- 2026 Amendments Address Gaps in Partly Filled Compartments.
- New Rules Cover Specially Suitable Compartments Loaded Below Hatch Level.
- Revised Heeling Moment Calculations Introduced for Grain Stability.
This Marine Advisory brings you up to speed on the latest changes to the International Grain Code, letting shipowners, operators, inspectors, masters, and crew know about the updates that impact grain loading practices and how we evaluate stability, reports The Republic of Liberia.
Background: Current Grain Loading Conditions
The original International Grain Code laid out three loading conditions:
- Filled compartment, trimmed – This means the cargo space is loaded and trimmed to its highest possible level.
- Filled compartment, untrimmed – Here, the cargo is filled to the maximum within the hatch opening, but isn’t trimmed beyond its edges. This applies to all ships or to “specially suitable compartments.”
- Partly filled compartment – This refers to any cargo space that doesn’t meet the above conditions.
In practice, a common loading method involves a “specially suitable compartment” filled to or above the bottom edge of the hatch end beams, but not all the way to the highest point at the hatch opening. Unfortunately, this situation wasn’t clearly addressed in the Code, leading to some confusion in its application and stability assessments.
Amendments to the International Grain Code
After discussions at the IMO, amendments to the Code have been approved and will take effect on January 1, 2026. A new loading condition has been introduced: a specially suitable compartment, partly filled in the area of the hatch opening, with ends untrimmed. This describes a compartment that isn’t filled to the maximum at the hatch opening but is filled to a level at or above the bottom edge of the hatch end beams, without trimming outside the hatch opening.
Additional amendments also focus on how to calculate assumed heeling moments to consider grain loaded under this new condition.
Recommendations for Vessel Operators
Take a moment to review your grain loading practices to see if the newly defined loading condition applies to you. Make sure to update your vessel’s Grain Loading Manual to include the heeling moments and procedures that relate to this new condition. Don’t forget to ensure that your onboard loading computer systems are updated to reflect the revised loading condition and the new stability calculations.
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Source: The Republic of Liberia
