Ics Shipping News

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has made a number of submissions to a critical meeting of the IMO Marine Environment Committee (MEPC) which begins in London next week (18-22 April). These address further measures to reduce the sector’s CO2 emissions, outstanding problems with the implementation of the IMO Ballast Water Management Convention, and the need for an immediate IMO decision on whether or not ships will have to use 0.5% sulphur fuel in 2020. ICS says its immediate priority is to help ensure that the new global CO2 data collection system is adopted by IMO as soon as possible. This will then facilitate the possible development of additional CO2 reduction measures.

In advance of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in December, the global shipping industry, as represented by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has launched some key messages to government negotiators, explaining the impressive progress the industry is making to reduce its carbon footprint. According to ICS, the global industry is already delivering carbon neutral growth having reduced total CO2 emissions by more than 10% since 2007, despite an increase in maritime trade. CO2 emissions from international shipping now represent just 2.2% of the world’s total CO2 emissions compared to 2.8% in 2007 (UN IMO Green House Gas Study, 2014).

2.2% of the world’s total Green House Gas emissions during 2012 compared to 2.8% in 2007. Shipping’s total emissions have reduced by more than 10% during the same period. In advance of the United Nations Climate Conference in Lima (1-12 December), the global trade association for ship operators – the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) – says that the industry is on track to reduce its emissions by more than 20% by 2020 (compared to 2005) with further reductions going forward. This and other information about the impressive progress which the shipping industry is making to reduce its CO2 emissions is set out in a special brochure prepared for the UNFCCC Climate Change Conference (COP 20).

The total Green House Gas emissions from global maritime transport are estimated to have been more than 20% lower in 2012 than in 2007, according to the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the global shipping industry’s trade association. The global shipping industry, which transports by sea around 90% of all world trade, is thought to have produced only about 2.2% of the world’s total GHG emissions during 2012 compared to 2.8% in 2007. The estimates are contained in the…

Three global shipping organizations today issued guidance to their members on the risks posed to ships’ crews calling in countries affected by the Ebola virus. 1. The Master should ensure that the crew is aware of the risks, how the virus can be spread and how to reduce the risk. 2. The ISPS requirements on ensuring that unauthorized personnel do not board the vessel should be strictly enforced throughout the duration of the vessel being in port. 3. The Master should give careful consideration to granting any shore leave whilst in impacted ports.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has submitted comments on behalf of the global shipping industry to a comprehensive competition policy review being conducted by the Australian Government. The ICS comments support the maintenance of important antitrust exemptions that currently apply to international maritime transport. The provisions under Part X of Australia’s Competition and Consumer Act currently permit container shipping lines to organize consortia and other cooperative arrangements…

The IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), which starts on March 31, will seek to make progress on the development of a global system of monitoring and reporting of CO2 emissions from ships. This is supported by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) which has made a detailed submission on the issue to the MEPC meeting on behalf of its member national shipowners’ associations. In Ålesund, Norway, at a seminar organized by ICS for senior officials of maritime administrations…

The UK P&I Club says that with the support of several Members, it has launched "Book it right and pack it tight" - a set of four guidebooks on the workings of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code. The books are designed to provide busy operational people, who are not experts in the IMDG Code, with a quick reference and practical everyday guidance to the IMDG Code rules. They were published again in September 2013, and include changes from the IMDG Code Amendment 36-2012 (Effective from Jan 2013).

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) launched its latest Shipping Industry Flag State Performance Table (which can be downloaded from the ICS website – www.ics-shipping.org). Following the entry into force of the ILO Maritime Labor Convention (MLC) in August 2013, the latest ICS table now requires flag states to have ratified the ILO MLC in order to receive a positive indicator. “The level of ratification of this important new ILO Convention as of the end of December is impressive,” said Mr. Bennett.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) debuted a new web-based information resource to assist shipping companies to implement the International Labor Organization (ILO) Maritime Labor Convention (MLC). The ILO MLC entered into force worldwide in August although, in practice for many ships, full certification including the preparation of Documents of Maritime Labor Compliance on board individual vessels is not required until August next year. ICS, operating as the International Shipping Federation (ISF)…

The global trade association for the shipping industry, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has called for all future proposals for environmental regulation that impact on ships to be subjected to a full and proper cost benefit analysis before adoption by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). ICS has set out how the shipping industry supports the goals for sustainable development agreed by world leaders at last year’s United Nations Summit on Sustainable Development.

