Page 27: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (March 1992)

March, 1992 101

ESPRIT - EXCELLENCE • EFFIZIENZ

Circle 302 on Reader Service Card 29 marine underwriters at Lloyd's, the

Joint Hull Committee has intro- duced a structural condition war- ranty that will require owners to carry out a survey of their vessels within a specified time before insur- ance cover can be renewed.

Roger Nixon, chairman of the

Joint Hull Committee, said under- writers can insist on the warranty at their discretion. The panel pro- posed no hard and fast rules about

Ship Gaming, Consolidator

Bonding Legislation

Approved By House

Bills legalizing gambling on U.S. passenger vessels and giving ocean freight consolidators more flexibil- ity in fulfilling bonding requirements were recently sent by the House to the President's desk.

It also approved and sent to the

Senate a bill directing the Maritime

Administration to scrap 116 obso- lete vessels in the national defense reserve cargo fleet under a five-year timetable.

The bill includes a technical change in a 1990 law requiring ocean consolidators, also known as non- vessel operating common carriers or

NVOs, to post $50,000 bonds at the

Federal Maritime Commission.

The gambling amendments allow gaming, which is permitted on for- eign-flag vessels, on U.S.-flag ves- sels in international waters. The

Maritime industry has pushed the provision as a way to increase the number of U.S. cruise vessels and make them competitive with their foreign-registered counterparts.

The reserve fleet scrapping bill requires the scrapping of all of the vessels in the reserve fleet over the next five years—except the 96-ves- sel Ready Reserve Force that is kept in quick activation status for mili- tary supply operation status for mili- tary supply operations in the early stages of a war or emergency.

Scrapping those vessels will save about $10 million in yearly mainte- nance costs, according to the GAO, and their sale for scrap could gener- ate $38 million to $42 million to improve the ready reserve fleet.

Ten Members Added

To Oil Spill Group of risky commercial ships and on de- priving some of them of hull insur- ance.

Coming in the wake of the worst year for casualties for bulk and com- bination carriers, this strategy is part of a plan to be phased in by members of the Institute of London Underwrit- ers (ILU) and Lloyd's of London, the institutions that comprise most of the worldwide marine insurance market.

Representing both the institute and when an owner might be asked to con- duct the extra survey.

Mr.Nixon said tankers and bulk carriers more than 12 years old prob- ably should undergo the new inspec- tion. He advised insurers to check all vessels more than 15 years old.

The ILU, meanwhile, warned that double-hull tankers probably will be liable to higher insurance premiums because of the dangers of gas building up between the two hulls.

Increasing

Safety

A group of energy and transport companies established to fund a nationwide oil-spill response net- work, the Marine Preservation As- sociation, said 10 companies joined the organization since December, bringing total membership to 37.

The group also said it would in- crease its funding for the Washing- ton-based Marine Spill Response

Corp. to $400 million up from $270 million in grants pledged by last summer.

The 10 new members announced are: Citgo Petroleum Corp.; Crown

Central Petroleum Corp.; Clark Oil & Refining Corp.; First United Ship- ping Corp.; Koch Industries Inc.;

Melbury Shipping Co.; Silverton

Shipping Co.; Overseas Shipholding

Group Inc.; Pacific Gas & Electric

Co; and Total Oil Inc.

Inspection Crackdown

Planned By Ship Insurers

Many international marine in- surers, faced with mounting losses, have decided on closer inspections

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Canada

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Burlington, Ontario L7R 4 A7

Telephone: 416-3 35 03 21

Fax: 4 16-3 32 63 99

J.M. Voith GmbH

Marine Engineering Division

Postfach 19 40

D-7920 Heidenheim

Tel. (0 73 21) 37-0

Fax (0 73 21) 37-71 05

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