Containers

Instructions from the Administration of Panama regarding IMO MSC.1/Circ. 1352/Rev.1 Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing – CSS Code Annex 14 – were announced in ClassNK Technical Information No. TEC-1097 dated 28 December 2016. The Administration has updated MERCHANT MARINE CIRCULAR MMC-340, including their additional guidance on the application of relevant requirements to existing containerships, as attached.

This Technical Information supersedes the previous ClassNK Technical Information No.TEC-1097 dated 28 December 2016.

Continue reading “Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing – CSS Code – updated by Panama Maritime Authority”

From July 1, 2016, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) will implement changes to container weight regulation verifications in the shipping industry, requiring shippers to provide a verified gross mass (VGM) for containers. These changes reflect amendments to the International Safety of Life at Sea Convention, approved by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). To implement the new international requirements, AMSA has amended Marine Order 42 (Cargo, stowage and securing).

Under the changes, the shipper is required to provide a signed VGM to the terminal and the master of a vessel or their representative, in advance of a container being loaded. Providing a VGM for a container allows the master of a vessel to plan ship loading, so that the ship is stable, hull strength and stack weights are not exceeded and lashing arrangements are effective.

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An MSC circular on Advice to Administrations, port State control authorities, companies, port terminals and masters regarding the SOLAS requirements for verified gross mass of packed containers has been agreed by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), following discussion on the pending entry into force of the requirements in SOLAS regulations VI/2.4 to VI/2/6 on the verification of the gross mass of packed containers on 1 July 2016.

Concerns were noted with regards to the application of the requirements to a container which was loaded before 1 July 2016 and then transhipped. The Committee, meeting for its 96th session (11-20 May), also noted delegations’ comments that, in the first few months after 1 July 2016, some leeway should be provided in order for any problems resulting from software updates, required for the electronic collection and transmittal of verified gross mass data, to be rectified without causing delays to containers being loaded.

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According to UK P&I Club, some terminals and shippers are not prepared for the enforcement of the SOLAS on 1st July that will see all packed containers mandatorily weighed before loading. The Club notes that without steps to address the requirements of the SOLAS amendment, it is likely that chaos and commercial disputes could ensue. Furthermore, UK P&I Club warns that a failure to comply will result in fines, delays and potential loss of business for carriers.

The SOLAS amendment coming into force on 1st July 2016 requires, as a condition for loading a packed container onto a ship for export, that the container has a verified gross mass (‘VGM’). As from 1st July 2016, it will become a violation of SOLAS to load a packed container onto a ship if the ship operator and marine terminal operator do not have the VGM of the container. All 163 Signatory States to SOLAS will need to implement this SOLAS amendment through their national legislation.

Continue reading “Further warning issued about limited preparation ahead of container weighing from 1 July 2016”

The second round of the FONASBA survey on the status of implementation of the amendments to SOLAS VI.2 shows that with just three months to go before the 1st July 2016 deadline, the situation varies widely across more than 50 countries represented in FONASBA membership. The results of the survey, covering a wide range of topics from the nomination of the “designated authority” to how trans-shipment containers and those shipped under FOB sales will be treated, are available from the FONASBA website. For ease of reference, the extensive, detailed and comprehensive full report, listing the information provided by each individual country, is complemented by a consolidated Executive Summary.

Of particular concern at this late stage is that eighteen associations have advised that no guidance has been issued on the practical application of the measures in the country concerned. This situation has been exacerbated by the failure, until very recently in some cases, of governments to nominate the designated authority.

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IMO Senior Deputy Director for Marine Technology and Cargoes, Maritime Safety Division, Joseph Westwood-Booth, recently told an audience at the ICHCA conference in Barcelona that he wanted to make it “perfectly clear” that there would be “no delays” to the SOLAS amendment on container weighing.

The beginning of March, 2016 has brought significant ambiguity to the container weighing debate, with US Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Thomas telling the TPM Conference that he believes the impending SOLAS guidelines on container weight verification “are not mandatory”.

Following this, the Global Consolidators Working Group wrote a letter to the IMO stating that the weighing rule is “too vague” to implement.

Continue reading “IMO publicly asserts: No going back on container weighing”