CARGO RELATED DOCUMENTS CARRIED ON A BULK CARRIER

Below is a list with short description of the certificates and

documents which are related to cargo expected to be carried
in a bulk carrier.
1. Hold inspection certificate: The hold or hatch inspection
certificate, or preloading survey certificate, is issued by a
surveyor after inspecting the holds to ensure that they are
suitable for the intended cargo. It may be a requirement of
the charterparty or local authorities When a survey is
required, loading cannot commence in a hold until the
surveyor has passed it.

2. Mate’s receipt: A mate’s receipt is usually a printed form,

often with handwritten entries which acknowledges on behalf
of the ship the receipt of the goods. It contains the quantity,
marks, description and apparent condition of goods received
on board and should be available to the Mate before loading
commences. He can use the mate’s receipts:
a) As a pre-advice of what cargo to expect;
b) To plan the stowage of the cargo; and
c) To note on them any cargo defects, shortages, etc.

The mate signs each receipt, when the cargo covered by it is

actually received on board. It is then passed on with his
accurate comments to the shipper, who then exchanges it for
the bill of lading from the agent or shipowner.

3. Authorization to sign bills of lading: Under the terms of

many time & voyage charter parties the owners transfer the
authority to sign bills of lading to the charterers or their agent,
thereby cancelling the authority normally held by the Master.
Where the agent signs bills of lading on behalf of the Master,
the Master should ensure that the agent receives appropriate
instructions in the form of a pre-drafted authorization.

4. Bills of lading: A bill of lading may perform three

functions. (a) It provides evidence of the terms of the contract
for the receipt, carriage and delivery of the cargo.
(b) It is often a negotiable document of title to goods carried,
providing evidence of ownership of the cargo, and
(c) It acts as a receipt of cargo loaded aboard the vessel.
Before signing the bill of lading, the Master shall ensure that:
i. The goods are actually shipped on board and the bill of
lading is correctly dated.
ii. The description of the goods complies with the mate’s
receipts, failing which the bill of lading should be claused.
iii. He must sign the same number of originals as is shown on
the face of the bill of lading.
iv. The bill of lading contains a clause referring to any relevant
charterparty, and includes the protection clauses specified in
that charterparty. If in doubt the master should consult the
owners.
The information in a B/L includes names and addresses of the
shipper and the receiver, the ports of loading and destination,
the marks, description and weight or volume of the cargo,
freight paid or payable and date of loading. The reverse of the
B/L contains the T & Cs of carriage.
The B/L must be appropriately claused w.r.t. the weight and
condition of the cargo. Where it is not possible to determine
these, the B/L shall contain terms like “said to contain”, “said
to weigh”, “shipper’s weight”, “in apparent good order or
condition” and so on.
The Master should not get persuaded to sign a clean bill of
lading against the offer of a letter of indemnity as this is an
incorrect practice that has no legal standing. The shipowner
will not be able to escape his liability for cargo claims.
The B/L being a negotiable document may change hands
several times before it reaches the party who will claim and
take delivery of the goods. This party expects the goods to be
as described in the B/L, hence any deficiencies not mentioned
therein will be ascribed to the shipowners’ neglect and claims
raised accordingly.

5. Cargo manifest: A cargo manifest is issued by the

shippers in the loading port and is based upon the information
contained in the bills of lading. It is prepared primarily for
customs purposes but comes in handy in terms of stowage,
over carriage etc. It provides brief details of the ship and the
loading and discharge ports and lists details of the cargo
carried. Details include the B/L numbers, contents, gross
weight and freight.

6. Dangerous cargo manifest: It is issued by the shippers in

compliance with the regulations which apply at the loading
port. The document states the quantity of hazardous material
carried and certifies that it has been properly named,
prepared and is otherwise in proper condition for shipment.
The name and description of the hazardous material as given
in the Dangerous cargo manifest should be used to confirm
the stowage requirements for the cargo, as stated in the
IMSBC code and/or IMDG code. The Master should satisfy
himself, that the stated quantities and positions are correct
and that the cargo has been stowed in accordance with the
requirements of the codes.
7. Stowage plan: Also known as Cargo plan or the hold
distribution plan shows the commodity, tonnage or quantity
of cargo in each hold and the ports of loading and discharge. It
is generally prepared by the Chief Officer. The plan is not to
scale and enables the receiver to plan for discharge. Different
colours may be used to differentiate between ports of
discharge. The deck and tween decks may be represented as a
plan or bird’s eye view and the cargo in the lower holds shown
in an elevation or side view.

