Estonia signs agreement with Primar Stavanger

Estonia signs agreement with Primar Stavanger Primar Stavanger, the international Electronic Navigational Chart (ENC) center operated by the Norwegian Hydrographic Service, has recently signed a cooperation agreement with Estonia. The center now covers more than 80 percent of all ENCs available in Europe, reports marketing manager Rune H. Johnsen at Primar Stavanger. Estonia has already made 31 ENCs available, which indicate that the whole coast of this Baltic state is covered. Of these, nineteen are coastal ENCs, five harbour ENCs and seven berthing ENCs. The increased coverage of ENCs in the Baltic with Primar Stavanger fits well with the declaration from the Helsinki Commission (Helcom) and national commitments. These focus on covering all major shipping routes and every major port in these waters with ENCs by the end of 2002. It is estimated that all navigational areas will be covered by 2004. All shipping companies operating in the Baltic and its approaches can invest with confidence in an electronic chart display and information system (ECDIS). "All signatories to the Helsinki Convention actively support and encourage the use of ECDIS and have committed themselves to providing the ENCs needed for full use of this system," says Ole Berg, director of the Danish Hydrographic Office (Charting).