Namnlöst-1 - Swedish Club · Salvage Selendang Ayu - Bad weather delayed the salvage operation 4...

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

2 32 3

The Swedish Club is a mutual marine insurance

company, owned and controlled by its mem-

bers. The Club writes Hull & Machinery, War risks,

Protection & Indemnity, Loss of Hire, Freight

Demurrage & Defence insurance and any

additional insurance required by shipowners.

Leading article On everyone’s lips… 3 Salvage Selendang Ayu - Bad weather delayed the salvage operation 4 Club Information News from Asia 5 News from Piraeus 6 Change of general P&I correspondents in the US and Canada 6 Organisational changes 6 FD&D What is the Freight, Demurrage & Defence insurance really about? 7 SCOL SCOL P&I records 8 Loss Prevention Fire prevention 10 Get to know your gear! 11 Crew Criminalisation of seafarers – will this contribute to improving the safety and environment at sea, or could it in fact be counterproductive? 12 The law on termination of Filipino seafarers 16 Member Portrait Norgas: A progressive force in the global gas trades 18 Club Correspondent A correspondent at a glance: Agenzia Marittima Prosper 20 Club Information Updated List of Correspondents now available on our website 21 MRM Broader view of MRM 22 Club Information 25 years with The Swedish Club 23 New Members 23 The Scandinavian Shipping Gazette Review 24 Club Information Club Evening 26 Staff News 27 Public Holidays 27 Club Calendar 28

ContentThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

www.swedishclub.com

Head Office Sweden

Gullbergs Strandgata 6, P.O. Box 171

SE-401 22 Göteborg, Sweden

Tel +46 31 638 400

Fax +46 31 156 711

E-mail [email protected]

Emergency tel +46 31 151 328

Hong Kong

Suite 6306, Central Plaza

18 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong

Tel +852 2598 6238

Fax +852 2845 9203


Emergency tel +852 2598 6464

Greece

5-7, Agiou Nicolaou

GR-185 37 Piraeus, Greece

Tel +30 210 452 2397

Fax +30 210 452 5957


Emergency tel +30 6944 530 856

Japan

Suzuyo Hamamatsucho Building 5F.

2-1-16 Kaigan, Minato-Ku, Tokyo 105-0022, Japan

Tel +81 3 5442 5466 (24 hour tel)

Fax +81 3 5442 5922


2 32 3

The 20th of February is now behind us and the P&I renewals have been completed. About a year ago we set, what we then thought was a pretty ambitious target; namely a 25 per cent increase in our P&I book within four years. This doesn’t seem very difficult when just looking at the numbers, however being aware of the slow moving character of the business increases the awareness of the actual dif-ficulty of this task! At the time of setting the target and as I stated at the 2004 Annual General Meeting, we shall focus on the P&I business to a much larger ex-tent than before. And things are starting to happen! There haven’t been any dramatic events, but the fact is, our P&I book grew from 14.6m GT in February 2004, to 17.1m GT in February 2005. A dozen or so new members have joined our Club, and we are confident that as time goes by, these new members will experience a growing appreciation of what good sense it was to join our Club.

In our drive to attract new members, we have maintained our steadfast and uncompromising demand for high quality in both ship and shore organisations.

That leads me in to the topic of sub-standard shipping. This phenomenon is on everybody’s lips these days, and all agree that something has to be done. It’s easy to say, with the benefit of hind-sight, that those vessels appearing in the high profile accidents off the Spanish and the French coasts a couple of years ago, should never have been insured and should never have been allowed to ply the seas. But the vessels had passed class and met the requirements of their respective flag states. So, where does the responsibility lie? We leave that question to be answered by others, and go on to reiterate that we, and the other members of the International Group of P&I clubs are committed to safety at sea, and to maintaining quality among our members.

We must never lose sight of the fact that we are a mutual in-surance association, in which our members are both insurers and insureds, and since the clubs pool risks in excess of USD 6 million, it is quite natural that we are concerned that not only we, but also our colleagues in the International Group are aware of the standard of members and their vessels.

The accidents mentioned above led to a number of activities in the field of maritime security. One of them was the recently pub-lished OECD study on how insurance companies can participate in the improvement of vessel standards.

As far as The Swedish Club is concerned, we take great pride in

the quality of our members. We do not aspire to be the largest club, but we do aspire to be the best. Before prospective members are admitted to our Club, they are scrutinised (applying the principles of our risk assessment program), so that unpleasant surprises are avoided as much as possible.

While an owner may look suitable at the outset, it is quite possible that things change for the worse for reasons not immediately known to us. We raise our eyebrows when a ship changes classification so-

cieties, particularly from an IACS to a non-IACS society. Alarm bells also start ringing when Port State Control includes one of

“our” ships on its detention list. With the International Group covering 95 per cent or more of the

world’s merchant marine fleet, the OECD report calls for the mem-ber clubs to take joint measures to eliminate sub-standard shipping. The Group will indeed make a number of proposals to facilitate the process of identifying non-insurable vessels. Items which will be considered include the sharing of information, the scope of surveys, penalties if sub-standard ships are knowingly underwritten as well as management audits and vetting.

All of it sounds pretty straightforward and some of it is already being done, at least in The Swedish Club. There are, however, some legalities, which must not be ignored. Clubs have been advised that if exchanges of information result in no club providing coverage, thus jeopardising the owner’s trading prospects, clubs could risk being accused of a breach of competition law, based on “abuse of dominant position”. States in which the law has the above men-tioned effect will obviously have to be persuaded to apply appropri-ate exceptions so that the desired results can be achieved.

The Swedish Club, in conjunction with the International Group, will continue its efforts to rid the oceans of unworthy vessels. Our labours, however, will mean nothing unless flag states, port states and classification societies do not share the same ambition.

On everyone’s lips…

COVER PHOTO: THE SWEDISH CLUB

The Swedish Club Letter is published twice a

year and distributed free of charge to vessels

insured with us and to our members.

The Swedish Club Letter is an editorially inde-

pendent newsletter and opinions expressed by

external contributors are not necessarily those of

The Swedish Club. Articles herein are not in-

tended to provide legal advice and the Club does

not accept responsibility for errors or omissions

or their consequences. For further information

regarding any issue raised herein, please contact

our head office in Göteborg.

Editorial Advisory Board Susanne Blomstrand, Birgitta Hed,

Claes Lindh, Lars Malm, Frans Malmros, Tord Nilsson, Clas Rydén,

Peter Stålberg

Production co-ordinator Susanne Blomstrand

PR-consultant TRS Public Relations Ltd.

Layout Eliasson Information, Göteborg

Print PR Offset, Mölndal

© The Swedish Club. Articles or extracts may be quoted provided that The Swedish Club is credited as the source.

0505PR4800B

Leading ArticleThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

Frans Malmros Managing Director

4 54 5

SalvageThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

4 5

■ ■ During the first week of December 2004, the 70,000 ton DW bulk carrier SELENDANG AYU left Seattle with a full cargo of soya beans bound for China. The ship proceeded on a great circle course north of the Aleutian Islands.

When the ship was north of Unalaska Island, she suffered a main engine breakdown and started drifting south. Two tugboats were dis-patched from Dutch Harbor. The first tug managed to establish a tow-ing connection and tried to arrest the ship’s drift. The weather was bad with gale force winds and rough seas.

After a few hours’ towing, the tow line parted. None of the tugs managed to reconnect before the disabled ship had drifted into shallow waters near Unalaska Island. The crew managed to temporarily stop the drift using the ship’s anchors. A US Coastguard cutter and two US Coastguard helicopters were standing by.

When the anchors were holding and the vessel rode up against the swell, the violent rolling stopped and the engine room crew was able to resume working on the main engine. Eventually, the anchors gave way and the ship drifted aground.

One of the Coastguard helicopters started evacuating the crew over to the Coastguard cutter. Towards the end of the evacuation while the helicopter had seven crew members on board, a violent wave struck the ship’s bow and water splashed into the helicopter’s air intakes causing the helicopter to crash into the sea. The other Coastguard helicopter man-aged to rescue the helicopter crew plus one of the ship’s crew, however, six men tragically lost their lives.

Soon after the grounding, the ship broke in two at cargo hold number four, and the ship’s engine room was flooded.

The ship was carrying approximately 1,500 tons of heavy fuel oil and about 70 tons of marine diesel oil prior to the grounding. The majority of the heavy fuel oil was stored in double bottom centre tanks.

SELENDANG AYU

Bad weatherdelayedthe salvageoperation

PHOTO: UNIFIED COMMAND

PHOTO: UNIFIED COMMAND

SA

LVAGE

RE VIEW

Captain Lars LandeliusSalvage Manager

4 54 54 5

SELENDANG AYU

The world leading salvors soon arrived and they were asked to submit offers for removing the remaining oil from the wreck. After negotiations with three different salvage consortia, a contract was signed with Smit Salvage. Their salvage plan was based on using the latest pump technol-ogy enabling pump transfer of bunker C in winter conditions without pre-heating. They also based their salvage plan on using a heavy lift helicopter to ferry oil containers of about ten tons capacity from the wreck and ashore. This was done to avoid being dependent upon craft at the weather exposed site at which the wreck had grounded.

On January 3rd, after mobilising all equipment, personnel and heli-copters, and all equipment had been landed on board, with all neces-sary preparatory work being carried out, the oil removal operation was commenced.

On February 11th, the removal of oil from the wreck was concluded. In total, some 555 cubic metres of heavy fuel oil, marine diesel and various lubricants were removed from the aft section of the wreck. This constituted all recoverable oil from the wreck. The operation was con-ducted in a highly professional manner and much to the satisfaction of the Club as well as the local authorities. The forward section of the wreck sank during the course of the operation.

During the operation the work was down approximately 50 per cent of the time due to bad weather.

At the initial break up, all oil contained in the double bottom fuel oil tank No 2 was spilled. During the following weeks, the wreck con-tinued to deteriorate causing the oil contained in double bottom tanks I and III to spill.

In the next issue of The Swedish Club Letter there will be an article dealing with the aspects of the pollution clean-up response of this claim.

■

■ ■ The renewals for P&I, FD&D and H&M have been concluded and we have done quite well. Premiums are up moderately, and the size of the Asian fleet has grown substan-tially.

After five years in Hong Kong, I will be back in Sweden when this issue of The Swedish Club Letter is distributed. It has been a fabulous five years, and Hong Kong will always be a very special place to me – I met my wife there, and two of our kids were born in Hong Kong (our third will be born in Sweden in July).

I was able to work with a group of very nice people. The staff in the Hong Kong and Japan offices are extremely dedi-cated people who provide our members with great service 24 hours a day if needed. I thank them all for making my job very easy and for all the support they have given me.

I would also like to thank our members in Asia for treating me so well and showing such loyalty to the Club. Our business in Asia has grown a lot during the last five years especially on P&I thanks to old and new members putting their faith in us. The future for the Club looks very promising. We feel very strong, and are confident about where we are heading.

