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Around 80 members of the maritime industry from the Middle East and India attended a seminar in Dubai recently organised by leading global marine insurer, North P&I Club, which focused on some of the most pressing challenges facing the industry in the region. The event, at the Taj Dubai, looked especially at the practical and legal implications of the changing sanctions regime imposed on Iran and the global fuel sulphur cap being introduced on 1st January 2020.
North’s Global Director of Underwriting, Savraj Mehta, opened the event which he said was aimed at encouraging its members in the Middle East and Subcontinent to prepare early for the likely operational impact of these changes.
Mark Church, Director (FD&D), updated delegates on the USA’s re-imposition of Iranian sanctions. Church commented that, “practical issues will continue to impact on the ability to trade with Iran even where the trade is permissible. We encourage members to enforce their own due diligence and assess high-risk areas to avoid non-compliance.”
Delegates were also given an overview of the implications of the 2020 sulphur cap, with North highlighting the importance of preparing for the change now in order to avoid charterparty disputes in the future. Alvin Forster, Deputy Director (Loss Prevention), commented that, “This isn’t a simple choice for shipowners. We want to help our members understand the key issues and support them in making informed decisions on their options for compliance”.
The sulphur cap challenges faced by shipowners and charterers are not just technical. Charterparty provisions will require close attention and this will be particularly pressing when fixing long term charterparties that will span the enforcement date, delegates were told.
