proposal from Brazil, the Cook Islands, India, Norway, Liberia and the UK, would delay the requirement for existing ships to retrofit a BWM system by two years, to 8 September 2019. This would extend the date by which all vessels would have to have a system installed from 2022 to 2024.

CHINA CALL: ship owners and seafarers need to beware of increasingly strict emission limits being introduced in key Chinese ports, Warsash Maritime Academy lecturer Branimir Pantaleev told a conference in Southampton last month. He said China has designated three emission control areas in which ships will have to use fuel containing no more than 0.5% sulphur and there will be ‘significant fines’ for seafarers who fail to comply with the rules. Mr Pantaleev said the China Maritime Safety Agency is also seeking to encourage ships to use fuel with a 0.1% sulphur content limit when at berth and is considering further regulations to enforce this on all ships entering its ECAs.

JOBS PROMISE: increased government support for seafarer training will enable British ship owners to take on ‘at least an extra 1,200 new seafarers each year, perhaps more’, Chamber of Shipping president Dr Grahaeme Henderson promised last month. ‘Many ship owners want UK seafarers and many young people want a career at sea, but the cost of training has become prohibitive to job creation,’ he told a meeting in Edinburgh. In return for improved government assistance, operators will also guarantee cadets their first job as an officer, he added.

SWISS LEADER: Peter Küng, the former national president of the Swiss Commercial, Transport and Food Workers’ Union (VHTL/FCTA) died in May at the age of 77. He was appointed as a national secretary by the VHTL/ FCTA in 1973, and after only two years in office he was elected unanimously as national president, a position he held until 1995, after which he served a further three years as national secretary for the transport sector.

DUMPING FINE: The Egyptian Tanker Co and Thome Ship Management have agreed to pay a US$1.9m fine after pleading guilty to breaking pollution prevention laws and obstructing justice. The US Justice Department said the two companies had sought to cover up illegal dumping of oil-contaminated bilge water and garbage from the tanker ETC Mena last year.

QM2 RESCUE: The Cunard liner Queen Mary 2 rescued a lone yachtsman after his boat was severely damaged in an ‘unusually extreme’ North Atlantic storm last month. In an operation coordinated by coastguards in the UK and Canada, the cruise ship launched a fast rescue craft to recover Mervyn Wheatley after his yacht lost power and steering in 60-knot winds.

LIVERPOOL LANDING: The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company is investing £540,000 to extend the lifespan of a landing stage in Liverpool to ensure its fast craft can continue to operate to the Princes Parade site until the end of 2019, when a new berth will be required.

MERSEY TRAINING: Stream Marine has announced plans to open a new maritime and off shore training facility to serve the UK NW region. The £1.5m centre will be based at Tower Quays, with a new fire training ground to be sited in Duke Street.

GROUNDING PROBE: The Marine Accident Investigation Branch has begun a probe into the causes of the grounding of the UK-flagged bulk carrier Ocean Prefect while entering the port Umm Al Quwain, in the United Arab Emirates, last month.

PILOT FEARS: The French marine pilots’ organisation FFPM has voiced alarm after new figures revealed that their numbers have fallen to the lowest level for many years. The FFPM annual meeting was told that the number of French pilots dropped to 331 last year, from 345 in 2010 and 365 in 2000. Although the latest figure is considered as the bottom line for a 24/7 public service, recruitment is taking place in Dunkirk and the French Indian Ocean island of La Réunion and there are exchange agreements between the country’s regions.

DUBAI AID: Dubai is planning to launch a US$1bn shipping investment fund to provide state aid to local owners. The Dubai Maritime City Authority is leading the project that will provide support for building new ships, sale and purchase deals, and mergers. Dubai has recorded huge growth as a maritime hub, but few local banks provide finance for shipping.

TRAFIGURA ORDER: The Trafigura Group has ordered up to 32 new crude oil and product tankers with a potential value in excess of $1.35bn. To be built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in Korea and New Times Shipbuilding in China, the vessels are due to be delivered between the end of 2018 and late 2019.

FUMES CUT: The Maritime Union of New Zealand has welcomed the Port of Auckland’s decision to stop releasing methyl bromide emissions into the air. The move to recapture the toxic gas after the fumigation of timber cargoes sets a new benchmark for industry best practice, the union said.

HAPAG CUTS: German shipping company Hapag- Lloyd has revealed plans to cut up to 12% of its shorebased workforce after completing its merger with UASC last month. The company said the cuts would be made over the next two years, but its 2,100 seafaring jobs would not be affected.

DRILLING ALARM: Sardinia and Corsica have expressed concern at Norway’s request to Italy to prospect for oil off the islands’ coasts. They have called on the French and Italian governments to institute a total ban on all oil exploration and production in the Mediterranean.

