TSC Triton no. 1 2012 - The Swedish Club

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Marketing & Business Development | State of the Market“140 years old, full of new-bornenergy and a prosperous future”Henric GardDirector,Marketing & Business DevelopmentHistory is important and most, if not all, companies or organisationsare a product or a reflection of their history. Historyon the other hand does not tell us much about the future. Animportant differentiator is that companies or organisations thatanalyse, learn and act on what history teaches us have a betterchance of influencing or even creating their future.The 101 st P&I renewal has just finishedAt the time of writing we have just finished our 101 st P&I renewal.Every renewal has its own characteristics and every renewalis different, as is this one. In the current freight marketenvironment where shipowners are struggling, costs such asinsurance are naturally being focused on more by owners as wellas managers. It is therefore pleasing to be able to report thatthis year’s P&I renewal also ended satisfactorily from the Club’sperspective. Not only did we achieve our general increase set bythe board, we also managed to expand our renewal portfolioand received firm commitments of a sizeable tonnage amount toattach during the year. We take this as yet another endorsementof the Club’s ambition to slowly but steadily build a portfolioof high quality shipowners and managers with an eye for stability,financial resilience and a service concept second to none.Although, we expect the overall growth rate to slightly slowdown in the short-term, due to factors beyond our control, theClub has managed to expand the P&I portfolio by well over30% since 2009 and transformed from a small to a mid-sizedP&I club.Heading towards our first energy renewalsA year has past since starting our most recent business line, Energy,and we are rapidly approaching a series of first renewals.The first year of operation has been very satisfactory and I daresay that we have proceeded according to plan, if not ahead ofthem. Our portfolio currently consists of over 30 accounts andcovers well in excess of 200 offshore units. This is indeed a goodstart and ratification that the Club’s diversification ambitionsare well founded and make sense from a business perspectiveOur office in Oslo has done a tremendous job and has beenhelped by the good timing of our entry, as well as a need fromowners and brokers for fresh, new, local, long-term capacity.At the moment the vast majority of the business underwrittenemanates from Scandinavian owners and brokers. Over the nextyear we intend to carefully explore business based and producedoutside Scandinavia, provided of course that the quality andpricing is in line with our models.Getting the price right (immediately)is still the key after 140 yearsP&I business is generally long-term and the marine marketcontinues to be a commodity market. Major market claims, likethe Costa Concordia, will of course have an impact on currentrating levels but a major obstacle against a much-needed, firm,upward rate correction is overcapacity. The concept of generalincrease has never attracted the marine market and probablynever will. It is therefore paramount to get the price right (immediately)as the market is very liquid and the possibility ofadjusting the pricing over time demands almost magical skills.Nevertheless, the marine side of our business remains very importantto us and our commitment to further diversify withinthe marine portfolio remains strong.Celebrating 30 years of “delivering the firm” in AsiaIn 2012 we also celebrate 30 years of being and operating inAsia. Our Hong Kong office opened in 1982 and offers TheSwedish Club all-in-one concept to Asian shipowners andcharterers. Over the years the Asian region has become increasinglyimportant to us and today around 30% of the Club’s P&Iportfolio is dealt with by our Hong Kong office. Being able tosee the formidable growth and development that the region inthe past, present and future has, is exciting and a strong motivatorfor all of us at the Club to continue to “deliver the firm” toAsian owners and brokers.The Swedish Club has a long and proud history from itsfounding in 1872 to the present day. For most people 140 yearsis a very long time, and that’s true. On the other hand it is alsoproof that the Club has been able to use its history in order toadapt, adjust, develop and move forward. This important workis continuing at full strength and rest assured – “we are withyou at all times and all the way”.4

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Risk & Operations | Marine Renewal 2012The historic reason why 20 February is the date forrenewing P&I insurance, is because this was the timeof the year when a new trading season could begin.So, a new trading season has begun but admittedly itleaves us with slightly mixed emotions.From the Club’s perspective we have met our targetsas far as rates are concerned and we added somenew tonnage.From the owners’ perspective however, the outlookis of course very troublesome and uncertain indeed.From the outset it was clear that this renewal was, to agreater extent than many times before, about managingboth exposure and expectations.In conclusion the Club did very well in both respects.In contrast to the past two winters in our region,this one has so far been very mild and accommodating.That cannot be said about the state of the shippingmarket where icy winds continue to blow, exposingrelationships to frostbite on the back of the ongoingfinancial turbulence.Happy New Policy Year!Managing our business partners’ expectationswith renewal surrounded by a lot ofuncertainty about the state of the economyin future, is of even greater importancethan before. For us it has been natural totake a longer view of the rating structureand finding an equitable balance betweenthe timing of rate corrections over time andthe ability of meeting our requirements. Asalways there are levels that you simply cannotdeviate from. The alternative to unsustainablelevels is of course de-risking. Weare in the process of enhancing the Club’salready strong financial position making usan even more solid business partner wherestakeholders can feel comfortable that theyare investing in future certainty. Due to thecurrent financial turmoil, predictabilityis increasingly more important than ever.The Club has delivered sustainable technicalunderwriting results in recent yearsand even though 2011 was something ofa disappointment in that respect – we areconfident that we will be “back in black”going forward. We are in many respectscontinuing our efforts in taking the Club tothe next level.Lars A. MalmDirector,Risk & OperationsDevelopment of IT solutionscontinuesWe are continuing to develop IT solutionson our website and for smart phones to supportour business partners’ day-to-day business.We have already taken the first stepand introduced certain interactive featureson our website enabling our business partnersto make various transactions on-linethrough The Swedish Club On Line platform(SCOL). For more information aboutSCOL, please see page 30.Work on refining our Internal CapitalModel continues to increase, and over thelong-term, this will have a positive impacton our members.P&I RenewalAs far as claims on the P&I side is concerned,2011 was admittedly slightly worsethan expected. We noticed an increase inthe number of larger claims. We can safelysay that the number of smaller claims inthe categories of “Cargo” and “Crew” hasincreased a lot over the past five years. 2011also started rather well in terms of returnon our investments. The latter part of 2011,however, performed less satisfactorily inthis respect and left us with less contributionthan expected.In conclusion, the Club’s overall financialstanding remains strong and when takingthe overall situation into account we werepleased that this year’s renewal could behandled in a balanced manner. The Club’sposition has improved year-on-year and itis clear that results, enhanced risk management,service and re-emphasized focus onmarketing are paying off well.During the policy year 2011/12 we addedfurther business to our P&I portfolio. Atpolicy year-end 2012/13 we are expecting tohave a combined owners/charters book ofapproximately 55 million gross tonnes. Aswe have elaborated before – but it deservesto be said again – size is important only ifsustainable over the long-term. The Club’sgrowth with this renewal is very pleasingand again reflects the most profound supportand genuine commitment to the Clubfrom its business partners.Marine RenewalMarine & Energy renewals have, over theyears, gradually become spread out overthe year, the significance of the 1 Januaryrenewal is today somewhat less than it usedto be. Having said that, some of the Club’smost important members still renew onthis date. The Marine and Energy insurancesare the owners’ most basic protection9continues on page 65

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Finance | Result 2011THE CLUB reports a twelve-monthloss of USD 9.3 million (2010: +29.5),which is a fall of USD 20.9 millioncompared to the profit reported for thefirst six months of the year. The deteriorationin the second half of the yearis primarily due to three major P&Iclaims, along with a decline in the equityportfolio.Major P&I claimsThe Club can expect to have just belowone P&I claim per year in excessof the USD 8 million pool retention.For almost four years, August 2007 –May 2011, there were none. After that,things changed dramatically and in lessthan four months we had three claimsin excess of that amount.The first was the bulk carrier, PioneerPacific. On 20 June 2011 this vessel wasinvolved in a collision at Rio Parma inArgentina, striking and damaging aterminal structure. The current reservationfor this casualty is USD 16 million.The next incident occurred on 29July, and this time it was the bulk carrierB Oceania, which sunk off the coastof Malaysia after colliding with anothervessel. A wreck removal operation hasbeen initiated and the current claimsreservation is USD 45 million.Disaster struck again on 4 OctoberToughclaimsyearput figuresin deficitwhen the container ship Rena hit groundoff the coast of Tauranga, New Zealand.This casualty also involves wreck removaland in January 2012, the P&I claims reservationwas increased from USD 125 toUSD 175 million. For this vessel, the Clubalso has claims costs for Hull & Machineryand Increased Value.Underwriting resultDespite the unfavourable trend in claims,the underwriting loss was limited to USD11.8 million (2010: +17.7) and the overallcombined ratio was 110% (2010: 87). Thisclearly indicates that our solid reinsurancestructure – not least the InternationalGroup Pooling Agreement and Excess ofLoss reinsurance cover – works well.Premium volume increased by 9% comparedto last year. The new business area,Energy, was responsible for more thanone-third of the overall premium volumeincrease of USD 14 million. All insurancesclasses, with the exception of Hull &Machinery, reported increased premiumvolumes.The total cost for reinsurance relativeto premium volumes is at the same levelcompared to 2010. However, reinsurancespending fell substantially in 2011 for theMarine class, Loss of Hire. This was due tothe phase-out from a quota share reinsuranceto an excess of loss cover, which tookplace over last year.EnergyThe new business area, Energy (launched 1March 2011), performed in line with businessplans and reported a net earned premiumof USD 4.4 million. Furthermore,no major claims were reported. This businessarea is primarily managed from ournewly opened office in Oslo.Marine businessThe Marine business area consists of Hull& Machinery, Increased Value, Loss ofHire and War. Overall, a slight loss was reportedand the combined ratio was 104%.Happy New...9continuedagainst unwanted fortuitous incidents in Energy business last year proved to be veryrelation to their property and earnings. successful and should be seen as anotherfrom page 5 The amount of support you can afford to way for us to safeguard delivery of sustainableresults over time.give members is very much correlated withthe long-term sustainability of the differentclasses of insurance the Club engages side, and for the Club as a whole, is obvi-Further diversification on the Marinein. The margin of support can be increased ously more important when the market isby adding additional sustainable classes of anything but firm. Even though the marketcould be described from our point ofbusiness.Last year we took yet another important view as “dull” we still enjoy reaffirmed andstep in diversifying by introducing the loyal support from our members on theEnergy Class of business. The Club has property side of our business. This can bebeen able to deliver rather good results on achieved by us de-risking and diversification,enabling us to take a more holistic the Marine side in recent years. Adding theap-6

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012However, the situation varies for each insuranceclass. Smaller classes are reportingstable underwriting returns that are evenhigher than in 2010. This compensatesfor the downturn in Hull & Machinery,which had a poor year. The majority ofgrowth in this business area comes fromWar, related to the coverage that we provideagainst pirate attacks in the Gulf ofAden. However, even though the Warcoverage that we provide our shipownersmakes a positive contribution to the Club’soverall result, we all naturally wish it wasunnecessary.Claims costsIn 2011, 15 claims in excess of USD500,000 were reported, which is the samefrequency as last year. However, the severityof claims was much higher in 2011. During2010, the two most expensive claims(both on the Marine side) amounted toUSD 2.5 and 6.5 million respectively. Thisyear, there were eight claims (compared totwo last year) where the estimated claimscost before reinsurance exceeded USD 2million, and some of them, as mentionedearlier, have reservations far above theamounts reserved in 2010.Financial resultThe financial result for 2011 was USD 2.5million (2010: +11.6) and the value of the2011June20Monday2011July29Fridayinvestment portfolio at year-end was USD315 million (2010: +297). During the autumn,when volatility in the equity marketwas extreme, the Club took a cautious approach.At the end of August, we sold halfof the equity holdings in exchange for UStreasuries. In January 2012, we re-enteredthe market and obtained the same exposurethat we had back in August 2011.These risk management measures did nothave any noticeable impact on the result,since we basically re-entered the marketat the same level. But, the low exposure toequities during this turbulent period didmake life a bit more pleasant for us!An underwriting deficit of almost USD12 million and a financial result of justUSD 2.5 million was not what we aimedfor. However, given what has happenedon both the claims side and in financialmarkets, we are nevertheless satisfied. Let’shope that 2012 will be more in line withour expectations. Or why not – even a littlebetter!2011OCTOBER4TuesdayJan RydenfeltDirector,Finance & Reinsurance, ITproach to our members’ overall insurancecommitments with the Club.Last year we reported a slightly betteroutcome than expected in terms of largeclaims. For 2011 it is correct to say thatthe number of large claims increased. For2012 we cannot see, despite the problematicshipping markets, that shipping activitieswill drop significantly. To this end,we expect large claims will remain fairlystable and at a high level. Acknowledgingthis of course means that we will have tomake sure that rates are set accordingly.As far as volume is concerned the Club hasincreased its H&M book slightly and thisis mainly through organic growth. Due tothe de-risking strategy we see that our averageshare written fell during 2011 and isexpected to continue to drop during 2012.Overall, this is in line with our currentcycle management.Energy RenewalThe Energy business that we started on 1March 2011, has developed better thanexpected. We are currently involved inmore than 30 accounts and we expect toincrease that volume slightly throughout2012. Our average share on Energy is 3.5%and we will maintain this level of commitmentin 2012. As mentioned in connectionwith P&I above, but even more relevant toMarine & Energy: “Size is important onlyif sustainable over the long-term”. Thisstatement is more relevant to the propertyside of the business, because for obviousreasons it is far more commoditized thanthe liability side.7

