"In 2024, we will engage widely, sharing our work priorities, and encouraging more members to participate in our Committees and Expert Groups"
Director's Log
OCIMF provides an independent forum that brings members and external stakeholders together to leverage their expertise. Being part of the Forum also offers members the chance to engage and exchange ideas with other experts.
In 2024, we will engage widely, sharing our work priorities, and encouraging more members to participate in our Committees, Expert Groups, Working Groups and Communities of Practice. Taking advantage of our global footprint, we want to reach around the world finding the best industry practice to bring together solutions that address avoidable safety incidents.
Following our Member Participation Plan, we have prioritised Asia Pacific and South and Central America this year. In April, we will visit Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia, to meet with local membership, attend Singapore Maritime Week, and host an OCIMF Day in Kuala Lumpur. In May, we will host another OCIMF Day in Rio de Janeiro, with a similar plan, followed by ExCom 93.
I'm excited about our upcoming discussions and the opportunity to share further details about our ongoing work plan. My aim is to motivate more members to actively support the Forum's initiatives.
Hope to see you around your neighbourhood!
Karen Davis, Director OCIMF
OCIMF sponsors International Women in Maritime Day event in May
OCIMF is sponsoring, for the second year running, the International Women in Maritime Day seminar and reception on Tuesday 14 May 2024. The event is being co-hosted jointly with Trinity House and the Women's International Shipping and Trading Association (WISTA).
The theme for this year’s event is allyship. The event will run from 6pm to 9pm (doors open at 5.30pm), with a panel discussing the theme, followed by a plenary and reception. This event is a wonderful opportunity to consider how to attract the best talent into the industry, optimise the talents of colleagues and support a gender diverse workforce in maritime. Natalie Gull, Director of People and Culture, Trinity House, will set the scene followed by key points from the panel. The discussion will then be opened to the floor for attendees’ contribution.
Register here to attend the event.
OCIMF to host special event in Kuala Lumpur
The OCIMF Day in Malaysia on 22 April will cover wide-ranging topics relevant to members and regional stakeholders.
OCIMF leadership and staff will be hosting the OCIMF Day event in Kuala Lumpur. Special thanks to MISC for logistics and planning support. Presentations will include SIRE 2.0, Offshore Assurance, Ship to Ship activities, updates from the industry and the current and future work of OCIMF. A Risk and Regulatory overview on existing and emerging themes will also be shared.
For more information, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
First SIRE 2.0 workshop in China
A one-day workshop was held in Shanghai on 28 February to help tanker operators in China transition to SIRE 2.0. The aim of the workshop was to develop understanding of the changes, methodology and potential impact of OCIMF's new inspection regime.
Captain Rohit Bajaj, OCIMF Programmes Quality Assesor, conducted the workshop, with the participation of 71 senior managers from 23 tanker managers and owners. The workshop covered a wide range of SIRE 2.0 related topics with extensive interaction. Participants shared concerns, clarified doubts, and built confidence for a successful journey from VIQ 7 to SIRE 2.0.
For more information, contact Rohit Bajaj, OCIMF Quality Assessor, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
New drug and alcohol guidelines out now
Updated information paper gives guidance on policy, standards and procedures in the maritime industry.
Guidelines for the Control of Drugs and Alcohol in the Maritime Industry, 3rd edition, provides general guidance and recommendations for the maritime industry in developing and implementing controls for drugs and alcohol. It gives guidance on developing a drug and alcohol policy, where operators can refer for standards, and suggestions for effective procedures onboard, aligned with standards and policies. It covers workplace testing but does not address testing associated with the treatment and recovery of identified substance dependency cases, nor return to work testing. This paper replaces OCIMF’s Guidelines for the Control of Drug and Alcohol Onboard Ship (first edition, 1995). The second edition was withdrawn in 2020.
For any queries, contact Kevin Coelho, OCIMF Nautical Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Download Guidelines for the Control of Drugs and Alcohol
New information paper recommends closed cargo operations
OCIMF has published an information paper aimed at regional barge companies in South and Central America.
Recommendation for converting Inland Tank-Barges from Open to Closed Cargo Operations in South and Central America gives guidance on how to build or convert inland barges for closed conditions. Based on industry publications and good practice, it addresses the procedures and equipment needed to comply with this safety precaution during operations at terminals or between two barges.
