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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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Monday, 07 April 14
API 8 CFR SOUTH CHINA COAL SWAPS GAINED 2.09% M-O-M
COALspot.com: API 8 CFR South China Coal swaps for average Q2 14 deliveries gained 2.09 percent month on month and closed at US$ 75.68 per ...
Sunday, 06 April 14
THE FREIGHT MARKET KEEPS SLIDING
COALspot.com: The freight market continued to drop this week. The BDI (Baltic Dry Index) is a widely followed metric that reflects the overall r ...
Friday, 04 April 14
UNITED STATES COAL OUTPUT UP 5.4% IN PAST WEEK
COALspot.com – United States the world's second largest coal producer, produced approximately 19.9 million short tons (mmst) of coal i ...
Thursday, 03 April 14
PANAMAX SECTOR IS WATCHING A SEVERE DROP IN RATES - FEARNLEYS
Handy
A further weaker sentiment for the Supras as well in both hemispheres this week with oversupply of tonnage being the major headline. Tra ...
Wednesday, 02 April 14
CHINA: ARBITRATION CLAUSES IN BILLS OF LADING UNDER CHINESE LEGAL PRACTICE - SKULD
KNOWLEDGE TO ELEVATE
Successful incorporation of a charterparty arbitration clause into the bills of lading is not a straight forward matte ...
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- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- The University of Queensland
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- Planning Commission, India
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- Economic Council, Georgia
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- PTC India Limited - India
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Parliament of New Zealand
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Australian Coal Association
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- White Energy Company Limited
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
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