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012FD&D | Legal updateFreight Demurrage & Defence insuranceStateof AffairsAnders LeissnerDirector,Corporate Legal & FD&DFreight Demurrage & Defence insurance is alegal cost insurance. The insured has access tothe expertise of the Club’s Freight Demurrage &Defence lawyers and has also cover for legal costsup to USD 5 million regarding a wide range ofdisputes pertaining to the operation of the vesselthat are not covered by any other class of insurance.The Club’s FD&D portfolio continued to develop positively in 2011. Asof 1 February 2012, 738 vessels (29.2 million GT) were insured for FD&Drisks compared to 693 vessels in 2010 and 580 vessels in 2009. Our ambitionis, obviously, to continue this growth and develop the portfolio further in allmarkets. FD&D insurance is an important supplement to the other classesof insurance, in particular in these turbulent times with a high demand forlegal services.Looking at the FD&D statistics, it is obvious that the Club’s membershave had, and continue to have, difficulties. The market turbulence in 2007and 2008 led to 312 FD&D claims being registered in 2008, a record number.This represented 0.44 claims per entered vessel. In 2009, the number ofclaims was down to 0.37 followed by 0.29 in 2010 and the figure for 2011 is0.35. One reasonable assumption is that if the markets will stabilize then frequencywill continue to go down. Having said this, market turbulence, andnot least long periods of depressed markets, vastly increases the risk for largelegal disputes when parties can no longer meet their contractual obligations.In 2011, the Club assisted several owner-members in disputes concerningvalues in the region of USD 50–100 million as a result of early terminationof long-term time charterparties. Our assessment is that, regretfully, we havenot seen the end of this trend as numerous companies that grew too rapidlyin 2007-2009 still constitute a high default risk. Consequently, even ifclaims frequencies are falling the risk for large claims in 2012 remains high.One way of measuring the results of insurance business is calculating thecombined ratio, which is claims costs in relation to premiums and operationalcosts. Despite a five-year period that has been exceptionally challenging forthe FD&D class (and its members) the average combined ratio for these yearsis 107%. Compared to the target of 100% the achieved result is quite acceptablealthough over the long-term it may be a sign that, structurally, premiumlevels are too low. After all, FD&D premium levels have been relatively stablefor the past ten years. On the other hand, the level of legal costs has not beenstable – our assessment is that the average hourly rate for a London lawyerhas risen by at least 25% over the same period.In 2011 there was also frequent usage of the Club’s FD&D services in respectof topical issues such as sanctions and piracy. Loading of iron ore andnickel ore fines in India and Brazil also generated complex charterparty disputeswith which the Club’s lawyers have assisted. However, again, the farmost common type of intervention concerned various types of debt collecting.One particularly problematic situation was unpaid bunker invoices. Irrespectiveif an unpaid bunker invoice gives rise to a maritime lien in the vessel(that varies between countries) the owner and the Club will have an oneroustask fighting off arrest attempts by the supplier in one port after another andeventually the owner may be left with no other option but to pay the invoicethemselves.Finally, a word of caution. In times like these guarantee letters have greaterimportance. Indeed, it may be desirable for the owner to know that theperformance by the charterer for a time charterparty (e.g. hire payment) isguaranteed by a larger and better-known entity. However, variations in theunderlying contract without consent by the guarantor may discharge theguarantor under the guarantee letter. There is a very simple remedy to avoidsuch a fatal situation – do not forget to seek consent from the guarantorwhen amending the charterparty!8

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | Criminalisation of SeafarersCriminalisationof SeafarersPhoto: iStockphotoLearningfrom the pastto improve the futureIn the aftermath of a casualty, particularlyin high profile incidentswhere pollution is involved, historyhas an unfortunate tendency to repeatitself as far as unfair treatmentof seafarers is concerned. Local authoritiesand prosecutors will inevitablyface immense pressure fromthe public to deal effectively withthose assumed to be responsible forthe incident – and it is often the crewwho suffer the consequences. Situationssuch as that faced by CaptainMangouras, the master of the Prestige,suggest that there is a need forlaws which more effectively underpinthe human rights of the accusedin highly-charged cases of this sort.Protecting the Seafarer– International LawThere is valid concern within the industrythat the trend towards an assumptionof criminality on the part of the seafarerand owner is likely to deter good qualityindividuals from a seafaring career. In a climateof criminalisation, another legitimateconcern is that enquiries may never revealthe true cause of an incident for crew mayfear self-incrimination. None of this can begood for the shipping industry, nor for theordinary citizen who relies upon qualityseafarers safely steering those crucial goodsand energy carriers to deliver his everydayneeds in a safe and timely manner.The issues surrounding the alleged unfairtreatment of seafarers have arisen despitethe fact that mandatory safeguards for theprotection of individuals, and seafarers inparticular, already exist under internationallaw.Universal Declaration of HumanRights (UDHR)The UDHR provides that everyone has theright to leave any country and return to hisown. It is therefore normally difficult tojustify withholding of a passport, let alonehotel arrest or detention in custody, on themere ground that the individual has beencharged with an offence, unless there is atleast a reasonable possibility that he could,if convicted, be punished by a term of imprisonment.UNCLOS 1982 (UNCLOS)There are also safeguards set out in UNC-LOS, specifically under Article 230, whichconstitute an internationally agreed balancebetween public concerns about pollutionon the one hand and the recognised rightsof the accused including the liberty of9continuesCapt Faz PeermohamedPartner, Ince & Co LLPLondonFaz Peermohamed is aPartner at the London officesof Ince & Co LLP and headsInce’s Global AdmiraltyGroup. He is renowned for hisability to handle all aspectsof Admiralty work, fromcollisions, salvage, total losses,groundings and shipboardfires to general shippingdisputes. He is particularlyknown for his expert advicein the highly chargedatmosphere following amaritime casualty.Olivia MurraySenior Associate, Ince & Co LLPLondonOlivia Murray is a SeniorAssociate at Ince & Co LLP.Olivia has particular experiencein work relating to seafarerrights; she is an active memberof the CMI InternationalWorking Group on the FairTreatment of Seafarers and hasrecently been appointed Chairof the Group.on page 109

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | Criminalisation of Seafarers9continuedfrom page 9foreign seafarers, on the other. Article 230 effectively bars coastalstates from imprisoning foreign seafarers for any pollution offencebeyond their territorial waters, or for one within those waters, unlessinvolving a wilful and serious act of pollution. However, therehave been concerns expressed within the international maritimecommunity that these restrictions have not always assisted the defendant.MARPOL 1973/1978 (MARPOL)The principal international regulations to prevent pollution fromships are those set out in MARPOL. Importantly, MARPOLrecognises the importance of the distinction between operational(i.e. intentional) and accidental spills. Accordingly, intentional dischargesare prohibited except where certain stringent conditions aremet and MARPOL provides an exemption from liability in certaincircumstances. In the case of accidental spills this exemption mayavail a master or shipowner where the discharge resulted from damageto the ship or its equipment provided he did not act with intentor recklessness.Industry concern regarding the protection of SeafarersThere has been concern expressed - not only by shipping and seafaringbodies but also by human rights organisations, internationallegal bodies and governments - that the recognised rights of seafarerswere not being respected for domestic political reasons. Recentyears have seen measures introduced, therefore, with a view to addressingthe issues that repeatedly seem to arise.IMO Guidelines on the Fair Treatment of Seafarers in the Eventof the Maritime Accident (the Guidelines)The Guidelines were adopted by the IMO and ILO in 2006 and,whilst not legally binding, they are intended to establish internationalnorms for governments and courts to take into account. Inthe context of pollution cases, the particular vulnerability of seafarersto extended detention has been recognised in the Guidelineswhich provide, inter alia, that a port or coastal state should ‘use allavailable means to preserve evidence to minimize the continuing needfor the physical presence of any seafarer’ and recognise that seafarersrequire special protection, especially in relation to contact withpublicauthorities.The statedobjective of theGuidelines is to ensurethat seafarers are treated fairlyfollowing a maritime accident and during any investigationand detention by public authorities and that detentionis for no longer than necessary. The human rights and other legitimateinterests of seafarers involved should be respected at all times.In November 2011 the IMO Assembly adopted a resolution entitled‘Promotion as widely as possible of the application of the 2006Guidelines on Fair Treatment of Seafarers in the Event of a MaritimeAccident’ (the Resolution). The Resolution calls upon governmentsto give effect to the Guidelines, and invites interested partiesto assist in raising awareness of the Guidelines.The IMO Code of the International Standards and RecommendedPractices for a Safety Investigation into a Marine Casualtyor Marine Incident (the Code)The Code was adopted in 2008 and entered into force in January2010. It is designed to facilitate objective marine safety investigationsfor the benefit of flag States, coastal States, the Organizationand the shipping industry in general. Its stated objective is the provisionof a common approach for States to adopt in the conductof marine safety investigations into marine casualties and marineincidents. The Code recognises and addresses the vulnerability ofseafarers in the aftermath of a casualty and Chapter 12 of the Codeprovides mandatory standards in relation to obtaining evidencefrom seafarers. The Preamble to the Code expressly refers to theIMO Guidelines mentioned above and indeed the Legal Committeeof the IMO has expressly acknowledged that these should beimplemented in tandem with the Code.Key issues for Shipowners/Managers and CrewIf a casualty is not managed properly to protect both crew andcompany, the consequences could be dire and include the risk ofsevere penalties (custodial as well as monetary) for all concernedand a real danger of reputational damage. There can be little doubt3 ScapegoatsThe PrestigeThe Prestige, carrying 77,000tons of fuel oil, is a well-knownexample of a situation where, it hasbeen suggested, the public authorities havebeen keen to deflect blame from themselvesand find a scapegoat. Nearly ten years afterthe ship broke up, Captain Mangouras is stillwaiting for his criminal trial to take place.Cases prior and subsequent to the Prestige,however, have demonstrated that, far from beinga one off, such instances of potential unfairtreatment of seafarers continue to occur.10

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012that the approach takenby the media affects bothpublic opinion and, potentially,the actions taken by theauthorities. By keeping theseissues in mind it may be possibleto minimise the damaging impact of acasualty. Effective casualty management isessential following a high profile incident andan awareness of the potential for unfair treatment of thecrew should be at the heart of the incident response.Awareness of International Safeguards relating to the FairTreatment of SeafarersFor a shipowner and his crew to have a fighting chance of protectingthe crew in the aftermath of a casualty it will be crucial thatthey, and their advisors, have an awareness of the safeguards availableto seafarers under international law, both mandatory and nonbinding. It is also important to ensure that local authorities andprosecutors are aware of those safeguards, preferably before chargesare brought and the decision to prosecute is taken. They should alsobe aware of the potential for cross-border measures to be takenagainst them in particular circumstances. A shipowner’s representative,for example, should be aware that he could potentially be vulnerableto a European Arrest Warrant being issued in the aftermathof a casualty abroad.Information management – External and InternalMany parties with conflicting interests will pressure owners for theurgent provision of information. It will be crucial to put in placededicated channels of communication to ensure that informationis gathered and analysed as soon as possible so that a consistentapproach can be adopted. Internal communications should alsobe carefully considered and managed, in particular in relation tothe creation of post-incident documents. Particular care should betaken regarding the release of information and documents relatingto causation. Such information should be carefully considered withyour lawyers in the first instance.Media StrategyA common media strategy should be agreed upon with your lawyersand any external communication should be carefully consideredin order to protect the crew and company’s reputation, to mitigatethe risk of litigation or criminal prosecution and to manage publicperception. In applicable cases, reassuring the public as to the existenceof an international regime for the provision of compensationor crew release may assist in assuaging anxiety which will inevitablyexist where significant pollution damage has occurred. Past caseshave demonstrated that managing public perception regarding theavailability of international regimes and possible compensation canassist in reducing the level of claims.ConclusionClearly the ideal situation is to prevent casualties from occurring inthe first place. A momentary lapse of concentration on the bridgecan result in a life changing crisis for both crew and owners. If theworst does occur, however, every decision taken in those first fewhours and days after a casualty will have a long term impact onevery aspect of the case – from the potential criminal liability ofcrew and shipowner’s shore representatives to a shipowner’s reputationand the eventual cost of the incident. In time, a company’sreputation will be measured less by reference to the original causeof the casualty but more in terms of how it was perceived to haveresponded. When it comes to the fair treatment of seafarers, to theextent it is possible, ‘prevention’ is always better than ‘cure.’ Oncean entrenched position against the crew has been taken by localauthorities and prosecutors, it may well be hard for them to ‘backdown’ and crew and owners may well find themselves facing criminalproceedings for years to come.Whilst measures such as the Guidelines and the recent IMO AssemblyResolution on the subject are encouraging, it is clear thatthere is still much to be done and it remains to be seen whether allparties involved can work together to ensure that seafarers are treatedfairly and consistently in the aftermath of a casualty.The Tasman SpiritIn 2003, for example, the treatment of the crew and the salvagemaster in the Tasman Spirit incident prompted widespreadcondemnation. This tanker, laden with Iranian crude oil,grounded at the entrance to Karachi Port, eventually breaking up and leadingto a spill of some 34,000 tonnes of oil. The case is illustrative of a situationwhere focus upon the alleged failings of the crew served to deflectattention from suggestions that local authorities may be at fault. All theGreek crew on duty were detained as well as the salvage master (who onlyattended after the vessel broke up). The ‘Karachi 8’, as the detained groupbecame known, were held for almost nine months and were released onlyafter intense political pressure and continued lobbying by many internationalorganisations as well as the Greek Government and European Union.The Hebei SpiritThe Hebei Spirit collision in 2007resulted in some 11,000 tonnes ofcrude oil leaking into the Yellow Sea andwas the largest oil spill in South Korean history.The detention and treatment of the tanker’smaster and chief officer was the subject of significantprotest and condemnation across themaritime industry and the case highlights thedifficulties foreign seafarers may face in thepolitically charged context of a major oil spill.11

