Port state control

Inspection of foreign-flag ships is carried out through Port State Control (PSC). The main purpose of PSC is to determine whether foreign ships in national ports comply with the requirements of international regulations on maritime safety, security, prevention of pollution from ships, as well as standards of shipboard living and working conditions. The sovereign right of a port state to inspect foreign-flag ships is established in various international conventions and regional agreements. In the Republic of Lithuania, PSC is exercised by the Ship Control and Traffic Monitoring Division, and its activities are regulated by the Law of the Republic of Lithuania on Maritime Safety.

Since 1 July 2006, Lithuania has been a member of the regional organization known as the Paris Memorandum of Understanding (Paris MoU) on Port State Control. On 1 January 2011, the New Inspection Regime (NIR) on PSC was adopted by the Paris MoU and EU member states. The harmonized inspection procedures for foreign flag ships are regulated by Directive 2009/16/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on Port State Control, as well as the Paris MoU. In Lithuania, the NIR is implemented through the Order of the Minister of Transport and Communications of 29 December 2010 No. 3-759, which amended the earlier Order of 15 January 2004 No. 3-23 “Concerning the approval of the Regulations on Port State Control in ships registered abroad present in Lithuanian seaports.”

According to the NIR system, periodic inspections of ships depend on the so-called Ship Risk Profile (SRP) and are determined by a time window:

• High Risk Ships (HRS): may be inspected after 5 months and must be inspected after 6 months since the last inspection in the Paris MoU region or an EU member state.
• Standard Risk Ships (SRS): may be inspected after 10 months and must be inspected after 12 months.
• Low Risk Ships (LRS): may be inspected after 24 months and must be inspected after 36 months.

In addition to periodic inspections, ships may be subject to additional inspections triggered by overriding or unexpected factors, depending on the severity of the occurrence. The NIR does not limit the right of the state to carry out inspections of foreign-flag ships in accordance with existing international conventions in force.

The Company’s performance, as per the ISM Code, also influences the calculation of the Ship Risk Profile. Both the SRP and Company Performance can be calculated via the official system.

According to NIR provisions, the operator, agent, or master of a ship classified as High Risk, as well as each passenger ship, oil tanker, gas carrier, chemical tanker, or bulk carrier older than 12 years and subject to an expanded inspection, must notify the administration of the seaport or sea terminal of the Republic of Lithuania of its arrival at least 72 hours before the expected time of arrival at the port, terminal, or anchorage, or before departure from the previous port or anchorage if the voyage is expected to take less than 72 hours. All ships must notify the administration of their pre-arrival information at least 24 hours before the estimated time of arrival (ETA), or before departure from the previous port if the voyage takes less than 24 hours.

Administrations of ports and sea terminals must provide the SafeSeaNet system with the actual time of arrival (ATA) and departure (ATD) from the port, terminal, or anchorage.

If, upon inspection in a Lithuanian port, a ship is found not to meet maritime safety requirements or to fail compliance with standards of shipboard living and working conditions, and the ship is detained, the ship operator must compensate for the costs of re-inspection according to the procedure established by the Government or its authorized institution.

The shipowner or operator has the right to appeal against a detention decision. Appeal procedures are determined under the Paris MoU framework. If a detention is found to be unjustified due to the decision of a Port State Control Officer, the shipowner is entitled to compensation for damages under the national legislation of the Republic of Lithuania.

The NIR also provides for banning measures, which may be imposed on certain types of ships, preventing them from entering Paris MoU and EU ports and anchorages. The list of such ships is publicly available. (List of ships may be found here.)