Category Archives: Admiralty & Maritime
Don’t Demur on Demurrage
In April-May 2017’s Bunkerspot Magazine, firm Principal Steve Simms addresses some of the details of demurrage situations that bunker buyers, sellers and brokers often face and understanding the operation of demurrage in bunker purchases and deliveries. Most bunker deliveries involve bunker barges or tankers, or deliveries to or from bunkering piers. Bunker barge and… Read More »
Effective Chapter 15 Strategies for Marine Equipment Lessors and Maritime Lien Creditors
Most of the significant maritime bankruptcies of the last five years, including Hanjin and OW Bunkers, have utilized Chapter 15 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. Debtors have filed insolvency proceedings outside of the U.S., and then used Chapter 15 to assist those proceedings. Frequently, however, U.S. Bankruptcy Courts in Chapter 15 cases have… Read More »
Post-truth: Make Bunkering Great Again
In the latest edition of Bunkerspot, firm Principal Steve Simms explained the latest post-truth challenges to the bunkering industry in the context of recent world events, including the election of President Donald J. Trump and the U.K. vote for “Brexit.” He cautions that while the bunkering world embraces electronic information sources in the place… Read More »
Effective Economic Disincentive and 2020 .5% Sulphur Cap Enforcement
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently explained the enforcement challenges that lie ahead from the October 27, 2016 decision by the International Maritime Organization’s (“IMO”) Marine Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) that by January 1, 2020, world-wide ships’ bunker sulphur limits (expressed in terms of % m/m – that is by mass) would be limited to… Read More »
World Bunkering Interview with Steve Simms
Firm Principal and IBIA board member Steve Simms was recently interviewed by David Hughes for World Bunkering. Simms was asked to explain how his interest in maritime law developed and where he sees the industry going in the near future. He explained that maritime law has been a passion of his even before he… Read More »
Hanjin, OW and Preparing for the Next Unthinkable Sinking
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently outlined the circumstances leading up the collapse of the world’s seventh largest container line, which occurred just after the collapse of OW, one of the world’s largest bunker traders and providers. Many players in the maritime industry thought that both OW and Hanjin were unsinkable because they were simply… Read More »
Hanjin and the “Titanic Effect”
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently explained the latest challenge facing the maritime industry – the insolvency of the world’s seventh largest container line, Hanjin. Following the arrest of the HANJIN PARADIP in Durban in May, 2016, many still believed that a Hanjin insolvency was impossible because they thought it was too big to fail…. Read More »
OW, Lions, and Last-ING Appetite
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently explained the latest challenge facing ship owners and charterers in the wake of the OW insolvency. By jumping on the ING bandwagon and attempting to avoid having to pay physical suppliers for their bunker supply, many owners and charterers have made a regrettable decision for which they just may… Read More »
Enforcement of Sulphur Regulations by the European Commission
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently explained the latest challenge of the European Commission (EC) in the enforcement of sulphur regulations on marine fuel suppliers in an article for Bunkerspot. With the anticipated imposition of the 2020 global 0.50% sulphur cap through Directive 1999/32/EC, the marine fuel industry is bracing itself for an anticipated host… Read More »
The Impact of RES COGITANS on the Bunker Industry
Firm Principal Steve Simms recently explained the outcome of the UK Supreme Court decision in the Res Cogitans case in an article for Bunkerspot. The May 11, 2016 decision in the Res Cogitans case essentially requires a vessel owner or manager to pay multiple times for bunkers supplied to the vessel, even to parties… Read More »
