• 2019 October 23 18:02

    Tokyo MOU accepted Panama as the 21st member authority

    The Port State Control Committee, the governing body under the Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control in the Asia-Pacific Region, held its 30th meeting in Majuro, Marshall Islands, from 14 to 17 October 2019.

    The 30th meeting of the Committee was chaired by Mr. Alex Schultz-Altmann, Manager, Ship Inspection and Registration, Operations Division, Australian Maritime Safety Authority. The meeting was officially opened by Honorable Thomas Heine, Minister of Transportation, Communications & Information Technology of Marshall Islands.

    In his opening speech, Mr. Heine firstly appreciated the great opportunity for Marshall Islands to host the 30th Meeting of the Port State Control Committee of Tokyo MOU and welcomed all delegates to Majuro. Then, Mr. Heine stressed the importance of port State control for Marshall Islands from the view point that Majuro is a major fisheries trans-shipment port. He reconfirmed active participation in and full co-operation with Tokyo MOU by Marshall Islands.

    The 30th meeting of the Port State Control Committee was attended by the member Authorities of Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Fiji, Hong Kong (China), Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Russian Federation, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam; a co-operating member Authority of Panama; and observers of Macao (China), the United States Coast Guard, the Black Sea MOU(represented by Russian Federation), the Caribbean MOU (represented by Cayman Islands), the Indian Ocean MOU (represented by Australia), the Paris MoU (represented by Canada) and the Viña del Mar Agreement (represented by Chile). The member Authorities of Indonesia, Peru, Philippines, Vanuatu; a co-operating member Authority of Mexico and observers of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, the Abuja MOU, the Riyadh MOU, ILO and IMO were unable to attend.Prior to the Committee meeting, the 13th meeting of the Technical Working Group (TWG) was convened from 10 to 11 October 2019.

    The TWG meeting discussed matters relating to PSC technical procedures and guidelines, the Concentrated Inspection Campaigns, the information system and information exchange, evaluation of works done by intersessional technical groups and technical co-operation activities.

    Having completed a three-year term as a Co-operating Member Authority, Panama applied for a full membership of the Tokyo MOU. The Committee considered the application by Panama and the report of a fact finding mission, which confirmed full compliance with the qualitative membership criteria by Panama.

    In accordance with provision of the Memorandum, the Committee unanimously agreed to accept Panama as the 21st member Authority. The Committee considered and adopted amendments to the Memorandum relating to full membership of Panama. The Committee considered and revised the list of follow-up actions emanating from the Ministerial Declaration, “Safeguard Responsible and Sustainable Shipping” adopted at the Third Joint Ministerial Conference of the Paris and Tokyo Memoranda on Port State Control, held in Vancouver, Canada, from 3 to 4 May 2017.

    As part of this consideration, the Committee discussed advisory information as part of an education campaign aimed at preventing marine casualties caused by cargoes. The Committee also examined draft guidelines on the inspection of ships covered under SOLAS Chapter I Regulation 4 aim at assisting Flag States in acting to ensure the safety of ships flying its flag. The Committee will continue to review and update the list based on the progress of actions and achievements of the member Authorities of the MOU and its Secretariat.

    The Committee considered and approved the final report of the CIC in 2018 on MARPOL Annex VI, which will be available on Tokyo MOU website in the near future. The Committee also considered and approved the general arrangements and preparations for the joint CIC with the Paris MoU on Stability in General in 2020. The Committee took note of ongoing preparation for the joint CIC on STCW in 2021. The Committee considered possible topics for future CICs and agreed to accept the proposal by the Paris MoU for carrying out a CIC on Fire Safety System in 2022.

    The Committee further considered and approved the amendments to the policy on joint CIC, which is harmonized with that of the Paris MoU. The Committee considered and agreed to conduct a trial on remote follow-up inspection approach, through which PSCOs would be able to verify and close, without physically visiting the vessel, certain deficiencies in specific circumstances where such a mechanism can be used where there is appropriate and reliable evidence of rectification of deficiencies. The exercise of such a mechanism will be solely at the discretion of the port State.

    Date and place of the next CommitteeThe 31st meeting of the Port State Control Committee will be held in Jeju, Republic of Korea from 16 to 19 November 2020.


2024 March 19

10:48 Port of Los Angeles container volume increases 60% in Feb 2024
10:24 PortXL signs a partnership agreement with MINDbase
09:47 IMO to open regional office in Fiji to serve the Pacific