We have had good support from brokers who know that placing business with the Club is like buying “sleep-good insurance”. If a casualty occurs, we will be there, actively as-sisting owners and solving their problems.

There are many people in the business who I would like to thank for making my years in Hong Kong memorable but space is limited; so I have to thank you all at the same time. Thanks!

I would like to wish Ruizong Wang good luck as the new Area Manager/Managing Director for Asia, and also welcome Kjell Augustsson as the new Deputy Managing Director for Asia. I am sure both Ruizong and Kjell will do a good job and continue to develop our Asian portfolio.

In Sweden I will be heading Team Göteborg I. I really look forward to going back to Sweden to work with new markets, and a good team of people in the head office.

■

Tord NilssonManaging Director

The Swedish Club Hong Kong Ltd.

Newsfrom

Asia

The Swedish Club Letter 1–2005 News from AsiaSalvage

Leaving Asia

6 76 7

Club InformationThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005 News from Piraeus

6 7

Change of General P&I Correspondents in the US and Canada February 20th 2005■■ As already advised in our Member Alert dated Febru-ary 11th 2005, quoted below, we have appointed new general P&I correspondents for the US and Canada. For several decades, Shipowners Claims Bureau (SCB) recently re-named Atlantic Marine Associates (AMA) have been our P&I correspondents. They have provided excellent service to members and the Club throughout the years but, with AMA being the claims handling arm of The American Club, we felt it was appropriate to appoint new, independent cor-respondents for the Club. We are confident that Independent Maritime Consulting Ltd (IMC) are more than capable of protecting members’ and the Club’s interests in this impor-tant market.

■

■■ Please be advised that, effective February 20th 2005, In-dependent Maritime Consulting Ltd will act as our general US and Canadian correspondent for both H&M and P&I.

IMC has served as our general US and Canadian H&M correspondent for several years. Full details of the organi-sation, which was featured in our recent newsletter (The Swedish Club Letter 2/2004), can be found on their website at www.independentmaritime.com

Response to P&I and H&M matters arising in the US and Canada will be coordinated from IMC’s head office in Connecticut, headed by David Smith. The team will include Carl Cederstav as well as Don Messick, the latter formerly employed by Atlantic Marine Associates in New York.

In accordance with normal practice, members are advised to contact the Club for assistance in the event of P&I and Hull cases in the US and Canada. In urgent matters, IMC’s head office can be contacted directly. The general office number (+1 203 256 1000) also serves as the emergency after hours telephone number. Further, you will find cell (mobile) phone and home numbers on IMC’s website and in our 2005 List of Correspondents.

We are confident that this new arrangement will prove to be beneficial to our members and that you will enjoy the services of Independent Maritime Consulting Ltd in finding cost-effective solutions to P&I and H&M problems.

Should you wish to obtain additional information in relation to this new arrangement, please contact Anders Holmberg in our Göteborg office (+46 31 638 451).

■

ber Alert Member Alert Member Alert Member

Newsfrom

Piraeus

■ ■ It was in the late seventies when The Swedish Club decided that it should go from being just a provider of P&I and H&M Insurance for Swed-ish shipowners, and move into the international market.

This decision resulted in opening an office in Piraeus in 1980. Management believed that Greece would be a good prospective market for the Club, and that decision has proven to be right. Since then, we have had very positive development of our Greek portfolio.

For the last ten years, the Piraeus office has been a service centre to our Greek and Middle Eastern members. Since then, a large number of P&I clubs that underwrite Greek business are now represented in Piraeus.

Upon writing this article, renewals have been successfully con-cluded, and the results have shown that our marketing efforts in the Middle East have paid off with new members joining the Club. We have also obtained new members from Greece which is very pleasing. I must add that the assistance of existing members has helped us to achieve this. The tightly-knit shipping community is something we benefit from.

Two events which are not so close to each other this year are the Orthodox and Catholic Easter. Coinciding with the Catholic Good Friday is Greece’s Independence Day. This day is of huge importance in Greece as it marks the beginning of the end of occupation by the Ottoman Empire. ■

Clas RydénGeneral Manager

The Swedish Club Greece

25 years in Greece!

Organisational changes■■ The Club’s Loss Prevention Department and PR Department have been reorganised. This reorganisation went into effect on January 1st 2005.

Peter Stålberg has been appointed Director Technical & Loss Prevention and is now heading the Club’s loss prevention activities together with Loss Prevention Project Co-ordinators Anders Hult-man and Anna-Karin Lönnstad. “Expect to hear a lot from us in the future” says Peter.

Captain Claes Lindh, Director Underwriting, has re-assumed responsibilities for the Club’s PR and communication activities. Claes is supported by Susanne Blomstrand (PR Co-ordinator), Martin Eriks-son (AD/Web Developer), Annelie Fellbom (PR Assistant) and Petra Setterberg (Graphic Designer).

Martin Hernqvist has assumed a new position as Manager, Mari-time Resource Management (MRM). In this context, Martin will put increased focus on the Club’s growing activities in Maritime Resource Management training.

■

6 76 7

WHAT IS THE Freight, Demurrage & Defence

INSURANCEREALLY ABOUT?

The Swedish Club Letter 1–2005 Freight, Demurrage & Defence

6 7

■ ■ It may be common knowledge to most readers that the Club was originally founded as a hull insurer in 1872. About 40 years later, the first P&I risk was underwritten. Today, the Club covers about 1,300 vessels for Hull & Machinery (H&M) risks, and 700 vessels for Protection & Indemnity (P&I) risks. However, it may be news to some of you that the Club has 345 vessels entered for Freight, Demurrage & Defence insurance (FD&D) which is showing unparallel growth in light of this class of insurance was not introduced until 1984. The Club would like to take this opportunity to point out the benefits of this type of insurance, and also mention something about its characteristics which are quite different from traditional marine insurances such as P&I and H&M.

FD&D is a legal cost insur-ance that covers costs incurred in the handling of a wide range of disputes which arise from build-ing, buying, selling, owning and the operation of a vessel. In ad-dition, there is a great deal of added value to the insured since he will have access to immediate legal advice whenever the need arises. For instance, the Club’s FD&D lawyers frequently advise on the proper structuring of charterparty clauses before they are inserted in order to minimise the risk for future un-pleasant surprises and disputes.

The Club does not generally provide FD&D on a stand alone basis as it is primarily intended to supplement the cover-age provided under the Club’s other classes of insurance. This is in line with the Club’s total service concept. One can think of a situation in which a time charterer supplies sub-standard bunkers that cause damages to the vessel’s engines. These dam-ages will be dealt with by the H&M insurer. However, there will most likely be other type of losses, such as time losses, that will fall outside H&M cover. The FD&D insurer will provide legal support to assist the member in dealing with these losses and, if appropriate, pursue the wrong-doer for an indemnity. Having only one Club involved in these types of situations will ensure efficient casualty management where all the insured’s interests can be protected in the best possible way.

From a broader perspective, the FD&D insurance will as-sist the shipowner or operator in managing his risks. Whilst P&I and H&M facilitate the insured’s trading activities by protecting his assets and indemnifying him against the liabili-ties he incurs operating his vessels, it is the FD&D insurance which protects, and hence by definition, defends the owners’ income or the capital ventures he undertakes. Most shipowners or charterers contract their vessels by demise, time or voyage charters; all with the express purpose of earning income, capi-tal and profit which serves to provide them with the financial lifeline required to operate the vessel. If there is an FD&D in-surance in place, the insured can be sure he can budget properly, and assess his income, capital expenses for his operation and continue to trade his ships secure in the knowledge that if any

such legal disputes arise, which is a risk covered by FD&D, he then can rely upon the expertise of the FD&D team to provide assistance.

In contrast to the H&M and P&I insurance, in which the coverage is limited to the insured value and the insured’s legal liability respectively, there is no fixed formula for calculating the Club’s risk under a FD&D policy although the maximum limit for cover is USD 5 million. So, how is the risk managed from the Club’s perspective? After all, the average FD&D premium is about USD 10,000 which is a fraction of what the legal costs can be for a complex dispute. One part of the answer is that the Club endeavours to do as much work as possible in-house in order to keep the costs down. Ultimately,

however, it is necessary for the Club, as any mutual FD&D insurer, to provide cover on a discretional basis in order to ensure that the Club’s and the members’ funds are properly

used. For instance, it may be difficult to justify large scale support when the merits of the claim are weak or the size of the claim is small. Likewise, it will be unproductive to spend vast amounts pursuing a claim if the opponent does not have any assets against which a judgement or award can be enforced. That would simply be throwing good money after bad.

Further limitations of the FD&D coverage can be sum-marised as follows:

• The Club does not get involved in disputes concerning sums lower than USD 7,500 although it can provide service on an ad hoc basis for an additional fee.

• Legal costs for which the member seeks reimbursement under the FD&D policy must have been incurred with the Club’s prior consent.

• There is no support if costs are recoverable under any other type of insurance.

• There is no support for recovering deductibles under other types of insurances with the exception for hull deductibles.

• The coverage is limited to USD 5 million for any one dis-pute.

One important feature with the Club’s FD&D coverage is that it does not entail any deductible. This contrasts with the policy of other International Group clubs, several of which exercise a 25 per cent deductible on all costs.

No shipowner can be sure when a dispute will arise, how much will be in dispute or the amount of legal costs. In times of exceptionally strong markets this may not be a concern. However, a market turn will undoubtedly result in that some parties in the transport chain will have difficulties meeting their obligations. Should that happen, the shipowner with an FD&D insurance will not stand alone.

■

Anders LeissnerFD&D Manager

Team Göteborg III

ber Alert Member Alert Member Alert Member

8 98 9

SCOL P&I Records

8 9

The Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

■■ I am penning this editorial just after the conclusion of the renewal season. It deals with some questions that were raised dur-ing the P&I renewals; more specifically, SCOL, Swedish Club OnLine, our extranet for our members and brokers in which records and claims are monitored on-line. The dominant question concerned how we calculate P&I records, i.e. why isn’t a particular member entitled to his full premium paid when calculating the loss ratio?

The principle of insurancePrior to getting into the nitty-gritty of the records, let’s focus on the principle of insurance and since we are discussing P&I we will include mutuality. The principle of insurance is to spread the risk. The insured, in this case the ship-owner, decides if he wants to main-tain the risk or spread it; wholly or in part. If his decision is affirmative, that is, he will spread his risk, he will approach an insurer. Although in theory insurance is not mandatory, he may be forced by his shareholders, banks or charterers to do so. Practically all shipowners do insure their risks, at least the basic risks for H&M, P&I and War. By using the insurance instrument, the shipowner will get more freedom to develop his business since the opposite would be to tie up money which could otherwise be used for investments.

