OCEMA and the ports filed an agreement with the Federal Maritime Commission regarding the cooperative effort. In addition to Houston, the other ports involved are the South Carolina Ports Authority, Georgia Ports Authority, North Carolina State Ports Authority, the Port of Virginia and the Massachusetts Port Authority. The terminal weighing approach aims to ensure fluidity at major East and Gulf Coast ports and to provide shippers, carriers and terminals with a simple means of compliance with the SOLAS VGM requirements starting 1st July.
Under the proposal, marine terminals would weigh a container on certified terminal scales, pursuant to the equivalency declared by the U.S. Coast Guard. This weight could then be used to fulfill the U.S. exporter’s IMO SOLAS VGM requirement.
The approach would provide flexibility for shippers at participating ports. Details of the proposal are still being vetted.