The governments of Australia and Indonesia on June 14 announced the completion of two facilities in Jakarta, Indonesia, to improve safety measures across the maritime sector—a Solid Bulk Cargoes Testing and Training Facility and the Ship Safety Inspection Centre of Excellence.
The Solid Bulk Cargoes Testing and Training Facility will create a safer and more efficient mineral export sector by ensuring best practices in the safe carriage of solid bulk cargoes such as coal, bauxite, iron ore fines, and nickel concentrate.
Liquefaction of solid bulk cargoes can result in vessel instability and capsize, the leading cause of major fatalities during the transportation of solid bulk cargoes worldwide. The facility will address this risk through policy, research, technical training and programs that support the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes Code (IMSBC Code).
The new Ship Safety Inspection Center of Excellence will establish an effective safety inspection regime with transparent regulations and processes, ensuring reliable enforcement of SOLAS obligations and standards for both Indonesian-flagged vessels and foreign vessels visiting Indonesian ports.
The new center will achieve this by leveraging the collective expertise of the Indonesian Directorate General of Sea Transportation, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), and the international maritime community, to build the necessary workforce capability to enforce compliance with international conventions.
The two facilities have been made possible by Australia and Indonesia’s Joint Declaration on Maritime Cooperation to foster a safer and more secure maritime environment for seafarers, vessels, and the global shipping industry.
AMSA CEO Mick Kinley will hand the two facilities over to the Indonesian Directorate General of Sea Transportation, the agency under the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation responsible for the formulation and implementation of policies and regulations relating to sea transportation, as well as the supervision and control of sea transportation activities in Indonesia.
Photo credit: iStock/ am Anupong