News
PHOTO: REUTERS
12 Sep 2016
Hanjin Collapse
Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd filed for bankruptcy in the United States to protect its vessels from being seized by creditors. Hanjin filed for protection under chapter 15 to a court in New Jersey for court receivership on Wednesday after its creditor banks decided to end financial support.
1 Jul 2016
The SOLAS Container Weight Verification Requirement
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has amended the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS) to require, as a condition for loading a packed container onto a ship for export, that the container has a verified weight. The shipper is responsible for the verification of the packed container’s weight.
This requirement will become legally effective on July 1, 2016. After that date, it would be a violation of SOLAS to load a packed container onto a vessel if the vessel operator and marine terminal operator do not have a verified container weight. The SOLAS amendments provide that there are two methods shippers may use to determine the container weight once the container packing process has taken place.
This requirement will apply globally. Shippers, freight forwarders, vessel operators, and terminal operators will all need to establish policies and procedures to ensure the implementation of this regulatory change. Because there have been questions about what the specific nature of the SOLAS changes are, the World Shipping Council provides the following basic synopsis of the SOLAS requirement.