Imo Committee News

Saab and GMV are collaborating in ASGARD, an EU-funded project that aims to improve maritime security when using GNSS and OSNMA. The project addresses the growing threat of GNSS spoofing and other cyberattacks on navigation systems used in the maritime industry.The ASGARD project, run by Saab and GMV, is an ambitious European Union (EU) initiative that aims to develop advanced technologies to improve Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Open Service Navigation Message Authentication (OSNMA) security in maritime environments.

North Korean missile tests are endangering the safety of commercial shipping in busy sea lanes in northeastern Asia without enough time given for notification, several countries told a UN agency on Wednesday.Nuclear-armed North Korea's sixth satellite launch on Wednesday ended in failure, with the booster and payload plunging into the sea, but it still prompted emergency alerts and evacuation warnings in parts of South Korea and Japan.A resolution adopted by a majority of over 100 countries attending the International Maritime Organization's (IMO) security committee…

Spain has called for tighter scrutiny of oil transfers involving tankers at sea as the number of unregulated ships hit by sanctions grows and raises pollution risks, a U.N. agency session heard this week.Hundreds of extra "ghost" tankers have joined this opaque parallel trade over the past few years as a result of rising Iranian oil exports as well as restrictions imposed on Russian energy sales over the war in Ukraine.The number of incidents last year including groundings, collisions and near misses involving these ships reached the highest in years…

Ocean freight costs are likely to remain high in 2022 as investors and regulators scramble to accelerate decarbonization of the shipping industry and companies grapple with green financing, sources say.Shipping, which transports about 90% of world trade and accounts for nearly 3% of the world's CO2 emissions, is under growing pressure from environmentalists to deliver more concrete action including a carbon levy.The International Maritime Organization (IMO), the UN's specialist shipping agency…

Ocean freight costs are likely to remain high in 2022 as investors and regulators scramble to accelerate decarbonization of the shipping industry and companies grapple with green financing, sources say.Shipping, which transports about 90% of world trade and accounts for nearly 3% of the world's CO2 emissions, is under growing pressure from environmentalists to deliver more concrete action including a carbon levy.The International Maritime Organization (IMO), the UN's specialist shipping agency…

BIMCO is helping the industry raise its voice against maritime corruption and supports initiatives that help fight unfair trade. At the 42nd session of the International Maritime Organisation’s Facilitation Committee (FAL) in London on June 5-8th, BIMCO has backed a request made by The Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN) for the IMO and member States to fully recognise the scale of maritime corruption and to take a stand against this type of crime. MACN is a global business network working towards a corruption free maritime industry that enables fair trade to the benefit of society. The network has submitted a paper to the IMO Committee that discusses the impact of corruption on society, how it acts as a trade barrier and how it hinders social economic growth.

The International Maritime Organization’s proposals to reduce sulfur levels in marine fuels to a maximum of 0.5 percent m/m (mass/mass) by 2020 may prove to be controversial, having met with various responses from major shipping organisations and other bodies. The decision to implement the proposals by 2020 was taken by IMO, the regulatory authority for international shipping, during its Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 70) meeting, which was held in London, UK in October 2016, and represents a significant reduction from the 3.5 percent m/m global limit currently in place.

IMO informs that the draft International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low flashpoint Fuels (IGF Code), along with proposed amendments to make the Code mandatory under SOLAS, have been agreed by the inaugural session of the Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC 1). The basic philosophy of the IGF Code is to provide mandatory provisions for the arrangement, installation, control and monitoring of machinery, equipment and systems using low flashpoint fuels, such as liquefied natural gas (LNG),  to minimize the risk to the ship, its crew and the environment, having regard to the nature of the fuels involved.

