HOT PORT NEWS from GAC

Planned jetty outages
Wednesday, February 3, 2021, Immingham, United Kingdom

Immingham Gas Jetty (full berth, LPG and white oils) will be closed for testing, preparation, repairs and other work as follows:

From 0800 hours on 6 February to 1630 hours on 7 February 2021
(Safety instrumentation testing – Phillips 66 LPG system outage only)

From 0800 hours on 22 February to 1700 hours on 26 February
(White oil system outage – LP9003 and prep work for APT 6 & 8 and APT 5 & 7 pipelines)

From 0800 hours on 1 March to 1700 hours on 5 March
(Loading arm repairs, pipework modifications and ABP mooring equipment work)

It will not be possible to handle any shipping/barges on the berth during these periods.

Further, due to issues during the 22 FO line pigging, the 22” FO line remains out of service until further notice.

For information about operations in the United Kingdom, contact GAC UK at [email protected]

Mask requirement for all public maritime vessels
Wednesday, February 3, 2021, United States

Executive Order (13998), Promoting COVID-19 Safety in Domestic and International Travel requires masks be worn on all “public maritime vessels, including ferries” to mitigate the risk of spreading COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued order, Requirement for Persons to Wear Masks while on Transportation Hubs, 29JAN2021, requires all persons travelling on all commercial vessels to wear a mask.

This Order requires conveyance operators to use best efforts to ensure that any person on the conveyance wears a mask when boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel. Depending on the circumstances, best efforts may include:
– boarding only those persons who wear masks;
– instructing persons that Federal law requires wearing a mask on the conveyance and failure to comply constitutes a violation of Federal law;
– monitoring persons on board the conveyance for anyone who is not wearing a mask and seeking compliance from such persons;
– at the earliest opportunity, disembarking any person who refuses to comply;
– providing persons with prominent and adequate notice to facilitate awareness and compliance of the requirement of this Order to wear a mask; best practices may include, if feasible, advanced notifications on digital platforms, such as on apps, websites, or email; posted signage in multiple languages with illustrations; printing the requirement on transit tickets; or other methods as appropriate…

…Owners, operators, and crew of vessels that fail to implement the mask wearing order above may be subject to civil or criminal penalties from the CDC. Furthermore, based on the scientific determination of the CDC, the Coast Guard finds that failure to wear a mask creates an undue safety risk by increasing the risk of transmission of COVID-19 between passengers, the crew of the vessel, and port operators… …Vessels that have not implemented the mask requirement may be issued a Captain of the Port (COTP) order directing the vessel’s movement and operations; repeated failure to impose the mask mandate could result in civil penalties and/or criminal action…

…State, local, Tribal, and territorial laws or rules imposing public health measures that are more protective of public health than those required by the CDC, are an acceptable equivalency for these requirements. Vessel operators who believe local mask wearing requirements fit this exemption should contact the local COTP.

(For information about operations in the United States, contact GAC North America at [email protected])

Source: United States Coast Guard Marine Safety Information Bulletin SEC VA MSIB #36-21 dated 2 February 2021

Port installs smart bollards with sensors
Wednesday, February 3, 2021, Antwerp, Belgium

Port of Antwerp and technology company Zensor are joining forces to increase safety at the quay walls. Zensor developed the Bollard Monitor, a digital sensor that measures the tension on a bollard. The first five Bollard Monitors have been installed at the North Sea Terminal, and five more are planned shortly.

The port of Antwerp has some 120.6km of quay walls and 7,000 mooring posts and bollards. This is where ships attach their ropes when mooring up. This way, ships do not move about during loading and unloading. In windy or stormy conditions, the ropes of large seagoing vessels exert an enormous tractive force on the mooring posts and bollards. Bollards, with their bolt or anchor connections, are more sensitive than mooring masts in this respect. If such a bollard – 650kg of steel – were to come loose, there is a risk that a ship could drift away or that people would be injured. Regular inspection and maintenance are therefore required…

…The Bollard Monitor consists of two built-in sensors, which measure the tension and tension fluctuations on the mounting system. Every 15 minutes, the system sends the information, which is permanently recorded, via a wireless connection and visualises it via a dashboard. This data will help the operational department to optimise the preventative maintenance of the bollards…

(For information about operations in Belgium, contact GAC Belgium at [email protected])

Source: Extract from Port of Antwerp (www.portofantwerp.com) press release dated 2 February 2021

E-pass no longer required for controlled crew change
Wednesday, February 3, 2021, India

India’s Directorate General of Shipping has advised that, as per the latest guidelines for Surveillance, Containment and Caution issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs dated 27 January, there is no longer any requirement for an e-pass to be issued for controlled crew changes.

For further details and updates, as well as information about operations in India, contact GAC India at [email protected]

Border entry regulations
Wednesday, February 3, 2021, Norway

Strict regulations for border entry are now being enforced in Norway. As a rule, entry from a “red” country by land, sea and air is not permitted, except for Norwegian citizens or persons that reside in the country. From 29 January, all countries outside of Norway are considered “red countries”.

There are, however, some exceptions, including:
– SEAFARERS: Crew can embark or disembark a vessel in a Norwegian port (SID is required)
– CRITICAL PUBLIC FUNCTIONS (KEY WORKERS): Persons that carry out critical work, service and inspections of a vessel.

On-signers who arrive in Norway from a “red” country or area must enter quarantine for ten days after arrival and prior to embarking.

Crew who are nationals of countries that have signed the ILO 108 or 185 treaty may can travel without Schengen visa via a non-Schengen country to/from Norway. When signing off, such crew are usually allowed to travel via a Schengen country also without a visa, but we as agents cannot guarantee this travel on behalf of border control and Immigration outside Norway. GAC Norway cannot assist on-signing crew our side with a travel via Schengen without a visa. For non ILO 108/185-nationality-crew, a Schengen visa can be applied for, but we cannot guarantee that the application will be granted by Immigration.

When embarking or disembarking at a Norwegian port, crew must travel straight to their planned destination and minimize close/physical contact with others. Travel must be in an infection control-responsible manner, according to guidelines from the Directorate of Health.

On-signing crew are subject to C19-test at the border crossing point, usually the airport. They are strongly recommended to have a test arranged by agent, even if that means testing twice within a short time after arrival to Norway. A ten day combined quarantine ashore and onboard for crew after arriving Norway applies with on-signers required to stay in full quarantine and not start working onboard until they receive a negative result of their first test. For practical purposes, on-signers have to arrive in Norway at least two days signing on the vessel if the owner requires PCR test (or 24 hours if the owner only requires ART. Planning a crew changes with a shorter timeframe is considered a breach of the regulations.

For embarking crew, a C19-test prior to arriving Norway is not compulsory, but is recommended. This test should be taken within 24 hours before departure from the airport of origin.

Since 29 January, arriving crew that have been in the UK, Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, Austria, South Africa and Brazil can only be tested by CPR (not ART). Although they are formally under the same regulations as other crew signing on, it is a strongly recommendation that this crew carry a CPR-test that is no older than 24 hours from time of departure flight or no older than 72 hours before arriving in Norway. It is also strongly recommenced that such crew have a negative test result before leaving their quarantine ashore and embarking their vessel.

Off-signers are subject to C19-testing within 24 hours of signing off, and prior to leaving Norway. They are not required to stay in Norway whilst awaiting the test result. Crew that have been in the UK, Netherlands, Ireland, Portugal, Austria, South Africa or Brazil in the last ten days must be tested by CPR.

For further details and updates, as well as information about operations in Norway, contact GAC Norway at [email protected]

Source: GAC