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | Scindia dutiesScindia Duties and LongshActivities in the United StaKeith B. LetourneauShareholderBell, Ryniker & LetourneauHoustonKeith Letourneau received aBachelor of Science degree withhonors from the United StatesCoast Guard Academy in 1980.His military service included experienceas a deck watch officeraboard a medium endurancecutter in Florida and as commandingofficer of a Coast Guardpatrol boat stationed alongthe southeast Texas coast. Heholds the rank of Commander,U.S. Coast Guard, Retired. Hegraduated in 1989 from theMarshall-Wythe School of Law,College of William and Mary, asa member of the Order of theCoif. Mr. Letourneau served as atrial attorney for both the CoastGuard’s Procurement Law Divisionand the Admiralty Section ofthe U.S. Department of Justice’sCivil Division. He is a foundingshareholder in the law firm Bell,Ryniker & Letourneau, P.C., basedin Houston, Texas. He is licensedto practice in Texas and Virginia,and admitted before numerousfederal district and appellatecourts, including the Third,Fourth, Fifth and Seventh CircuitCourts of Appeals.Longshore work in the United Statescan easily create personal injury liabilityexposure for an unwary shipowner.This article addresses the duties owedby a shipowner to longshoremen in theStates, and provides recommendationsto minimize such exposure.The leading United States Supreme Court casesetting forth the obligations of a vessel owneris Scindia Steam Navigation Co. v. De LosSantos, 451 U.S. 156 (1981). Scindia stands fortwo important propositions.Firstly, as a general matter, the shipownermay rely upon the stevedore to avoid exposinglongshoremen to unreasonable hazards.However, under U.S. maritime law and theU.S. Longshore and Harbor Workers CompensationAct (“LHWCA”), a vessel ownercannot recover against a stevedore employerfor any injuries that occur to a longshoreman.Moreover, in the event that the vessel ownerbreaches one of its duties to the longshoreman(discussed below) resulting in injury, the longshoremancan sue the vessel owner for negligence.Under joint and several liability principlesthat apply pursuant to U.S. maritime law,if we hypothesize that the vessel owner is 10%at fault, the longshoreman 20%, and the stevedoreemployer 70%, the vessel owner nonethelesswould be responsible for 80% of the damagesawarded.This result follows because joint and severalliability principles under U.S. maritimelaw shift the risk of uncollectibility from aninnocent plaintiff to a culpable tortfeasor.The LHWCA’s compensation bar essentiallytransforms the stevedore into a judgmentproofdefendant. Additionally, the stevedore’sworker’s compensation carrier generally intervenesin any suit against owners or charterersto recover medical care costs expended on thelongshoreman’s behalf. Consequently, the vesselowner, rather than the longshoreman, bearsthe brunt of fault attributable to the stevedore,despite Scindia’s first proposition.Secondly, Scindia holds that the vessel owesthe stevedore and his longshore employees theduty of exercising due care under the circumstances.Thus, while the primary responsibilityfor the longshoremen’s safety ostensibly restswith the stevedore, the vessel owner also owesa standard of care to the longshoremen. Thatstandard encompasses three duties to longshoremenservicing the vessel: (1) the “TurnoverDuty,” (2) the “Active Control Duty,” and(3) the “Duty to Intervene.”1. The “Turnover Duty”The “Turnover Duty” requires the vesselowner to furnish a reasonably safe ship, and towarn the longshoremen of hazards from gear,equipment, tools and the workspace to be usedduring cargo operations “that are known tothe ship or should be known to it in the exerciseof reasonable care.” However, the vesselowner is not obligated to warn the stevedoresabout hazards that are open and obvious, ordangers that “a reasonably competent stevedoreshould anticipate encountering.” Forexample, in a recent case, the Fifth CircuitCourt of Appeals (which governs federal proceedingsin Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi)found that a longshoreman, who was injuredbecause of an open and obvious defect in astow of steel coils in the cargo hold, could notrecover against the vessel owner, operator orcharterer. In that case, one of the steel coilsfell from atop the stow onto the longshoremanresulting in the loss of a leg. The courtfound that a “vessel owner has no legal duty toprevent or alleviate an unsafe condition in thecargo hold resulting from an improper stowwhen the condition is open and obvious to thelongshore workers.”Vessel owners may wish to consider somepreventative measures before arriving in a U.S.port. To ward off potential liability exposurein the event a longshoreman claims injury,owners may be able to satisfy their TurnoverDuty obligations through the use of a checklistidentifying potentially hazardous conditions,perhaps coupled with a simple vessel diagramshowing the main deck, cargo holds and129continueson page 14

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | Scindia duties9continuedfrom page 12other areas where the longshoremen are scheduled to work.Prior to the vessel’s arrival in port, one of vessel’s officersshould carefully inspect each of these areas, and note on thechecklist any potentially hazardous conditions, for example,with respect to hatchways, latches, ladders, lighting, twistlocks, wires, cables, equipment lying about, rusty conditionsof deck and handhold surfaces, etc. The checklist could notewhere any repairs are being conducted, and the scope of theproject (to place the stevedore on notice of not only where repairwork is ongoing, but where repairwork is being considered).Provided vessel workspaces are ingood condition, it may make sense totake a series of digital photographs ofthe spaces where the longshoremenwill work, including access ladders,to document the condition duringthe pre-arrival walk through. Tocomplete the turnover process, uponarrival in port, the chief mate couldpresent the checklist to the stevedore,and the two could walk thevessel where the longshoremen willwork noting any areas of concern.If the vessel provides any equipmentemployed during longshorework, for example, twist locks, lashingchains, hooks, etc., such equipmentshould be regularly inspected,serviced, and replaced as necessary,with documentation provided (orperhaps at least made available) tothe stevedores evidencing the conditionof such equipment at the start oflongshore operations.2. The “Active Control Duty”The “Active Control Duty” is breached if the vessel owner “activelyinvolves itself in the cargo operations and negligentlyinjures a longshoreman” or “if it fails to exercise due care toavoid exposing longshoremen to harm from hazards they mayencounter in areas, or from equipment, under the active controlof the vessel during the stevedoring operation.” Beforelongshore activities commence, the master or chief mate maywish to instruct vessel personnel to stay completely clear ofloading or unloading operations, leaving such work to thelongshore gangs. By doing so, owners may avoid the “ActiveControl Duty” in its entirety.3. The “Duty to Intervene”Lastly, under the “Duty to Intervene”, a vessel owner owesa duty to intervene if “contract provision, positive law, orcustom” dictates “by way of supervision or inspection [thatthe vessel owner] exercise reasonable care to discover dangerousconditions that develop within the confines of the cargooperations that are assigned to the stevedore.” The “Duty toInspect vessel equipmentand spacesIntervene” may be implicated if the master or chief officer iscontractually obligated to supervise cargo operations, or if vesselequipment used during such operations is not operatingproperly, for example, ship’s winches or cranes.Numerous accidents have occurred over the years involvingvessel cranes while operated by longshoremen. Generally,such cases have involved the failure to properly maintain cranecomponents and equipment in good operating order. Ownersshould consider tasking their technical superintendents toensure that ship’s cranes are regularlyinspected and serviced, and currenton all class certifications.Often times, the charter agreementallocates responsibilities for cargostowage to the charterer “under themaster’s supervision,” and sometimesthe vessel owner and charterer haveentered into an Inter-Club Agreement,or incorporated it by referenceinto the charter. These arrangementsmay affect how a case brought by thelongshoreman against both the vesselowner and charterer will be defended,but do not necessarily alterwhether the longshoreman may bringsuit against both parties in the firstinstance. To avoid assisting the longshoremanby pointing fingers at eachother, it is important at the inceptionof such a suit to work out the defensearrangements between vessel ownerand charterer if at all possible.The vessel owner’s duty to intervenedoes not extend to open and obvioustransitory conditions (1) createdentirely by the stevedore, (2) under its control, or (3) relatingwholly to the stevedore’s own gear and operations.Document any potentiallyhazardous conditionsConvey this informationto the stevedore prior tocommencing cargo operationsStay out of active cargooperationsService and inspect theship’s cranes regularlySummaryIn summary, whiles stevedores are purportedly the party primarilyresponsible for the safety of longshoremen in the States,in the event of an accident resulting in personal injury ordeath, owners face considerable liability exposure should thevessel breach one of the three Scindia duties (Turnover, ActiveControl, or Duty to Intervene), especially because any liabilityof the stevedore is attributable to the culpable defendant(s)under U.S. maritime law. The best method to obviate suchliability is to institute regular procedures to satisfy or avoidbreaching these duties: inspect vessel equipment and spaces;document any potentially hazardous conditions; convey thisinformation to the stevedore prior to commencing cargo operations;stay out of active cargo operations; and service andinspect the ship’s cranes regularly. These suggestions shouldhelp to minimize owner’s liability exposure in the event of alongshoreman’s accident.14

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | Cleanliness of holdsThe High Cost of failing“Grain Clean” in AustraliaJames NeillSolicitorAus ShipSydney, AustraliaRecently a ship arrived in Adelaide,Australia. The owners of that shipwere experienced and careful. Theyknew Australia was tough on ‘grainclean’ – they had instructed themaster to clean the hold and hadreceived the master’s assurance thateverything was “OK”. Three weekslater they were writing a cheque forover A$200,000 for cleaning. Howdid this happen and what are thelessons for the rest of us?The Export Control Act (1982) requiresboth the Australian Quarantine andInspection Service (AQIS) and an independentmarine underwriter’s surveyor toinspect the vessel’s holds before loadinggrain. (For ease of reference in this paperI will call these two people “The Inspectors”.)The vessel must pass both inspectionsbefore it can load.The independent inspectorThe underwriters ‘independent’ inspectoris ‘independent’ in the sense he worksfor an independent company but he is appointedby the cargo underwriters and obviouslythat is his focus.When ships fail, many owners ask us, “Isthat guy helping out the shipper becausethey are not ready to load?” The answer is“No’.He is not appointed by the shippers andin our experience he is not influenced at allby the shippers’ or charterers’ commercialinterests. His focus is entirely on certifyingthe ship as fit to load with respect to thepumping system, moisture, the hatches,odours, rust scale, grease or oil stains andmost importantly, previous cargo residues.AQIS inspectionAQIS does a very similar inspection to the‘independent’ surveyor’ but their objectivesare slightly different. AQIS is focused onthe ‘quality’ of Australia’s exports. Theylook at the holds because ‘dirty’ holds resultin ‘dirty’ cargo.At the risk of stating the obvious, it isimportant to remember grain is food andmust be fit for human consumption. It istherefore perhaps not surprising these inspectorsare careful.The initial inspection by the underwriter’ssurveyor tends to take place at theanchorage and the inspection by AQISnormally takes place at the berth.How the inspections are conductedWhen a ship fails, it is wrong to assume themaster and owners lacked diligence. Thatis almost never the case. Usually the masterand owners know they are going to beinspected and they usually make a seriouseffort to pass. The surveyors however lookin areas the crew cannot easily get to - highareas, behind ladders, behind manhole covers,on top of underdeck beams, behindbulkheads and into void spaces and thoseare the areas that usually cause failure.Usually inspections are initially conductedwithout using cherry pickers andusually not only about “what the Inspectorsees” but also “about the general impressionthe Inspector forms.” Many ships passthese first inspections BUT if either surveyorhas doubts about the cleanliness ofareas they cannot properly see, they ask forcherry pickers to be provided. Usually, thatis when the trouble starts - because inspectionby cherry picker is tough to pass. Evenships that have just come from dry dockhave failed when inspected using cherrypickers. The reason is the inspector looks atareas of the ship ‘up close’ which the crewcannot normally even see - let alone reachto clean.So the first lesson to learn is:“Make sure the ship is clean and gives agood impression of cleanliness so that itdecisively passes the first inspection donewithout a cherry picker – so the inspectorhas no cause to call for a cherry picker.”Why do vessels usually fail?There are three main reasons:1. The holds were simply not close to cleanenough to pass when inspected.2. The ship was nearly good enough topass and with the right advice and supervisionit might have passed.3. That particular surveyor applied a higherstandard than others would have.Case Study 1A 1997 built Panamax bulk carrier arrivedat the anchorage in early October 2011with an ETB of ten days later. The underwriter’sinspector attended on board, at theanchorage (via a launch) a few days beforethe ETB, and failed the ship. The inspectorreported he had found a large number ofdeficiencies including infestation with insectsin a void space behind a panel withina hold and substantial quantities of residuefrom previous cargos in high areas of theship. The ship was delayed two weeks andcleaned and fumigated with the ship’s crewand shore labour using cherry pickers andhigh-pressure washing. The cleaning costwas more than A$200,000. This is an exampleof point ‘1’ above – i.e. a ship thatwas perhaps not close to passing.Case Study 2A 2011 built ship arrived at an Australianport in 2011. The ship was less than sixmonths old and had only made a few voyages.The ship passed inspection at anchorageby the underwriter’s inspector16

