March 19 ------ A court in Australia sided with its maritime authorities and ordered the owners of a bulker to pay a fine as well as court costs for failing to follow safety directions. The fine comes after the Australian Maritime Authority (AMSA) last year banned the vessel from sailing to Australia also related to safety issues in 2023.
KMAX Leader, a Liberia-flagged bulk carrier, arrived at the Port of Gladstone in October 2023 reporting propulsion issues. Through the port agency, Universal Shipping Alliance, AMSA was advised the vessel would require eight to 10 days to complete repairs. Instead, the port and AMSA found themselves dealing with the ship for four months while two cyclones also impacted the area. The vessel finally left Australia in February 2024 under tow after engineers had repeatedly failed to resolve the mechanical problems.
AMSA now says, “The captain of the KMAX Leader and its Australian agent, Universal Shipping Alliance, failed to respond to and act on the issued direction, despite repeated requests.” After the vessel left the port under tow, AMSA slapped a 12-month ban on it from entering Australian waters. “In this case, with a cyclone bearing down on the port, the consequences of not engaging a towage vessel to move the vessel out of the port, could have been catastrophic,” said AMSA Executive Director Operations Michael Drake. He warned that ignoring lawful directions from AMSA is not an acceptable option.
AMSA emphasizes that a failure to act on a direction is a serious violation of the Navigation Act 2012 and carries severe consequences. As such it went to court and now the Gladstone Magistrates Court agreed. A fine of A$63,000 (US$40,000) was imposed on the owner along with court costs for failing to comply with AMSA’s written direction.
Owned and managed from the Philippines, KMAX Leader was built in 2010 and became one of four ships AMSA barred from Australia during 2024. Three of the vessels, including KMAX Leader, were banned for maintenance issues while the fourth was banned due to improper storage of explosives and repeated violations by the shipping company. AMSA highlights during its 2023-24 financial year, it issued 57 directions to vessels and operators in relation to safety breaches, mechanical deficiencies, and maritime labor issues. “We will not compromise on the safety of vessels and crew, or any potential threat to the community or environment,” said Drake.
Source: maritime-executive.com
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