Indonesia and the Philippines – Safe Carriage of Nickel Ore Cargoes 1 February 2011 No.10-026 Introduction As members may be aware in October and November 2010 three vessels the 'Jian Fu Star', 'Nasco Diamond' and 'Hong Wei' sank during the carriage of nickel ore from Indonesia to China with the loss of forty four seafarers. The cause of the sinkings has not yet been definitively determined but nickel ore, like iron ore fines and many concentrates, is a cargo which may liquefy, if the moisture content of the cargo exceeds the Transportable Moisture Limit (TML) when loaded. Liquefaction of such a cargo can result in loss of stability which in turn can lead to a vessel capsizing. It is therefore very possible that all three vessels were lost as a result of cargo liquefaction. There have been a number of other recent reports of cargoes of nickel ore loaded in both Indonesia and the Philippines liquefying and causing loss of stability to the carrying vessel but fortunately not resulting in the loss of the vessel. In one such case the carrying vessel grounded causing extensive hull damage. Currently nickel ore is only loaded in four locations in the Philippines, Santa Cruz (Luzon), Surigao and Tubay (Mindanao) and Rio Tuba (Palawan Island). Liquefaction of some ore cargoes can be caused by the normal incidents of a sea voyage, for example the motion of the ship in the seaway or vibrations caused by the running of the main engine or other on-board machinery. The International Group informally raised its concerns about the loading and carriage of nickel ore from Indonesia and the Philippines, with the Indonesian and Philippine delegations that attended the 88th session of the IMO Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) which was held between 24 November - 3 December 2010. Intercargo made an intervention at that session expressing its concerns with respect to the hazards and risks associated with the carriage of cargoes that can liquefy such as nickel ore. In addition Intercargo po