Sharing risksIn respect of P&I, which I said was the main focus here, we can look back over a bit more than 150 years of history. In the mid 19th century, the shipowners were “forced” to find a cover for liabilities. The traditional market refused, but the mutual market, owned and controlled by the shipowners, abided the request. More and more P&I clubs were formed, all owned and controlled by shipowners who were members of the clubs. It was based on sharing risks. The traditional market was not keen to “buy” liability risks and the solution was to share. Sharing risk is beneficial in the context that the cost of sharing risk is nil (if one disregards administration costs); only the claims are shared.

The shipowners found the system of mutually sharing risks for their liabilities beneficial, and this has proven successful since it is now the most common method. That is, if we at least believe that 95 per cent of the world’s shipowners are correct. This is roughly the share of shipowners belonging to any of the 13 P&I clubs today.

LayersA very common way to spread risk in the insurance world is to layer them. If we start with the shipowner, he layers his active spread of risks by retaining a deductible, the bottom layer so to say. In the insurance sector the same system of layering is common. On our hull side, we retain USD 2 million per claim; our layer, and buy one, two or three layers in excess to provide for an adequate, com-prehensive cover for the shipowner. That is, we reinsure in layers.

For P&I, the system is similar. Each of the 13 P&I clubs re-tain USD 6 million, some, like us, even layer the retention. We

protect claims in excess of USD 2 million by reinsurance. You can say we have divided the retention into two layers, our own up to USD 2 million, and protected USD 4 million in excess of the USD 2 million. In excess of the USD 6 million, the next layer is the “Pool”. That is, the layer in which claims are shared between shipowners belonging to the 13 P&I clubs. I deliberately said that it is the shipowners that are sharing these claims although they are handled and administrated by the P&I clubs. The option would have been to buy reinsurance protection in excess of USD 6 mil-lion, but since the reinsurer, as any commercial entity needs to cover his own expenses, as well as any expected or unexpected claims in addition to a profit margin, the cost for the shipowners would escalate. Even if in one individual year the cost of claims

made exceeded the premium paid, (a “profit” for the shipowners); in the long run the reinsurers would have made good their losses. This is a commercial market and the same rules apply for everyone. Thus, the most beneficial system

is sharing claims; no profit margins, no funding, no additional costs – not even administration costs!

The pool and its exposureWhen studying the pool and its exposure, there might be a thresh-old at which layering the pool might be beneficial. The same argu-ment applies as for the shipowner buying his basic covers. The pri-mary insurers buy reinsurance, to shave off a few of the really bad risks; the real catastrophes. Therefore, the pool is also layered, i.e. the pool is reinsured with a USD 2 billion cover in excess of USD 50 million. Beginning this year, there is in addition a group cover which may be considered as a layer, a USD 20 million odd layer in excess of USD 30 million of the pool. It is called the “Hydra” and is a captive which is a fund owned and created by the P&I clubs, i.e. “Hydra” is owned and controlled by the shipowners who are members of the clubs.

One more remark about the pool. I said shipowners share the claims, which indeed they do. However, there is a system of adjust-ing the shares of the pool so that the “wrongdoers”, the P&I clubs with more than average claims, get a bigger share and the better ones get a lower share. The formula includes premiums, size and claims and runs over time.

Sharing of claimsEven within the first USD 6 million retention that each club has today, the sharing of claims can be discussed. It is actually the shipowners belonging to the club in question who share their li-abilities within the USD 6 million layer; totally or protected by reinsurance, as we are. Whatever the system, the members of the club have to contribute. A USD 6 million claim for a shipowner has to be regarded as a catastrophe. Very few owners pay that premium amount! Therefore, such a claim has to be shared by the entire membership. To provide for such claims, each club has to fund for such risks, or come back to members with additional supplemen-tary calls. Whatever; the members will have to pay. Most clubs

Claes LindhDirector – Underwriting

SCOL

8 98 9

SCOL P&I Records

8 9

The Swedish Club Letter 1–2005 SCOL

fund or reinsure, or do both to protect the membership against unpleasant surprises. This exposure also has to be considered in the premium; the advance call.

And now at last, after this long prologue, we come to SCOL and how we treat these various layers when studying records and setting the premiums, i.e. the calls. Please remember that our strategy is to balance costs so we do not have to come back to our members with additional supplementary calls. We have 13 years of experience in how to protect without additional calls! The illustration to the right shows how the premium is divided into the various layers.

Different categories of claimsEach member will always have attritional claims, that is so to say run of the mill claims, they happen more or less with a predicted frequency. They emanate from cargo, dependent on the trade, crew and crew injury matters. A number of these can be avoided by set-ting a higher deductible if a member wants to tend to these matters himself. In this category, there will always be a few odd claims, perhaps a few more expensive as well. These claims are records based, i.e. the member balances these claims with his premiums over a pre-determined period of time - normally five years.

The next category of claims is the “catastrophe” claims, and let’s start with those not exceeding USD 6 million, that is they remain within the club’s own retention. These have to be shared by the members of the club over time. Each member has to contribute. There is a word for this: “abatement”, nowadays commonly used by the P&I community, and from now on you can also find it in your P&I records in SCOL. You can see it in the illustration above as well. We have calculated this provision to be 21 cent per GT for 2005/06. I mentioned above that we bought reinsurance to protect part of the retention; in excess of USD 2 million. When we calculated this year, we noted that the provision for the abatement would have been the same with or without reinsurance, so you may regard the reinsurance as a proper protection to minimise the risk for unpleasant supplementary calls.

Pool claimsWe do the same in respect of the pool. The cost for the pool is estimated, and we levy a provisional cost for pool claims. Cur-rently, it is estimated to be 32.5 cents per GT, but this figure will of course be updated if the actual pool claims become higher or lower than the estimate. We are also looking into a system of refining this method further since it has a major impact on the premium and records. The refined system will be reported to our members as soon as developed.

For the excess reinsurance, that is the reinsurance of the pool, we use the premiums agreed for this cover by the International Group. These are set annually depending on the cost of the rein-surance the pool buys to protect itself in excess of USD 50 million. These premiums are the same for all shipowners who are members of the P&I clubs in the International Group.

How the P&I premium is distributedSo in the SCOL P&I records, we deduct from the premium each member pays: the abatement (21 cent), the pool (32.5 cent) and the

excess reinsurance (cost depending on type of ship – see illustra-tion). The balance, the net premium shall cover the claims made excluding catastrophes. Hence, we have put a “ceiling” on clams in the P&I records of USD 2 million. Even if a claim exceeds USD 2 million, only USD 2 million will be used in the records.

This provides a fair and true picture of how the P&I premium is distributed. The abatement covers the risks shared within the club by all its members. The pool covers the shipowners’ cost for sharing claims in excess of USD 6 million with the rest of the world’s shipowners (about 95 per cent of them being members in the P&I clubs). The excess reinsurance cost is merely the cost paid to reinsurers to cover up to USD 2 billion in excess of the shipowners’ pool.

In the SCOL P&I records, the above mentioned three costs are shown as “Costs”. The figure in the cost column in SCOL (blue and underlined) can be clicked on, and then the three various cost elements are shown individually.

Sharing in layersThe key to understanding the system is to remember sharing. Shar-ing in layers. The initial layer is your own deductible. The second is your attritional claims. Low claims will result in low premium and vice versa. The third is the “abatement” layer; members sharing in their club. The fourth is the shipowners’ pool, where shipowners share their claims. The fifth is the excess reinsurance of the pool. And there is a sixth one, the overspill pool, but God forbid we have to make a claim up at that level.

I hope the above sheds at least some light on the sharing of claims in the P&I system. I could present a similar explanation concerning, H&M insurance, but that has to be in a future is-sue.

■

10 1110 11

■■ For several years now, The Swedish Club has been actively in-volved in minimising and preventing the effects of fi res onboard ships. When looking back ten years at the claims statistics, we note that a mere 67 claims caused by fi res onboard have been reported to, and dealt with by the Club. This makes fi res one of the smallest H&M claims categories in regard to fre-quency. Although few, these 67 fi re claims amounted to 12% of the to-tal damage cost for the period. Because of the relatively high costs and the often severe consequences, both fi nancial and otherwise involved in these incidents, the Club has put, and continues to put emphasis on preventing losses within this area.

The occurrence of fi res onboard seems to be consistent regardless of which type of vessel is operated; meaning that we see no relation-ship between type of vessel and fi re incidents. However, there is one area onboard the different types of ships that has to be considered

the number-one high risk area for fi res. This is, perhaps not so surprisingly, the engine room. Of the reported fi re claims, we fi nd that almost half of them originate from within the engine room representing a whole 67% of the total damage cost of fi res.

These are the facts that lay behind the Club’s aim to continuously keep track of the development of fi re claims, and com-municating any interesting fi ndings to our members. Currently, the Club is actively involved in a very promising research programme, which was launched in 2004 and is managed by the Swedish National Testing and Research Institute (SP) in Borås, Sweden. The research focuses on the development of water mist fi re extinguishing systems for engine rooms larger than 3000 cubic meters, and is a continua-tion of a study pursued between 2001 and 2003. The results of the fi rst study, which focused only on smaller engine rooms (<500m3), attracted a lot of attention internationally, and with the support of actors in the maritime business as well as from the safety equipment business, further research is now well underway. The overall objec-tive is to continue to provide the maritime business with useful data on the ongoing work in the area. Ultimately, the research aims at presenting an adequately effi cient alternative to the controversial carbon dioxide extinguishing systems, thus making fi re fi ghting in engine rooms considerably safer for the onboard personnel as well as for the environment.

The Club will continue to follow the research closely.■


10

Loss Prevention

Facts about Fires (1995-2004)*

n Total number of claims 67

n Fire damage share of total damage cost 12%

n Average damage cost of fi res (USD) 1,000,000

n Median damage cost of fi res (USD) 25,000

n Engine room fi res share of total costs for fi res 67%

* All fi gures in this article are based on a 100% share of the risk and are exclusive of deductibles.

prevention

Testing of fi re extinguishing systems at SPin Borås.

PHO

TO: TH

E SWED

ISH C

LUB

Anna-Karin LönnstadLoss Prevention Project Co-ordinator

10 1110 11

to the Club, the crane housing detached from the platform and the crane operator lost his life. Investigations are still under way but we note that there are several factors, such as poor maintenance, over-loading and improper use, faulty design and latent defects, which may contribute

to a slewing bearing failure.

˛ Greasing routines and tilting clearance measurements (or axial reduction measure-ments) must always be followed strictly in accordance with the makers’ instructions. Beyond this we would also recommend carrying out analysis of the used slewing bearing grease every six month, or at a time interval appropriate to the usage of the crane. If carried out in a controlled man-ner, the used grease analysis is probably the most cost effective and reliable monitoring method for slewing bearings. The bearing makers, the grease suppliers or your clas-sification society can usually provide more detailed advice with regard to inspection intervals, test methods and evaluation of the result.

