Delays expected as VGM kicks in

The International Maritime

Organisation (IMO) Safety

of Life at Sea (Solas) verified

gross mass (VGM) regulation

becomes effective today (1 July)

– and it doesn’t seem as if the

industry, is quite ready for it.

Industry stalwart, Mike

Walwyn, commented that

one of the big question marks

remained around China

and India. “In the last few

international meetings we

have attended it has become

apparent that there is no clarity

on the Chinese or Indian

approach.”

He said often Chinese

regulations were very openended,

making interpretation

and compliance difficult.

Locally, the expectation is

that there will be delays and,

according to Walwyn, there is

seemingly a preference at the

moment for Method 1. “Only a

handful of shippers had been

accredited to certify Method 2

by the South African Maritime

Safety Association (Samsa) in

the past few weeks.”

Dewald Theron of Mweza

Trans – which has invested in

a weighbridge at its Cape Town

facility – agrees that Method

1 is far easier for the South

African shipper than Method 2.

“The cost of weighing a

container is estimated to be

anything from R300 to R600,”

he said, which is similar in

pricing to cost estimates in the

European Union, which have

been estimated to be about ¤35

to ¤39 per container.