SOVCOMFLOT SALE: Russia is planning to sell part of the state-owned shipping firm Sovcomflot in the next few months. The company operates the world’s second largest fleet of oil tankers and the government is seeking to attract a wide range of small investors.

VTS BOOST: Indonesia is to open a second vessel traffic system (VTS) for the Malacca Straits, thanks to a US$12.9m grant from Japan. The new system, to be built in Dumai, Riau, follows the launch of its first VTS in Batam in April this year.

SMUGGLERS JAILED: The Marseilles criminal court has sentenced 34 people who were found guilty of smuggling drugs from South America to France on Costa cruise ships to up to 13 years in prison.

CMA CONCERN: unions representing seafarers serving with CMA CGM, the world’s third-largest container line, have expressed concern at the company’s plans to cut costs by US$1bn over the next 18 months. They fear that while the company has announced proposals to increase the number of officers on its ships, this may be to the detriment of jobs for lower grade seafarers. CMA CGM says it is expecting to benefit from the integration of the Singapore-based operator NOL, which it took over last year in a $2.4bn deal.

CADET PROTEST: cadets studying at the French merchant navy academy, ENSM, have protested after being asked to pay for the renewal of certain certificates in line with the STCW Manila amendments. They complain that they are faced with costs of €1,300 plus transport and living expenses for the necessary refresher training. The Academy says cadets in financial difficulties can apply for social grants.

SEAFARERS ARRESTED: four crew from the Bahamas-flagged bulk carrier St Gregory were arrested after the ship ran aground on a Greek beach last month. The seafarers were accused of negligence and putting lives in danger after the 32,688dwt ship went aground on Kokkala beach in the SE Peloponnese while sailing between Turkey and Tunisia with a cargo of sulphur.

BRITTANY DEAL: French operator Brittany Ferries and the UK port of Portsmouth have signed a 10-year cooperation agreement with a commitment to strengthen ties as the UK prepares to leave the EU, whatever the details of the final Brexit deal may be. In 2016, the port’s passenger numbers grew for the fourth consecutive year, providing Brittany Ferries with its best performance in a decade.

DRINK CHARGES: Danish police have arrested the 53-year-old Russian captain and the first mate of the 3,254dwt Isle of Man-registered general cargoship Norrvik and charged them with being drunk whilst sailing and grounding the vessel. The police reported that the rest of the crew was foreign, but declined to release details of their nationality.

CARRIERS UNITE: Japan’s ‘big three’ container shipping firms, K Line, MOL and NYK, have revealed details of their plan to create a joint venture, under the trade name Ocean Network Express. Set to launch next April, the holding company will be based in Japan and an operating company incorporated in Singapore.

TANKER MERGER: Monaco-based Scorpio Tankers is to merge with Navig8 Product Tankers to create one the world’s largest product tanker owning companies, with an operating fleet that will consist of 105 owned or finance-leased tankers and 19 chartered-in tankers.

BRAZILIAN BUY: The French containership operator CMA CGM is set to buy the Brazilian shipping firm Mercosul Line from Maersk. The proposed deal for the four-ship fleet is conditional on Brazilian regulatory approval for Maersk’s acquisition of Hamburg Sud.

MLC ‘is being properly applied’

European port state control authorities have expressed satisfaction with the results of a three-month concentrated inspection campaign targeting compliance with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC).

A total of 3,674 special checks were carried out in Paris MOU member ports between 1 September and 30 November last year and they resulted in 42 detentions directly linked to MLC requirements for living and working conditions. Authorities reported positive results for medical fitness certificates (98.2%), the verification of records of accommodation inspections (98%), food and catering (97.4%), and whether a safety committee had been established (99.1%).

Less positive results were recorded on Seafarers’ Employment Agreements (SEAs) not being compliant with minimum standards (6.5%) and the availability of the on board complaint procedure (5%).

Paris MOU officials said the results showed that the convention is being properly implemented. ‘Good working and living conditions on board will contribute to create a positive crew attitude towards safety on board. That is why the MLC will always be a prime area of attention. The Paris MoU is satisfied with the overall result,’ secretary-general Richard Schiferli commented.

Most of the vessels inspected during the CIC were general cargo/multi-purpose ships (28.9%) and bulk carriers (21.5%). Almost 12% were flying the Panama flag, followed by Malta (8.9%) and Liberia (8.5%).

The next concentrated inspection campaign will focus on compliance with navigational safety requirements, including electronic chart display information systems (ECDIS), and will be carried out jointly by the Paris and Tokyo MOUs between September and the end of November this year.

(With thanks to the Nautilus Telegraph:  https://www.nautilusint.org)