MARITIME NEWS

Thursday, April 10, 2014 International maritime news for seafarers

Threat of pirate attack continues in Niger Delta: report

Dryad Maritime, the UK- ased maritime intelli!en"e firm, said in a report released on Tuesday that the threat of maritime pira"y remains #ery real parti"ularly to those off the $i!er Delta where si% seafarers are still elie#ed to e in "apti#ity& A""ordin! to the report, 41 seafarers were ta'en hosta!e durin! the first (uarter of 2014& )owe#er, the report mentioned that "ompared to the same period last year, rates of maritime "rime or pira"y in"idents ha#e dropped 1*+ a"ross the ma,or hotspots of the world su"h as the )orn of Afri"a, -ulf of -uinea and .outheast Asia& Ian Millen, Dryad Maritime/s Dire"tor of Intelli!en"e said0 1This analysis !i#es "ause for "on"ern and ser#es as a reminder to all seafarers to remain #i!ilant and employ appropriate ris' redu"tion measures in all hi!h ris' areas&1 1Maritime "riminals, from those off $i!eria to .omali pirates and those that operate in the ar"hipela!o of .outheast Asia remain #ery mu"h in usiness and are "apa le of infli"tin! misery on seafarers& The first line of defen"e is to e aware of their presen"e and ta'e measures to ensure that their "riminal a"ti#ities are "ountered,1 added Millen& 1.omali pirates ha#e not een totally eradi"ated,1 "autioned Millen& 1Armed atta"'s a!ainst a ship south of .alalah in 2anuary and a Kenyan #essel "lose to the .omali "oast in 3e ruary ha#e pro#ed that road "ontainment of the threat does not mean it has een remo#ed& 4n oth o""asions, the .omali atta"'ers were only repelled y em ar'ed armed se"urity teams on the #essels "on"erned,1 he further said&

SAFETY NEWS NOAA announces new voluntary speed restriction

The $ational 4"eani" and Atmospheri" Administration 5$4AA6 has announ"ed that a #oluntary speed restri"tion 7one 5Dynami" Mana!ement Area- DMA6 has een esta lished south of $antu"'et to prote"t an a!!re!ation of ei!ht ri!ht whales si!hted in this area on April 2, 2014& The speed restri"tion is in effe"t immediately throu!h April 18, 2014& Mariners are re(uested to route around these areas or transit throu!h them at 10 'nots or less& They are also re(uested to a#oid or transit at 10 'nots or less inside areas where persistent a!!re!ations of ri!ht whales ha#e een si!hted& 3ollowin! are the details of the speed restri"tions0 .outh of $antu"'et DMA0 41 12$9 40 2:$9 80 41;9 <: 4=;& A"ti#e .easonal Mana!ement Areas 5.MAs6 Mandatory speed restri"tions of 10 'nots or less 5=0 >3? 224&10=6 are in effe"t in the followin! areas0 >ape >od @ay .MA - in effe"t throu!h May 1=, 20149 4ff ?a"e Aoint .MA - in effe"t throu!h April *0, 20149 -reat .outh >hannel .MA - in effe"t throu!h 2uly *1, 20149 Mid-Atlanti" .MAs - in effe"t throu!h April *0, 20149 .outheast .MAs - in effe"t throu!h April 1=, 2014& .our"e0 $4AA

China's most advanced research vessel starts 1st e pedition

>hina/s most sophisti"ated resear"h #essel - named Ke%ue, or ."ien"e - left for the west Aa"ifi" on Tuesday from the eastern port "ity of Bin!dao, e!innin! its first o"ean e%pedition& Its resear"h will fo"us on the Aa"ifi" "urrents, re!ional "limate and deep-sea e"olo!y& A total of 4< s"ientists and te"hni"al staff are on oard& They are e%pe"ted to arri#e at the tar!eted area on Thursday and will "arry out marine !eophysi"al sur#eys and iolo!i"al samplin!, said Ci >haolun, "hief s"ientist of the e%pedition& The ship is e%pe"ted to return in the se"ond half of May, Dinhua reported& ;ei!hin! 4,811 tonnes, Ke%ue is ::&E metres lon! and 18&E metres wide& ;ith a "ruisin! "apa"ity of 1=,000 nauti"al miles and a top speed of 1= 'nots, it "an tra#el with a "rew of E0 for <0 days&

