Liberia strikes blow for global shipping with challenge to Brazilian court ruling

The Liberian Registry, in co-operation with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has succeeded in helping the holder of a Liberian mortgage to overturn a decision of the Brazilian courts which, if left uncontested, could have had serious adverse legal and economic consequences for the international shipping industry.

Pursuant to the acquisition of the FPSO (Floating, Production, Storage, and Offloading vessel) OSX-3 in March 2012 by a Dutch company and following re-registration under the Liberian flag, the vessel was mortgaged in favour of Nordic Trustee ASA, a Norwegian entity acting as the security trustee and mortgagee of the vessel.

In an action before the lower court in Brazil, an unsecured third-party creditor, Banco BTG Pactual S/A Cayman Branch, successfully challenged the status of the Liberian mortgage in Brazil on the grounds that the mortgage was not registered with the Admiralty Court of Brazil and that it was only filed with Liberia.

On 16 November, 2017, the Superior Court of Justice in Brazil unanimously granted Nordic Trustee’s special appeal and the amicus (‘friend of the court’) motion filed jointly by the Liberian Registry and the ICS, of which the Liberian Shipowners' Council is a member, against this decision. The motion sought to clarify and rescind the lower court ruling, on the ground that it created uncertainty around the enforceability of mortgages for the majority of the world fleet - including those registers in major flag states such as the US, the Marshall Islands, China and Germany - when such vessels were trading in Brazil.

Liberia took swift and decisive action following the decision of the lower court by filing the joint amicus motion to the main proceeding through its local counsel, Basch & Rameh. Liberia successfully submitted to the Court that the decision of the lower court would have an adverse legal and economic impact on the shipping industry, that it overlooked international conventions, and that it ignored international custom.

Other ship registries, meanwhile, decided not to join the motion despite having major interests in Brazil and notwithstanding the possibility that their mortgages could be questioned and invalidated.

Hara Gisholt, Vice-President, Business & Legal Affairs for the Liberian Registry says, “This has been a long and difficult process but one we were determined to see through. Recognizing that the lower court decision could have been detrimental to international maritime trade, we decided to join as an amicus party early on. Although we were navigating uncharted waters, we knew this was the right decision.”

Scott Bergeron, CEO of the Liberian Registry says, “This is an historic victory for ship financing, international commerce and the Liberian maritime programme. The Liberian Registry’s swift and meticulous actions exemplify what we stand for – excellence, quality and being a true partner for our clients.”

To request an English translation of the court decision, please email Hara Gisholt at hara.gisholt@liscr.com


The Liberian Registry is the world’s most technologically advanced maritime administration. It has a long-established track record of combining the highest standards of safety for vessels and crews with the highest levels of responsive and innovative service to owners. Moreover, it has a well-deserved reputation for supporting international legislation designed to maintain and improve the safety and effectiveness of the shipping industry and protection of the marine environment.
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Bureau Veritas approves FPSO composite repair system

Leading international classification society Bureau Veritas has approved in principle the repair of offshore structures using the bonded composite product Coldshield, developed by Paris-based start-up Cold Pad. Coldshield is a composite structural reinforcement specifically developed for the harsh environments of offshore units.

Matthieu de Tugny, Senior Vice-President and Head of Offshore, Bureau Veritas, says, "Coldshield offers a long awaited solution for the repair of corroded offshore structure without the need for welding or downtime. We have combined our expertise in marine composites and bonding with our experience of the hydrodynamic loadings and constraints of offshore units to assess Coldshield. We believe that Coldshield is the first non-welded structural repair method available for an FPSO hull.”

Marine offshore structures such as FPSOs are subject to a harsh environment combining high loads, fatigue and potential heavy corrosion. The classical method of repair by welding is not always possible, or needs long downtime. The idea of bonded structural composite repair has been under development for many years but bonding and composite repairs usually require a controlled environment, making them unsuitable for offshore structures.

Coldshield is a patented solution to make reliable structural bonded repairs. It is a complex product made of high standard composites, specifically chosen polymers, alloyed in a shield of Superduplex steel and fluorosilicon joints. Specific production techniques such as vacuum resin injection and structural bonding were optimised to reach the robustness necessary for onboard bonding in an offshore environment. The product was developed in partnership with Total and IFPeN.

Approval in Principle by Bureau Veritas confirms that the design is feasible, achievable, and that the research and development campaign is relevant to demonstrate the ability of the product to behave in accordance with its specifications. Bureau Veritas' engineers verified the suitability to the environment for installation and product life, composite and polymer design, characteristics and ageing, test adequacy with the on-board loads and environment severity, structural efficiency and strength of the whole product.

Cold Pad is a Paris-based start-up company formed to develop a safe and economical solution for the structural maintenance of FPSO Hulls. www.cold-pad.com

Bureau Veritas is a world leader in laboratory testing, inspection and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has more than 66,000 employees in around 1,400 offices and laboratories located all across the globe. Bureau Veritas helps its clients to improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility. Bureau Veritas is listed on Euronext Paris and belongs to the Next 20 index.

Compartment A, ISIN code FR 0006174348, stock symbol: BVI.

Corporate website www.bureauveritas.com/marine-and-offshore

Marine client portal www.veristar.com  

Contacts:

Philippe Boisson

Bureau Veritas

+33 (0)1 55 24 71 98

philippe.boisson@bureauveritas.com

Bureau Veritas offshore rolling research rewarded

A team in the R&D department of leading international classification society Bureau Veritas, working with Brazil’s Petrobras, has been awarded the prestigious OMAE 2013 Best Paper of Offshore Technology Symposium for its paper detailing ground breaking research into second-order rolling of FLNGs.

 The basic research in the paper has led to a Joint Industry Project involving nineteen companies including most of the energy majors and managed by Bureau Veritas which is developing harmonised guidelines for the estimation of roll motions of FPSOs.

The award was made yesterday by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) at the ASME 2014 International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering held in San Francisco.

The award was given to Flavia C. Rezende, Manager, Bureau Veritas Technology Center, Rio de Janeiro,   Allan C. de Oliveira, Petrobras R&D Center, Xiao-bo Chen, Director, Bureau Veritas Deepwater Research and Technology Center, Singapore and Fabio Menezes, Petrobras R&D Center, Rio de Janeiro.

The paper, entitled “A Comparison of Different Approximations for Computation of Second Order Roll Motions for a FLNG”, details extensive research into the roll motions of FPSOs or FLNGs with long natural periods, above the periods of the waves, which is a non-linear response not yet fully understood. That research led to the start of the JIP Non Linear Roll which will deliver its results next year.

For a graphic go to http://bit.ly/1jw4QLQ  or e mail john@merlinco.com

 l Bureau Veritas is a world leader in conformity assessment and certification services. Created in 1828, the Group has 61,000 employees in around 1,330 offices and laboratories located in 140 countries. Bureau Veritas helps its clients to improve their performance by offering services and innovative solutions in order to ensure that their assets, products, infrastructure and processes meet standards and regulations in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility.

 

www.bureauveritas.com  for corporate information                              www.veristar.com for marine information

For more information: 

Philippe Boisson

Bureau Veritas

+33 (0)1 55 24 71 98

philippe.boisson@bureauveritas.com