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Photo: TSCSome crews have successfully usedladders and platforms to cleanhigh areas prior to inspection.but then failed AQIS’ survey when at theberth. The ship was subsequently cleanedusing the ship’s crew and shore labour usingcherry pickers and high-pressure washing.The ship was delayed ten days and thecleaning cost was over A$200,000. Thisis an example of two inspecting surveyorshaving different opinions and the differentstandards two surveyors can have whenconducting the same inspection. It is alsoan example of a ship that perhaps ‘could’have passed had the owners obtained goodadvice and supervision.What lessons can we learn?Firstly, owners should note this is a commonand expensive problem. We do notknow the statistics but believe over the lastthree years at least ten ships per year havefailed these surveys and incurred cleaningcosts of about A$200,000 per ship.Secondly, owners can do something tominimise the risk. If the ship is fixed toload grain in Australia the crew shouldclean the holds thoroughly:• If the next cargo is grain from Australiaand it is safe to do so, get the crew upon top of the previous cargo before dischargeand clean the high areas whileyou can.• Some crews have successfully used laddersand platforms to clean high areasprior to inspection.• Very careful cleaning the low reachableareas creates a good impression with theinspectors.Thirdly, owners should consider gettingtheir own surveyor to attend BEFOREthe underwriters and AQIS attend so asto ‘pre-inspect’ and then have the surveyorsupervise additional cleaning prior to theactual inspections, so as to increase thechances of passing first time. On numerousoccasions this has worked successfully.Fourthly, owners should consider gettingtheir own surveyor to attend during the inspections.These inspections are very mucha matter of ‘opinion’ and ‘degree’ andtherefore owners can sometimes positivelyinfluence that ‘opinion’ by using a seniorsurveyor who is ‘a local’ and ‘respected’.One never knows for sure but we think wehave seen surveyors achieve good results inthis respect.Finally, it is usually a false economy forowners not to send their own surveyor. Onone spectacular occasion an owner was preparedto send a surveyor but decided thecost of a helicopter to that anchorage wasjust too high and so did not send him –the owners subsequently spent more thanA$200,000 cleaning that ship.Recommendations1. Read and understand the “lessons” outlinedin this article.2. Arrive with a very clean ship!!(Not so easy in the real world.)3. Appoint your own surveyor to inspectyour ship before the official inspectionstake place. The cost is usually wellworth it compared to failing inspectionand having to clean.4. Appoint your own surveyor to accompanythe inspectors. This can make thedifference sometimes.5. If you did not follow the recommendationsabove and your vessel fails, immediatelycontact the owners P&I surveyorto provide advice.6. If cleaning is required, seek advice fromthe P&I surveyor and accept that advice.Much money and time has beenwasted pursuing alternatives against therecommendations of the P&I surveyors.7. When contracting with cleaning companies,get several quotes and try tocontract for a lump-sum amount if possible.Also take heed of local experienceand the advice of your agent. Lowerdaily rates are not a bargain if the tasktakes more days.17

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | OPAUnited States Coast Guardto limit OPA 90 liability forHerbert H. Ray Jr.Managing ShareholderKeesal, Young & LoganAnchorage, Alaska, USABert Ray received his B.S. degreefrom the College of William andMary in 1982, an M.S. degreefrom George Mason Universityin 1986, and a J.D. degree fromthe University of Oregon in 1988.He is a member of the Alaska BarAssociation, the Washington BarAssociation, the Maritime LawAssociation of the United States,and Litigation Counsel of America.He has a diverse, generallitigation practice that includesenvironmental, maritime, commercial,securities, malpracticeand white collar criminal matters.He practices extensively instate and federal courts, as wellas in commercial arbitrations,and before administrative agencies.He regularly representsclients in casualty responses inAlaska and along the US WestCoast, serving as lead counselduring response operations andin resulting litigation. He also hassignificant experience representingclients in natural resourcedamage assessments conductedby state and federal agencies.On 27 January 2012 the UnitedStates Coast Guard National PollutionFunds Center (the “NPFC”) issued a decisionupholding the right of the owner andoperator of the Selendang Ayu to limittheir liabilities under the U.S. Oil PollutionAct of 1990 (“OPA”) arising from theSelendang Ayu oil spill. The NPFC’s decisionallows the ship’s owner and operator(the “RP”) to limit their OPA liabilities toUSD 23,853,000.00, based on the ship’sgross tonnage and the applicable OPA limitat the time of the casualty. The OPA relatedliabilities resulting from the incidenthave exceeded USD 130,000,000, andthe NPFC’s decision entitles The SwedishClub, the International Group, andthe Group’s reinsurers to be reimbursedfor their OPA expenditures in excess ofthe OPA limit from the Oil Spill LiabilityTrust Fund (“the Fund”).The casualtyThe fully-laden Panamax bulk carrier wason a voyage between Seattle, Washingtonand Xiamen, China in December 2004when the casualty occurred. On 6 December2004, while transiting the Bering Seanorth of the Aleutian Islands, the crewshut down the main engine, after discoveringa crack in one of the cylinder liners.With a storm approaching, the crew isolatedthe cracked cylinder liner, with theintention of restarting the engine and sailingto a port of refuge. However, after theysuccessfully isolated the damaged cylinder,they could not restart the main engine.The storm reached the ship before localtugs could take her under tow, and drovethe ship towards shore. When the tugsand a U.S. Coast Guard Cutter arrived onscene, they were unable to halt the ship’sdrift in the stormy seas and winds. Duringthis time, the ship’s crew struggled underextremely trying conditions to repair andrestart the main engine.On the afternoon of 8 December, afterdrifting for more than 50 hours, the SelendangAyu grounded on the exposed, rockycoastline of northwest Unalaska Island.The ship broke in half shortly after thegrounding, resulting in the total loss of theship and its cargo of soy beans, and the dischargeof approximately 350,000 gallonsof bunker fuel and diesel from the ship’sdouble bottom fuel tanks, which rupturedon impact. Tragically, six of the ship’s crewperished when a U.S. Coast Guard helicoptercrashed while lifting them from thestricken ship.The responseThe Coast Guard and the State of Alaskaestablished a command center at DutchHarbor, Unalaska Island, a commercialfishing port located approximately 40miles by air from the site of the grounding.Personnel from The Swedish Club, the RP,the Club’s local correspondent, and numerousoil response contractors travelledto Dutch Harbor to coordinate and handlethe response, settle claims, and representthe ship’s owners and operators in the officialgovernment investigations which ensued.Despite the fierce winter conditions,the Club’s contractors were successful inremoving more than 100,000 gallons offuel from the ship’s wing tanks and engineroom tanks, by pumping the fuel into portabletanks and flying them to shore by helicopter.Shoreline cleanup operations beganin December 2004 and were completed inthe summer of 2006.Despite the fact that the Bering Sea is thelargest and most productive commercialfishery area in the United States, the Cluband its consultants were able to avoid theclosure of several large commercial fisheries,and to settle all claims asserted by commercialfishermen without litigation, with theexception of one frivolous lawsuit that wasdismissed by the Court. The Club settledthe claims of local landowners whose landswere impacted by the spill, and conducteda cooperative natural resource damages assessmentwith state and federal officials.18

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012grants petitionSelendang Ayu Oil SpillPhoto: Unified CommandThe ship broke in half shortly after the grounding.Shortly after the grounding, the State ofAlaska demanded that the owner removethe wreck of the Selendang Ayu. Given thesize of the vessel, and the remote, exposedlocation of the wreck, removal of the wreckwould have been very expensive. The Club,its local correspondent and consultantsarranged for the removal of all remainingpollutants from the wreck. They then metwith State of Alaska officials and demonstratedthat while the wreck itself posedno risk of harm to the environment, alarge-scale wreck removal operation at theexposed, remote location of the wreck, andthe resulting environmental disruption,posed significant environmental risks. Asa result of these efforts, the State of Alaskaultimately agreed that the wreck couldbe left in place, so long as the superstructureremaining above the waterline wasremoved. A local contractor was able toremove the remaining superstructure for asmall fraction of the cost of removing theentire wreck.Limitation of liabilityUnder OPA, an RP is strictly liable forresponse costs and damages arising froman incident. However, the RP may limit9continues on page 2019

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012P&I | OPAPhoto: Unified Command9continuedfrom page 19its OPA liability if it demonstrates that theIncident was not caused by gross negligence,willful misconduct, or the violation of aU.S. statute or regulation governing shipoperations. In addition, the RP must demonstratethat it timely notified the UnitedStates of the incident, and that it providedreasonable cooperation and assistance inresponse to the spill. The burden of proofis on the RP to prove by a preponderanceof the evidence that it is entitled to limit itsOPA liability.Because it may take several years before anRP is in a position to prove that it is entitledto limit its OPA liability, and it takes severalyears for the NPFC to adjudicate sucha claim, the RP may incur OPA responsecosts and damages that exceed the limitationamount, before the NPFC determineswhether the RP is entitled to limit its liability.One purpose of the Fund is to reimburseRPs who establish they are entitled to limittheir OPA liability, and who have incurredOPA costs that exceed the liability limit.In the case of the Selendang Ayu, theproximate causes of the grounding were theOn 8 December 2004, the Selendang Ayu grounded on the exposed coastline of Unalaska Island.crack in a main engine cylinder liner, andthe crew’s inability to restart the engineafter isolating the cracked cylinder. The RPwas required to prove that these events werenot the result of gross negligence or willfulmisconduct on its part. Because the engineroom was flooded when the ship grounded,and the ship’s chief engineer and secondengineer died in the helicopter crash, muchof the evidence regarding the cause of thecracked liner, and the inability to restart theengine, was lost when the ship groundedand the helicopter crashed.The Club, its correspondent, and engineeringexperts interviewed the survivingmembers of the ship’s crew and other engineersand technical superintendents employedby the RP, examined the ship’s maintenancerecords, and reviewed photographsof the engine taken by the crew while theystruggled to restart it. As a result of theevidence obtained during this forensicinvestigation, they were able to persuadethe NPFC that the cracked cylinder linerand the inability to restart the engine werenot caused by gross negligence or willfulmisconduct, or the violation of any UnitedStates laws.The RP also had to address claims thatthe crew waited too long to notify theCoast Guard and local officials about theengine casualty, and delayed in searchingfor salvage tugs to respond. More than 12hours elapsed from the time the engine linercrack was discovered until local officialswere notified that the ship was drifting towardsshore. The Club and its correspondentwere able to demonstrate that therewere no tugs available to respond to thecasualty when it occurred, and that the tugsthat eventually responded would not havearrived any sooner.The decision to grant limitation of liabilityis the first step in what will be a substantialrecovery for the IG and their reinsurersfrom the NPFC. Ultimately, this recoverywill improve the Group’s loss record withthe reinsurance market, benefitting reinsurersas well as all of the Clubs and theirmembers.20

