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1. Reference is made to our Technical Circular No. 018/2017 dated 30^th January 2017.

2. Republic of Marshall Islands has now issued Marine Notice No. 2-011-18 providing requirements for the Ship Security Alert System (SSAS) on Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) flagged vessels.

3. The Administration will no longer receive SSAS alerts directly from any vessels.

4. Shipping companies are required to designate either an internal appointee (preferably the Company Security Officer (CSO) or Alternate Company Security Officer (ACSO) or an external, qualified third party to serve as the “Competent Authority” to receive all SSAS alerts and take appropriate action.

5. The Administration require that to be considered qualified, a Competent Authority must:

• Be available at all times (on a 24/7 basis) to receive and act upon SSAS alerts;

• Be able to accurately identify and react to real, test, or false alerts;

• Understand the SSAS requirements (Part A) and recommendations (Part B) of the ISPS Code and the Administrator’s SSAS requirements contained in the attached notice;

• Maintain a current contact list of relevant authorities (Administrator, Maritime Rescue Coordination Centres (MRCCs), Coastal State Authorities, Information Sharing Centres) to be used in the event of an actual alert; and

• Participate in drills or exercises involving tests of the SSAS.

• The Competent Authority to acknowledge and respond to all test messages directly, ensuring the proper functioning of SSAS equipment and verifying the accuracy of the transmitted data without the need for acknowledgement of receipt by the Administration.

7. Only the real SSAS alerts are to be forwarded by the Company to the Administration (RMI Duty Officer) at: dutyofficer@register-iri.com.

8. Third party Competent Authorities are not allowed to contact the Administration directly. All direct communication with the Administrator must only be from the Company. Where third party is appointed as Competent Authority, the third party is to inform the company and in turn company is responsible to notify the Administration immediately for cases of real SSAS alert.

9. SSAS alert messages must include the following ship information:

• Vessel Name;

• IMO Ship Identification Number;

• Call Sign;

• Maritime Mobile Service Identity (MMSI) Number;

• Date and Time 9UTC);

• Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) position (latitude and longitude);

• Course and Speed;

• CSO 24/7 phone number; and

• Alternate CSO 24/7 phone number.

1. In view of above, the Administration recommends Companies to ensure that the SSAS unit is reprogrammed so that alerts are only transmitted to the designated Competent Authority and the Administration’s email address be removed from the unit’s program.

11. The CSO must remain a recipient of all SSAS transmissions along with Company designated Competent Authority.

12. The testing of any newly programmed SSAS settings must be conducted to the satisfaction of the Competent Authority and any respective SSP amendment in regards to reprogramming of SSAS must be reviewed and same will be verified during the next scheduled ISPS Code verification audit after 01 April 2017.

13. Ship Owners / operators and masters of RMI flagged vessels are advised to be guided by the above and attached Marine Notice No. 2-011-18.

Enclosure:  

1. Republic of Marshall Islands Marine Notice No. 2-011-18.

Disclaimer:

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