On Feb. 28, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, AMSA, issued a notice saying it would deny a container ship, MSC Kymea II, 1732 TEU, a 90-day port ban.That means the container ship will not be allowed to dock at any Australian port for the next three months.

So far this year, AMSA has detained five MSC vessels. AMSA explained in the notice that the ban on the liner container ship was imposed because the ship's operator, MSC Shipmanagement (MSC), had been performing below standard for several months, including some very serious ship maintenance issues.

According to AMSA, a total of nine MSC ships have been detained in Australian ports in the past two years, including five MSC container ships in 2023 alone. Many of these detentions revealed systematic substandard maintenance on MSC ships.

For MSC Kymea II, AMSA said a total of 21 defects were found during a recent inspection of the ship, which was built in 2006. These include deficiencies in the lifeboats' steering systems, fire-safety systems, flammable storage hazards, and safety chains of multiple railings used to prevent falls by stevedores binding cargo. Another MSC vessel inspected by AMSA about two weeks ago was found to have corroded an air pipe in a fuel tank, and evidence suggests that the vessel tried to hide the severity of the defect from authorities by covering the rusty pipe with canvas and painting it.

"AMSA enforces a zero tolerance standard for substandard vessels operating in Australian waters and we will not hesitate to prohibit vessels that do not meet basic safety standards from docking in Australian ports," he said. "The Australian public expects vessels operating in Australian waters to meet or exceed minimum international standards for safety and environmental protection. Ships should take note that this repeated poor performance is unacceptable and Australia will take action."

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