For more information, contact Ton Mol, OCIMF Barge Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Download Closed Cargo Operations Paper
Ship Owners Forum takes a strategic look at UK maritime
OCIMF was invited to attend the forum, organised by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) at Trinity House, London, on 21 March. Attendees were welcomed by Virginia McVea, MCA's Chief Executive Officer, who shared her vision for helping the maritime industry to prosper in the UK.
Guest speakers included Michael Parker, Chairman of Global Shipping at Citi Group and Sarah Nacey of the UK Department for Transport. MCA showcased its innovation with training and standards, digitalisation, ongoing work on autonomous shipping, development of new future fuels and supporting safety standards relating to the energy transition and decarbonisation. There was general agreement on the need to attract new talent to shipping and make better use of data and digitalisation while ensuring the sector evolves in a changing world.
For further information, please contact Saurabh Sachdeva, OCIMF Publications and Advocacy Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
ITOPF marks its 55th anniversary
OCIMF was delighted to join ITOPF's celebration of 55 years of effective spill response.
The anniversary event in March coincided with the opening of ITOPF's new offices in London. OCIMF and ITOPF continue to collaborate closely on oil spill response and prevention and development of best practices. We wish them many more years of success.
Barge experts make progress in North America
OCIMF’s Working Group for the revision of the North American Barge Inspection Questionnaire (BIQ) and Barge Particulars Questionnaire (BPQ) met at P66's office in Houston, US, from 11-15 March.
The group worked for four days and successfully updated most of the BIQ, assisted by two members of the American Waterways Operators (AWO). The group will have monthly virtual meetings and a final meeting in August to complete the technical content of these question sets. OCIMF thanks all its members for their input and AWO for its support, and a special thanks to P66 for their hospitality.
For more information, please contact Ton Mol, OCIMF Barge Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Maritime security snippets
Protecting seafarers in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden
The Collation Maritime Forces have formed a Joint Maritime Information Centre (JMIC) to provide the maritime industry with “ground truth” on maritime incidents in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The JMIC information products can be found here.
ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre
The ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre held its 18th Governing Council meeting in Singapore on 15 March 2024. The meeting was attended by 21 Contracting Parties and several external participants. OCIMF was represented by Ampol. The Council noted that a total of 100 incidents of armed robbery against ships were reported from January to December 2023, representing a 19% increase compared to 84 incidents reported in 2022. The Council also noted the collective efforts of the Contracting Parties and regional authorities to deter and respond to piracy and armed robbery against ships, including arresting perpetrators. The full press release can be found here. Many thanks to Hemant Berry for representing OCIMF.
For any queries, please contact Russell Pegg, OCIMF Security Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Meeting reports
Maritime Security Committee
OCIMF's Maritime Security Committee (MSC) met virtually on 21 March. Regular Middle East operational meetings of the committee allowed this session to concentrate on other business and operational areas. The group was pleased to welcome International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA), under the recently signed joint Memorandum of Understanding. Thanks to Nick Hough for sharing the security challenges faced by his members. Simon Church, recently reappointed as the Special Adviser to the SHADE-GoG, provided an update on plans to reenergise GoG maritime collaboration. The MSC checked its 2024 objectives and placed priority on delivering updates to Best Management Practices as soon as possible.
The next MSC meeting will be held on 5 June 2024. If members require any details, please contact Russell Pegg, OCIMF Security Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Publications and Advocacy Offshore Committee
8th meeting: 13–14 March (London)
Chair: Don Davis (Chevron)
Vice-Chairs: Matthieu Bougeant (TotalEnergies), Alex Morton (Harbour Energy)
Secretary: Saurabh Sachdeva (P&A Director)
The Offshore Committee met for two days in March to discuss governance, operations, and planning for OCIMF’s work in the offshore industry, and to hear updates on the activities of the two offshore expert groups, Floating Systems and Offshore Vessel Operations. Also on the agenda was an overview of regulatory and emerging risks from the IMO and in relation to the energy transition, and updates from the Environment, Human Factors, and Security functional committees. Guest speakers from IOGP, IMCA, Scottish Power renewables and UK Health and Safety Executive spoke on wide-ranging topics, including offshore renewables, diving/ship-husbandry, inspections, and the collaborative work with the International Regulators Forum to support the review of OCIMF’s Guidelines for the Marine Assessment of FPSOs. The second day saw the approval of the Offshore Annual Plan for 2024-2025, including the following decisions:
- Approved Offshore Vessel Inspection utilisation campaign.
