Brookes Bell brings insights on Ports of Refuge at this year’s Salvage & Wreck Conference

Seatrade Maritime’s Salvage & Wreck Conference has once again staked its claim as the leading event for the salvage and wreck industry, bringing together shipping, salvage, insurance and legal professionals from all over the world to discuss some of the most critical issues affecting the sector.

This year’s conference, which took place at the Leonardo Royal Hotel in London, saw hundreds of members of the shipping community come together to understand more about several of 2024’s biggest events.  These included the Baltimore Bridge incident in March and ongoing issues for commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

Ports of Refuge were highlighted as one area of note during the conference.  For vessels in distress, finding a timely and receptive port of refuge for complex casualties is becoming increasingly challenging, with delays in finding willing hosts for distressed vessels creating additional complications that increases risk of further issues.

Adrian Scales, Master Mariner and Director of Europe for Brookes Bell, was a part of the conference panel that discussed these issues, bringing his expertise and that of the wider Brookes Bell experience directly to the salvage and wreck community.  He was joined on stage by Lisa McAuliffe, Deputy to the Secretary of State’s Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention (SOSREP) for the UK Government, and Paul van ‘t Hof, Operations Manager for EMEA and SMIT Salvage.

The panel discussed some of the challenges that various stakeholders face when navigating Ports of Refuge, including legal and liability issues related to cleanup or damage repairs, environmental risks for vessels carrying hazardous cargoes, port capacity challenges, and potential reputational risks to those associated with Ports of Refuge.

Crucially, Adrian highlighted that incidents involving vessels and Ports of Refuge are multistakeholder operations, requiring stringent protocols and communication between ship owners, insurers, port authorities, environmental agencies and local governments.

“There can often be a lack of clear protocols or inconsistent policies when it comes to Ports of Refuge.  This can delay decision making and can exacerbate an incident or cause further damage to the vessel, the port or the environment.  It is vital that clear lines of communication between all the stakeholders are drawn to ensure there are no misunderstandings or mishandlings of the situation,” he noted.

This year’s Salvage & Wreck Conference also brought with it an opportunity for Brookes Bell to catch up with the wider community, many of whom it continues to have strong relationships with as Brookes Bell helps to respond to some of the biggest maritime incidents in the world today.  Joining Adrian in London was a cohort of Brookes Bell professionals who all took part in the various lectures, panel discussions and networking opportunities to reinforce its position as the leading maritime technical and scientific consultancy in the world.

“Conferences like these are important for us at Brookes Bell as it enables us to speak directly with our customers and partners.  Many of them are global and bringing the community together in London like this was a fantastic opportunity to reinforce our support for their operations.  Moreover, it reinforces our position as a steady and reliable partner in the world of maritime salvage and wreck,” said Adam Whittle, Marketing Manager for Brookes Bell.