The owner of a bulk carrier, has been fined A$63,000 ($40,000) by the Gladstone Magistrates Court in Australia. This penalty was imposed due to the company’s failure to adhere to a written directive from the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA). The court also ordered the company to cover the associated court costs, reports MarineLink.
Swift Action
A Liberia-flagged bulk carrier, entered the Port of Gladstone in October 2023 with propulsion problems.
Repair attempts in November 2023 were unsuccessful. Due to the lack of a repair plan, the approaching cyclone season, and the risk to the Great Barrier Reef, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued a direction notice for a towage and fault rectification plan.
The captain and the Australian agent, Universal Shipping Alliance Ltd, did not respond to or act on the notice, despite repeated AMSA requests.
After further failed repair attempts, the vessel was towed out of Australian waters in February 2024 and banned from Australian waters for six months.
AMSA’s Executive Director Operations, Michael Drake, stated that AMSA will take swift and strong action, including potential prosecution, if directions are not followed.
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Source: Marine Link