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Safety | SOLASTitanic and SOLAS (Safety Of Lifes At Sea)1912 - 2012Photo: Ralph White/CORBISHans FilipssonDeputy Area ManagerTeam GothenburgThe Titanic sails away from the dockfor her maiden voyage in 1912.Sailing on the Seven Seas is oftendescribed in a romantic way but somany losses throughout history tellanother story. While shipping is perhapsthe most international of allindustries, it is also one of the mostdangerous. Despite the fact thatships have never been so technicallyadvanced as they are today, accidentsstill happen.Today’s shipping industry is a lot biggerthan it was a hundred years ago and we canat least say that the relative number of disasters,and the loss of life, has been reduced.However, there is still a great need forsafety improvements and training for bothofficers and ratings.The Merchant Shipping ActAbout thirty-five years before the Titanicdisaster, the British Government presenteda proposal for increased safety at sea, the“Merchant Shipping Act”. It was a result ofhard work from Mr Samuel Plimsoll whowas a colourful pioneer in the field of improvedsafety at sea.Mr Plimsoll was elected to the Parliamentin 1868, at the age of 44. He started acampaign against unseaworthy vessels and,at the start of his campaign, became veryunpopular among established politiciansand those with financial interests in thecoal trade.He continued his mission and we canstill see the “Plimsoll Line” (Load Line)painted on both sides of all vessels. The“Load Line” shows the minimum freeboard(or maximum cargo intake). Overloadingwill lead to a reduced freeboard and lessstability as a result.Titanic – the biggest disaster everOn 10 April 1912, the S/S Titanic beganher maiden voyage, bound for New YorkCity, with Captain Edward J. Smith incommand.Just before midnight, on 14 April 1912,the luxury, British, passenger liner sankafter colliding with a huge iceberg. TheTitanic was said to be one of the mostmodern and unsinkable ships of the timeand therefore only carried 20 lifeboatson her fateful maiden voyage, four morethan required by the British authorities.Unfortunately, that was less than half thenumber needed to accommodate everyoneon board.About 1500 passengers including shippersonnel lost their lives. Men and membersof the 2 nd and 3 rd class were less likelyto survive. 97 per cent of the women infirst class survived. Overall, only 20 percent of the men survived, compared withalmost 75 per cent of the women.The Titanic was the biggest disaster byfar and publicity was enormous. A largenumber of the passengers were among themost prominent people of the day. It wasdecided that something had to be done toavoid such disasters in the future.The SOLAS ConventionThe first version of SOLAS was adoptedin 1914, in response to the Titanic disaster.The SOLAS Convention in its successiveforms is generally regarded as themost important of all international treatiesconcerning the safety of merchantships.The main objective of the SOLAS Conventionis to specify minimum standardsfor the construction, equipment and operationof ships, compatible with theirsafety. Flag States are responsible for ensuringthat ships under their flag complywith its requirements, and a number ofcertificates are prescribed in the Conventionas proof that this has been done.100 years have passedThe Titanic disaster occurred almost 100years ago to the day before this issue ofTriton is distributed among members andother business partners.The time from when Mr Samuel Plimsollwas elected in 1868, also very muchreflects the time when The Swedish Clubhas been one of the players in marineinsurance. The Swedish Club was establishedin 1872 and we will not onlycontinue to provide shipowners with insurancecover, but also continue contributingto the important work for improvedsafety at sea.21

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Loss Prevention | P&IP&I Claims AnalysisThis is a brief article from a comprehensive study aboutP&I claims over the past ten years that will soon be published.This study will look specifically at cargo, illness and injuryclaims, which have occurred on bulker, container and tankervessels and address the specific issues to why these claims occur.There is a worrying increase in claim frequency since 2009but also an increase in the average claim cost. This is the samefor all the three claim categories and vessel types. One of thereasons for this increase could be the financial crisis and economicuncertainty in the world since 2008. This uncertaintydoes not only affect companies but is likely to create stress toemployees as well.CargoThe average cost of a cargo claim is stable. However, with alarge increase in frequency the total cost would be substantial.Between 2010 and 2011 the total cost increased by around20%.The most expensive cargo claim category is contamination,which is mainly an issue for tankers and bulkers. Wet damageis the most expensive claim category for container vessels.In order to prevent contamination, it is imperative to takecargo samples. There are unfortunately numerous cases wherethe vessel has loaded an entire consignment and discovered afterwardsthat it was contaminated.IllnessThe two most common illnesses are cardiovascular disease andproblems with the digestive system. Cardiovascular disease isalmost three times as common as problems with the digestivesystem.This is a huge concern, as cardiovascular disease remains oneof the biggest causes of death worldwide.To prevent these issues and ensure that crew members arehealthy and fit for duty, the normal medical examination seemsto be insufficient. It will take years of unhealthy living for aserious illness to develop. To be able to discover if a person isJoakim EnströmLoss Pevention Officersuffering from an illness the Club has developed a Pre EngagementMedical Examination (PEME), which is a more comprehensiveexamination. If the PEME is completed correctly it islikely that a serious illness will be discovered.InjuryInjuries mostly occur during normal maintenance work. Approvedprocedures are disregarded and unfortunately it is commonthat neither a work permit or risk assessment has beenissued.An ISM requirement has been in place since 1 July 2010 forcompanies to have shipboard operational procedures that arebased on risk assessments. The purpose of a risk assessment isto carry out a careful examination of shipboard operations toverify that there are adequate controls in place making risk levelsacceptable.If the risk assessment has been completed correctly it is likelythat most risks will be addressed. If a work permit has alsobeen issued for the specific job it should be obvious to crewmembers how to complete the job safely.Immediate causesSo why do accidents happen? Has the crew not received enoughtraining, lacking experience, suffering from fatigue? Are theydisregarding procedures? Is the company not explaining whatis expected of their employees?There are usually many reasons why an accident happens butthe immediate cause is usually obvious. Most people are awarewhen something is dangerous but for some reason believe that22

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012450000.7400000.35Cost per vessel400003500030000250002000015000100000.60.50.40.30.2Frequency3500030000250002000015000100000.30.250.20.150.150000.150000.050000Cargo, Injury, Illness: Bulker, Container, Tanker – Claims >= 5000 USD60000.25100000.16Cost per vessel500040003000200010000.20.150.10.05Frequency9000800070006000500040003000200010000.140.120.10.080.060.040.0200002002200320042005200620072008200920102011200220032004200520062007200820092010201120022003200420052006200720082009201020112002200320042005200620072008200920102011Cost per vesselFrequencyCargo: Bulker, Container, Tanker - Claims cost >= USD 5000Cost per vesselFrequencyIllness: Bulker, Container, Tanker - Claims cost >= USD 5000Injury: Bulker, Container, Tanker - Claims cost >= USD 5000the risk is acceptable. We hear about these miscalculationsevery-day in the news. The problem with a vessel is that the consequencescan be enormous and even fatal.There are some recurring immediate causes:• Lack of planning• Lack of experience• No clear guidelines• Not following company procedures• Procedures are unclear or not extensive enough• Not being assertive• Not recognising dangerous situations• Disregarding own safety and well-being• Poor communicationLack of safety cultureThe immediate causes mentioned above would indicate a possiblelack of safety culture. One of the difficulties in implementinga good safety culture is that safety for one person can bedifferent to another. To change these habits it is imperative thateveryone onboard knows what is expected of them. Shoresideactivities need to be clear about policy and company culture.All employees need to receive proper training and follow-upsand the root causes need to be identified and rectified.In a well functioning safety culture most people realise theimportance of procedures and are aware of the consequences ofnot following them. The procedures can be seen as somethingpositive that will benefit their own safety and that it is worththe trouble of e.g. using a safety harness, filling out the workpermit correctly and following the actual requirements.This is what MRM is all aboutThe above issues are similar to the immediate causes in the Collisionsand Groundings study (see article in Triton 2-2011). Thisis expected, as the failure will most likely be from human error.This once again emphasizes the importance of a good safety cultureand improving the knowledge about human errors, whichMRM (Maritime Resource Management) is all about.ConclusionTo prevent these claims it’s essential for a proper safety cultureto be established at the company. For the company to successfullyimplement a safety culture it is essential that all involvedreceive training, are informed about the importance of the safetysystem, that all concerned are aware that they are expected tofollow procedures and that it is unacceptable to disregard safety.23

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Photo: MorgueFileER THE SPOTLIGHTAll shipowners have operational risk exposures: the loss oflife, environmental damage and property and economiclosses potentially associated with a casualty. Much can bedone to reduce risks, through proactive loss prevention, rigoroustraining and adherence to sound procedures, but thefact remains that no owner is immune from the possibility ofa major casualty. Such events can find the owner at the centreof public controversy, largely fuelled by hostile mediacoverage.The reputational threats associated with shipping are inherent andshould be recognised as such by all owners with concern for theirstanding in the market and the wider world. We live in a world of 24/7rolling news and social media. The public dimension of these risk exposuressimply cannot be ignored. It is no longer enough to do a goodjob when a casualty occurs, the owner must also be seen to do a goodjob. An effective response must be recognised for what it is. This is noteasy to achieve, as accidents – by definition – are highly negative events.So, it is important to be realistic when considering the matter of mediacommunications in such grossly adverse circumstances. Equally, theobvious difficulties are no excuse for not trying! Indeed, a failure tocommunicate effectively in a crisis is likely to exacerbate the economicdamage on all fronts.Understanding how the media worksThis issue is best considered by reviewing the characteristics of the varioustypes of media. Here, the key broadcast outlets – primarily themajor TV news channels with an international reach - shape publicperceptions and heavily influence the direction taken by other media(including mass circulation newspapers). An owner with no experienceof media exposure in major accident situations will feel the “cultureshock” in these circumstances. There is that surprisingly accurate cutawayimage of the grounded vessel, sitting on the reef. How was thatdone in a matter of a few hours, with no help from our Technical Department?How did they find the Master’s wife? How did they get holdof the identity of the Master in the first place?Perhaps the biggest shock is the speed required for effective mediacommunications. When challenged on a dangerously sensitive issue, itis useless to offer a response the next day (having talked it over with thelawyers). When morning comes, the media attention is elsewhere anda fresh challenge has emerged. It is too late! It is so easy to find yourselfon the backfoot, permanently or two steps behind the media agenda.9continuesTony ReddingDirector, TRS Public RelationsCanterbury, UKTRS Director Tony Reddingis a public relations and crisiscommunications specialistwith over 25 years’ experiencein the maritime and casualtyresponse sectors. TRS PublicRelations is based in Canterbury,Kent, UK and has a largeinternational client base inthe maritime industries. TonyRedding has organised andparticipated in over 250 crisistraining workshops and simulationsworldwide, from theAmericas and Europe to theMiddle East and Far East. Hehas assisted shipowners facedwith significant accident andissues management challenges,concerning oil spills, fires,explosions, groundings andloss of life.on page 2625

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Media | Communications strategyConvincing and skilled communicators,from within the senior managementgroup, should be identified and trainedfor a challenging public role following ahigh profile accident.9continuedfrom page 25Print media have more time to explore and investigatethe accident and its causes. Privacy and media intrusionare hot issues in the UK, driven by the various phonehacking scandals. The owner should assume that ALLinvestigative tools will be used in a really big story. “Publicinterest” may offer some degree of defence for intrusion(although it does not excuse criminal activity). Thecentral point is simple: the bigger the story, the more themedia can be expected to commit resources and moneyto investigate. Frankly, the owner’s main concern in suchsituations is more likely to be the accuracy of media reports,rather than any inaccuracies.One consideration here is the ability to source newsleads and photos/video clips from social media. The indiscretionsassociated with social media are legendary.Many companies have already responded by issuing aSocial Media Policy for their employees (although, ofcourse, the effectiveness of such measures is questionable,to say the least, in relation to the children of employees!).Many shipping professionals are surprised at the media’slevel of ignorance on shipping matters. This can beespecially acute in the broadcast media. In one case –some years ago – a CNN planner asked the author if hecould arrange permission for a TV reporter and crew toland by helicopter on the main deck of a burning tanker.When it was pointed out that the vessel in question wason fire at the stern, the caller argued that it was a bigship and “surely it would be safe to land at the front”. Onanother occasion, a lady representing a major TV newschannel asked if the Salvage Master and his team couldrefloat the ship during daylight hours, “as, naturally, wewant to film it!”Such incidents may be amusing (in retrospect), butthey do make a serious point. Successful media communicationsin casualty situations is not just about gettingyour message across. You must also be prepared to EX-PLAIN THINGS and put them into context.There is also the delicate matter of fair treatment. Thisis an extremely rare commodity during coverage of amajor story involving loss of life, pollution and, perhaps,the suggestion that safety took a back seat to profit. It isimportant to remember that fair treatment is not yours byright, but needs to be worked for (and deserved!)Preparing for media responseThe first preparatory step is recognition that media coverageis an integral part of major casualty/spill response.The extra media-related workload during a high pressureoperational response needs to be recognised and allowedfor. The procedures for efficient media response shouldbe formalised and included in the company’s EmergencyResponse Plan. Drills should include the “public component”(media/relatives/other audiences). There should bededicated training in the public response aspects of casualtymanagement. Convincing and skilled communicators,from within the senior management group, shouldbe identified and trained for a challenging public rolefollowing a high profile accident.It makes sense to make a pre-event response agreementwith media specialists. It also makes sense to trainwith these advisors, so as to identify and coach companyspokespersons and, in addition, create awareness and understandingof the full impact of public and media issues.This process should also involve consideration of theowner’s vulnerabilities, at company, ship and incidentlevel. From the company perspective, sensitivities may involveproblems with a particular class of vessel or a trackrecord including past incidents of a serious nature. Fromthe standpoint of the vessel involved, the vulnerabilitiesmight concern age, flag, manning, port state record and26

