Further to our circular on 14
January, we would like to advise Members that the Club has recently
experienced a number of claims arising from poor cargo practices being adopted
on board tankers during Ship To Ship (STS) operations.
On the back of
these incidents, we would like to bring our Members’ attention to Chapter 8 of
MARPOL Annex I. Whilst the regulations stated apply to oil tankers of 150GT and
above, engaged in the transfer of oil cargo between oil tankers at sea (STS
operations), we also encourage our Members operating vessels outside
these criteria but who engage in STS operations to incorporate these
operating procedures to assist with ensuring safe operations.
An STS operation
needs to be carefully planned right from its initial stages with the following
being of paramount importance:
·
Procedures for selecting a safe STS transfer area taking into consideration
traffic density, availability of good holding ground, weather conditions and
local port regulations.
·
Notification to the relevant local authorities in line with their reporting
requirements.
Any oil tanker
involved in STS operations shall carry on board an STS operation plan, approved
by the Administration and in the working language of the ship, prescribing how
to conduct STS operations. The STS operation plan should be developed taking
into account the information contained in IMO’s “Manual on Oil Pollution,
Section I, Prevention” and the ICS and OCIMF “Ship To Ship Transfer Guide,
Petroleum”.
The person in
overall advisory control of STS operations shall be qualified to perform all
relevant duties, taking into account the qualifications contained in the two
above mentioned publications.
An STS
operations plan should include a step by step description of the entire STS
operation including description of the manoeuvring methods, mooring and
unmooring procedures, description of the cargo and ballast transfer procedures
and duties of persons involved. In addition contingency plans and emergency
procedures should be included and these should cover all possible emergencies
and take into account the location of the operation and the resources
available.
STS checklists
as established in the STS Operations Plan should deal with the following stages
of operation:
a.
Pre-fixture information.
b.
Before operations commence.
c.
Before run-in and mooring.
d.
Before cargo transfer.
e.
Before unmooring.
Amongst the
claims received by the Club, the majority have involved collisions or contacts
between the two vessels involved in the STS operation whilst manoeuvring to
come alongside or during sailing. We would like to take this opportunity to
kindly remind all our Members on the importance of establishing and training
the ship’s crew on procedures to be adopted when engaged in such operations.
These may include:
·
Comparing the available parallel body lengths at loaded and ballast
draughts.
·
Ensuring that concerned sides of the vessels involved are clear of any
overhanging projections.
·
Confirming that maneuvering, berthing and mooring arrangements between the
two vessels have been agreed upon including the approach and the rendezvous
position taking into account the weather, traffic density, characteristics of
the vessels involved etc.
·
Ensuring that adequate and suitable fenders are being employed with
confirmation on numbers, types and locations.
·
Recommendations on avoiding berthing and unmooring/sailing operations in
hours of darkness, if feasible.
Further emphasis
should be laid on establishing proper communication channels at all levels of
operation and ensuring that all equipment that are to be involved in the
operation are available, ready and compatible. The compatibility of the cargo
handling equipment on the two vessels should be given due importance with
special consideration to the pumping capacities of the two vessels involved. It
has to be ensured that the minimum pumping rate of the discharging vessel is
well within the maximum loading rate of the receiving vessel.
We would like to
recommend that Members concerned with STS operations review their procedures
for their fleet and ensure suitable training is given to the crew involved. To
assist, reference can be made to the following publications:
·
Manual on Oil Pollution, Section I (IMO).
·
MARPOL.
·
Ship To Ship Transfer Guide – Petroleum (ICS and OCIMF).
·
International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals (ISGOTT).
·
Convention on International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea
(COLREG), 1972 – (IMO).
Original circular may be downloaded at,