■

11

Loss PreventionThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

■■ Are you fully aware of the design criteria for your ships’ cranes? Were the cranes designed for hook duty only? Can they be used in unsheltered conditions without restrictions?

The Safe Working Load (SWL) mark-ing on a crane jib indicates the maximum permissible load in the hook. Cranes are regu-larly tested to ensure that the SWL actually is a safe load. This is a minimum requirement defined by the International Labor Organiza-tion (ILO).

The life time of a crane has often very lit-tle to do with the SWL marking and is based upon a spectrum with different loads in the hook. When a general cargo crane operates with grab it will nearly always be with full grab which means a load spectrum with maximum load. A crane working in unsheltered condi-tions will be exposed to shock loads. These working conditions will greatly reduce the life-time of the crane unless the SWL is adjusted accordingly. There is also a risk of overloading electrical motors and generators. The oil cool-ing capacity may also be insufficient.

˛ Detailed information about the design cri-teria and load limitations for the cranes can

KNOWGet to

Peter StålbergDirector – Technical & Loss Prevention

always be found in the maker’s documenta-tion. It is advisable to study it carefully and ensure that the crew has good knowledge.

˛ If the crane is classed, details about opera-tional approval limitations may be found in the crane certificate appendices. We understand that this information has been introduced during the last few years.

˛ With a view of avoiding off-hire situations and disputes, ensure that charters are fully aware of any operational limitation of the cranes. It is good practice to include this in-formation in the Ship Details appendices.

Slewing bearing failures on turret cranes

The slew bearing, which is a main structural load-bearing device that attaches the crane to the platform, is a potential source for cata-strophic failure. In the severest case reported

yourgear!

PHO

TO: TH

E SWED

ISH C

LUB

12 1312 13

■■ We can all agree that the safety and environment at sea is of great concern to us all. These are areas which unarguably deserves our full attention and where continuous improvement of standards must be

sought. Neither do I think that anyone would disagree that it is a precept of civilised society that anyone who breaks the law with a wilful intent deserves to be appropriately punished. Criminal law is in fact generally based on the principle of mens rea, criminal intent, as com-pared to an accidental act. Environmental legis-lation on the other hand is often based on strict liability resulting in a criminal liability based on the consequences of an act or omission rather than the intention behind it.

There is an extremely important distinc-tion to be made between someone deliberately breaking the law, and a seafarer conducting his normal professional duties or indeed a seafarer, or an independent contractor such as a salvor, doing their utmost to prevent or minimise a casualty such as pollution and saving the crew, the environment and the vessel under extreme circumstances.

Anyone who deliberately breaks the law, by-passes an oily water separator or knowingly fal-sifies discharge records must take responsibility for their actions. This is a criminal act involving a deliberate and possibly systematic attempt to mislead the authorities. The remedy is a crimi-nal sanction. This is however very different from making a mere mistake in the entry of a logbook or indeed being caught up in a preventative ac-tion or accident resulting in a negligent act or mistake being committed. The dangers of be-ing criminalised for a negligent act or mistake are substantial and may result in consequences which will have a very negative effect on the safety at sea as well as the environment.

Blame cultureOur society is influenced by what can be de-scribed as a “blame culture”; there is always someone to be blamed. Within the field of per-sonal injury this is very noticeable in the U.S. but also increasingly so in other jurisdictions. Ac-

Birgitta HedArea Manager

Team Göteborg II

- will this contribute to improving the safety and environment at sea, or…

cidents and mistakes are no longer tolerated and there appears to be a wide political recognition of criminalising mistakes which are not morally and politically acceptable to our society.

The medical profession has been the target of criminal sanctions imposed against medical malpractice for many years. Both the construc-tion industry and the service industry have in recent years seen an increase in the number of criminal proceedings being issued as a conse-quence of negligent acts. The shipping industry is thus by no means alone in its concern regard-ing the increasing criminalisation of acts of negligence and mistakes made in the conduct of professional duties.

The shipping industry is highly regulated. Statistics show that the degree of trade by sea is gradually increasing, at the same time the number of casualties is decreasing. The interna-tional awareness and attention given to the safety and environment at sea has greatly contributed to this. So has for instance, the implementation of the ISM Code made loss prevention mandato-ry. In spite of the regulatory development and the preventative actions taken by responsible ship-owners both referring to human and technical errors, mistakes will unfortunately be made and accidents will occur. Any reputable shipowner will recognise and act upon a genuinely criminal liability whether it arises out of a personal injury or environmental damage. It is the increasing criminalisation of human failure and marine accidents which is of concern to the shipping industry – and correctly so. Furthermore, con-sidering some recent cases and developments it is questionable whether the punishment fits the alleged crime and indeed whether the environ-ment takes precedent over human life.

Casualties change perceptions and the international law follows

Though the scope of this article does not allow for an in depth analysis it is easy to recognise the impact the following casualties have had on the development of international legislation, the objective of which is of course to create a bal-ance of interests and allocation of responsibility. The following cases can be mentioned; Torrey

Criminalisation of seafarers

CrewThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

12 13

12 1312 13

Canyon 1967, Amoco Cadiz 1978, Exxon Valdes 1989, Nissos Amorgos 1997, Erika 1999, Sep-tember 11th 2001, Prestige 2002 and Tasman Spirit 2003.

One of the best known casualties involving criminalisation of seafarers in modern times was Exxon Valdes in 1989 with the prosecution of Captain Hazelwood. Since then we have seen many cases, particularly involving pollution, re-sulting in civil as well as criminal investigation, sometimes criminal prosecution.

The Prestige and the Tasman Spirit are the two most recent cases which are still very much in the media, and which have had an important impact on the discussions and perception of criminalisation of seafarers. It would not be exaggerating to say that they have been a hor-rendous eye opener for the shipping industry, not least in reference to the manner in which the seafarers were treated.

The Tasman Spirit ran aground in a dredged channel near the entrance to Karachi Port. The vessel eventually broke up spilling approximately 34,000 tonnes of crude oil. The imprisonment of the “Karachi 8” in Pakistan which included the master, the crew on duty as well as the sal-vage master, who in fact arrived in Karachi as a

- will this contribute to improving the safety and environment at sea, or…

replacement for the original salvage master four days after the vessel had broken in two, made the world react and it was only after lobbying by a number of international organisations, Governments and the European Community that the “Karachi 8” were released after almost nine months of detention. The Government of Pakistan apparently demanded an unlimited guarantee for the release of the detained men, and it has been argued that the reason for impos-ing criminal liability against the relevant crew members was a means to generate income.

The Prestige has had and will continue to have significant political implications. One sug-gestion put forward is that the criminalisation of the master, Captain Mangouras was aimed drawing attention away from the important issue of the Spanish authorities refusal of the requested place of refuge. Following evacuation from his vessel, Captain Mangouras was arrested and put in jail for approximately 83 days before he was released against bail of euro 3,000,000.00. He was released against strict reporting conditions but was allowed to leave Spain for a period of three months over Christmas to visit his home in Greece. He returned to Spain in February 2005. If found guilty, Captain Mangouras is facing up

Criminalisation of seafarers


12 13

9 continues on page 14

PHO

TO: PIX

GA

LLERY

14 1514 15

to ten years imprisonment. The Prestige broke in two

and sank six days after her initial incident off the Span-ish coast. Following her first incident, she was denied place of refuge, although this was requested by both the mas-ter and the salvors. In fact, not only was place of refuge denied, but the authorities ordered the Prestige to pro-ceed into the Atlantic and the salvage master actually had to sign a letter confirm-ing that he would not bring the vessel within 120 miles of the Spanish coast. It has been argued that though the pollu-tion was caused by the vessel, the extent of damage was a consequence of the decisions taken by the Spanish authorities.

Another concern is of course the level of bail demanded from Captain Mangouras which is equivalent of that set for Michael Jackson accused of sexual child abuse, and with financial resources far greater than Cap-tain Mangouras.

The highly politicised climate following a casualty is evident, and though there is no excuse for pollution, and sympathy should go out to all those that are affected by a marine accident or serious pollution, there has to be a balance. Appropriate authorities, as well as politicians have to take responsibility for contributing to increasing safety and environ-mental standards. Substandard vessels are of major concern, and the recent attention given to substandard vessels within the International Group is very positive; and will hopefully prove to be constructive. We all have to contribute to the improvement of standards. “Oil should be carried first class” is the slogan of one of our members. This has not been the case in some of the recent cases causing serious pollution incidents. Appropriate compensation has to be awarded to those who suffer the consequences of a marine accident or oil pollution. Violations

of pollution laws must be seriously discouraged and violations with a wilful intent should be punished. Criminalisation of seafarers would however appear to be a backward way of ap-proaching the existing problems which would be more efficiently served by pursuing better control of the vessel standards and the quality standard of education, involving seafarers in the protection of the environment in a positive manner, rather than making them reluctant to take proper actions for fear of criminal prosecution.

Can criminalisation of seafarers be counterproductive?

There is a deep concern within the ship-ping community in respect of the increasing criminalisation of seafarers. The cases in which seafarers have been treated in a manner which violates their human rights, are as many as the cases in which it has been suggested that the reason for imposing criminal liability against seafarers has been a revenue exercise, or strictly politically motivated. It is of course very seri-ous if seafarers are treated as scapegoats for the failings of others.

An important legal aspect is of course the question of jurisdiction where the seafarer is

subjected to the laws of the jurisdiction within which the accident occured. They do not enjoy the protection of their home countries legal regimes. The protection rendered under international law including MARPOL (The International Convention for the Preven-tion of Pollution from Ships) and UNCLOS (The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea) does not ap-pear to be sufficient and these conventions have indeed been violated in recent cases as re-gards pre-trial custodial de-tention and imprisonment, as well as criminal liability. The European Commission’s pro-

posed EC Directive on Ship-Source Pollution is proposing criminal sanctions for ship-source pollution which is not in line with MARPOL. France has already introduced severe penalties, including fines and imprisonment up to ten years by means of the “Perben II” law which came into force in March 2004. According to this legislation, fines can be set up to euro 1,000,000.00 and extended to an amount equivalent to the ships value or four times the value of the cargo on board and freight.

France has suffered severely from pollution incidents but is criminalisation and legislation like this really the means to go forward? Will criminalisation of seafarers contribute to im-proving the safety and environment at sea, or could it in fact be counterproductive?

I would argue that there is a great risk that criminalisation will prove to be counterpro-ductive. One of the dangers is that non-con-formities may not be duly reported or that the cooperation rendered to the authorities in the event of a casualty will suffer severely based on the threat of criminal sanctions. It is a well known fact that we learn from our mistakes and “near misses” hence the reporting of such incidents must be encouraged in the interest of the safety and environment at sea.

… could it in fact be counterproductive?