!" #A$% issues report on Danio grounding

UK Marine A""ident In#esti!ation @ra"h 5MAI@6 has issued report $o EF2014 on the in#esti!ation of the !roundin! of Danio #essel& A""ordin! to the report, !eneral "ar!o #essel Danio run a!round in the 3arne Islands nature reser#e, off the east "oast of Gn!land, at 0*0*0 on Mar"h 1<, 201*& The "hief offi"er, who was the offi"er on wat"h, had fallen asleep& The #ery hi!h wor'load pla"ed on the two de"' offi"ers was typi"al of that found on many near "oastal #essels tradin! in Guropean waters& Unfortunately, as is "ommonly found after su"h a""idents, the a#aila le arriers a!ainst fati!ue, su"h as the @rid!e $a#i!ational ;at"h Alarm .ystem and the use of loo'outs had een "ir"um#ented& Danio sustained rea"hes to forward allast and #oid "ompartments and e%tensi#e dama!e to the star oard propulsion and steerin! systems, ut fortunately there was no pollution, UKMAI@ reported& A re"ommendation has een made to the owner of Danio desi!ned to amend the "ompany/s internal auditin! re!ime to ensure there is #erifi"ation that its do"umented pro"edures mat"h the a"tual pra"ti"es on oard, with parti"ular referen"e to0 the use of loo'outs and wat"h alarms9 "omplian"e with hours of rest re!ulations and adheren"e to fundamental prin"iples of safe na#i!ation&

&ingapore' #alaysia conduct (oint chemical spill e ercise

The maritime authorities of .in!apore and Malaysia on ;ednesday "ondu"ted the first e#er ,oint "hemi"al spill e%er"ise at sea alon! the .traits of 2ohor& The e%er"ise aims to enhan"e the preparedness of emer!en"y response a!en"ies from oth "ountries in ta"'lin! potential "hemi"al a""idents that in#ol#e 1sea orne transportation of ha7ardous "hemi"als in the .traits of 2ohor1, the Maritime and Aort Authority of .in!apore 5MAA6 and the $ational Gn#ironment A!en"y 5$GA6 said in a statement& 1?e!ional "o-operation is important as in"idents at sea resultin! in "hemi"al and oil spills are often trans oundary in nature,1 said Andrew Tan, MAA/s >hief G%e"uti#e, addin! that su"h e%er"ise allows oth sides to test re!ional and multi-a!en"y response "apa ilities to any maritime a""idents& To address "hemi"al spill at sea, .in!apore/s MAA has put in pla"e the >hemi"al >ontin!en"y Alan 5Marine6, whi"h "o#ers the roles and responsi ilities of respondin! a!en"ies for "leanup operations, Dinhua reported&

In the e#ent of an in"ident, MAA will monitor and "o-ordinate "leanup operations at sea, while $GA will monitor the air and water (uality and "o-ordinate the "leanup efforts in affe"ted shore areas, the a!en"ies said&

