"The week was used primarily to promote London as a vital hub in the shipping world but also acted as a catalyst to bring the global shipping community together, and allow many matters of high interest to be debated and influential parties to align."
Director's Log
Autumn has arrived, which for OCIMF is a second spring. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has returned refreshed from the summer recess, our own summer holidays are behind us, and the committees and working groups have burst back to life.
September opened at the IMO with the Navigation Subcommittee's very last meeting. Its last because all of the sub-committees at the IMO are being reformed. The new working structure aims to be both faster and more efficient. There will be just seven subcommittees in the new structure with several established work steams being merged to remove duplication. The new structure is set to be up-and-running early in 2014.
This was followed by London International Shipping week with OCIMF participating and contributing to several events. The Chairman John Ridgway and I joined other members of the London Shipping Community aboard HMS Northumberland recently returned after counter piracy service in East Africa. It provided a great chance to voice our appreciation to the commanding officer and crew for protection of our seafarers. We also met the UK Shipping Minister and officials from several government departments and flag states. The week was used primarily to promote London as a vital hub in the shipping world but also acted as a catalyst to bring the global shipping community together, and allow many matters of high interest to be debated and influential parties to align.
IMO's World Maritime Day, taking a view from the masthead with a theme of Sustainable Development: IMO's Contribution beyond Rio+20, was marked with a number of events in the week commencing 24 September. The theme focused upon the future of shipping in the global supply chain and the vital contribution made to world trade. Robust operational standards, safe and efficient, incident free shipping and terminals resonate with the OCIMF Mission setting high industry standards of operation and design in maritime hydrocarbon transports, marine terminals and offshore marine operations and we are pleased to voice our support.
In the same week the Executive Committees and Boards of Directors for OCIMF, the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) and the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO) met at co-ordinated meetings in St Petersburg, Russia. See The 72nd meeting of the Executive Committee and 35th Annual General Meeting below.
In closing I wish to remind members that OCIMF will be in the middle east in the coming weeks, firstly at the Seatrade Middle East Workboat & Offshore Show in Abu Dhabi on 30 September to 2 October. We are holding a reception on the evening of 30 September and would be very pleased to see our members from the region there. A sea change for OCIMF is also marked in October when the first of the new Regional Panel meetings takes place in Dubai (see OCIMF's first regional panel meeting, below). We hope that all members represented in the region will support the event by coming along. It will be an excellent opportunity for all members to engage and take full advantage of OCIMF membership. You can register for your place at this free event here.
We would love to hear your thoughts on the newsletter. Email
OCIMF's first regional panel meeting
The very first OCIMF regional panel will be taking place in Dubai on the 31 October, and we much hope to see you there. The regional panels have been set-up in response to requests from our members for greater regional engagement. The Executive Committee, while taking efficiency and member participation costs into account, decided that Regional Panels which incorporate the existing Terminal Forums was the best way forward.
The existing working structure of the Regional Terminal Forum was built for a smaller, less geographically diverse organisation with a far narrower purpose. The structure has been struggling to capture a full range of industry issues and discussions beyond their remit of terminal and tanker interface matters. The regional panel will be split into 2 sessions:
Morning Session:
- Open to all OCIMF Members and invited industry guests. A broad forum to raise, and discuss issues and receive first hand reports on the full spectrum of OCIMF activities.
Afternoon Session:
- Open to nominated OCIMF member representatives (one member representative per work stream). Defined work streams in which a focused group of subject matter experts meet to progress specific work items assigned by the principal committee. The agenda will be circulated in advance of the meeting.
We have a limited number of places for the morning and afternoon sessions. These will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. Attendance is by registration only, via the OCIMF Secretariat. For a registration form please click here.
If you would like more information regarding the Regional Panel meetings, please contact
The 72nd meeting of the Executive Committee and 35th Annual General Meeting
Executive Committee 72 and AGM 35 were held on 25 September in St Petersburg, Russia. This year our meetings were co-ordinated with the meetings of the Executive of ITOPF and INTERTANKO, and also coincided with the 25th anniversary of the incorporation of Sovcomflot, Russia's largest shipping company.
The Executive Committee provide governance and strategic direction to the forum and during the meeting reviewed progress of forward strategy implementation, on-going activities to address matters of strategic importance, the work of the IMO with particular reference to new regulation with the potential to affect OCIMF member companies.
The continuous efforts to improve maritime security are always of high interest and this meeting was no exception. The project to establish a Maritime Information Sharing Centre within the Gulf of Guinea region (MTISC GoG) has recently taken a significant step forward and will open in Ghana early in the new year. Initially this is a one-year pilot to gauge the effectiveness of the centre. We hope it will build into an enduring asset, making a difference in countering maritime crime, in many forms in the waters of the Gulf of Guinea region. OCIMF is partnering with governments and agencies in the region, along with supporting governments across the world and the IMO to establish a centre which will have the security of seafarers as its prime objective.
The meeting was well supported by the presence of the majority of committee chairman who provided the executives with a projection of their plans and priorities through 2014 in contributing to the achievement of the OCIMF mission.