On his election yesterday as President of The Nautical Institute, Captain Robert McCabe FNI issued a challenge to members and branches to evaluate their contribution to the Institute as a “responsible and independent voice for the maritime industry, selflessly dedicated to delivering the highest standards in the profession. In his inaugural address at the Institute’s Annual General Meeting held in Sydney, Australia, Captain McCabe pointed out change and continuous improvement at the Institute meant that the building blocks of NGO status at IMO…

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) has raised concerns with governments about preparations worldwide for issuing tens of thousands of seafarers with new certificates for security-related training by January 1, as required by the 2010 amendments to the IMO Convention on Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW 2010). In a written submission to IMO, ICS has suggested that IMO Member States might give consideration to the possibility of an…

At the recent 56th session of the IMO Fire Protection Sub-committee (FP56) a strong INTERTANKO delegation was present . INTERTANKO report that of particular note at the meeting was the ongoing work related to the ‘Development of Measures to Prevent Explosions on Oil and Chemical Tankers Transporting Low-flash Point Cargoes'. Other outcomes from the meeting concerned ‘Means of Escape from Machinery Spaces’ for new vessels and amendments to SOLAS Chapter II-2 with enhanced requirements for escape routes from machinery control rooms and main workshops within machinery spaces. Additional amendments were considered for the construction of inclined ladders/stairways that require fitting of steel shields to the undersides.

International Paint, BMT ARGOSS, & NAPA urge IMO committee to develop measurement standards for paint energy-saving & eco claims. International Paint, part of AkzoNobel, the global paints and coatings company, alongside BMT ARGOSS, and NAPA, call on the International Maritime Organization's Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) to work with independent vessel performance monitoring organisations to develop a standard methodology to determine the energy saving and eco-efficiency impact of clean technologies fitted to new and existing vessels. The move comes amid contention from key industry figures questioning the measurement and validation of fuel saving and efficiency claims made by technology companies.

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…

Piracy and armed robbery against ships off the coast of Somalia, in the Gulf of Aden and the wider Indian Ocean will be high on the agenda when IMO's Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) meets at the Organization's London Headquarters for its 90th session from 16 to 25 May 2012. A High-Level Segment will be held on the opening day (16 May), intended to provide an opportunity for a full policy debate among Member Governments on how the international community should deal with issues…

International Maritime Organization (IMO) has approved improved shipbuilding standards aimed at passenger and cargoships. The new construction rules, designed to increase a vessel's chance of surviving an accident, were agreed at the IMO's committee on stability and load lines headed by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (Amsa). The new standards will go into effect in November and will apply to ships with keel laying after January 2009. Among the new rules is one concerning lubricating-oil circulation tanks, which must be kept a minimum distance of 500 millimetres from the keel line of the vessel to prevent the oil escaping in the case of a grounding leading to engine failure. Guidelines for the crew will also advise on how to ensure a vessel survives in an accident.

A situation ongoing at press time half way around the world promises to affect the way in which ship emergencies are handled in the U.S. and abroad. Last month, debates were raging and political fur was flying as the stricken tanker, Castor, carrying 29,000 tons of gasoline, was held in limbo as authorities on many levels debated the best course of action. The ship, which was damaged but still afloat and operational, was turned away from three countries — Morocco, Spain and Gibraltar — as it went to for assistance. Greek operator Athenian Sea Carriers said that the Moroccan Coast Guard instructed the vessel to move 40 miles offshore…

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) called on Monday for measures to ensure refuge for troubled ships like the Greek tanker Castor, which was last week turned away from three countries it went to for assistance, Reuters reported. "The time has come for the organization ... to adopt any measures required to ensure tha t... coastal states review their contingency arrangements so that disabled ships are provided with assistance," Secretary General Bill O'Neil told an IMO committee meeting in London. O'Neil said he was referring specifically to the case of the Castor, which developed a 20-m crack in its deck on New Year's Day and has since been unsuccessfully seeking a sheltered port in which to unload its 29,500 ton cargo of gasoline.

A situation ongoing at press time half way around the world promises to affect the way in which ship emergencies are handled in the U.S. and abroad. Last month, debates were raging and political fur was flying as the stricken tanker, Castor, carrying 29,000 tons of gasoline, was held in limbo as authorities on many levels debated the best course of action. The ship, which was damaged but still afloat and operational, was turned away from three countries - Morocco, Spain and Gibraltar - as it went to for assistance. Greek operator Athenian Sea Carriers said that the Moroccan Coast Guard instructed the vessel to move 40 miles offshore…

The 45th Session of the IMO Committee on Stability, Load Lines, and Fishing Vessel Safety will be held in London on July 22-26, 2002. Items on the agenda include subdivision and damage stability harmonization; large passenger ship safety; revision of technical regulations of the Load Line Convention; containership partially weathertight hatch covers; review of the Intact Stability Code; and revision of Fishing Vessel Safety Code and Voluntary Guidelines.