8. Declaration by shipper: It is made in compliance with

the requirement of SOLAS that before loading the shipper
should provide to the Master full details of any bulk cargo
including any hazards, so that Master can make decisions
w.r.t. the safety precautions for loading and carriage of the
cargo.

9. Certificate of transportable moisture limit: The

transportable moisture limit of the cargo which may liquefy is
the maximum safe moisture content of the cargo when carried
in a bulk carrier. Practically, this figure is normally included in
the declaration by the shipper.

10. Certificate of moisture content: The moisture content of

a sample of cargo is the quantity of water, ice or other liquid
which the sample contains, expressed as a percentage of total
wet mass of that sample. In practice this figure is included in
the shipper’s declaration.

11. Certificate of lashing: The Master may be required to

sign a certificate of lashing to state that the securing of a
timber deck cargo or a cargo of steel coils or other cargo
which requires lashing has been carried out to his satisfaction.

12. Master’s response sheet: This document is issued by some

coal shippers to encourage Masters to comply with the
requirements of the IMSBC code. Such report will enable the
shipper to maintain records on the behaviour of the coal
cargoes, as experienced by the Master for the benefit of other
Masters carrying coal cargoes.

13. Phytosanitary certificate: This certificate may be

required during the carriage of plant or plant products like,
grain, seeds and fruits. Phytosanitary certificates are issued by
inspectors in the exporting country to certify the requirement
of the plant health regulations of the importing country has
been met.

14. Certificate of origin: This certificate is often issued by a

government department, stating the country of origin of the
cargo. In some cases, authorities will accept ship’s cargo
manifest as evidence of the origin of the cargo.
15. Certificate of readiness to load: This certificate is issued
by the marine authorities in respect of cargoes of grain and
concentrates and timber deck cargo, each of which has special
loading requirements. The certificate is issued after
satisfactory inspections of cargo spaces and preloading
calculations and contains reminders of restrictions that must
be imposed upon loading.

16. Certificate of fitness to proceed to sea: This follows the

certificate of readiness to load, being issued by the marine
authorities after satisfactory completion of loading of a cargo
of grain or concentrates, or a timber deck cargo. This
certificate records the manner in which the cargo has been
stowed and provides reminders of precaution which must be
taken during the voyage. It also contains details of the vessel’s
draught, trim, weights carried and stability on sailing.

17. Certificate of Loading: A certificate of loading (bulk grain

only) is issued in certain countries e.g. in the USA by the
National Cargo Bureau to certify that a cargo of bulk grain has
been loaded as per USCG regulations.

18. Certificate of fumigation: It is issued by the relevant

agricultural or other responsible authority and provides the
details of the cargo. A certificate of fumigation is required for
two reasons:
(a) It will satisfy the local department of agriculture at the port
of discharge that the cargo is free of infestation, and
(b) It provides the information which enables an authorized
chemist to carry out a gas free test.

19. Certificate of weight and quality: A certificate of weight

and quality is issued by suitably qualified surveyors and
samplers and testifies to the quantity of the cargo loaded and
to its physical description and analytical specification. In grain
trades this is the document on which the mate’s receipt and
bill of lading are based.

20. Hatch sealing certificate: Cargo hatches may be sealed to

prevent theft of cargo or because the holds have been
fumigated and are unsafe to enter. When hatches have been
sealed by a shore based organization a certificate recording
the fact is usually issued, listing the compartments which have
been sealed and the type and serial number of the seal used.

21. Statement of Facts: A statement of facts (SOF),

sometimes known as a port log, is prepared by the ship’s
agents in each loading and each discharging port. It is
intended to provide a full record of the times of those events
which may be required for the preparation of laytime
statement and which may affect claims for dispatch and
demurrage or for offhire. Following information is detailed in
the SOF:
• Arrival of vessel at pilot station, the anchorage and the
berth.
• Time of pilot boarding and the arrival of tugs.
• Tendering and receipt of notice of readiness.
• Clearing of the holds by the pre-loading surveyor.
• Periods of loading and discharging should be recorded.
• Times of stoppages with their reasons.
• Weather which interrupts cargo work and adverse weather
noted at any other time.
• Cargo tonnages, bunker figure and draughts
• Time of fumigation, and any other delays.
• Time of sailing.
The Master should check the accuracy of the SOF before he
signs it. He should insist on correction of the SOF when it is
inaccurate, or should add remarks stating the correct facts if
the agent refuses to amend the document to his satisfaction.
22. Letter of protest: It is a document used to provide a
written record of dispute. The Master should write a letter of
protest whenever he considers that shippers, stevedores or
any other parties are responsible for an event or circumstance
which will cause a loss to the ship. The Master is liable to
receive a letter of protest if vessel fails in some way to
perform in accordance with charterparty. A letter of protest
may be accepted after appropriately clausing it.