- Approved Terms of Reference for FPSO Asset Integrity working group, DP assurance activity, diving support and lifeboat launching and maintenance book-related activities.
- Review of data for offshore inspections and an overview of vessel incident repository framework.
- Noted Memorandum of Understanding with IMCA and noted ongoing collaboration and engagements across industry bodies.
- Reviewed representation on the committee and expert groups, with a focus on enhancing representation from Middle East, South East Asia and South America.
A full meeting report and associated slides can be accessed in the members area of the OCIMF website. For further information, please contact Saurabh Sachdeva, P&A Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Graham Coles, Offshore Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
SIRE 2.0 – VIP Steering Group
Chair: Raj Shetty (ENOC)
Vice-Chair: Deb Cobb (Marathon)
Secretary: Aaron Cooper, (OCIMF, Programmes Director)
5–6 March
OCIMF SIRE 2.0 Secretariat members along with the VIP Steering Group met in March to review the progress of Phase 3 of the SIRE 2.0 transition. This was an opportunity to review the data from the Phase 2 and Phase 3 inspections completed so far, to hear an update on the status of the SIRE 2.0 Training and Accreditation process as well as review the status of all Phase 3 critical success factors to establish readiness for go-live. Further details on the SIRE 2.0 launch will be communicated in due course, however in the meantime we continue to strongly encourage all programme users to review the SIRE 2.0 material on the OCIMF website SIRE 2.0 (ocimf.org) to ensure readiness.
For further details please contact Aaron Cooper, OCIMF Programmes Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
IMO news
Marine Environment Protection Committee
The 81st session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 81) was held at the IMO headquarters from 18–22 March 2024. The following brief provides a summary of topics discussed or agreed upon that are of relevance to OCIMF.
Greenhouse gas emissions
- Further development of mid-term measures to address greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions – Development of an initial “IMO net zero framework” and a draft new chapter 5 to MARPOL Annex VI to define the envisaged goal-based marine fuel standard and an economic measure.
- Adoption of revised guidelines on life cycle GHG intensity of marine fuels (LCA guidelines) – Includes revised calculations for the establishment of default emission factors.
- Future progress of LCA guidelines – Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP) to provide views on methodological enhancement of Well-to-Tank (WtT) and Tank-to-Wake (TtW) emissions quantification and sustainability themes, including Indirect Land Use Change classification.
Matters relating to air pollution and energy efficiency
- Adoption of amendments to MARPOL Annex VI in relation to IMO Data Collection System – Provides clarity on recording fuel consumption per consumer when a ship is “underway”.
- Adoption of amendments to 2021 Guidelines on shaft/engine power limitation to comply with Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) and reporting of power reserve – Includes further clarification on pre-emptive release of power reserve and the format for reporting use of the reserve power.
- Establishment of a correspondence group on onboard carbon capture and methane and nitrous oxide emissions – To develop a framework for the measurement and verification of actual TtW emission factors and to consider the development of a regulatory framework for the use of onboard carbon capture.
Other pollution and efficiency related matters
- Finalisation of draft guidance on fuel sampling in the form of an MSC-MEPC Circular, revoking MEPC.182(59) on the 2009 Sampling Guidelines for Fuel Oil.
- Adoption of amendments to 2022 Guidelines for development of Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plan (SEEMP) and verification of ship fuel oil consumption data and operational carbon intensity, respectively – Supporting amendments to MARPOL Annex VI.
- Carriage, and guidance for use of biofuels – Carriage by bunker vessels to be discussed by the 30th session of the working group on the Evaluation of Safety and Pollution Hazards of Chemicals during October 2024.
- Establishment of two new Emission Control Areas for NOX and SOX in Canadian and Norwegian waters respectively – Amendments to MARPOL Annex VI to be adopted by MEPC 82 later this year.
The aquatic environment
- Review of the Ballast Water Management Convention – adoption of interim guidance for BWM systems operating in challenging water quality and approval of guidance for temporary storage of treated sewage/grey water in ballast tanks.
- Discharge water from Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems – Outcomes of PPR 11 and further discussion on this topic deferred to MEPC 82.
For more information, contact Abhijit Aul, OCIMF Risk and Regulatory Affairs Adviser, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..