The Board of Directors of the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) representing national shipowners’ associations from the Americas, Asia and Europe met in London last week. Issues discussed included: the development by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of a global mechanism for the Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) of CO2 emissions; the entry into force of the International Labor Organization (ILO) Maritime Labor Convention (MLC); and ICS’s response…

Misdeclared container cargo weights have been a long-standing problem for the transportation industry and for governments. The problem is significant and arises in almost every trade, and misdeclared container weights present safety hazards for ships, their crews, other cargo on board, workers in the port facilities handling containers, and on roads. Incorrectly declared weights lead to incorrect ship stowage and accidents. Misdeclared container weights facilitate unlawful evasion of Customs tariffs and duties…

Shipping industry “big hitters” will be out in force for this year’s ICS Shipping Conference, being held by the International Chamber of Shipping at the British Library, London, on Wednesday September 11. Proceedings will be overseen by ICS Chairman, Masamichi Morooka. This year’s ICS event is being held in conjunction with the inaugural London International Shipping Week, which will see the worldwide maritime community gather in the U.K. capital for a multitude of events and meetings from September 9-13.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has issued advice to shipowners to help them pre-empt port state control problems when the Convention enters in force on 20 August 2013. The advice – contained in a brochure which can be downloaded free of charge via the ICS website – explains the measures that port state control officers are entitled to take, which initially will vary from country to country depending upon the date when the port state ratified the Convention. ICS Secretary General…

The new ICS Guidelines, being distributed free of charge throughout the industry, were launched at a reception sponsored by ICS for Governments attending the IMO Symposium on the Future of Ship Safety in London. ICS Secretary General, Peter Hinchliffe, explained, “Our brochure is intended to provide some basic advice to companies on the successful implementation of an effective safety culture. This covers the vital need for all concerned, at sea and ashore, to understand the relationship between unsafe acts and serious incidents that may result with loss of life.

New Brochure highlights importance of FAL Convention, as IMO Facilitation Committee meets in London. A copy of the new ICS, ISF and CMI Campaign Brochure is attached, and contains additional information about the international Conventions to which this PR refers. The Comité Maritime International (CMI) – the international association for maritime lawyers – has joined forces with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the International Shipping Federation (ISF) - which represent the operators of over 80% of the world merchant fleet - to promote those key international maritime Conventions which they believe are vital for governments to ratify and implement as soon as possible.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), which represents over 80% of the world merchant fleet, has issued a new position paper on Arctic shipping. As the Arctic becomes more accessible, ICS has set out some key principles with regard to the future governance of Arctic waters. Offshore support vessel activity is already significant, while destination shipping is anticipated to grow as the extraction of energy and raw materials is developed. Use of the Northern Sea Route is also a reality for a small but increasing number of ships in the summer months. ICS therefore stresses the importance of Arctic nations respecting the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and relevant IMO Conventions and Codes such as SOLAS and MARPOL.

The Table collates various data available in the public domain. Under the supervision of ICS's member national shipowners' associations, the presentation of the Table for 2011 has been modified slightly in order to address feedback from governments. However the purpose is the same: to encourage shipowners to examine whether a flag state has substance before using it and to encourage them to pressure their flag administration to effect any improvement that might be necessary. ICS believes that a balance has to be struck between the commercial advantages of shipowners selecting a particular flag and the need to discourage the use any flag that does not meet its international obligations.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has published its latest annual Shipping Industry Flag State Performance Table - see www.ics-shipping.org/flag-performance.htm . The Table collates various data available in the public domain. Under the supervision of ICS's member national shipowners' associations, the presentation of the Table for 2011 has been modified slightly in order to address feedback from governments. However the purpose is the same: to encourage shipowners to…

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has received a formal proposal co-sponsored by a broad array of industry organizations, labor, and governments to require loaded containers to be weighed to determine their actual weight. The proposal was submitted by Denmark, The Netherlands, the United States, BIMCO, the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), and the World Shipping Council (WSC).

Can shipping rise to meet its environmental obligations and introduce sustainable ‘green’ measures while coping with shifting markets, volatile fuel prices and fast-moving change. That’s the challenging question facing delegates attending this year’s International Shipping Conference hosted by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) at the British Library, London on September 12 and 13, 2012. The event will be chaired by the recently elected ICS Chairman, Masamichi Morooka (Japan) and will be addressed by IMO Secretary-General, Koji Sekimizu.

The ICS Secretary General was addressing an international academic conference on “Developing a New International Architecture for Maritime Policy” organised by the Dräger Foundation and the Earth Institute at Columbia University. He praised the virtues of the comprehensive regulatory framework developed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) within the umbrella for oceans governance provided by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Speaking just before the New York event…