14 15

9 continues from page 13

PHO

TO: JA

N A

PPELGREN

14 1514 15

The purpose of the ISM Code is to “provide an international standard for the safe management and operation of ships and for pollution preven-tion”. By correct implementation the ISM Code is a valuable means for shipowners to prove and dem-onstrate the responsibility and quality standards with which they operate their vessels. Providing that the ambit of the code is fully implemented and recognised on board, and assuming that the SMS, Safety Management System, is correctly followed, the documentation available to the authorities in case of a casualty should provide important evi-dence in support of the quality, performance and responsibility of the vessel and the shipowner. If on the other hand, the procedures in the management system are not followed, hence accidents and non-conformities or near-misses are not documented and duly attended to by corrective actions, the in-formation made available in accordance with the ISM Code could quite easily be used against the interests of the vessel, revealing non-compliance and lack of responsibility.

The vessel’s casualty response and quality sys-tem is dependent upon an open reporting of mis-haps from which everyone will learn. If seafarers are intimidated, and do not report mistakes made, take appropriate actions in the event of a casualty and cooperate fully and openly in the aftermath of an incident for fear of criminal prosecution, it will have a detrimental effect on the safety and environ-ment at sea.

The unique casualty response system within the shipping industry including salvors, clean up contactors, the ITOPF and other actors compris-ing immense technical and legal expertise, are also bound to be affected by the prospect and threat of criminal prosecution. If these experts are intimi-dated into not fully responding quickly, and in accordance with their professional knowledge for fear of criminal proceedings, or not getting their personnel out of a jurisdiction, this will have severe consequences on the casualty response system pres-ently in place and indeed be counterproductive.

Another negative consequence of criminalisa-tion of seafarers is the affect this is likely to have on recruitment. If seafarers are subjected to criminal proceedings, they must be able to rely on their employer as well as international legislation to

protect them. They must know that they will be treated fairly, and be without fear that their human rights will be violated. Seafarers are entrusted to control and man-age vessels which are increasingly expensive and technically sophisticated. Most vessels are operated in a safe and efficient manner by seafarers of a high professional standard. Fear is not a motivator of quality perform-ance and we need to make certain that the image of shipping is improved. Shipping and seafarers as a profession contribute greatly to international trade and commerce. With the increasing globalisation there will probably not be a shortage of seafarers, but it is of im-mense importance that educated, good qual-ity people are attracted to go to sea. This is already a problem today, and the increasing criminalisation of seafarers is likely to have a negative impact on recruitment.

What can be done to protect seafarers?

In February of this year, I attended what I believe was the first open international conference on the topic of criminalisation of masters and seafarers. The conference was arranged by Lloyd’s List Events and sponsored by IFSMA (the International Federation of Shipmasters’ Associations). Many of the speakers and delegates at the conference have influenced this article, and I do believe that gathering various interests in the shipping community to address this problem will have a positive impact on the development. IMO, BIMCO, INTER-TANKO, the International Salvage Union, and other prominent shipping associations have the topic of criminalisation of seafarers on their agenda.

It is felt that an international instrument is required to protect seafarers. A joint IMO/ILO working group met for the first time in January 2005, the objective of which was to not only consider guidelines based on UN-CLOS, but to also specifically focus on hu-man rights and the fair treatment of seafarers aiming for prompt repatriation or rejoining

… could it in fact be counterproductive?

of the vessel following an investigation. The working group has prepared a draft resolu-tion to be presented at the IMO Assembly in November 2005; “Draft Guidelines on Fair Treatment of Seafarers in the Event of a Ma-rine Accident”. Hopefully, these voluntary guidelines will lead to a binding resolution and regime.

Another argument put forward in the discussions held is to introduce a scheme for professional sanctions as an appropriate rem-edy rather than criminal sanctions. A profes-sional sanction could lead to a cancellation or suspension of the necessary certificates if deemed appropriate and would probably be very effective assuming that the responsible authorities providing the relevant certifi-cates acted in a correct and prudent man-ner. Such a decision would further need to be subjected to an appeal procedure. The ap-peal could be handled by the national court dealing with labour related disputes in the national jurisdiction of the seafarer.

For the time being and under the prevail-ing legal uncertainty the best recommenda-tion to shipowners is to be aware of the risks, to be as prepared as possible and to have a contingency plan for criminal investiga-tions. A correctly implemented ISM Code with a Safety Management System which is recognised, fully followed and understood by the crew will be helpful in the investi-gation following a marine accident. A well treated and respected crew who feel the support of the shipowner will assist greatly not least in preventing hostile witnesses and avoiding “whistleblowers” who would oth-erwise be only too eager to tell their version of the truth to the authorities hoping for a percentage of the fine imposed as a reward.

Criminalisation of seafarers is contrary to international law, including UNCLOS and MARPOL. Hopefully the actions now taken by various actors in the shipping in-dustry will result in a more sensible system to find a solution to this very complex issue.

■


14 15

16 1716 1716 17

■ ■ It is not uncommon for a dismissed sea-farer to fi le a complaint before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) al-leging illegal dismissal and claiming salaries for the unexpired portion of the contract. It is thus important that employers of Filipino seafarers are aware of the various aspects of the law on termination of Filipino seafarers in order to ensure that the termination is legal.

There are two (2) elements that must be present before a dismissal of seafarer can be held valid. These are:

1. Just and valid cause

2. Procedural due process

Just and valid causeJust causes are enumerated in Section 33 of the POEA Standard Employment Contract (Table of Offenses and Corresponding Ad-ministrative Penalties) and/or the relevant Collective Bargaining Agreement. The list is not exclusive as analogous acts may also con-stitute just and valid causes. Some examples of just causes include drug-related offenses, smuggling, desertion, absence without leave, drunkenness, act of disobedience to lawful orders of a superior offi cer, pilferage or theft, incompetence and ineffi ciency, etc. It is highly recommended that employers be aware of the list of offenses and the administrative penal-ties that may be imposed as not all offenses are punishable by dismissal. It is best to be able to point out to specifi c violations in the contract with a corresponding penalty of dismissal in order to justify a termination.

Procedural due processThe procedure for effecting dismissal is stated in Section 17 of the POEA Standard Employ-ment Contract. It requires observance of the

two-notice rule in addition to investigation and hearing.

The fi rst written notice to be served on the seafarer should contain the grounds for the charges/infractions as well as the date, time and place for formal investigation of the charges.

There is no prescribed formality in con-ducting the investigation. What is essential is to give the alleged erring seafarer ample op-portunity to explain or defend himself.

In any event, it is best to document the investigation proceedings. The measures sug-gested are as follows:

(a) Record or transcribe the proceedings and prepare minutes thereof. Have all persons who took part therein sign the minutes including the seafarer involved.

(b) Enter in the vessel’s logbook what tran-spired during the investigation including seafarer’s summary of statements/defenses, witnesses presented, documents submitted, seafarer’s admission, etc.

The second written notice is the notice of dis-missal to be served on the erring seafarer stat-ing the reasons thereto. A copy of the second written notice must be furnished the Philip-pine manning agent.

Complaint before the NLRCPlease note that seafarer may contest the Master and/or employer’s decision to dismiss him by fi ling an illegal termination case before the NLRC. In such cases, the burden of proof rests with the employer. It is thus important that records be gathered and preserved. The manning agent is probably the best repository for such records as the case will be heard in the NLRC and the manning agent and its prin-cipal are named as respondents. Most of the diffi culty in handling termination cases lies with gathering the evidence and getting the crew to testify. It is thus important to gather and preserve the evidence immediately after the termination.

EvidenceThe evidence needed in a termination dispute varies depending on the circumstances of each

case. Some of the useful documents are the following

1. Vessel’s logbook extracts

2. Master’s or Incident report

3. Affi davit/statements of crewmembers/other witnesses attesting to the offenses committed by the seafarer

4. Minutes of investigation proceedings

5. First and second notices (as discussed above)

6. Performance rating reports

7. Company policy

8. Police and other authori-ties’ report of the incident

It is preferable that the above documents be authenticated or attested by the nearest Philippine Consulate or La-bor Attaché. However, if un-der the circumstances, such authentication is uneconomi-cal, impractical or impossible, a copy of the Offi cial Entry in the ship’s logbook may suf-fi ce. As held in one case de-cided by the Supreme Court, the vessel’s logbook is an of-fi cial record and entries made by a person in the performance of a duty required by law are prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein. Hence, provided the copy of the logbook extracts bears the offi cial seal of the vessel’s master, the same shall be admitted as evidence. In another case decided by the NLRC, the NLRC ruled that the logbook extracts together with state-ments from the master and chief offi cer were suffi cient to prove the seafarer’s actions and demeanor. The Labor Code of the Philippines does provide that labor courts need not follow strictly rules of evidence prevalent in courts of law. In labor courts, every reasonable means to ascertain the facts in each case shall be used without regard to technicalities.

Exception to due processWhile observance of procedural due process is imperative, it does admit of certain exceptions.

Mr Ruben T Del RosarioManaging Director

Del Rosario Pandiphil Inc, Manila


16 1716 1716 17

One exception under the POEA contract is when observance of procedural due process will result in a clear and existing danger to the safety of the crew and vessel. In this instance, the seafarer may be dismissed without proce-dural due process but the master must send a complete report to the manning agency sub-stantiated by witnesses, testimonies and any other documents to support the dismissal.

PenaltiesIf procedural due process is not observed, that is, the two notice rule is not followed, the dis-missal is still considered legal provided there is just cause for dismissal (Agabon vs. NLRC,

plaint or grievance to the Master who shall handle the case personally.

4. If no satisfactory result is achieved, the sea-farer concerned may appeal to the manage-ment of the company or with a Philippine Overseas Labor Offi ce or consular offi cer overseas. The master shall afford such fa-cilities necessary to enable the seaman transmit his appeal.

5. If after observing the grievance procedure the master fi nds that the seafarer violated the terms of his Contract or has commit-ted breach of discipline, the master shall discipline the seafarer or, if warranted, terminate his employment.

6. The seafarer may also seek the assistance of the highest ranking Filipino seafarer on board.

When the grievance procedure is availed of by the seafarer, all actions or decisions must be properly documented for the protection and interest of both parties. The grievance procedure is without prejudice to the sea-farer fi ling a complaint before the voluntary arbitrator, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) or the NLRC on any unresolved complaint arising out of his ship-board employment.

ConclusionUnder Philippine law, any doubt in the inter-pretation of a dispute is to be resolved in favor of the seafarer. It is thus important to observe the substantive and procedural aspects of termination in order to remove any doubt on the legality of the termination. This will give the employer a fair chance of defending itself should the seafarer decide to challenge the validity of his termination.

■

Del Rosario & Del Rosario handles a number of illegal dismissal cases. For more information, please email [email protected]

G.R. No. 158693, November 17th 2004). The penalty imposed by the courts or the NLRC on non-observance of procedural process is nominal damages. Such dam-ages are usually reasonable. In the aforementioned Agabon case, the nominal damages awarded were P30,000 (USD 600). It is important

to stress, however, that it is still a good practice to follow

strictly the rules on procedural due process as non-compliance will infl uence the NLRC or the courts to rule against the employer.

