"I always find this conference very interesting and a great chance to catch up with what is going on in terminal safety and operations in Latin America."
Managing Director's Log
In July, I had mentioned the ongoing planning for the scheduled roll-out of our new committee structure.
I am happy to say that the first steps have gone extremely well, with all four new functional committees holding their inaugural meetings in September. All were organised remotely due to the pandemic and all were considered successful. We continue in October with the three principal committees meeting on a similar basis. Expert groups will follow in January/February 2021. In the meantime, we are continuing to hold some of the existing sub-committees and focus groups as part of the managed transition to the new structure. Any members who have not yet nominated representatives for the various committees or for any of the expert groups are encouraged to do so. We do, however, understand that some members are going through a period of re-organisation themselves – so my request is simply to nominate when you can.
I want to mention the SLOM XVI Jornada scheduled for 7-8 October which is being held as a virtual conference this year. I always find this conference very interesting and a great chance to catch up with what is going on in terminal safety and operations in Latin America. It is a fantastic platform to share experience and to learn from others. I will be presenting a short overview of the OCIMF Strategy refresh, and Eduardo Gallegos Bárcenas (PMI) will be covering the background and changes to the sixth edition of the International Safety Guide for Oil Tankers and Terminals (ISGOTT) on behalf of OCIMF. The programme can be found at this link.
In September, the Secretariat had been working on a phased return to our offices from the middle of October, but the recent resurgence of coronavirus cases in the UK and the latest government guidelines have deferred that plan. However, we do not anticipate any negative impact to our day-to-day business and will continue working from home until further notice.
I wish you a happy, healthy and safe October.
Rob Drysdale
Director OCIMF
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Coming soon: Peril at Sea and Salvage, A Guide for Masters (Sixth Edition)
OCIMF and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) are pleased to announce the upcoming publication of Peril at Sea and Salvage, A Guide for Masters (Sixth Edition) in October 2020.
This Guide takes Masters through the actions to be taken when confronted with an emergency on board. It has been prepared principally with oil tankers and gas carriers in mind, although most of the content will be equally appropriate to other types of ship.
The Guide will supersede Peril at Sea and Salvage: A Guide to Masters, Fifth Edition. Since the release of the fifth edition, several regulatory changes have helped improve safety on ships and prevent harm to the environment. They have also changed the nature of Masters’ responsibilities by placing a greater emphasis on the company to plan for emergencies at sea.
To pre-order your copy, click here
Offshore Vessel Inspection and Small Craft Questionnaires for Security Escort Vessels
To increase the scope of the database for offshore inspections and to recognise the growing number of Security Escort Vessels employed around the globe, the Offshore Marine Committee (OMC) and Maritime Security Committee (MSC) have developed new guidance within both the Offshore Vessel Inspection Questionnaire 3 (OVIQ3) and OVIQ Small Craft Questionnaire 2.
The new questionnaire consists of 12 additional questions focussing on the necessary attributes for vessels employed on security escort operations in order to add assurance and enhance the safety of operations in the industry.
The updated questionnaires will be released on 26 October 2020.
Full details of the OVIQ3 (v1.0.06) and OVIQ Small Craft v2 (v1.0.01) are available within the OCIMF Application Programming Interface (API) Documentation site.
For enquiries, contact OCIMF Programmes Support Helpdesk at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or +44 (0)203 856 7880.
OCIMF completes members' stakeholder workshop to develop plan on marine environment
OCIMF is undertaking a project to develop a paper that sets out its ambitions and action plan on the marine environment that is in line with the OCIMF Vision, Mission and Strategic Priorities.
The plan’s development process consists of three stages:
- Development of a white paper.
- Completion of a stakeholder workshop.
- Delivery of a final plan on the marine environment.
OCIMF recently completed the members’ stakeholder workshop, with excellent participation across the range of membership, which helped to build a more complete view of its members’ collective voice. Participation over the two-day workshop included over 65 members from a diverse range of member company sizes, types and operation modalities.
The study findings were presented and discussed with key stakeholders involved in the plan’s development and there was good alignment across the members participating in the workshop. OCIMF thanks all attendees for their active participation during the meeting and continued support in the development of the final plan.
For enquiries, contact Ricardo Martinez, OCIMF Engineering Adviser.
Environmental Functional Committee
1st meeting: 22 September 2020, virtual (OCIMF) Chair: Sebastien Roche (Total)
This initial kick-off meeting aimed to reset the existing sub-committee.
The committee reviewed:
- Terms of Reference and new ways of working per the strategy.
- Update on risk bow tie and risk matrix on environment.
- Update on OCIMF members’ plan on the environment.
- Existing publications, advocacy and programmes.
- Discussion on other potential stakeholders.
- Discussion on Communities of Practice.
For enquiries, contact Ricardo Martinez, OCIMF Engineering Adviser.
Next meeting: Spring 2021 (TBC)
Human Factors Functional Committee
1st meeting: 25 September, virtual (OCIMF) Chair: Terry Luke (Chevron) Co-Vice Chairs: Victoria Norris (BP) and Laurent Routisseau (Total) Secretary: Sanchay Srivastava (OCIMF Nautical Adviser)
The first Human Factors Functional Committee (HFFC) was held remotely in September as part of the new OCIMF Strategy and revised Committee Structure implementation. The Human Factors Focus Group (HFFG) has now been disbanded and OCIMF would like to thank HFFG members for their contribution over last two years towards high-priority work supporting OCIMF Publications, Advocacy and Programmes groups.
