International Maritime Organization (IMO)
The IMO is the maritime organisation of the United Nations and the most important forum for international cooperation in the area of safety at sea and the prevention of pollution at sea.
The IMO prepares regulations and standards for international shipping relating to safety at sea (SOLAS Convention, ISPS Code), pollution (MARPOL and OPRC Conventions), certification and training (STCW Convention) and other areas (with a total of around 40 conventions). The IMO has 169 member states and cooperates with over 30 non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The IMO is a technical organisation, and most of the IMO's work takes place in a number of committees and subcommittees, 14 in total. Most of these committees meet for a week every year. The Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) and the Norwegian Maritime Directorate appoint and manage the Norwegian delegations to the IMO's committees. The Norwegian Coastal Administration participates on a number of these committees, some on a permanent basis and some on an ad hoc basis.
The most important IMO committees for the Norwegian Coastal Administration are:
- MSC (Maritime Safety Committee).
- MEPC (Marine Environment Protection Committee).
- NAV (Safety of Navigation).
- COMSAR (Radiocommunications and Search and Rescue).
Important IMO issues for the Norwegian Coastal Administration include:
- Development of the e-navigation concept.
- Development of binding guidelines for ships operating in polar regions (Polar Code).
- Approval of risk-reducing ship routeing measures.
- Approval of ship reporting systems, such as Safe Sea Net (SSN).
- Developments related to Automatic Identification System (AIS).
- Developments related to Long Range Identification and Tracking (LRIT).
- Regulations and standards related to the pilot service.
- ISPS Code – International Ship and Port Facility Security Code.
The Norwegian Coastal Administration is responsible with regard to work within the IMO as the coastal state authority and port state control authority.
Preliminary Norwegian meetings, where the relevant agencies and stakeholders participate, are held prior to every IMO meeting, to formulate Norwegian points of view.
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Latest news
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Work will now begin on the Stad Ship Tunnel
The Norwegian Coastal Administration has received the assignment letter from the Ministry of Transport and Communications, which gives a green light to start preparations for the construction of the Stad Ship Tunnel.
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Safer Shipping in the Arctic
ArcticInfo is a website that provides information about the conditions in Arctic waters, and decision support to support safer voyages. By increasing maritime safety in the High North, we reduce the risk of unwanted incidents and accidents.
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New AI monitoring tool introduced in the VTS service
The Norwegian Coastal Administration will soon introduce a new digital decision support tool based on Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms that provides more automated monitoring of ship traffic. The tool gives VTS centres a better basis for earlier detection of unwanted and critical traffic situations.
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Fees for 2021
Fees for 2021 have increased to meet the expected increase in prices and wages by 2.1 per cent on average in 2021. The Norwegian government will finance the loss in income caused by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
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The NCA will build the world's first ship tunnel
Following the government's budget negotiations, funds have been set aside for the start-up of the Stad Ship Tunnel in 2021. The project is now estimated to cost NOK 3.45 billion.
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