If the NLRC fi nds that there was no just, valid or authorised cause for dismissal as de-fi ned by law or contract, the seafarer shall be entitled to his salaries for the unexpired por-tion of his employment contract (Marsaman Manning Agency vs. NLRC, G.R. No. 127195, August 25th 1999). Section 10 of the Overseas Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995 does provide for a penalty of three months for every year of service but the Supreme Court has interpreted this to mean that this penalty only applies if the employment contract is more than one year. As Filipino seafarers have contracts of less than one year, the penalty for illegal dismissal is salaries for the unexpired portion of the employment contract.

Grievance ProcedureA seafarer working on board the vessel who believes he has been aggrieved, that is, unjustly treated or subjected to an unfair consideration may initiate a complaint in accordance with the procedures enumerated in Section 16 of the POEA Standard Employment Contract:

1. The seafarer shall fi rst approach the head of the department in which he is assigned to explain his grievance.

2. The seafarer shall make his grievance in writing and in an orderly manner and shall choose a time when his complaint or griev-ance can be properly heard.

3. The Department head shall deal with the complaint or grievance and where solution is not possible at his level, refer the com-


18 1918 19

Member portraitThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

18

Commenting on the significance of MNGC, Morits Skaugen says: “MNGC fo-cuses on the smaller-sized vessel segment of the petrochemical gas and LPG sectors, with the emphasis on the short-haul and regional transportation of ethylene. MNGC controls 34 ethylene-specific vessels, with a combined capacity of 317,000 cbm. This fleet is over twice the size of the ‘No. 2 player’. Our over-riding objective is to ensure that the alliance with A.P. Møller-Maersk functions to its full potential. We will leverage the strength of this alliance with the market leader to provide ever greater levels of quality and value to our customers.”

Norgas has invested heavily in a modern fleet. In November 2003 the last of a series of six newbuildings was delivered. These ves-sels operate worldwide and are recognised as among the most advanced ethylene carriers available.

Morits Skaugen says: “These new ships were purpose-designed to reduce charterers’ costs and further enhance safety. Faster port turnarounds, faster cargo surveys and im-proved vessel performance are among the many benefits of an innovative design featuring only two cargo tanks.” The entry into service of the new class vessels was completed by the delivery

from Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding Group in Shanghai, China of the four 8,556 cbm and the two 10,200 cbm Norgas vessels.

Norgas’ CEO has a firm vision of the company’s future development: “We saw an encouraging upturn in the markets, com-mencing in 2002. This trend accelerated dur-ing 2004. The upturn is expected to continue for the next few years, as there is an underlying shortfall of many products in the Asian region, as there is in the case of ethylene and propylene in Europe.

“Taking account of this environment, and given our position regarding both contract coverage and spot market conditions, we expect 2005 to be a year of solid financial performance for Norgas. One priority is to build on our experience in China, to further develop China-related business for the Group. Furthermore, as negative fleet growth in the sector is anticipated, we expect to maintain very high fleet utilisation levels, with our strong contracts base over the coming years generating acceptable returns on capital em-ployed.

“Norgas’ commercial prospects are influ-enced by developments in the petrochemicals market, which is expected to continue to grow in 2005. Product demand is especially strong

Norgas: a progressive force in the global gas trades

■■ Norgas Carriers AS is a leading partici-pant in the gas trades. An integrated shipping company engaged in the transportation of petrochemical gases and LPG, Norgas oper-ates a fleet of 18 vessels, with sizes ranging from 5,000 cbm to 10,000 cbm. This fleet trades worldwide. Norgas is wholly-owned by I.M. Skaugen ASA and has offices in Houston, Oslo, St. Petersburg, Singapore and Shanghai. Norgas has been a member of The Swedish Club since 2001.

Norgas provides a full service, with the emphasis on the support of fully integrated logistics. Given the nature of the business, the priorities are safety, environmentally-friendly operation and service reliability. The clients include major oil companies, refiners and traders. Norgas Chief Executive Officer Morits Skaugen says the company decided to become members of The Swedish Club “as it was hard to understand why a Swedish entity was not making more progress in Norway. We wanted to give the Club a try.”

Norgas was established in 1982 as the chartering and marketing operation for a cooperative pool of LPG carriers – acting on behalf of several owners. Over the years I.M. Skaugen gradually became the largest owner of vessels in the pool and, thus, a shareholder of the pool company.

The major milestones in Norgas’ develop-ment include the October 2003 alliance with A.P. Møller-Maersk, aimed at enhancing the semi-refrigerated gas carrier operations of the two companies. This alliance established a new revenue-sharing pool known as Maersk Norgas Gas Carriers (MNGC). This alliance has further enhanced the marketing of the Norgas fleet.

18 1918 19

Member portraitThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

Norgas: a progressive force in the global gas tradesin Europe and Asia. Ethylene growth in Asia is expected to top seven per cent in the next three years. As to the supply side, the Mid-dle East will show a substantial increase in capacity of all petrochemicals, to reach levels of 11-13 million tonnes annually in the next five years.”

In a sensitive market populated by niche specialists, a constant focus on quality is essential. The company may have invested heavily in new tonnage but it has also paid much attention to the “software” component – with programmes centring on the availabil-ity of high quality seafarers. Morits Skaugen says: “The results, over the past six years, have exceeded expectations. The success of these programmes is underlined by the fact that, in addition to meeting the needs of our own extensive fleet, we also provide high quality sea-going personnel for third parties.”

The quality process begins at the recruit-ment stage, with Norgas applying a range of modern selection tools, including psychologi-cal testing and sophisticated human assess-ment methodologies. Norgas has established independent training centres in St. Petersburg and Wuhan, China. The training portfolio includes specialised courses dealing with all aspects of the handling and transportation of

dangerous cargoes, including liquid petrole-um gases, chemicals and oil products, together with vessel maintenance.

In Russia, Norgas has also established joint courses and cooperation with the renowned State Makarov Academy and Makarov Train-ing Centre. In China, Norgas/I.M. Skaugen have established the WUT-Skaugen Train-ing Centre in a joint venture with Wuhan Transportation University. This centre offers, inter alia, Maritime Resource Management (MRM) courses, Advanced Firefighting (Gas) courses and practical instruction on board a training vessel on the river Yangtze.

Engineering innovation is directed at is-sues with an environmental dimension. En-vironmental protection, safety and enhanced profitability are three motivators behind the development of a transportable unit, for use on gas tanks, which transforms emissions into valuable gas products for re-use.

Morits Skaugen explains: “When the liq-uid gas content has been emptied from a gas carrier or a liquid gas containment system, a considerable amount of gas vapour remains in the tank and associated piping. It has been the practice, in the past, to vent these volatile organic compounds to the atmosphere. Now there is another, more acceptable option.

Gas Recovery Systems AS, a joint venture between I.M. Skaugen and Bård Norberg, has developed a versatile and readily transport-able Vapour Recovery Unit, housed within a standard 10 ft container. This unit, designed to handle a full range of petrochemical gases, transforms emissions into valuable products of original quality.”

Innovative thinking also led to the com-missioning of Norgas’ offshore purging facility at Fujairah Roads, in the UAE. This service produces a significant saving in vessel time, by combining bunkering and purging, so much reducing the risk of delay due to berth congestion. Other support services, including inspection and tank cleaning assistance, are also available.

■

19

PHO

TOS: N

ORG

AS C

ARRIERS

Mr Morits Skaugen, Chief Executive Officerof Norgas Carriers.

20 2120 2120

■■ Agenzia Marittima “PROSPER” was founded by Dott. Giuliano Mattioli over fifty years ago for the express purpose of representing, as general agents in Italy, the Mitsui Steamship Co Tokyo (later to become Mitsui O.S.K. LINES after the merger in 1964 with Osaka Shosen Kaisha), and in the sixties Prosper was appointed by The Swedish Club as general correspondents for Italy.

The company is still conducted by the Mattioli-Castelbarco family and celebrated its 50th anniversary in December 2004.

Agenzia Marittima “PROSPER” has two head offices in the main national shipping and economic centres of Genoa and Milan. Competent and enthusiastic staff members with expert knowledge and a network of cor-respondents at main national ports enables us to act as a modern, organised and productive enterprise.

Prosper Shipping Agency is working in the sector of the sea maritime transport convey-ance, in particular between the Mediterranean and the Far East. Our long-standing dealings with our Japanese partners and The Swedish Club have led our company to acquire and strengthen a valuable experience in the ship-ping and maritime insurance fields.

The strong evolution, which has been characterising the market for many years, has led Prosper to adopt specific strategies to reach objectives in extremely targeted sectors.

Prosper provides a wide range of service, in particular:

§ Organisation and supervision of port opera-tions for conventional ships, full container ships, car carriers, and performance of all formalities relating to ship's call.

§ Co-ordination and computerised manage-ment of container yards for shipowners.

§ Commercial acquisition in Italy of inbound and outbound cargoes.

§ Consolidation/containerisation of “group-age cargo” and related consultancy for the most efficient use of containers also for large sized cargoes.

§ Management and supervision of road haul-age, rail and intermodal transports.

§ Prompt intervention on ship and cargo for ascertainment of damages and claims han-dling either directly or in co-operation with first class lawyers and surveyors.

§ For completeness Prosper represents besides The Swedish Club also a primary Japanese marine underwriter.

We feel proud of our activities in favour of The Swedish Club: out of our many cases we like to remember the assistance given in interviewing some witnesses in connection to the Stockholm/Andrea Doria collision, in the shipment of Michelangelo’s Pietà to New York and, more recently, the London Maersk impact against the breakwater in Genoa with a leakage of about 200 tons of fuel and consequent heavy pollution of the area.

Agenzia Marittima Prosper

A Correspondent at a Glance

The Swedish Club Letter 1–2005 Club Correspondent

20

20 2120 21

The casualty took place at only approxi-mately ten nautical miles from the position where the famous Haven case took place a few years earlier hence following in the wake of strong protests being made by inhabitants in the area, supported by members of environ-mental parties and local authorities. Owners and their insurers were in that case accused for the delay in indemnifying for damages suffered. In spite of all this, our case was kept at a very low profile thanks to the prompt in-tervention of the antipollution team, our good relationships with Port Authority and Harbour Master and, mainly, to the good reputation of The Swedish Club.

Among many courts judgements in our favour, it deserves to be mentioned:

§ M/V Columbialand – Naples, November 1981 – Cargo collapsed into the hold Cargo underwriter’s claim for the amount of USD 2,000,000

§ M/V Zim Yokohama – December 1988 – Grounding in the Strait of Tiran Various cargo underwriters’ claims amounting to USD 800,000

§ M/V Erka Sun – La Spezia, September 1998 – Cargo collapsed into the hold Cargo un-derwriter’s claim for the amount of USD 700,000

Despite the difficulty of these cases we were quite successful, judgements were in our favour and no disbursement was incurred by The Swedish Club.