Photo: iStockphotoTHE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012The answers need to come fast and theyneed to be convincing. The owner needsto be honest and avoid any temptationto mislead. The very essence of goodmedia response is to know just how farto go, in terms of detail.any past incidents. Remember that no amount of cleverpublic relations and smart communications can paperover operational failures by the crew or the owner’s emergencyteam ashore. Every important operational optionshould be considered from a public interest perspective(for example: How long did it take to make the call fortug assistance? Why were non-essential personnel left onboard, given the risk of a second explosion? With his vesselso heavily damaged, why did the Captain sail parallelto the coast, rather than head out to sea?). Negativeperceptions can multiply rapidly unless clear and firmresponses are forthcoming. The answers need to comefast and they need to be convincing. The owner needs tobe honest and avoid any temptation to mislead. The veryessence of good media response is to know just how far togo, in terms of detail.that they will remain prime targets for journalists andTV reporters until their repatriation. Even then, theyand their families may still be hounded, if news interestremains strong.A last point on “security”: every member of the owner’sresponse team is “on duty” for every second spent outsidethe hotel room. Smiles, jokes and a glass of beer areopen to misinterpretation and exploitation in situationsinvolving loss of life and severe pollution damage. Therereally is NOTHING FUNNY about a marine accident.To conclude, in today’s world it is a big mistake to failto recognise the power of the media and public opinion.Once an owner loses control of the public dimension,he will find it almost impossible to restore the situation.Negative views tend to root deeply and quickly, as thesearch for scapegoats gathers momentum.Attending on sceneSome accidents attract a very large media presence onscene.They will arrive with all the paraphernalia of modernelectronic new-gathering. The owner’s spokespersonmay soon be participating in daily media briefings hostedby Coast Guard or Government Ministry.There are certain issues which are fundamental for successfulresponse on-scene. They include solidarity andsecurity. “Solidarity” requires the maintenance of publicpositions which (so far as possible) are aligned with thoseof the shore authorities. This may not be easy, but disagreementsare best kept private, if possible. The mediafeasts on division. It is good practice to avoid criticisingthose parties you may be working with for many weeksto come.As for “security”, it is important to protect the crewand their families from media intrusion. Seafarers areoften traumatised by their experiences. Bear in mindPhoto: MorgueFile27

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Pollution | Cleanup operationUnsung Heroesof the MV RenagroundingOn 5 October 2011, in the earlyhours of the morning, the container shipMV Rena ran aground at full steam on theAstrolabe Reef on its approach to the Portof Tauranga on New Zealand’s east coast.With 1,368 containers on board, 32 ofwhich contained hazardous materials, aswell as 1,648 tonnes of heavy fuel oil, thestricken ship became the first major containerand oil spill disaster New Zealandhas faced – calling for the largest coastalclean-up ever.Following the grounding of the vesseland the initial release of about 300 tonnesof fuel and cargo – the sight of oil on thelocal white sandy beaches was an unprecedentedevent in New Zealand. However,although some oil stains remain in thelandscape, much of the 300 tonnes of fuelspilt when the vessel started to break upwas cleaned up in a very short time by amassive voluntary effort from the peopleof Tauranga and others around the Bay ofPlenty.Initial ResponseITOPF (The International Tanker OwnersPollution Federation) were amongst thefirst experts on the scene, and with theirworldwide experience in dealing with oilspills, provided invaluable guidance onthe appropriate way to remove and cleanthe contaminated shoreline. Differenttechniques are required and guidance wasprovided on what was most appropriate forthe circumstances of this case.An incident command centre (ICC)was set up in a disused supermarket, withprofessional salvors being appointed andexperts flying in from all over the world.Based upon not dis-similar events in theSouth of England following the groundingof the MSC Napoli, this included the specialisedBraemar/Unimar team appointedby the owners and The Swedish Club toJohn D. OwenSenior Claims ManagerTeam Piraeusspearhead container and debris recovery.Passionate Kiwis, who love their coast,soon made it quite clear to the authoritiesthat, like it or not, they were going to be apart of the clean-up effort.Throughout the process the local tangatawhenua (“people of the land” - theindigenous people) have proven to be a realinspiration; their efforts have set a fantasticexample of a motivated and cohesivecommunity effort to restore the coastline– which is such an important part of theirheritage and culture. Iwi (“peoples” - socialunits of Maori) have worked hand in handwith the Club’s appointed contractorsthroughout the response, putting in a hugevoluntary effort collecting debris along thecoast – with company staff assisting in recovery,and with the labour teams focusedon the hardest hit areas.Motiti IslandMotiti Island lying closest to the Astrolabereef sits only seven kilometres south of thestricken Rena. As such a great deal of theoil and debris came ashore here. Residentshad been faced with an enormous anddaunting clean-up task as tonnes of containerdebris soaked in oil had coated theshores of their precious island. Braemarand Unimar have been working closelywith the community around the rockyand inaccessible coastline, reaching areaswhere containers and debris were wedgedbetween large boulders and jammed intorocky inlets. Working with the communityprovided a wealth of first-hand localThe owners of theRena and the Clubwish to recognise and paytribute to the huge effort ofthe people of New Zealandand their response incollectively helpingclean the beachesknowledge, crucial in navigating the cliffsand bays and assisting in the approach toculturally sensitive areas. Collectively, thelocal community at Motiti and the variouscontractors and voluntary teams, whoall received appropriate health and safetyguidance have, with the use of helicoptersand specialised beach craft, collected28

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Photo: Maritime New ZealandVolunteers cleaning Papamoa beach in the 100th volunteer cleanup operation held since Rena gounded on Astrolabe Reef.hundreds of tonnes of cargo and containerdebris.January 2012Seven metre swells battered the MV Renaon the night of 7 January. By the morningof the 8 th , the Rena had broken in two,and while the bow section remained firmlygrounded on the reef, the split caused thetwo sections to slew away from each otherand settle lower in the water. This triggeredthe release of debris and oil sheen into thesea. The easterly winds and currents pushedthe contents of several hundred additionalcontainers and debris as wide as the lengthof football fields, trailing north towardsthe beautiful unspoilt beaches of MatakanaIsland and Waihi Beach on the mainland.By the morning of the 9 th , Tangata Whenuaon Matakana Island had swarmed ontothe beach, picking up milk powder packetsspewing out of shattered containers, loosewood debris and thousands of food packets.The owners of the Rena and The SwedishClub encouraged Braemar to work closelywith the landowners and local iwi to formulatean innovative operational plan. Itinvolved employing iwi labour to assistin the most labour-intensive areas of theshoreline recovery and with the help of machineryashore, barges and helicopters, theybegan New Zealand’s biggest ever shorelinerecovery effort focused on one single beach.More than 850 tonnes of debris and 12 containershave been recovered from the beachline with minimal environmental and wildlifeimpact (the island is home to endangeredNew Zealand dotterel) on MatakanaIsland’s beautiful and unspoilt character.In addition to the main salvage operation,the significant cost of the operationscoordinated by Braemar and their subcontractorshave been met by The SwedishClub, but without the huge volunteer effortof the community and the invaluable assistancewith all of the shoreline recovery thiswould have taken longer with more wildlifeexposed to the oil. From the tip of the CoromandelPeninsula, to the southeast, downpast the islands of Matakana and Motiti,and along the coast line around Cape Runawaytowards the city of Gisborne. TangataWhenua and community members have lefta strong and lasting impression on everyonewho has worked closely with the Rena recovery.Our ThanksThe owners of the Rena and the Club wishto recognise and pay tribute to the hugeeffort of the people of New Zealand andtheir response in collectively helping cleanthe beaches following the initial events of5 October 2011, and then subsequently thestorm of 8 and 9 January when the sternsection sank. Thank you all.29

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club Information | Notice BoardNew Average Adjuster in SwedenThe Swedish government has appointedMagnus Widebeck, as Sweden’s new AverageAdjuster. Magnus Widebeck is currentlyChief Judge at Nyköping District Court. PhdCandidate Paula Bäckdén at the Universityof Gothenburg, Department of Law, has beenappointed deputy Average Adjuster. MagnusWidebeck is taking over from ProfessorSvante O. Johansson who held the positionof Average Adjuster from 1998 to 2011. Svante O Johansson wasappointed a Justice of the Supreme Court on 30 June 2011 by theSwedish government.New General Correspondents for theFrench Atlantic and Channel CoastsWe have now completed our annual review of the List of Correspondentsand the updated list is available online. You may havenoted there is one significant change regarding correspondentsalong the French Atlantic and Channel coasts. As from 20 February2012, correspondents for each single port aren’t listed. Instead,we have listed McLeans (Paris) as our sole correspondent for thearea. They will respond for both H&M and P&I matters. We believeit is advantageous for the Club, our members and masters ofinsured ships to have one single correspondent to contact in caseassistance is required. Also, in line with the common aim of all InternationalGroup clubs in supporting a number of correspondentsin relation to work available, and to encourage investment in trainingand succession planning of those listed, we strongly believe thisis a step in the right direction. We look forward to many years ofgood cooperation with McLeans’staff.Iran sanctions update – EUOn 23 January 2012, the EU issued enhanced sanctionsagainst Iran by way of Council Regulations 54/2012 and 56/2012.Notably, the Central Bank of Iran, Bank Tejerat and TidewaterMiddle East Co are all added as designated persons generally prohibitingEU individuals and entities to engage in financial transactionswith these parties. Since Tidewater operates a number of Iranianports this has particular significance to the shipping industry.In addition to the regulations set out above, Council Decision2012/35/CFSP was adopted. This prohibits the import, purchaseor transport of Iranian crude oil, petroleum and petrochemicalproducts as well as the provision of financial assistance, insuranceand reinsurance in relation to such products. These provisions arestated to be without prejudice to the execution (until 1 July 2012for crude oil and petroleum products and 1 May 2012 for petrochemicalproducts) of certain contracts concluded before 23 January2012. The Council Decision also provides for the sale, supplyor transfer of key equipment and technology for the petrochemicalindustry in Iran (or Iranian-owned enterprises engaged in thatindustry outside Iran) to be prohibited.Council Decisions are only immediately effective against thegovernments of Member States. In order to have legal effect oncompanies and individuals, an implementation regulation is needed.The implementing regulation, Council Regulation 267/2012,was issued just before this article was printed. The material provisionsof the Regulation substantially reflect the correspondingprovisions in the Decision. As a result, members are required tonote in particular that there is no P&I cover available for the transportationof Iranian petroleum products after 1 July and Iranianpetrochemical products after 1 May. Detailed and updated informationabout the Iranian sanctions can be found on the Club’swebsite.Iran sanctions update – USAOn 21 November 2011, the USA expanded its Iranian sanctionsby way of Executive Order 13590 in particular lowering thedollar thresholds for prohibited activities such as transportationand insurance of Iranian refined petroleum products. Additionally,on 31 December, the National Defence Authorisation Act forfiscal year 2012 was issued, which in essence prohibits non-USAfinancial institutions to do business with Iranian financial institutions.Further sanctions are expected; inter alia, a limit of 180 daysfor vessels that have called into an Iranian port before calling at aUSA port. Detailed and updated information about the Iraniansanctions, as well as other sanction regimes, can be found on theClub’s website.SCOL – The Swedish Club On LineSince the launch of our new SCOL extranet site in July2011, the number of SCOL users has constantly increased, and wehave received a lot of – mainly positive - feedback from users.Our ambition with the new extranet is to improve user-friendliness,enable personal user settings and enhance the documentationplatform, all of which we take great pride in having achieved.But as with all systems, there is always room for improvement. Weare keen to receive feedback from users on how to improve evenmore, which will be used in the development work. Examples ofsuch suggestions, include a future release that will include multidownloadsof insurance documents, together with enhanced reportfunctionality, enabling the user to make tailor-made reportson insurance, claims and records data. In the recent P&I renewal,SCOL has been put to the test as the main channel for providinginsurance certificates and other insurance documentation to membersand insurance brokers, which has worked out very well. Whennew documents are posted on the insurances you are involved in,you will receive a notification of this by email. Lately, we havehowever received a number of questions about how to limit thesenotifications to areas of interest only, and would therefore liketo take the opportunity of informing all users that these settingsare available under “My Settings” at the top of the page. Choose“Insurance” (directly below your username at the top of the page).Choices under the tab “Notification rules” will enable you to setthe areas of interest you want to be notified about.Annual General Meeting 2012The Swedish Club's Annual General Meeting 2012 willbe held on 14 June at 2 p.m. at the Elite Park Avenue Hotel inGothenburg.30

