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hip owners, operators and ship masters should make necessary arrangements with the Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji (MSAF) and other stakeholders on the slipping or docking of their ship and the renewal of their ships survey certificate,” a recent statement from MSAF said.
“If the ship docking or slipping survey certificate has expired, the ship cannot be cleared by the MSAF Enforcement Officers on departure. If the ship departed from a remote port, the owner can liaise with the authority for an extension of the survey certificate until it reaches a major port such as Suva.”
Meanwhile MSAF has warned vessel owners that they will face the consequences if their vessels do not go up the ramp on time.
“It is the ship owners, operators and ship masters’ responsibility to know their ships certificate and their expiry dates,” the statement said.
“All commercially operated ships need to be slipped or docked every two years. This is called the docking survey. New ship owners that applied for a four yearly slipping and docking survey, MSAF assess and approve their applications on a case by case basis.
“Such approvals are based on the layers and quality of the antifouling paints and as advised by the Classification Society. All commercially operated ships need to go through a periodical survey: Fishing vessels are surveyed annually; other commercial vessels at every six months while pleasure craft are surveyed every three years.
“It is the ship owners, operators and ship masters responsibility to know their ships certificate and their expiry dates.”
MSAF has clarified that all ships registered in Fiji are registered in Suva but the Shipping Company can be registered in other ports.
“All ships registered in Fiji are registered in Suva and their area of operation is entirely up to their Coastal Trading License (CTL) application (Area of Operations),” MSAF stated.