&erious %)# Convention pro*lems to *e resolved *y $#O

The !lo al shippin! industry - represented y the International >ham er of .hippin! 5I>.6, @IM>4, Inter"ar!o, Intertan'o, ;orld .hippin! >oun"il 5;.>6, >CIA and IATA - has #oi"ed "on"ern a out serious implementation pro lems asso"iated with the IM4 @allast ;ater Mana!ement 5@;M6 >on#ention& At last wee'/s IM4 Marine Gn#ironment Arote"tion >ommittee 5MGA>6, !o#ernments de"ided neither to dis"uss in full nor to resol#e these pi#otal issues on whi"h industry had made a detailed written su mission& The industry su mission addressed "on"erns a out the la"' of ro ustness of the "urrent IM4 type-appro#al pro"ess for thee%pensi#e new treatment e(uipment, the "riteria to e used for samplin! allast water durin! Aort .tate >ontrol inspe"tions and the need for /!randfatherin!/ of e%istin! type-appro#ed e(uipment that has already een fitted& )owe#er, !o#ernments de"ided not to address these proposals until after the >on#ention has entered into for"e 5whi"h has not yet o""urred due to a la"' of mem er .tate ratifi"ations6& The industry "on"erns were shared y a num er of fla! .tates 5in"ludin! some that ratified the >on#ention in the early years after its adoption6 ut rather than a!reein! to a /road map/ that would ha#e demonstrated IM4/s "ommitment to addressin! the "on"erns, the MGA> instead de"ided to loo' into "ondu"tin! a study of the pro lems raised y the industry& This proposed study will pro a ly ta'e at least three years to "omplete and the de"ision implies no !uarantee as to what a"tions mi!ht finally emer!e& The industry or!anisations note that on"e the >on#ention enters into for"e shipowners will "olle"ti#ely e re(uired to in#est illions of dollars in allast water treatment e(uipment, I>. reported& The "onse(uen"e of last wee'/s de"ision y the MGA> is that shipowners, and so"iety at lar!e, will "ontinue to la"' "onfiden"e that the new treatment e(uipment will a"tually wor', or that it will e found to "omply with the standards that !o#ernments ha#e set for 'illin! unwanted marine mi"ro-or!anisms&

The +epu*lic of Congo ratifies #,C -../

The ?epu li" of the >on!o has deposited with the International Ca our 4ffi"e 5IC46 the instrument of ratifi"ation of the Maritime Ca our >on#ention 5MC>6 200< to e"ome the =8th mem er .tate of the IC4 and the ninth Afri"an state - after Ci eria, -a on, @enin, To!o, Moro""o, $i!eria, -hana and .outh Afri"a - to ha#e ratified the MC> 200<&

It has a "ommer"ial fleet of =,E4< !ross tonnes& The MC> 200< "onstitutes the fourth pillar of the international maritime le!al re!ime to!ether with the asi" "on#entions of the IM4, whi"h esta lish international standards on the trainin! and "ertifi"ation of seafarers, on safety and se"urity at sea and on the pre#ention of pollution from ships& After depositin! the instrument of ratifi"ation of the MC> 200<, Martin Aarfait Aime >4U..4UDMAH4U$-4U, Minister in "har!e of the Mer"hant Marine said0 1The ?epu li" of the >on!o is a "oastal state with 180'm of "oastline& Its autonomous port of Aointe-$oire ser#es the entire ;est and >entral Afri"an su -re!ions& The MC> 200< is of ma,or importan"e e"ause it !uarantees the ri!ht to de"ent wor' for all seafarers&1 The MC> 200< entered into for"e on Au!ust 20, 201* for the first *0 mem er states that had re!istered their ratifi"ations y Au!ust 20, 2012& The >on#ention will enter into for"e for the ?epu li" of the >on!o on April 8, 201=, that is, one year after its ratifi"ation&

INCIDENTS %arge runs aground near Anna #aria $sland

A 1E0-foot ar!e ran a!round on Anna Maria Island in 3lorida after rea'in! free from a tu! oat early Tuesday, U. >oast -uard wat"hstanders at .e"tor .t Aeters ur! said& U. >oast -uard was notified at 2am on Tuesday that the tu! operator was not a le to "ontrol the two ar!es while he was pushin! appro%imately one mile west off of Con! oat Key due to ad weather& >oast -uard >utter )aw', an E8-foot >oastal Aatrol @oat homeported in .t Aeters ur!, 3la, and a 4=-foot ?esponse @oat-Medium oat"rew from .tation >orte7 were then laun"hed and "ommand posts were set up on the Island and at .e"tor .t Aeters ur!& The operator was a le to an"hor one ar!e, ut the line parted and the ar!e started to drift until it ran a!round on the ea"h at Anna Maria Island& The operator also stru!!led to !ain "ontrol of the other ar!e& 1It was imperati#e to safely remo#e the !rounded ar!e efore it se#erely dama!ed the ea"h or e"ame a !reater ha7ard to na#i!ation,1 >apt -re! >ase, "ommander of the se"tor, said& 1I/m e%tremely proud of all the responders that (ui"'ly "on#er!ed on s"ene to ensure the ar!e was towed to safety,1 he added&