There is a good mix of new member nominees as well as some members from HFFG transitioning into this new functional committee. OCIMF welcome all members and thank their parent organisations for extending nominations towards the new HFFC.
- Recently, the HFFG has been involved with:
- Providing content for ISGOTT6.
- Developing OCIMF’s Human Factor Approach.
- Progressing Tanker Management and Self Assessment (TMSA) element on Human Factors (currently under review).
- Contributing towards the VIP (SIRE 2.0) project from a Human Factors perspective.
The HFFC will pick up on the ongoing actions as we move into this new structure. OCIMF's Human Factor Approach information paper is available free to download from this link.
Marine Structures and Civil Engineering Focus Group
10th meeting: 16 September 2020, virtual (OCIMF) Chair: Rabinder Manku (BP)
This intercessional meeting aimed to continue discussion and progressing terminal work.
The group reviewed:
- Working group update on the revision of OCIMF’s Jetty Maintenance and Inspection Guide.
- Working group update on alternative mooring technology equivalency criteria guidance work.
- Secretariat and member updates for working groups of British Standards Institute (BSI), PIANC and SIGTTO.
For enquiries, contact Ricardo Martinez, OCIMF Engineering Adviser. Next meeting: Spring 2021 (TBC) as incorporated into the Structures Expert Group
Marine Technical Sub-committee
Catch-up meeting: 24 September 2020, virtual (OCIMF) Chair: Ahmer Saeed (Shell)
This intercessional catch-up meeting aimed to continue discussion of engineering work with an aim to reset in Spring 2021. The sub-committee reviewed:
- OCIMF Strategy Resources update.
- Review of member participation situation and future known intentions.
- Risks and opportunities bow ties update – Tankers, Terminals and Environment.
For enquiries, contact Ricardo Martinez, OCIMF Engineering Adviser.
Next meeting: Spring 2021 (TBC) as incorporated into the Engineering Expert Group
United Nations Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia
On 23 September, OCIMF attended the United Nations Contact Group on Piracy off the Coast of Somalia (CGPCS), Friends of the Chair meeting.
Over 100 delegates, from 26 nations and 31 international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) attended the meeting that was chaired by Dr Monica Juma, the Kenyan Cabinet Secretary for Defence. INTERTANKO, behalf of industry and seafarers, offered collective thanks to the UN members of the contact group for their efforts in keeping the group together to address piracy in the Indian Ocean region.
Industry also expressed appreciation to the countries that provided military and diplomatic resources to maintain anti-piracy operations within the Combined Maritime Forces, the European Union’s Naval Force and United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organisation (UKMTO). These remarks were positively received by the Chair who commented on the importance of maintaining Best Management Practices (BMP).
During the meeting, there were many updates and discussions about national activities, including the recent release of the three remaining seafarers who were kidnapped and held captive by Somali pirates for five and a half years. Their release marked the end to the longest running maritime hostage situation in the region to date – an ordeal which must not be forgotten.
IMO updates
IMO meetings
Joint All Committees meeting
The Joint All Committees Extraordinary Session (ALCOM ES) meeting was held 16-18 September. The meeting agreed to hold remote meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic and set up guidelines for conducting the meetings.
The second Extraordinary Session of the Maritime Safety Committee
The second Extraordinary Session of the Maritime Safety Committee meeting (MSC ES 2) was held 21 September. It adopted Recommended action to facilitate ship crew change, access to medical care and seafarer travel during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key points are:
- Designating seafarers as key workers.
- Requesting co-ordination within government.
- Encouraging preventive measures, e.g. testing crew for COVID-19 infection before joining onboard.
- Ensuring Seafarers’ immediate access to medical care.
Other events
- IMO/Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) joint webinar, Future of Shipping: Decarbonisation (17 September): Various research on green and efficient navigation, including alternative fuels, was introduced.
- World maritime day webinars, Sustainable shipping for a sustainable planet (24 September): Panellists addressed environment protection, seafarers and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.
Upcoming meetings
Forty-Fourth meeting of the Facilitation Committee
The forty-fourth meeting of the Facilitation Committee (FAL 44) will be held 28 September-2 October. Anticipated key discussions are:
- Stowaways: The current proposal includes reporting, national database, communication between the port of disembarkation and embarkation, national law for penalising stowaways, onboard security search and others.
- Maritime corruption: The proposal includes concrete measures against bribery and corruption, including legislation, training, record-keeping and non-cash payment of fees.
Seventh meeting of the Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships
The seventh meeting of the Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships (ISWG-GHG 7) will be held 19 -23 October. The meeting will focus on draft amendments to the MARPOL Convention.
London Convention
In September 2020, OCIMF obtained NGO status under the London Convention, with its first participation at the 42nd meeting (5 October-23 December). The meeting will be a combination of correspondences and online meetings and will consider disposal of dredged materials, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) storage in sub-seabed, shore generated marine litter and microplastics and others.
For more information, visit the IMO section on the OCIMF members' website.
Regional Marine Forums
All Regional Marine Forums (RMFs) have been cancelled in 2020.