Even if Prosper cannot claim to be a multi-national giant, through its own sales capability, we have customers who are actually multina-tional giants like: Fuji Film, Pirelli, Canon, Toyota, Fiat, Daikin, etc.

Prosper is formed by 27 people divided in the two main offices of Genoa and Milan. The company has established, in the course of the last 50 years, a high reputation for quality and responsiveness to principals’ needs and its mission, for the next 50 years, is to improve, whenever possible, the actual standard.

■

Club CorrespondentThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

21

From left to right: Mr Giovanni Lituania, Mr Cesare Castelbarco, Mr Ezio Squadrani, Ms Ricciarda Mattioli Castelbarco, Mr Roberto Rimassa and Mr Erasmo Fiorillo.

Updated List ofCorrespondentsnow availableon our website■ ■ As has been published before, we do our utmost to improve our services, and part of that development is extending the services provided through our website. This phase of development concerns our world-wide network of correspondents.

Throughout almost all of the Club’s existence, it has been our tradition to provide our members each year with a booklet listing all our correspondents in the ports around the world. If the master urgently requires the assistance of a local correspondent, the book provides him with local contact details. This has worked perfectly as long as we have been updated with changes in addresses and phone numbers.

Providing ships and members with the booklet is something we will continue to do. It is needed in many instances. How-ever, there are some areas in which we provide services that we do not feel we exceed expectations.

To meet the demand for accurate in-formation we have decided to improve our service by making the List of Correspond-ents also available on our website. Earlier this year we put a pdf file on our website, but now we have an interactive search tool to help find the local correspondent in each port.

So please do not hesitate to use this new improved service at

www.swedishclub.com

Club Information

22 2322 23

■ ■ On January 1st 2005, the Club began intensifying its ef-forts to further develop the Mar-itime Resource Management (MRM) training programme. The programme aims at foster-

ing positive attitudes towards teamwork, efficient communi-cation and the use of standard operating procedures for key shipboard operations. An important objective is to provide methods that will increase situational awareness in people’s daily work. Situational awareness is to “know what is going on around you” and is critical for correct decision making and action onboard the ship. Club analyses have shown that failures in these areas are major contributing factors in ac-cidents. (See page 25 of TSC Letter No. 2 – 2004.)

System failureAside from causes related to attitudes and behaviour of in-dividuals there are risks related to limitations in human per-formance. This concerns for example, the effects of fatigue which are more difficult to deal with through training. People impaired by fatigue could indicate a system failure, i.e. the imbalance between demands and resources. In this context, it is not just the shipowner who has responsibility. This involves all parties in our industry that for various reasons require the attention and services of seafarers.

Other side of the sharp endThis reasoning leads us into an area further away from the people at the sharp end. When things go wrong, it is easy to blame the people on board. In many cases though, those

involved did what they thought was right at that very mo-ment. Even if it may be hard for us ashore to accept, factors contributing to accidents may often have their origin in company policies and procedures. Some examples are, the selection and evaluation of crew, familiarisation, training, manuals, workload, manning levels etc.

Company cultureOver the last decades, the focus of causes of accidents has changed from technical to human. Organisational factors are now becoming more and more the centre of attention. Seafar-ers work in a system built up by company habits, traditions, principles and values – the company’s culture. The likeli-hood of accidents is dependent upon whether the company’s culture leads to the sweeping of problems under the carpet, or seeing them as opportunities to make improvements. Variations in company culture can lead to one shipowner being affected by incidents fairly often, while another can be practically claims free.

At the beginning of this year, based upon both old and new knowledge in these areas, the Club launched a project to revise and update the MRM training programme. The knowledge and experience of MRM users around the world will form an important part of the development process.

Readers who wish to know more about MRM, or who want MRM training to be available at their local training sites, are welcome to contact MRM Manager Martin Hern-qvist at: [email protected] or +46 31 638 420. More information is also available at www.swedishclub.com.

■

BROADER view of MRM

MRMThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

Martin HernqvistManager

Maritime Resource Management

2222

Meeting in progress. In March 2005 a group of MRM workshop leaders gathered in Goa, India, to discuss a revision of the Maritime Resource Management training programme. Front row from left to right: C/E Alfredo Haboc, PHILCAMSAT, Makati City; Capt K.N. Deboo, Anglo-Eastern Maritime Training Centre, Mumbai; Capt S.M.R. Rizvi, Wallem Maritime Training Centre, Karachi; Capt A.P. Sethi, Eurasia Centre for Advanced Learning, Mumbai. Back row from left to right: Martin Hernqvist, The Swedish Club, Göteborg; Capt S.S. Manjeshwar, Wallem Maritime Training Centre, Mumbai; Capt Hans Hederström, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg; Capt Fredrik Hjorth, Kalmar Maritime Academy, Kalmar.

22 2322 23

25 Years with The Swedish Club■ ■ This year we logged the 25th anniversary of Captain Claes A Lindh working for The Swedish Club. This was celebrated with a cer-emony in which he was awarded The Swedish Club Golden Pin.

Captain Lindh joined The Swedish Club in 1980 as a claims executive in the Hull Claims department. Prior to his employment he had served for eight years on ocean going cargo ships. Five years later he was promoted to a position as underwriter and in 1994 he was made Director of Underwriting and assumed total control of The Swedish Club’s underwrit-ing and reinsurance activities.

A quarter of a century ago, The Swedish Club had just ventured into the international market. A majority of the members were Swedish as compared to today where only six per cent of the H&M and ten per cent of the P&I is Swedish based. This 25 year period has also been associated with a major expansion. The H&M entries were 6.7m gross tons (GT)

Attica Q.S.T.L.G., Greece H&M

Arctic Shipping, Germany H&M

CEC Shipmanagement NL BV, The Netherlands H&M P&I FD&D

Chidori Kaiun Co., Ltd., Japan FD&D

Cido Shipping (H.K.) Co., Limited, Japan H&M

Dag Engström Rederi AB, Sweden H&M P&I

Dileton Maritime SA, Greece H&M P&I FD&D

Fairdeal Group Management S.A., Greece H&M

General Maritime Enterprises Corp., Greece H&M

Hebei Ocean Shipping Co.Ltd., PRC H&M

John Giavrides Inc., Greece P&I FD&D

Kritsas Shipping S.A., Greece P&I FD&D

Leif Hoegh & Co. Shipping AS, Norway H&M

Lomar Shipping, UK H&M

LPL Shipping SA, Greece H&M P&I FD&D

Marlow Shipmanagement Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG, Germany H&M

Nanjing Tankers Corporation, PRC H&M

Reederei Stefan Patjens, Germany H&M

Shanghai Time Shipping Co. Ltd., PRC P&I

Starmarine, Greece P&I

United Arab Shipping Company, Kuwait P&I

Western Shipping Agencies, Greece H&M

Victoria Steamship, UK H&M

World Carrier Corporation, Greece P&I FD&D

NewMembers

(since October 20th 2004)

Club InformationThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

which has grown to over 50m today. The cor-responding figures for P&I are from 2.6m GT to 17.1m today.

The annual report for 2004, showing the result as of December 31st 2004, concludes the last cycle starting in the peak year 1994. Dur-ing these eleven years the Club has increased the reserves by USD 45 million, not including returns made to members during the period. Both the H&M and P&I classes show over the period a positive technical result which has resulted in that the Club has not charged the members for P&I any supplementary or additional calls. The Club is also one of the very few hull underwriters that have never

made a technical loss on the gross result dur-ing this cycle – instead returned premium to the members.

Captain Lindh continues in his position as Director of Underwriting in the new organisa-tion, supporting the underwriters in the teams. The current strong financial position of The Swedish Club and the recognition as the world-wide provider of high quality service is creating a solid platform upon which to base positive development in H&M, P&I and FD&D. Today all these three classes of busi-ness show all time high record levels.

■

Captain Claes A. Lindh.

24 2524 25

REVIEWArticles provided by The Scandinavian Shipping Gazette www.shipgaz.com

New inquiry into the sinking of ”Estonia”SSG-GÖTEBORG ■ The Swedish government has decided to award SEK 8 million (EUR 0.9 million) to a research project into why “Estonia” sank so fast. The study will look into the course of events when the vessel went down and also international research institutions are welcome to apply for the study from the Swedish Agency for Innova-tion. The aim of the study is to enhance maritime safety. A preliminary study was carried out in 2003. (17.03.05)

EMSA call for oil spill response vesselSSG-GÖTEBORG ■ The European Maritime Safety Agen-cy, EMSA, has released a call for expressions of interest to position oil spill response vessels. The agency wants to contract vessels normally used in commercial activities, but which could be operational as oil recovery vessels at very short notice. The vessels will be complementary to the coastal state’s own resources. The call this time covers four geographical areas: The Bal-tic Sea (Göteborg–St. Petersburg), the western approach to the English Channel, The Atlantic coast and the eastern Mediterranean. An operator can express interest for one or more areas. For the Baltic Sea, the aim is to charter a total oil recovery capacity of 1,500–3,000 cubic metres. If the operator offers two or more vessels, the minimum capacity of each vessel must be 700 cubic metres. Several vessels will also increase the probability of a fast response. The vessels can be equipped with the necessary equipment permanently or it could be stored ashore for rapid instal-lation. Ice class 1B is a minimum requirement in the Baltic Sea. The budgetary framework for this call is EUR 17.5 mil-lion for 2005, of which EUR 4.5 million is earmarked for the Baltic Sea. EMSA aims to sign agreements for at least three years and the closing date is July, 2005. A new call for additional resources in the Baltic Sea, the Atlantic coast and the western Mediterranean will be launched in 2006. (09.03.05)

Eight states submit new ship routeing measuresin the Baltic Sea SSG-GÖTEBORG ■ All coastal states, except Russia, have submitted a proposal to enhance maritime safety in the Baltic Sea. Also Russia has agreed on the proposed measures, although Russia isn’t a party to the applica-tion to class the Baltic Sea as a PSSA. New traffic separa-tion schemes will be introduced in the Bornholmgat and north of Rügen. Ships with a draft exceeding 12 meters will be obliged to use the deep-water fairway from the Bornholmsgat and pass south of Hoburgs Bank and Norra Midsjöbanken on their way to the Bay of Finland. Hoburgs Bank and Norra Midsjöbanken will also be areas to be avoided for vessels over 500 GT. A decision from IMO is expected in the spring next year. The new measures will then enter into force by the end of 2006. (04.03.05)