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012The Swedish Club Academy | MRMRolling out MRM amongstthe Greek membershipMartin HernqvistManaging DirectorThe Swedish Club Academy ABAs a result of the Februarymeetings, the Club will organisea training event in Greece for newMRM Workshop Leaders on 29-30May. Greek members interestedin an MRM licence should get intouch with Martin Hernqvist at TheSwedish Club Academy.The Swedish Club has run a trainingcentre in Piraeus, Greece, since the 1980sfor the use and benefit of the Greek shippingcommunity. The courses have beenreally appreciated and MRM has been oneof the courses on offer. Many of our Greekmembers - well ahead of any mandatory requirements- have taken part in the MRMcourses, but the demand for MRM coursesin Greece has been replaced by demand forthese courses in other locations as well, suchas the Philippines and the Ukraine. With anincreasing number of Greek shipping companiesemploying foreign officers and crew,and with an increasing number of companieswho wish to get closer to their crew,for example by being in greater control oftheir training activities (some operate theirown in-house training centres), we have decidedto promote direct access to the MRMtraining material through an MRM licenceagreement among our Greek membership.In February this year we met a number ofour Greek members to discuss this opportunityand the message was well received. TheMRM training programme can not only beused to increase safety and efficiency but alsoto integrate the non-Greek officers and crewinto the company’s culture and make themfeel part of the “family”. The strong familyfeeling of many Greek shipowners in thepast is believed to have been an importantfactor not only for loyalty and retention butalso for good incident records.MRM discussion group onWe welcomE all people interested in MRM issues to join theMRM discussion group on the internet site “LinkedIn”. LinkedInis the world’s largest professional network with over 120 millionmembers. Membership is free of charge. We hope that this groupwill be useful for discussing MRM issues both for those alreadyusing MRM and those who are new to the concept. The group canalso help keeping MRM “alive” for the companies and people whohave done the course. All means of ensuring that the MRM messagesare implemented and not forgotten after training should beused as far as possible, and this may be one such means.Two quick steps to join: First, set up your own LinkedIn accountat www.linkedin.com. Then search for the group “Maritime ResourceManagement (MRM)” and click Join Group.Martin, I fully endorse your view that high profile events suchas Costa Concordia should be reviewed from an MRM perspectiveso that lessons can be learned and such a terrible incidentis never repeated. In P&O Ferries we have found one of themany benefits of MRM training is that it creates an open environmentwhich encourages all the delegates to speak up asthey review case studies. In our company we have used incidentsthat delegates are familiar with, such as the BRAER, butalso company related incidents. This is akin to “Open HeartSurgery” for some delegates but once they get over theirreticence to contribute to the case study, we have found theresulting group discussions to be excellent. We have put over225 delegates through our MRM training in the last two yearsand all delegates have said how beneficial the training wasand importantly it gives them “tools within their toolbox” touse when they are back onboard their respective ships. Notone delegate has raised any concerns or said the MRMtraining was not beneficial.Comment made by John Garner, Fleet Director at P&O Ferries,on 21 January 2012 in the LinkedIn MRM discussion groupNew MRM training providersSince the latest issuE ofThe Swedish Club Triton, we havewelcomed the following trainingestablishments to the MRMnetwork: Fremantle Maritime Simulation Centre, Fremantle, Australia Wärtsilä Land & Sea Academy, Busan, South Korea Maritime Education and Training Services Pte Ltd, Singapore Hanseatic Training Institute, Manila, Philippines Maritime State University, Vladivostok, Russia ABB Marine Academy, Helsinki, Finland31

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012The Swedish Club Academy | MRMOut and Aboutwith MRM16-17 November 2011 Participants at the MRM Workshop Leader meeting held on 16-17 November 2011 at Southfield Agencies, Manila, Philippines. The following MRM trainingproviders were represented at the meeting: Anglo-Eastern Maritime Training Centre, CMAShips, IDESS Maritime Centre, Marlow Navigation, PHILCAMSAT, Southfield Maritime TrainingFoundation and Wallem Maritime Training Centre Philippines.Photo: The Swedish Club Photo: The Swedish Club21-22 November 2011 Participants at the MRM Workshop Leader meeting held on21-22 November 2011 at Sirius Training & Education Institute (STEi) in Singapore. The followingtraining providers were represented at the meeting: Anglo-Eastern Ship Management,International Bunker Industry Association, Kuwait Oil Tanker Company S.A.K, LankaAcademy of Technological Studies, Malaysian Maritime Academy, Precious Shipping, Singapore(Nan Tong) International Maritime Institute, Sirius Training & Education Instituteand Wavelink Maritime Institute.32

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012The Swedish Club Academy | MRMPhoto: The Swedish Club25 November 2011Employees of the first MRMtraining provider in SouthKorea, Wärtsilä Land & SeaAcademy in Busan, receivedMRM Workshop Leader trainingon 25 November 2011.Photo: The Swedish Club28 November 2011 On 28 November 2011, a three-hour "Introduction to MRM" seminar was held by Martin Hernqvistof The Swedish Club Academy at the Maritime State University named after admiral G.I. Nevelskoi in Vladivostok, Russia.The majority of the participants were University lecturers and people representing the local shipping community.STCW Manila amendmentsIf we are correct, the Maritime Resource Managementcourse is the first training programme to receive national acceptancein accordance with the STCW Manila amendments. Sincethe STCW requirements are of major importance to seafarers,the shipping companies and training providers, the certificationreceived by the Maritime Department of the Swedish TransportAgency in February 2012 made us both proud and happy.The areas concerned for the STCW Convention are:• Reg. A-II/1 for Bridge Resource Management• Reg. A-III/1 for Engine-room Resource Man agement• Reg. A-II/2 and A-III/2 for Use Leadership and ManagerialSkills• Reg. A-II/1, A-III/1 and A-III/6 for Application of Leadershipand Teamworking Skills.MRM theme for social events during 2012With a number of high-profile incidents taking place recently,the interest in Maritime Resource Management (MRM) issues hasincreased. To meet demand and give members and Club representativesan opportunity to discuss these preventative measures, TheSwedish Club decided to make MRM the theme for a number ofEuropean Club events taking place in 2012.The presentation of The Impact of Attitudes and Cultures on MarineAccidents - How to manage risk through implementation ofMaritime Resources Management (MRM) will be held at the followingdates and locations:28 March – Breakfast meeting in Oslo18 April – Club Evening in Bremen19 April – Club Evening in Hamburg25 April – Lunch seminar in Piraeus26 April – Lunch seminar in Istanbul15 May – Seminar in Copenhagen33

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club Information | Staff presentationsJohan KahlmeterFrom summertrainee to MarineClaims ManagerA three-month internship can turnout to be a winning ticket to an interestingcareer with opportunitiesto work abroad and moving forwardto a managerial position. At least ifyou have the right education, competenceand ambitions. That is a carboncopy of Johan Kahlmeter, ournew Head of Marine Claims in TeamGothenburg.Despite his fairly young age, Johan alreadyhas a wide experience from both time atsea and handling Marine and P&I claimsin different parts of the world. But this isthe first time he takes on a managerial positionwhich demands for a somewhat differentapproach.“I will handle claims as before but nowmy role is also to present the companygoals, coach co-workers and give them theenvironment to perform as well as possible,Johan explains. It is on me to keepthe team together and go through the routinesto see how they can be improved andupdated to provide a better service to ourmembers, he adds.”Practice in New YorkWhen Johan turned 20 he moved to Norwayto study nautical science at VestfoldMaritime University College. Directlythereafter he went to sea for a shorter timeto work as a deck cadet on tankers and Ro-Ro ships.“It came natural for me to be interestedin navigation, shipping and the sea and tochoose an occupation in the area, as myfamily and I have been sailing for as long asI can remember and we spent a great dealof the Summers on our boat, says Johan.”Carola WeidenholmCorporateCommunicationsDuring his time at sea, his interest forthe legal and insurance aspects of shippingdeveloped, so he decided to return to university,this time to study for a Master ofScience in Shipping & Logistics at Chalmersin Gothenburg. When he finished in2005 he didn’t think it was enough andfollowed up with a year in Oslo to studyfor an L.LM degree in Maritime Law. Itturned out to be a good decision, as he heremet his girlfriend, Tonje.Fresh out of law school he was offered totake on a traineeship at the law firm De-Orchis, Wiener & Partners in New York,so in January 2007 he went off to the BigApple.“When I had been there for a couple ofmonths, I was contacted by our HR director,Helena Wallerius Dahlsten. She9continues on page 3634

Photo: The Swedish ClubTHE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Maria BerndtssonOur new P&I Claims ManagerIn the Summer of 2011 The SwedishClub decided to transform theorganisation at the head office inGothenburg. Two teams becameone: “Team Gothenburg” andwithin that division a new departmentcalled P&I Claims was formed.The post of manager went to MariaBerndtsson, who has extensive experienceof claims handling fromboth Stena Rederi, Gard and sincethree years back The Swedish Club.“I found the job too interesting not to applywhen I had the opportunity! I am in aposition in life where I have gained a lot ofexperience, worked many different claimscases and my kids are grown up, so I haveboth the time and desire to take on somethingnew, tells Maria. It is also an interestingchallenge to develop a P&I departmentand have the opportunity to carry throughideas that have grown during my years as aclaims executive,” she continues.Curious of the insurance businessWhen Maria started her studies to becomea Master of Law at Lund University in1980, her aim was to work in finance orinsurance, or to become a judge. For addedexperience, she went on directly to districtcourtpractice for two and a half years. Atthat time her interest in the sea and shippingtogether with a curiosity about theinsurance industry had taken over, so shedecided to take up an offer from the insurancedepartment at Stena Rederi. There shestayed for four years until it was time tomove abroad.“My husband Anders was offered a jobin Switzerland so we moved to the Züricharea and stayed for five years. It was interestingto get the experience of living inanother country; even though Switzerlandis pretty similar to Sweden, there are stillmany differences, says Maria”In 1997 she, her husband and two sonsmoved back to Sweden. Maria soon startedas a Claims Executive at Gard, where wefound her and succeeded in getting herover to our team in 2009.“As I had been at Gard Sweden for morethan 12 years, I felt that the offer was interestingand it was time to move on fornew experiences and a boost forward in mycareer, tells Maria. It is an opportunity todevelop your skills when you move to anotherjob; even if you have the same tasks,every company functions differently andthere are new people to learn from.”9continueson page 3635

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club Information | Staff presentations9continuedwanted to meet me in New Yorkfor an interview – for a positionat the head office – during theClubs board meeting in the city,he explains.”Two years in Hong KongHe came back in June 2007 fora permanent position as Claims Executive at the head office inGothenburg. In October two years later it was time for yet anothermove: Johan took over Tony Schröder’s position at our Hong Kongoffice, when he decided to move back to Gothenburg for the job asArea Manager.“I have been an exchange student in Perth, Australia, studied inOslo and was a trainee in New York, so for me it felt like a matterof course to take the opportunity to work in Hong Kong. The timingwas also pretty good, as my partner just finished her law studiesand got a job at Mannheimer Swartling in Hong Kong, Johantells.”In 2011 the team organisation in Gothenburg was transformedand a new position emerged – Head of Claims – Marine, ClaimsManager.“Tonje and I got on very well in Hong Kong, both with theculture, hustle and bustle, high pace and our jobs, but when theposition as Head of Marine Claims came up I realised it was anopportunity that would not appear very often, so it became time toreturn home, he explains.”Johan in briefName: Johan KahlmeterTitle: Head of Marine Claims and Claims Manager Team GothenburgAge: 32from page 349continuesdfrom page 35Family: partner Tonje who he met studying in OsloBackground: Johan opened with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degreein Nautical Science at Vestfold Maritime University College, 2000–2003.He almost immediately moved on to study for a Master of Science(MSc) in Shipping & Logistics at Chalmers University of Technology inGothenburg, 2003–2005 and complementary studies at Oslo Universityto obtain a L.LM degree in Maritime Law. He also spent some timeat sea on tankers and Ro-Ro-ships as well as traineeships at both TheSwedish Club in Gothenburg and the law firm DeOrchis, Wiener & Partnersin New York. Before he took on his new position as Head of Claims– Marine and Claims Manager, he spent two years at our Hong Kongoffice as a Claims Executive.Spare time: he and Tonje sails a lot in their own boat during the summermonths. When there is time he also enjoys scuba diving. In winterthey often go to Tonje’s family cabin in the Norwegian mountains forskiing. This summer he hopes to find time to sail in both Denmark,Sweden and Norway for the entire holiday.Of current interest: our new Head of Marine Claims and Claims Managerin Team GothenburgAt The Swedish Club since: June 2007A skilled teamTwo years later it was timeto take on the newly createdposition as Head of Claims– P&I, but she is also stillworking as a Senior ClaimsExecutive.“I think my role is a littledifferent than many other managers, as I work my own P&Icases in parallel. For me it is an advantage as I keep in closecontact with developments in the claims handling businessand by that with the reality for the co-workers, she explains.Being manager is not only about being the one who makesfinal decisions and manages things, according to Maria.“Naturally, the role includes implementing the management’sstrategy in a clear way, so we can all work towards thesame goal. But I think it is just as important to be supportiveand accessible for your co-workers and be able to build trustwithin the group. This is an organisation with very skilled specialists,so my role as manager is not to always “know it all”,but to trust the co-workers, be a discussion partner and contributewith my experience in the area.Maria in briefName: Maria BerndtssonTitle: Head of Claims – P&I, Senior Claims ManagerAge: 52Family: married to Anders with two sons, Wilhelm 20 and Fredrik18Background: 1980-85 she studied at Lund University to becomea Master of Law and then went on to district-court practice fortwo and a half years. In 1988 her interest in the insurance sectorand maritime life took her to Stena’s insurance department, beforeshe moved to Switzerland for five years. Back in Sweden in1997 she started at Gard as a Claims Executive and stayed untilshe moved to The Swedish Club almost three years ago.Spare time: Marias major interest in sports is evident in manyways. In the winter she enjoys downhill as well as cross-countryskiing and she has even done the 30 km women’s Vasa ski racethree times! In summertime she and her family like to sail, and in2011 they followed the coast of Norway for an unforgettable experienceof fjords, cliffs and midnight sun. Maria also takes time torun and in May she will run the Gothenburg half marathon for thefourth time.Of current interest: our new Head of Claims – P&I, Senior ClaimsManager in Team GothenburgAt The Swedish Club since: September 200936

