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Thursday, 08 May 14
'TRIAL BY MEDIA, TRIAL BY LAW' - A REPORT FROM TRACK 1 OF BIMCO'S ANNUAL CONFERENCE DUBAI 2014
 KNOWLEDGE TO ELEVATE
Aiming to bring a very different type of event into their annual conference, BIMCO presented ‘Double Jeopardy – ‘Trial by Media, Trial by Law*’, simulating a marine casualty and arbitration to delegates at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Dubai. A professional, innovative and creative production not only gave a realistic portrayal of the events following a maritime casualty but enabled the audience to participate with well posed questions by way of interactive voting meters.
Based on a true event, this realistic account of a maritime casualty was narrated by Lindsay East, Consultant, Reed Smith, London. The vessel ‘Idle Star’ having loaded with sugar in Thailand and heading to the discharge port, had grounded on a river bed on the West Coast of California in an area of natural beauty. While there were no human casualties, there was a significant bunker spill and with a fast flowing river the environmental implications to wildlife and the local community were huge.
As the story unfolded, the owner representative, played by John Tsatsas from London and the charterers representative played by Han van Blanken from Rotterdam, portrayed each stage from the initial Captain’s call. With the initial limited information, the chain of events were shown to unfold as the owner and charterer brought in assistance and sought advice from P&I, lawyers, classification society, hull and machinery insurers, local agents and representatives and demonstrated how the process evolved as more information became available, giving an overview of the practicalities involved in the process. The expert advice to the owner and charterer was provided by video clips of real practitioners in conversation with the two stage actors.
The casualty centred on whether the destination port was ‘safe’. It was known to have a low draft and underwater obstructions that shifted and were uncharted. The vessel therefore had to not only be of certain specification when laden but also the conditions of making the final part of the voyage through those water needed to be assessed with the latest information available to see if the port was suitable for discharge. The owners proceeded to complete the voyage and the vessel ran aground so who was liable? The Master for proceeding with the voyage despite concerns or the charterer for the choice of a difficult destination with the cargo in mind?
With neither the owner or charterer accepting liability and indeed blaming each other, this session focussed on two areas; media and how if not handled correctly incidents can become a media and public relations nightmare and legal arbitration, examining the legalities of the charter agreement and how this would be dealt with by the legal system.
The morning session focussed on ‘Trial by Media’ and with neither party having any crisis management or PR in place, the simulated public backlash of the environmentalists, shrimp farmers and the local community as pollution grew, quickly escalated without an appropriate, measured response. Julian Bray, Tradewinds Editor-in-chief portrayed the media, keen for a story, blame and clearly supporting the affected parties who were keen for compensation.
The clear message of the morning session was that handling media during such an incident is a serious matter and can easily spiral out of control. Media will always seek to sensationalise and exploit sensitive areas and it is very easy to say the wrong things however well intentioned. Advice was to be well prepared, seeking professional crisis management to enable you to get every step right and above all, be honest. By knowing the all facts, you can provide just enough factual information and slow the media frenzy down.
The afternoon session ‘Trial by Law’ consisted of a panel of three maritime arbitrators, presided by Jude Benny, from Singapore, Bruce Harris from London and Jack Warfield from New York.
The owner sought indemnity from the charterer and the case was to ascertain whether the port was unsafe, whether the charterer was in breach of the agreement by ordering the ship to go there and whether that caused the loss.
Chirag Karia, a QC from London, counsel for the owner, put forward a strong case after witness testimonies that the owner had expressed concerns to the charterer which has gone unresolved. There had been correspondence regarding the draft of the port and that the waters were uncharted and the charterer had been asked to arrange lightening and/or a harmless agreement to indemnify the owner from any losses should there be a problem. The charterer did not lighten and was confident there would be no issue with the voyage, however did not confirm any harmless agreement which the owner assumed from their conversations. He argued that by sending the vessel to its destination the charterers were sending the vessel to an unsafe port and the owners had been commercially pressured to continue.
Nevil Phillips a barrister from London, counsel for the charterer, argued the defence with regard to whether the port was safe at the time of nomination and that the owners had a responsibility to ensure the vessel was laden appropriately to ensure safe passage. The owners should have reduced the cargo and taken further action to avoid such an incident and the Master was negligent in not doing so, causing the vessel to ground. Ultimately it was the owner’s decision to continue with the voyage with the known risks and any negligence by the Master obliterates any question of safety.
The arbitrators retired to consider their findings, each from the perspective of their own jurisdictions, and the audience were able to vote on their own judgment, finding in favour of the owner. However on returning the arbitrators, giving three separate judgments found in favour of the charterer by two to one on the basis that the grounding was found to be in general down to the Master’s negligence. Jude Benny summing up said “There were sufficient red light warnings and with good seamanship this could have been avoided.”
There was a lively question and answer session to close the session and attendees found the day both enlightening and informative. The new style of interactive session proved popular with attendees and the final vote was to definitely repeat such an event next time.
Source: BIMCO / Hellenic Shipping
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Friday, 23 May 14
U.S. WEEKLY COAL PRODUCTION SLIPS 1.8% WEEK ENDED MAY 17, 2014
COALspot.com – United States the world's second largest coal producer, produced approximately 18.6 million short tons (mmst) of coal in a ...
Friday, 23 May 14
DRY BULK NEWBUILDING CANCELLATIONS COULD HELP SUPPORT MARKET IN THE COMING WEEKS - NIKOS ROUSSANOGLOU, HELLENIC SHIPPING NEWS
The dry bulk market's demise over the past few months maybe has come as a surprise to many, but analysts and shipbrokers are looking forward to ...
Thursday, 22 May 14
HEAR SUCCESSFUL CASE STUDIES FROM 10 INDEPENDENT UNCONVENTIONAL GAS OPERATORS
Unconventional Gas Asia 2014 will provide a unique opportunity for Asia’s unconventional gas leaders to share their experience and expertise ...
Thursday, 22 May 14
CNPC-GAZPROM DEAL A MEDIUM - TERM POSITIVE FOR CHINA'S GAS SECTOR
Fitch Ratings says a 30-year deal in which Russia's OAO Gazprom (BBB/Negative) will supply gas to China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC; A ...
Thursday, 22 May 14
CAPESIZE : RATES ARE STILL UNDER PRESSURE
Handy
A quiet start into the week in Far East, some fresh Indonesian coal order in the market. For trips within S.E. Asia, Supras are trading aro ...
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- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- Economic Council, Georgia
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Planning Commission, India
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- Parliament of New Zealand
- The University of Queensland
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- PTC India Limited - India
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- White Energy Company Limited
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- Australian Coal Association
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- ASAPP Information Group - India
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