OCIMF membership continues to grow and two companies were admitted to membership at this meeting, Det Norske Olijeselskap ASA and JSC Tamanneftgas. While the number of members continues to grow, the involvement of members in the working committees and in the task forces remains a concern. The Executive Committee are determined to improve involvement from the core group of contributors we have today to a broader congregation representative of the global membership. The subject was extensively debated and good practical proposals generated. We also welcomed a new member to the Executive Committee, Mr Keizo Atsumi, Executive Director of the Petroleum Industry Marine Association of Japan.
The 35th AGM confirmed the re-election of the current Chairman, Vice Chairmen and members of the Executive Committee to stand until the 36th AGM (which is expected to be held in November 2014). On behalf of the Chairman I would like to thank all members who participated either by their presence at the meeting or thorough the submission of proxies expressing their views.
Further updates on the Maritime Information Sharing Centre within the Gulf of Guinea region (MTISC GoG) will be included in future editions of the newsletter.
Marine Technical sub-committee
The Marine Technical sub-committee met on 17-18 September in Paris, France. The group was graciously hosted by Total. Members were represented by participants from ExxonMobil, Maersk, Phillips 66, Statoil, Shell, Sonangol, BP, Total, and Chevron.
The group spent significant time reviewing work group progress on the review of dynamic loading of cranes in exposed waters. Further work is required for the group to determine if the loads calculated in the first part of the study can be confirmed with real world measurements. Members are investigating potential vessels fitted with gear to accomplish data collection. At this time there is no driver to implement major changes to the size of cranes currently recommended in OCIMF literature.
The work group also expanded its work scope, as directed by GPC, to provide additional guidance on personnel transfer by hose handling crane, and to provide expertise for the re-write of Recommendations for Oil Tanker Manifolds and Associated Equipment.
The committee expressed strong concerns over additional reports of operators cutting costs by reducing maintenance and spare parts inventory to levels that are impacting safe and reliable operations. The committee is still seeking opportunities to provide industry with some guidance that might improve the situation in a challenging commercial market.
MTSC will be assisting the secretariat in developing a position paper on Black Carbon for submission at IMO. OCIMF will be working with several industry partners in developing the paper. Members interested in assisting with drafting the paper please contact Chris Brown at
MTSC's next meeting will be hosted by Phillips 66 in London, and will be around the same dates as the regional forum in the second quarter of 2014.
SIRE Focus Group
The SIRE Focus Group held its 23rd meeting in Stavanger, Norway, on 4 September 2013. The meeting was hosted by Statoil at the Stavanger Maritime Museum, overlooking the beautiful fjord harbour front. The meeting was well attended by all 12 members.
The meeting was productive and involved active participation from the members on discussion on varied topics following an agenda. The discussion was wide ranging with debates on a number of topics including revision work of SIRE Vessel Inspection Questionnaire, the SIRE Data Analytical tool, changes to New Inspectors Audit Requirement and feedback from Joint SFG/INTERTANKO Vetting Committee Meetings.
Changes
Chairman of SIRE Focus Group, Les Morton (IMT), announced that he would be stepping down - members wished him well and thanked him for his leadership and valuable contribution. Steve Barber (Shell) Vice Chair of the SIRE Focus Group has agreed to take over the role of Chairman. We would like to welcome Steve and wish him well.
The OCIMF Technical Group
The OCIMF Technical Group would like to contact all OCIMF members and Recipient members who use web services, or would like to use web services, for their internal programmes.
The OCIMF Technical Developers Group would be held twice a year in London and available by conference phone. The purpose of the group is to discuss programme coding and associated application programmes and is open to system developers/programmers. If you would like to attend would you please contact Geoff Snow (OCIMF Programme manager) at
Where we've been
- Raj Shetty was in Cartagena, Colombia at PTC 79 - hosted by EcoPetrol.
- Sean Nicholson and Oliver Pointon were in Doha running an OVID Inspector Course.
- Phil Pascoe and Fiona Rider were in Washington to discuss MTISC GoG with the United States Navy.
Sean Nicholson - Questions & Answers
This month Sean Nicholson, OCIMF's Offshore Marine Advisor, answers your questions on OVID:
Why was OVID developed?
In 2008/2009 Oil Majors who are members of OCIMF were looking for a more robust inspection format than the ones employed by inspections companies and OCIMF members at that time. Using the success of SIRE as the template, the members and invited contractors, developed the OVID database. The success of the OVID database has surpassed all of our expectations, with over 6,200 vessels now registered in just three years of full operation.
Who can become an OVID inspector?
All of our inspectors are sponsored directly by our OCIMF membership, and include both 3rd party inspection companies and OCIMF member Marine Assurance employees. There is more information on the OVID home page at http://www.ocimf-ovid.com.
Who makes the rules for OVID?
The OVID Focus Group, made up of 12 of our OCIMF members, decides on all issues relating to OVID. We also table for discussion at our twice yearly meetings, feedback from vessel operators and inspectors to improve the system.
News
In September we had meetings with our Offshore Marine Operations Group (OMOG) as well as the OVID Focus Group (OFG). The OMOG group also had a meeting with the Nautical Institute, Phillip Wake and Regina Bindao, to discuss recent proposed changes to the DP training scheme. The OFG was very busy reviewing the new MODU Marine template and the latest updates to the Master OVIQ; both meetings were very successful thanks to our members input and hard work.
If you have any questions for the OCIMF secretariat that you would like answering in the October edition of the newsletter email