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club information | News from AsiaThe outcome of thisrenewal came as avote of confidenceP&I renewal is never easy. This one for 2012/13 is particularlydifficult. The members of the Club, whether ownersor operators, are under tremendous pressure to reduce costs asfreight markets, whether dry, wet or container trade, have beenat very low levels for a long time and probably will continue tobe for a long time to come.On the other hand P&I clubs need to increase premiumlevels in order to keep up higher claims payments due to everincreasingowners’ liabilities and claims inflation. Pressure onboth sides tends to put pressure on partnership relationships.Nonetheless, the Club managed to achieve its target on therisks renewed thanks to the strong support from our loyalmembers. After all, the Club belongs to the members as awhole.The charterer’s liability insurance class renewal was relativelyuneventful, as was the FD&D class.Business volumes fell slightly, while premium rates rose. Theoutcome of this renewal came as a vote of confidence. We notonly managed to increase premiums, we also added a largenumber of committed new tonnage.As members face lots of difficulties in 2012, the Club willalso face challenges including managing sustainable growthwhilst maintaining good services to the members by upholdingadequate resources.The freight markets are not expected to improve much duringthe year. A large number of newbuilding tonnage will bedelivered, and the freight markets will continue to be underpressure. Recently BDI (Baltic Dry Index) hit a 26-year low at647 points. For many shipowners freight income is not enoughto pay operating costs.Crew costs including compensation packages, bunkers, portcharges etc are increasing. Many newbuilding deliveries willneed to be manned, further exposing the problem of the shortageof quality crew. Financial pressure will affect ships’ maintenanceand the ships’ condition in general.All these factors in combination may lead to more claimsand less premium income. As our members face difficultiesparticularly in claims, disputes or casualty situations, they willneed the Club’s support and assistance even more. We will continueto develop our competence.Ruizong WangManaging Director/Area ManagerTeam Asia38

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club Information | News from OsloPhoto: KS DrillingReflectionson our first12 monthsof operationDuring our first 12 months of operation we gainedsome 30 accounts. The vast majority of these are “local” accountsproduced to us by Norwegian-based brokers, but therehave also been a few International accounts provided by Londonbrokers. At the time of writing, we have written more than30 accounts comprising some 250 units. We are very happywith our achievements so far which are also in line with ourBusiness Plan. The first year’s underwriting results were alsopositive and satisfactory.2012 started with the total loss of the rig “KS Endeavour”,where a blow-out and fire occurred on 16 January and meltedthe whole rig within a few days. The Hull & Machinery andHull Interest Insurances were placed in March 2011 and ledoffby the Norwegian Hull Club. We wrote a fairly modest“following” line so exposure was relatively limited.2011 was not a great year for the whole Energy insurancesector (on and offshore) and lead insurers are now lookingfor increases. Competition between various markets has alsoThe KS Endeavour on a Heavy Lift Vessel before the fire.started to increase in particular on larger accounts with goodloss records.We also saw increased average deductible levels in 2011,which will hopefully become more permanent allowing insurersto build up stronger reserves to pay for future larger claims.This year will be a year of consolidating existing accounts forThe Swedish Club Energy Team, but we also expect to broadenour business with a few more high quality International Accounts.So overall we can safely say that things are lookingpositive.Verner RydningSenior ManagerTeam Oslo Energy39

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club Information | Out and AboutVarbergs FortressPhoto: Anna JolforsIt is time to visit our last fortress inthe annual report. We have alreadylooked into Carlstens Fortress inspring of 2008, Älvsborgs Fortressdressed in heavy snow 2009, andBohus Fortress in sparkling autumncolours 2010; for 2011 we look closerinto Varbergs Fortress when thesummer was at its fairest. Standingon a cliff, this fortification has agreat view out over the North Seaand was the perfect place to controlthe coast lines from less longed-forvisitors from other countries armedforces.– a history about kings, wars,prisoners and a monsterIt all started in 1287, when the Danishcount Jacob Nielsen began to build thefortress as protection after he had been accusedof killing their king Erik Klipping ayear earlier. In 1305 he decided to pass iton to Norway, who augmented it duringthe coming centuries until the area, afterthe Treaty of Brömsebro, in 1645 becameSwedish. Around 1,000 farm labourersworked every day during 30 years to constructwhat, at the time, were classed as themost modern defenses. During the 18 thcentury the fortress was maintained by theSwedish army, and when they no longerneeded the building at the start of the 19 thcentury, there were plans to blow the wholething up.Prison and warFrom the mountain where Jacob built hiscastle, there is not much handed down toposterity but a lot has been done since histime. The whole rock was covered with soiland four bastions were built – one in eachcorner and one more in the middle of thewall, facing the sea. The bastions have differentnames. Clockwise you are first metby “The white monk” in northeast, then“The grey monk” in southeast, “The redmonk” in southwest, “The dyke bastion” inwest and “The forge bastion” in northwest.The fortification was reinforced in southand southwest as the enemy pretty easilycould place canons at the facing Rantzaurock, which occurred in 1565 during theNordic seven-year war.From the Middle Ages right up to 1931the fortress also served as a prison, andboth the medieval dungeon as well as theindividual cells have been preserved. Todaythe visitors have a more pleasant stay (andcan leave whenever they please!).The views from the fortress out over theCattegat is beautiful and in summertimeyou can see the sailing boats come and gofrom the marina near by. The walk alongthe ramparts also offers a magnificentpanorama of the Varberg town and thecoast, and inside the walls you will find abed & breakfast, the county museum, ablacksmith’s workshop, a café and restaurants.The ceremonial areas and premisesare popular for a variety of festivities, forexample balls and weddings. During thesummer months both residents of Varbergand tourists gather in and around the fortressfor just a stroll or a picnic at sunset.A poled man and a monsterThe County Museum of Varberg is locatedin the oldest parts of the castle, and hasexhibitions about the fortress’ history, artfrom the ”Varberg School”, cultural historyfrom the Halland county and, lastbut not least, the Bocksten’s Man. He is anextremely well preserved corpse of a manfrom The Middle Ages – even his real hairand clothes from the time remains! Thediscovery is the first one found with polespegged through the body. He had beenmurdered and the poles should preventhim from haunting the village.The history tells that the moat of the fortressis to be inhabited by a small lake monster.In August 2006, a couple of personsclaimed to have seen the monster – describedas brown, furless and with a 40 cmlong tail – emerge from the dark water anddevour a duck. Unfortunately, we didn’thave that luck when we visited the fortresswith our camera!The Annual Report will be printed andready in the beginning of May but will bepublished at our website around mid-April.Carola WeidenholmCorporateCommunications40

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club information | Out and AboutBreakfast Meeting in Oslo 28 March 2012The Club hosted its established annual breakfast seminar at Shippingklubbenin Oslo on 28 March. About 30 guests from the Norwegianshipping and energy community enjoyed a breakfast buffetbefore being briefed by Henric Gard on the Club’s current state ofaffairs and by Verner Rydning on the Club’s inaugural year of writingenergy business (a very successful start!). This was followed byFrom left: JackNilsen (Willis AS),Hogne Nesse (HöeghAutoliners AS ) andTony Schröder (TheSwedish Club).a presentation by Martin Hernqvist, The Swedish Club Academy,on this seminar’s main topic: “The Impact of Attitudes and Cultureson Marine Accidents. How to manage risk through implementationof Maritime Resources Management (MRM).” This was the fourthconsecutive breakfast seminar in Oslo and with such a great turnout,we will undoubtedly return next year.Cocktailsand golfin Singapore29-30 March2012Following the Club’s BoardMeeting in Singapore on 29March, a cocktail receptionwas held at the SingaporeCricket Club for boardmembers and businessassociates.On 30 March, TheSwedish Club SingaporeGrand Classic 2012 golfcompetition was held atthe Tanah Merah CountryClub.From left: Lawrence Lau (Cosco Hong Kong Insurance Brokers),Ruizong Wang (The Swedish Club Hong Kong) and James WangShuang (GC Tankers Pte Ltd).From left: The Swedish Ambassador to SingaporeIngemar Dolfe together with Jan Rydenfelt (TheSwedish Club).From left: Lars Rhodin (TheSwedish Club) togetherwith Zhang Lansui (Da SinShipping Pte Ltd) exchangingtheir experiences from the golfcompetition.From left: Lennart Simonsson (Chairman of The Swedish ClubBoard), Ng Siong Tee (Kontiki Shipping), his wife Roselyn andJun Yanagawa (Diamond Star Shipping Pte Ltd).41

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club information | Out and AboutChristmas Dinner in Piraeus8 December 2011The Club invited members and business associates to the traditionalChristmas Dinner at the Yacht Club in Piraeus on8 December last year. The dinner, like many of the previousones, was well attended and the guests were entertained (as inprevious years as well) by the “Lucia” procession consisting ofthe Scandinavian Church Choir and parts of the Club’s managementteam and staff.PhotoS: The Swedish ClubThe Swedish Club management and male staff from the Piraeusoffice entertained guests with the traditional Swedish drinkingsong “Helan går”.Among the guests were Stavroula Serbesi,Arcadia Shipmanagement, DimitriosAntonatos, Vasco Shipmanagement andDimitris Dalacouras, Conbulk Shipping.Demetri Dragazis (to the left),Latsco (London) and memberof The Swedish Club Board waswelcomed by Managing DirectorLars Rhodin.PhotoS: TSCManaging DirectorLars Rhodin greetingall guests welcometo the traditionalChristmas Dinner onDonsö.From left: Dick Höglund (Tärntank Rederi), Sven-Olof Kristensson (TarnChartering), his wife Marianne and Runa-Britt Höglund.Traditional Christmas Dinneron Donsö 14 December 2011The Club gathered members in Gothenburg’s southern archipelagofor a traditional Christmas dinner at the Isbolaget restaurant inDecember last year.From left: ChristianNilsson (Rederi ABÄlvtank) and DanielBackman (Sirius RederiAB).42

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club information | Staff News / Club QuizStaff NewsHead office GothenburgDaniel Brand, Claims Executive, FD&D, resigned from the Clubon 11 March 2012, after two and a half years of service. We wish himall the best in his future career.Caroline Stenman Dencker, Assistant Marine Claims Adjuster,joined Team Gothenburg on 5 December 2011. She has a BA inPolitical Science from San José State University in California andan LLM from the University in Gothenburg. She has also studiedMaritime Law at Oslo University.CLUBQuizFritiof Granberg, Marine Claims Adjuster, retired from the Clubon 1 December 2011, after nearly 34 years of dedicated service to theClub and its members. We wish him all the best for the future and ahappy retirement.Malin Högberg, Assistant Claims Executive, joined TeamGothenburg on a one-year traineeship from 1 February 2012. Shehas studied Maritime Law at Oslo University and holds a DeckOfficer Class VII Certificate.Magnus Johansson, Senior Claims Executive, Marine, joined TeamGothenburg on 9 January 2012. He is an engineer with an MSc inMechanical Engineering from Chalmers University, Gothenburgand holds an MBA from the Gothenburg School of Economics andCommercial law. He previously worked for Götaverken CityvarvetAB.Frida Wåhlin, Assistant Claims Executive, joined Team Gothenburgon a one-year traineeship from 23 January 2012. She graduatedfrom Chalmers Technical University with a BSc in Shipping andLogistics.PIRAEUSTejpal Dhesi, FD&D Manager, has resigned from the Club’s Piraeusoffice after more than 12 years of dedicated service to the Club andits members. We wish her all the best in her future career.Manos Strongilos, Technical Manager Marine Claims, joinedthe Club’s Piraeus office on 1 February 2012. He has a Master ofScience in Marine Engineering from the University of Newcastleand previously worked as Marine Superintendent/Fleet Manager forseveral shipowners in Greece. Whendid the Club start to underwriteP&I risks?1 1872X 19002 1910 Whatis the given name of Mr Plimsoll?1 SamuelX Edward2 Line Two shipsinsured by the Club got trappedin the Suez canal in 1967 remainingin the Great BitterLake for eight years. What arethe name of the ships?1 Kraka and NannyX Nippon and Killara2 Kolsnaren and HallarenMail your answer toquiz@swedishclub.com.The first right answer will be awardeda Club give-away.Club Quiz 3-2011Winner of Club Quiz inTriton No 3-2011 is JohnSamartzis of J.P. SamartzisMaritime EnterprisesCompany S.A. in Piraeus.The right answers to thequestions are:1. 1,4062 19823. 198243

THE SWEDISH CLUB TRITON 1-2012Club calendArFor further upcoming events, please refer towww.swedishclub.com/Club Calendar201218 April Club Evening Bremen19 April Club Evening hamburg25 April Members' Luncheon Piraeus26 April Members' Luncheon Istanbul7-11 May Marine Insurance Course Gothenburg12 May GöteborgsVarvet Half Marathon Gothenburg15 May Lunch Seminar Copenhagen13 June Board Meeting Gothenburg14 June Annual General Meeting Gothenburg4 October Board Meeting Athens6 December Board Meeting London44