BIMCO And ASBA Begin To Develop Gas Tanker Voyage Charter Party
One of the most widely used tanker charter parties in the world, ASBATANKVOY, will form the basis when BIMCO and the Association of Ship Brokers & Agents (U.S.A.) Inc. (ASBA) begin to jointly develop a charter party specifically for use in the gas tanker trade.
On 14 May BIMCO’s Documentary Committee countersigned that work should be undertaken jointly with ASBA to develop the standard gas voyage charter party at its meeting in Athens. The charter party will be code named ASBAGASVOY. Earlier this year, ASBA’s Board gave its full support to the joint development with BIMCO of ASBAGASVOY.
ASBATANKVOY was created as a balanced document, and the intention is to maintain the balanced nature are the reasons behind its success. The new form will maintain the clauses from ASBATANKVOY, which are generally relevant to the tanker trade, while replacing specific oil tanker clauses with clauses addressing the specialised nature of the gas tanker trade e.g. in relation to presentation of the vessel.
“A dedicated gas tanker charter party will be particularly useful for BIMCO’s membership, which includes many gas tanker operators. By joining forces with ASBA, we can make sure that BIMCO’s contracts and clauses include an updated and balanced gas tanker charter party form, which owners and charterers can easily use,” says Stephen Harper, Head of Legal, Shipping at BW Group and BIMCO co-chair of the subcommittee.
The new form is intended for use of chartering tankers for LPG, anhydrous ammonia and chemical gases. LNGVOY, a voyage charter party for the carriage of liquefied natural gas, was published jointly by BIMCO and the International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers (GIIGNL) in 2016.
Reference: bimco.org
