Upcoming Contracts and Clauses
Overview
Using feedback and experience from members and the industry, BIMCO keeps all its clauses and contracts under review. Currently, we are working on the following updates or new projects.
Upcoming Contracts and Clauses
| CLAUSE OR CONTRACT | DETAILS | EXPECTED PUBLICATION DATE |
| Carbon Clauses | BIMCO will continue to develop clauses aimed at assisting the industry in the transition to decarbonise. The EEXI Transition Clause for Time Charter Parties 2021, EU ETS Allowances Clause for Time Charter Parties 2022 and CII Operations Clause for Time Charter Parties 2022 have all been published and work is continuing to develop other carbon clauses. The carbon clauses subcommittee is currently considering the development of a CII clause for voyage charter parties but high priorities are also a CII clause for Contracts of Affreightment (COAs) and a voyage charter party clause to be used in the context of emission trading scheme allowances. | Ongoing |
| LNG Bunker Terms | To reflect the increasing use of and interest in alternative fuels by the industry, BIMCO is developing an LNG bunker purchase annex for the BIMCO Bunker Terms 2018. | March 2023 |
| Russian Oil Cap Scheme Clause | BIMCO has formed a subcommittee to draft a standard clause following the recent decision of the Council of the European Union on 3 December 2022 which sets an oil price cap for crude oil and petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals originating in or exported from Russia. The overall aim is to develop a practical and workable clause which includes addressing the requirement to obtain an attestation in compliance with the decision of the EU Council and the future developments of the regulations. | April 2023 |
| On-trading Clause for MOAs |
A freestanding clause is being developed for SHIPSALE 22 and other Memoranda of Agreement (MOAs) to give the seller protection against the ship sold being sent for recycling within an agreed period after the sale. |
April 2023 |
| Wreck Removal Agreements | Revision of the suite of BIMCO’s wreck removal agreements, WRECKSTAGE 2010, WRECKHIRE 2010 and WRECKFIXED 2010 is well underway. The main objective is to introduce an optional clause applying quantitative risk assessment (QRA) methods. | April 2023 |
| SYNACOMEX | A revision is underway of the SYNACOMEX 2000 grain voyage charter party of which the French Union for Grains and Seeds Trade (SYNACOMEX) and Armateurs de France (ADF) are the joint copyright holders. BIMCO has established a review committee to consider this widely used charter party which SYNACOMEX and ADF have requested BIMCO to approve. SYNACOMEX 1990 and 2000 have both been approved by BIMCO. | April 2023 |
| ASBATANKVOY | The ASBATANKVOY charter party is widely used in the tanker trade but has not been updated since 1977. BIMCO is working together with the Association of Shipbrokers and Agents (ASBA) in New York to refresh and modernise this popular form. | October 2023 |
| Quiet Enjoyment Letter | Complementing the suite of term sheets for ship financing (SHIPTERM and SHIPTERM S) and ship sale and leaseback transactions (SHIPLEASE), BIMCO is developing a standard letter of quiet enjoyment (QEL). When entering into long term charters or lease agreements, owners will often be requested to provide such QELs from lenders addressing the charterers’ or lessees’ undisturbed use of the chartered or leased ship. | October 2023 |
| BIMCO War Clauses |
The BIMCO CONWARTIME and VOYWAR War Risks Clauses, respectively for time and voyage charter parties, were last revised in 2013 and the BIMCO War Cancellation Clause was revised in 2004. Considering the geopolitical landscape and the importance of these clauses a revision has been undertaken to ensure that the provisions remain in line with commercial needs and insurance requirements. |
October 2023 |
| AUTOSHIPMAN | AUTOSHIPMAN will be the first ship management contract for autonomous ships. It is modelled on BIMCO’s SHIPMAN agreement. A “beta” version of the AUTOSHIPMAN agreement will be tested in the industry early 2023 to evaluate its provisions related to the remote control operation of a ship. This will assist the subcommittee identifying the work needed to update AUTOSHIPMAN. Relevant amendments to SHIPMAN will also be reflected in the agreement. | 2023 |
| SHIPMAN, CREWMAN, SUPERMAN and LAYUPMAN | BIMCO’s suite of ship management agreements (SHIPMAN, CREWMAN A and CREWMAN B, SUPERMAN and LAYUPMAN) are being revised to take into account relevant developments in ship management and related third-party management practices since the agreements were published. |
2023 |
| Offshore installation contract | A feasibility study for developing a standard contract for large scale installation projects in the renewables sector will begin in Q1, 2023. Such contract would complement BIMCO’s widely used suite of offshore charter parties and support the fast-growing renewable sector. | 2024 |
| SUPPLYTIME 2017 Annexes | Work to develop a special tasks annex to SUPPLYTIME 2017 dealing with dynamic positioning continues. Furthermore, an annex regarding ocean towage and salvage support is being developed. | 2023 |
| HEAVYLIFTVOY | A revision of HEAVYLIFTVOY, BIMCO’s standard voyage charter party for the mid-sized heavy lift sector carrying specialist cargo published in 2009, will commence in Q1, 2023. | 2024 |
| In-water hull cleaning contract | Together with hull cleaning companies BIMCO has developed a set of standards for conducting in-water hull cleaning. A standard contract will be developed to govern the relationship between shipowners and cleaning service providers (applying the BIMCO standard). Work to develop the new standard will begin in Q1, 2023. | 2024 |
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