23. Empty hold certificate: When there is any doubt as to the

outrun of the cargo-for example, if the receiver is claiming
that the cargo has been short-landed, the Master can issue an
empty hold certificate. Such a certificate will say that all cargo
has been discharged and that the holds have been emptied.
The stevedore supervisor will be asked to confirm that there is
no cargo remaining on board

24. Trimming certificate/certificate of loading/discharging:

This is a document which the Master may be asked to sign to
confirm that he is satisfied with the manner in which the cargo
has been trimmed.

The certificate of fitness to proceed at sea issued by port

warden, coast guard or similar authority also testifies the
trimming of cargo, but the trimming certificate is issued by the
Master, not the authorities. The certificate of loading /
discharging goes further and requires the Master or chief
mate to state that the cargo has been properly loaded,
stowed, trimmed and separations laid according to the
signatory’s satisfaction.

25. Certificate of compliance with exemptions to trade

sanctions: When trade sanctions have been imposed on a
country, it may still be allowed to import certain essential
commodities such as food and medicines. Ships carrying such
exempted cargoes are required to produce a certificate of
compliance issued by the exporting governments to the
authorities enforcing the sanctions to demonstrate that cargo
qualifies for the exemption. An UN approval certificate may
also be required with this certificate.

26. UN approval certificate: It is a letter from a UN official to

the government of a country which proposes to export
exempted goods to a country which is the subject of UN
sanctions. This certificate is provided so that it can be
produced to the naval ships operating the blockades against
country which is suffering sanctions.

27. Stevedores’ time sheet: This normally shows the number

of gangs employed, the hatches worked and times and
reasons for stoppages. If asked to countersign this document
the Master should ensure that it is correct. Alternatively, he
can sign ‘for receipt only’.

28. Clean ballast discharge permit: This document is

nowadays widely used in many parts of the world. This
certificate authorizes the vessel to discharge clean ballast in
the port limits and stipulates the conditions which must be
observed whilst ballast is being discharged. The permit is
issued by the port authority following application from the
ship’s agent and a copy has to be posted in ship’s gangway
with a record of ‘checks and condition of discharge’.

29. Paint compliance certificate: If holds have been

repainted shortly before a cargo of grain or other foodstuffs is
to be loaded the shippers may demand to see a compliance
certificate issued by an independent laboratory, states that all
the materials used to make the paint are approved for the use
on surfaces which are in contact with food products.

30. Stevedores damage form: These documents are issued

by Master, to hold stevedores responsible for damage to ship
or cargo.

31. Certificate of IMO classification: A certificate of IMO

classification of a cargo must be issued to the Master by the
shipper before shipment of a cargo which is listed in the IMDG
code. Copies of the certificate of IMO classification may be
required by the receiver and by the port authority in the port
of discharge or the ports visited en route.

32. Certificate of compliance/ IMSBS code fitness certificate:

These certificates, issued by an Administration or classification
society on behalf of an administration to every ship
constructed since 1st September 1984, state the dry bulk
cargoes that the ship is permitted to carry. In addition to
listing permitted cargoes the certificates or their supporting
documents list the conditions that must be satisfied and
equipment that must be carried if the certificate is to remain
valid. The certificate for the carriage of dangerous goods must
be renewed at each periodical survey.

33. Hatch closing certificate: This is issued by an attending

surveyor, reports on hatch covers which appear to be in good
condition and which have been properly closed, and has
provision for recording hatch covers or fittings which appear
to be defective, or which have not been properly closed. The
Master or chief mate, when countersigning the document can,
if necessary, insert a remark rejecting the report.
34. No damage certificate: In some countries, particularly
India, the Master will be required to sign a “No damage
certificate” releasing the stevedores from liability after
completion of discharge. The ship may be prevented to sail
until the certificate has been signed, in that case Masters can
sign the certificate with the endorsement ‘without prejudice’.

DOCUMENTS TO BE SIGNED BY THE MATE

These include:
1. Mate’s receipts;
2. Stowage plan;
3. Certificate of lashing (on behalf of Master);
4. Letter of protest (on behalf of Master);
5. Empty hold certificate (for the cargo receiver, on behalf
of Master);
6. Trimming certificate / Certificate of loading discharging
(on behalf of Master);
7. Stevedore’s damage form (on behalf of Master);
8. Stevedore’s time sheets (on behalf of Master);
9. No damage certificate (on behalf of Master);
10. Statement of facts (issued by ship’s agent, to be
confirmed with comments, on behalf of Master);