Stricter Ship Safety Requirements on Yangtze River

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Jiangsu Maritime Safety Administration (Jiangsu MSA) issued a Notice on 26 September 2017 outlining temporary stricter safety requirements that will be in place in the waters of Jiangsu during the upcoming 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China. These safety requirements are mainly imposed on ships entering the Yangtze River and ship movements in the Yangtze estuary.

Requirements for members and clients:

Members and clients trading in China and ships scheduled to enter and/or call ports along the Yangtze River should pay particular attention to the requirements outlined in the Notice issued by the Jiangsu MSA applies from 0000hrs on 12 October to 24:00 hrs on 26 October 2017:

  • Ships unable to reach four knots at upstream of Yangtze River under normal conditions, or six knots downstream of the River from Taizhou Yangtze Highway Bridge, will be denied entry to the River.
  • The visibility requirements in the confined waters of Jiangsu will be enhanced to 1,500 meters for ships going upstream and 2,000 meters for going down.
    Ships with of 3,000 grt or above are not permitted to transit at night between Fujiangsha South and Yingongzhou during this period.
  • Ships which have been recorded as having lost control in the waters of Jiangsu since 1 January 2016 will be precluded from entry.
  • When transiting from Buoy No. 90 to 95 and Buoy No. 116 to 120, ships using virtual buoys must always maintain sufficient under keel clearance (UKC) in accordance with the most up to date UKC Guide, and ships in transit carrying dangerous chemicals must maintain at least 10 cm in addition to the minimum UKC.
  • Ships are prevented from berthing or unberthing at night, except for container vessels, and ships carrying coals for the use of local power plants provided that they have plans for safe berthing or unberthing in place.
  • No ship-to-ship operations or bunkering will be allowed at night in the waters governed by the Jiangsu MSA.
  • Bulk chemical ships carrying cargoes of categories X and Y under Marpol 73/78 will not be permitted to transit, or enter or depart at night from ports in the waters of Jiangsu.
  • Night time is defined as the hours between 2000 to 0600 hours the following day.

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Source: Gard