- vessels collide near #ytilini' no in(uries' pollution reported

There ha#e een no reports of in,uries or pollution after two #essels "ollided 1E miles $; of the northeastern Ae!ean Island of Mytilini late last wee', amidst winds of up to 8 @eaufort& There were 1< .yrians and 11 ?ussians on oard the >oo' islands-fla!!ed and the Anti(ua @ar uda-fla!!ed #essels respe"ti#ely& Althou!h the >oo' islands-fla!!ed suffered minor "ra"'s in its front hull, it was de"lared safe to sail and has reportedly left for the @la"' .ea& The other #essel, en route from U'raine to 3ran"e, also suffered dama!e and had not sailed when reports last "ame in&

WORLD TRAVEL ,AO&

Caos is a landlo"'ed "ountry in .outheast Asia& It is ordered y Thailand to the west, >am odia to the south, Hietnam to the east and @urma and >hina to the northwest& -ettin! there Most tra#elers who tra#el to Caos arri#e from @an!'o' Airport& There are also dire"t fli!hts to Caos from .in!apore, )oh >hi Minh >ity, )anoi and many "ities in >hina& A tourist "an rea"h Caos y ni!ht trains from @an!'o' to the small order town of $hon! Kai& A tourist "an enter Caos throu!h >am odia from an entry point in the south Don! >rorlor& The Ma,or "ities of Hietnam li'e )anoi, )ue, )oi An, .ai!on and other "ities pro#ide !ood us "onne"tions into Caos& Hisa on arri#al fa"ility is a#aila le for the tourists at all order "rossin!s& A tourist "an stay in Caos up to * months without lea#in! the "ountry& -ettin! around Con!-distan"e pu li" transport in Caos is readily a#aila le& The lo"al us networ' in Hientiane "ity is #ery !ood& 3or shorter ri#er trips, it/s usually est to hire a ri#er ta%i& A tourist "an tra#el from Cuan! Ara an! to the Aa' 4u >a#es in a ri#er ta%i&

Top tourist attractions

Vieng Xai - The Hien! Dai "a#es are an e%tensi#e networ' of "a#es that ser#ed as hidden "ity durin! the Hietnam ;ar& The Cao !o#ernment hopes to promote the "a#es as a tourism destination, similar to the >u >hi tunnels in Hietnam&

Pak Ou Caves - The Aa' 4u >a#es are lo"ated north of Cuan! Ara an! on the Me'on! ri#er and "an e rea"hed y road or ri#er oat& The "a#es are famous for their miniature @uddha s"ulptures& Wat Phu - ;at Ahu 5or Hat Ahou6 is a ruined Khmer temple "omple% lo"ated at the ase of mount Ahu Kao, in the >hampasa' pro#in"e& The )indu temple stru"tures date from the 11th to 1*th "enturies& Pha That Luang - Co"ated in Hientiane, Aha That Cuan! 5-reat .tupa in Cao6 is one of the most si!nifi"ant monument in Caos& The stupa has se#eral terra"es with ea"h le#el representin! a different sta!e of @uddhist enli!htenment& The lowest le#el represents the material world9 the hi!hest le#el represents the world of nothin!ness& Aha That Cuan! was uilt in the 1<th "entury on the ruins of an earlier Khmer temple&

SHIPPING DATA
%A,T$C 01C2AN30
Market snapshot: 11:00 GMT Dry Index BDI 1061 Capesize Index BCI 19 6 "ana#ax Index B"I 79 $%pra#ax Index B$I 9 9 &andysize Index B&$I '71 -37 -!3 -7 -16 -9

01C2AN30 +AT0&
(e) *ork +,ed C-s. /0n C%rren1y in 2$D Britain +"o%nd. 136793 Canada +Do--ar. 039407 China +*%an. 031613 5%ro 133!'3 India +6%pee. 030167 Indonesia +6%piah. 030000!9 7apan +*en. 03009!47 (or)ay +8rone. 0316!' "hi-ippines +"eso. 03044 "o-and +9-oty. 033346 6%ssia +6%:-e. 0304!1 $in0apore +Do--ar. 03!04! 2kraine +&ry;nia. 030! 4 2$D in /0n C%rren1y 03'9'' 130!61 63400! 03741! '939400 11491300 10137600 '393 4 36100 330100 3'3'7 0 134 '6 113!!34