IMO critical of criminalisation of seafarers SSG-TØNSBERG ■ IMO is critical to the recent decision of the European Parliament to adopt legislation introducing criminal penalties in cases of ship pollution committed with intent, recklessly or by serious negligence. The IMO Secretary General, Efthimios Mitropoulos, said after a meeting in Brussels that “while deliberate acts of pollution need to be treated appropriately, the sanctions imposed in cases where negligence or simply the forces of nature have been the primary causal factor should also be ap-propriate in their severity.” But he wondered whether imposing criminal sanction in such cases was the appro-priate response. At the meeting, he highlighted the role of the IMO in respect of marine pollution prevention and response through the adoption of a series of relevant IMO instruments, particularly those embedded in the Marpol Convention. (22.03.05)

ICS attacks EU on spill criminalisation SSG-TØNSBERG ■ The EU’s Draft Directive on Ship Source Pollution, which seeks to criminalise seafarers involved in also accidental pollution, has been fiercely attacked by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) for destabilising international safety conventions under the IMO umbrella. The ICS chairman, Norwegian Rolf Westfal-Larsen, says that the IMO Marpol provisions reflect the view of the glo-bal regulators that criminalising accidents is neither rea-sonable nor just because of the physical hazards that exist at sea. He also points to the fact that the new draft direc-tive contradicts the EU’s own plans, which require vessels in difficulties to use places of refuge in EU countries. ICS points out that much local regulation of draft regulations is at odds with Marpol. Many EU members have still not ratified existing Marpol rules. Therefore, Westfal-Larsen says in a statement, it is “not acceptable for the EU to declare, as the Justice Ministers have done recently with regard to criminalising accidents, that if the EU rules are in conflict with the IMO, then the solution is simply to amend the global regulations to fit their wishes”. (03.02.05)

Mangouras free to go home pending trialSSG-GÖTEBORG ■ Apostolos Mangouras, 70, master of the tanker Prestige, which was lost off Spain in November, 2002, and caused a major environmental disaster on the Spanish coast, has now been permitted to leave Spain and go home to Greece pending a trial date. Mangouras was jailed for three months immediately after the disaster. He was released on a EUR 3 million bail and ordered to report in person to the Spanish police on first a daily and later a weekly basis. Last autumn, he was allowed to leave Spain to travel to his native Greece for a 3-month period during which he celebrated his 70th birthday. He then returned to Spain. A Spanish court has now permitted Mangouras to leave for Greece again, where he has to report to the local police on a fortnightly basis. (07.03.05)

The Scandinavian Shipping GazetteThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

24 25

24 2524 25

Sweden and Finland present super ice-breakerSSG-GÖTEBORG ■ The Winter Navigation Research Board has published a report containing a concept study of a new mega ice-breaker capable of assisting tankers of up to 200,000 DWT. The vessel has a waterline length of 174 metres and a beam of 48 metres amidship. The vessel is, however ,designed with outriggers with ice-cutting blades that create a 100 metre wide channel behind the ice-breaker. The draft will be 15 metres and a 60,000 horse power propulsion plant will enable the vessel to move continuously in unbroken ice with an average thickness of about 6.5 metres. Steel weight amounts to 31,000 tonnes and the lightship weight is estimated at 42,000 tonnes. During ice-breaking, it is estimated that the vessel will burn 250 tons of fuel oil per day; its bunker tank capacity is 20,445 tonnes. The price tag for this giant is estimated at USD 250 million.

The joint Swedish/Finnish Winter Navigation Research Board is a body in which the maritime administrations of the two countries have supported research on safer winter

shipping for more than 30 years. (16.02.05)

Fear of AIS data misuseSSG-TØNSBERG ■ The Association of German Shipown-ers (Verband Deutscher Reeder, VDR) has expressed fear that Automatic Identification System (AIS) data from vessel can be misused. According to Director of Operations at Hapag-Lloyd, Henner Meyer, this information is available on internet. He feels that this is unacceptable and must be stopped. He pointed to several inconsistencies when the IMO rules were written into German law. IMO secretary general Efthimlos Mitropoulos said at a German confer-ence on container security that serious disruption of glo-bal trade would have serious consequences. The US has demanded measures to control what goes into containers to prevent terrorist using the boxes. (21.01.05)

EU rejects massive critique of criminalisationSSG-GÖTEBORG ■ “It is not a question of criminalising all seafarers when an oil spill occurs”, says the EU Commis-sion. The massive critique from the international shipping community is also a disappointment for the Commission, which feels that there should be more support for actions taken to get rid of rogue operators. The concern voiced by the international shipping organi-sations over the directive which recently passed the Parlia-ment, is however strong. According to the organisations, there is a risk that people in shipbased and shorebased organisations could also be punished for accidental oil spills. The consequences could be severe. Crews will think again before taking a damaged vessel to a safe haven in an EU member state. It could hamper the recruitment of young people to the industry. Salvors could say no to a salvage mission if not guaranteed immunity, as there is a risk of being punished if oil leaks out during the operation. (23.03.05)

Political support for UK demolition plansSSG-TØNSBERG ■ The UK Labour Government has lent political support to plans for domestic shipbreaking fa-cilities. In a recent report, a cross-party parliamentary committee recommends the development of a scrapping sector in the UK. So far, the intention is to start with state-owned vessels, which will be scrapped according to new rules now being discussed with the aim of making ship demolition more environmentally friendly. The UK is cur-rently participating in a joint working group set up by IMO, the Basel Convention and ILO. (27.01.05)

Good results from security campaignSSG-GÖTEBORG ■ The results from the three-month long campaign on ISPS compliance launched this summer by the port state control organisation Paris MOU are encouraging. A total of 4,681 inspections were carried out and 72 led to detentions for security reasons. This represents a rate of 1.5 per cent, compared to current general detention rate of 5.7 per cent. Container carriers, bulkers and tankers had the lowest detention rates, 0.2 per cent, 0.5 per cent and 0.6 per cent respectively. The Flag states Georgia, North Korea, Panama, Russia, St Vincent & Grenadines and Syria had de-tention rates above average and these flags also accounted for more than 50 per cent of all detentions. (17.12.04)

More WWL contracts for low sulphur fuelSSG-TØNSBERG ■ Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lines has signed another two contracts with Sannes (Shell Marine Products) and ExxonMobil for supply of low sulphur fuel – 1.0 per cent sulphur content – in order to meet the company’s environmental targets for this year and beyond. Under a three-year contract, Shell will supply between 200,000 and 300,000 tonnes of bunker fuel per year up until 31 De-cember, 2007, from depots in Göteborg and Bremerhaven, while the ExxonMobil contract calls for 100,000–150,000 tonnes this year from Southampton. Last summer, a one-year contract was signed with Petrobras for 150,000 tonnes of 1.5 per cent sulphur fuel oil to be supplied from Singapore. By the end of last year, WWL had met its target of using only fuel with a max 1.5 per cent sulpher content. They are thus keeping well ahead of current legislation of sulphur content. (24.01.05)

Norway designates 60 ports of refugeSSG-TØNSBERG ■ Norway has designated 60 ports of refuge as part of a total contingency plan to combat oil spills. The list of designated areas is not final, according to the Ministry of Fisheries, which is responsible through the Norwegian Coastal Administration (Kystverket). The minister for fisheries, Svein Ludvigsen, has now admitted that the contingency plans are far from adequate. The list is contained in a new white paper on oil spill contingencies published last week, Ludvigsen says that Norway is not prepared to deal with a major incident. (24.01.05)

The Scandinavian Shipping GazetteThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

24 25

26 2726 27

Club Evening

Club InformationThe Swedish Club Letter 1–2005

■ ■ During our traditional Club Evenings in Göteborg and Stockholm on March 8th and 10th, (held twice yearly since 1994), we had the pleasure of listening to Mr Anders Klingström from Svenska Hamnar, Ports of Sweden. Ports of Sweden is an industry and employers’ or-ganisation comprising 50 port companies and over 4,000 employees.

Mr Klingström informed us about the work behind the implementation of the ISPS Code in Swedish ports.

Mr Anders Klingström.

Interested audience at the Club Evening in Stockholm.

Guests at the gathering during the Club Evening in Göteborg.

26 2726 27


STAFF NEWS

Club Information Staff News Public Holidays

PUBLIC HOLIDAYSwhen The Swedish Club offices are closed

May - October 2005

Head office Sweden Emergency tel +46 31 151 328

May 1st Labour Day

May 5th Ascension Day

June 6th National Holiday (Sweden’s Flag Day)

June 24th Midsummer Eve

Greece Emergency tel +30 6944 530 856

May 1st Easter Sunday/Labour Day

May 2nd Easter Monday

June 20th Whit Monday

August 15th Assumption day

October 28th National Anniversary

Hong KongEmergency tel +852 2598 6464

May 2nd Labour Day

May 16th Buddha’s Birthday

June 11th Dragon Boat Festival

July 1st Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

September 19th Mid-autumn Festival

October 1st National Day

October 11th Chung Yeung Festival

Japan 24 hour tel +81 3 5442 5466

May 3rd Constitution Memorial Day

May 4th National Holiday

May 5th Childrens’ Day

July 18th Marine Day

September 19th Respect for the Elderly Day

September 23rd Autumnal Equinox Day

October 10th Health and Sports Day

Ruizong Wang has been appointed Managing Director of The Swedish Club Hong Kong Ltd and Area Manager of Team Asia as of April 15th 2005.

Tord Nilsson has returned to Sweden after five years’ service as Managing Director of The Swedish Club Hong Kong Ltd and Area Manager of Team Asia. Tord started his new position as Area Manager for Team Göteborg I on April 15th 2005.

Kjell Augustsson has moved to Hong Kong and been appointed Deputy Managing Director for Team Asia as of March 15th 2005.

Martin Hernqvist has been appointed Manager, Maritime Resource Management as of January 1st 2005.

Fredrik Olsson, Claims Executive, has returned to the head office and Team Göteborg III after a six-month assignment in the Club’s Hong Kong office.

Fredrik Kruse has returned to Sweden after seven years in our London and Piraeus offices. Fredrik started his position as Senior Advisor with Team Göteborg III on March 7th 2005.

Annica Börjesson, Claims Executive, has accepted permanent employment as of April 1st 2005. She started as a summer trainee with the Club in June 2004 and has since August 16th been working as a substitute for Cleopatra Georgantzis in Team Göteborg I during her parental leave.

Martin Eriksson, AD/Web Developer, has accepted permanent employment as of April 1st 2005. He has been working as a substitute for Petra Setterberg during her parental leave.

Vivian Roinioti joined the Club’s Piraeus office on March 17th 2005. Vivian will take up the position as Office Assistant in Team Piraeus.

Theresa Lam joined the Club’s Hong Kong office on March 21st 2005. Theresa will take up the position as Team Assistant in Team Asia.

Linda Kan has resigned from the Club’s Hong Kong office after nearly eight years’ service as Team Assistant. We wish her all success in her future career.

28 MB

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

��

Date post:	15-Jun-2020
Category:	Documents
Upload:	others
View:	3 times
Download:	0 times

Namnlöst-1 - Swedish Club · Salvage Selendang Ayu - Bad weather delayed the salvage operation 4...

Documents