2024 March 18

18:13 Brunvoll propulsion chosen for ESVAGT's growing fleet of SOVs
17:42 ADNOC signs second long-term Heads of Agreement for Ruwais LNG Project
17:37 Cemre Marin Endustri shipyard holds launching ceremony for CMAL's MV Isle of Islay
17:24 Fortescue successfully conducts world’s first use of ammonia as a marine fuel in a dual-fueled ammonia-powered vessel in the Port of Singapore
17:02 APL updates on European Union’s Import Control System 2
16:03 MED Marine contracted to build MED-A2575 series tug for SVS Maritime
15:31 Hanwha Ocean and BV join hands to develop a 270K LNG carrier
15:17 HD Korea Shipbuilding awarded contracts for three VLACs
14:18 Port of Skagen and Stillstrom partner to decarbonise anchorage zone with offshore charging solutions
13:22 Sanmar delivers 6th battery electric power tugboat to Norwegian operator
13:16 COSCO SHIPPING Lines announces the launch of OCEAN Alliance DAY 8 product this year
12:21 Dutch offshore wind farm approved by LR
11:39 ClassNK awards first-ever notation for improvements in living and working environment to Fuyo Kaiun's bulk carrier "ELETTRA"
11:31 Davie strengthens Québec’s shipbuilding industry by supporting the reorientation of AFCDC
10:44 Storylines and Brodosplit shipyard renew ship building contract to construct private residence ship
10:25 BOEM announces environmental review of proposed wind energy project offshore New Jersey
09:51 First ‘flying’ electric ferry to debut in New Zealand in 2025

2024 March 17

16:31 Norwegian Shipowners' Association names Harald Fotland as its President
15:22 ABS Wavesight Nautical Systems now supports fully digital, streamlined SIRE 2.0 inspections
14:15 TechnipFMC selected by NEP to deliver the first all-electric iEPCI for CCS
13:03 US sanctions shipping company, targeting Iran and Houthi rebels
11:01 The first hybrid electric vessel built in South America will use a Corvus battery system
09:47 Kalmar and Forterra sign JDA for autonomous terminal tractor

2024 March 16

16:24 The Netherlands selects Naval Group for its submarine replacement program
15:41 Equinor exercises options to extend four-year drilling contracts
14:17 GONDAN Shipbuilders hosts launching ceremony for Edda Wind's CSOV C503
13:47 Van Oord, Van Aalsburg partner to further develop circular fascine mattresses
12:13 Snam wins "A" raing in CDP's Suppliers Engagement Rating for efforts against climate change
10:54 ULSTEIN unveils new subsea vessel for offshore energy tasks

2024 March 15

18:07 DNV gives nod to Friede & Goldman BargeRack solution
18:02 New partnership enables faster offshore wind installations in the U.S.
17:53 First production line at ‘World’s Largest Monopile Factory’ to go live in July
17:21 Brunvoll DP2 upgrades for more Mokster vessels
16:55 CMA CGM to suspend its calls at Port au Prince, Haiti
16:03 GEFO's LNG DF chemical tanker Tosca gets Green Award
15:19 CEVA Logistics develops new vehicle logistics business at the Port of Dunkirk
14:11 MPA: SaR operation continues for a missing crew member of the Liberia-flagged UTOPIA
13:07 To develop the Far East it makes sense to build a new shipyard in the country’s eastern regions, President Putin said
12:48 World’s first use of ammonia as a marine fuel in a dual-fuelled ammonia-powered vessel in the Port of Singapore
11:39 COSCO Shipping calls Port of Genoa, Italy with 20,000 TEU vessels on regular basis
10:03 DMC contracted to supply rudder systems for the world’s largest PCTCs

2024 March 14

18:04 Shearwater awarded seismic survey for UK carbon capture and storage project
17:15 UAE, world leaders discuss maritime corridor for aid to Gaza
16:05 Marine fuel sales at Singapore drop to a three-month low in February
15:43 World Shipping Council selects NCB for liner shipping Cargo Safety Program
15:00 ZIM reports results for 2023
14:57 DP World announces 2023 results
14:29 HaiSea unveils new operations facility for the world’s greenest tugboat fleet
13:44 DEME awards KENC with engineering and fabrication scope on multiple offshore wind installation projects
13:25 MABUX: Bunker Outlook, Week 11, 2024
12:43 Wartsila Lifecycle Agreement to support optimised low-emission operations for two P&O Ferries vessels
11:35 Hapag-Lloyd transport volumes up by 0.5% to 11.9 million TEU in 2023
10:51 NYK and Astomos Energy christen new dual-fuel LPG carrier
10:25 Port of Long Beach container volume up 24.1% to 674,723 TEUs in Feb 2024

2024 March 13

18:02 Lebanese, French officials float a plan to rebuild Beirut port nearly 4 years after huge explosion
17:23 Ascenz Marorka obtains type approval for cyber-security from Bureau Veritas for its digital solutions
16:58 USDOT announces $500 mln for ports available through the Port Infrastructure Development Program
15:44 RINA wins contract to create global investment plan for cruise sector
15:23 Hede International Shipping enters the Transpacific container trade
14:43 Concordia Damen wins contract to deliver a CDS2410 River Pusher to Transporte Fluviales Frey Bentos
14:13 CMA CGM Group launches its first loyalty program SEA REWARD
13:13 Cargill posts results of the six-month test period of the world’s first wind-powered ocean vessel
12:24 Rotterdam's Gate Terminal sees need for more LNG bunkering capacity at Rotterdam
11:58 MOL announces delivery of LNG-fueled car carrier CERULEAN ACE
11:24 Panama Canal announces increase in daily slots at Panamax locks
10:25 thyssenkrupp Veerhaven plans the climate-friendly pusher tug

2024 March 12

18:04 Cosco Shipping installs Iridium Global Maritime Distress and Safety System on PCTC Cosco Tengfei