Bunker spill compensation regime to enter into force

IMO News 01.2008

The last, significant, gap in the international regime for compensating victims of oil spills from ships is set to be closed with the entry into force on 21 November 2008 of an international treaty covering liability and compensation for pollution damage caused by spills of oil, when carried as fuel in ships' bunkers. Current, regimes covering oil spills do not include bunker oil spills from vessels other than tankers.

Criteria for entry into force of the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, 2001, were met on 21 November 2007, following accession to the treaty by Sierra Leone. The Convention was adopted in 2001.

Under the terms of the Convention, it enters into force one year after the date on which 18 States, including five States with ships whose combined gross tonnage is not less than 1 million, have ratified it. With the accession by Sierra Leone, the Bunkers Convention has been ratified by 18 States, with a combined gross tonnage of 114,484,743, representing 15.86 per cent of world merchant shipping tonnage.

The Convention will make the shipowner, defined broadly so as to include the owner, registered owner, bareboat,

charterer, manager and operator of a ship, liable to pay compensation for pollution damage (including the costs of preventative measures) caused in the territory, including the territorial sea of a State Party, as well as in its exclusive economic zone, or if a State Party has not established one, in an equivalent area.

Ships over 1,000 gross tonnage registered in a State Party to the Convention will be required to carry on board a certificate certifying that the ship has insurance or other financial security, such as the guarantee of a bank or similar financial institution, to cover the liability of the registered owner for pollution damage in an amount equal to the limits of liability under the applicable national or international limitation regime.

Secretary-General Mitropoulos welcomed the latest accession. "With the entry into force of this Convention, the Organization has now in place all the elements of a liability and compensation regime for damage caused by the sea carriage of oils, whether as cargo or as fuel," he said. "Recent accidents involving spills of oil carried as fuel on large ships have shown how important this Convention is, alongside measures to reduce the number of such casualties to a minimum."

Oil fuel tank protection

Rules to limit the size of oil fuel tanks on new ships and ensure they are protectively located are included in the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL Convention). A new regulation on oil fuel tank protection was adopted in 2004 and entered into force on 1 January 2007.

The regulation applies to all ships delivered on or after 1 August 2010 with an aggregate oil fuel capacity of 600 m3 and above. It includes requirements for the protected location of the fuel tanks and performance standards for accidental oil fuel outflow. A maximum capacity limit of 2,500 m' per oil fuel tank is included in the regulation, which also requires flag state Administrations to consider general safety aspects, including the need for maintenance and inspection of wing and double-bottom tanks or spaces, when approving the design and construction of ships in accordance with the regulation.