Nickel Ore loaded in Philippines – Problems Persist

Nickel ore is a Group A cargo and as such there is a risk of liquefaction. The cargoes loaded in the Philippines are considered high risk and have a considerable history of liquefaction instances.

It’s not always about the moisture

Nickel ore from this region typically has a high moisture content, but its other geotechnical properties could cause a cargo to dynamically fail on passage regardless of its moisture content.

While a number of instances concern cargoes that were visually wet and the moisture content was found to be in excess of the transportable moisture content (TML), there are also cases where the ‘dynamic failure’ of the cargo has caused similarly serious stability problems.

In these cases, the cargo may appear reasonably dry and no splattering observed during loading.

Understanding the can test

The can test is a very useful tool for indicating if a cargo has the potential to be unsafe. Where a cargo has a high moisture content, the result of a can test can be quite easily interpreted.

However, with cargoes that have a lower moisture content but are more vulnerable to ‘dynamic failure’, the can test result may be less obvious. In these instances, the can tests may not exhibit any obvious signs of moisture or show a flow state.

This does not mean the can test is of no use. In these cases, the can test showed signs of significant volumetric change, which should be a trigger to investigate further and carry out laboratory testing.

Remember: the can test does not confirm if a cargo is safe to load; only full laboratory testing can confirm this. The can test indicates whether a cargo is potentially unsafe to load. The lack of moisture in the test does not confirm safety to load.

Laboratory testing

Only testing in a laboratory can properly determine whether a cargo is unsafe to carry. Make sure that your charterparty does not prevent your right to take samples and test them at an independent laboratory.

Mandatory notification

Liquefaction kills. Intercargo data shows cargo liquefaction caused the deaths of 101 seafarers on bulk carriers in the decade from 2009 to 2018.

We remind our Members of the Circulars in relation to loading nickel ore and the requirement to notify North when planning to load nickel ore from the Philippines or Indonesia. Members should be aware that they may be prejudicing cover if they fail to notify the club that they plan to fix or charter a ship, or that a ship has been ordered, to load nickel ore from a port in Indonesia or the Philippines.

• Circular Ref: 2012/023 – Dangers of Carrying Nickel Ore from Indonesia and the Philippines – Mandatory Notification Requirements.
• Circular Ref: 2011/009 – Indonesia and the Philippines – Safe Carriage of Nickel Ore Cargoes.

All notifications should be sent to the following email address: nickel.ore@nepia.com