Dear Sirs Indonesia and the Philippines – Safe Carriage of Nickel Ore Cargoes Introduction As Members may be aware, in October and November 2010 three ships - ‘Jian Fu Star’, ‘Nasco Diamond’ and ‘Hong Wei’- capsized and sank whist carrying nickel ore from Indonesia to China with the loss of 44 seafarers. The cause of the losses has not been conclusively resolved but nickel ore, like iron ore fines and many concentrates, is a cargo which may liquefy if the moisture content of the cargo exceeds the Transportable Moisture Limit ( TML) when loaded. Liquefaction of such a cargo can result in the loss of stability which in turn can lead to a ship capsizing. It is therefore very possible that all three ships were lost as a result of cargo liquefaction. There have been a number of other recent reports of cargoes of nickel ore loaded in both Indonesia and the Philippines liquefying and causing the loss of stability to the carrying ship but fortunately none resulted in the loss of the ship. In one such case the carrying ship grounded causing extensive hull damage. Currently nickel ore is only loaded in four locations in the Philippines: Santa Cruz (Luzon), Surigao and Tubay (Mindanao) and Rio Tuba (Palawan Island). Liquefaction of some ore cargoes can be caused during a sea voyage, by the motion of the ship in the seaway or vibrations caused by the main engine or other on-board machinery. The International Group informally raised its concerns about the loading and carriage of nickel ore from Indonesia and the Philippines with the Indonesian and Philippine delegations that attended the 88th session of the IMO Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) which was held between 24 November – 3 December 2010. Intercargo made an intervention at that session expressing its concerns with respect to the hazards and risks associated with the carriage of cargoes that can liquefy, such as nickel ore. In addition, Intercargo pointed out that some charterers and Masters had been put under extreme pressure to accept shippers’ declarations and testing reports without having been permitted the opportunity of independently verifying such declarations and reports. The Marshall Islands supported Intercargo’s intervention and the Indian delegation outlined the actions that the Indian authorities were taking to improve the safe carriage of iron ore fines cargoes loaded in India. January 2011 TO ALL MEMBERS The Britannia Steam Ship Insurance Association Limited Managers Tindall Riley (Britannia) Limited New City Court 20 St Thomas Street London SE1 9RR Tel +44 (0)20 7407 3588 Fax +44 (0)20 7403 3942 www.britanniapandi.com The Britannia Steam Ship Insurance Association Limited Registered Office: New City Court, 20 St Thomas Street, London SE1 9RR Registered number 10340 England Authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority Specific Concerns Associated with the Loading and Carriage of Nickel Ore. The loading and carriage of nickel ore cargoes from both Indonesia and the Philippines has given rise to the specific concerns set out below. (a) Most mines are situated in remote locations and loading/port facilities are therefore nonexistent or very limited and loading equipment and methods rudimentary. Cargo is stockpiled, uncovered, on the beach and consequently totally exposed to the prevailing weather conditions. (b) The traditional practice has been to ship nickel ore cargoes in the dry season, between February – May/June, when rainfall in past years was negligible. Ho