GASVOY 2005 is a voyage charter party developed for use in the LPG, ammonia and liquefied petrochemical gas trades. The latest edition of this contract is GASVOY 2005.
Copyright in GASVOY 2005 is held by BIMCO.
Sample copy of GASVOY 2005
Download nowThe following notes provide a background to the thinking behind many of the provisions of the charter party and are provided as guiding notes to users:
Particular note should be taken of Box L, which deals with the Charter Party Administration Clause (Clause 31 in Part II of GASVOY 2005). It is important to be aware that the Clause does NOT take effect unless the parties have expressly agreed to it either by ticking the appropriate box in Part I or by otherwise indicating its application in a similar form of confirmation note.
Furthermore, specific reference is made to Clause 6 (Notice of Readiness), to establish a working definition of the Vessel being “ready”.
Sub-clause (c) contains an Interpellation provision. The purpose of the “interpellation” provision is that a vessel delayed beyond the cancelling date should not have to proceed on a long ballast voyage towards the loading port not knowing whether or not the charterers will accept the vessel once it arrives. The “interpellation” provision in sub-clause (c) strikes a balance between the parties in this difficult situation in as much as the owners may avoid setting out on a long ballast voyage to no avail, whereas the charterers are, at the same time, entitled to declare whether or not they wish to cancel the charter party at a sufficiently early stage for them to seek an alternative vessel for the voyage.
It should be noted that the period within which the charterers must declare their option of cancelling the charter or agreeing a new cancelling date after the receipt of the owners’ notice is 48 hours (as applied at the charterers place of business).
A well-known feature of ASBATANKVOY is the “reachable upon arrival” provision. However, because the effect of this provision may differ depending on the applicable law, thus leaving room for ambiguity, BIMCO has decided not to use the provision in GASVOY 2005.
GASVOY 2005 is intended to be a “port charter” and therefore, provided the vessel arrives at the customary anchorage, it will be able to tender Notice of Readiness. In order to protect the owners from situations where the vessel cannot tender notice of readiness because the customary anchorage is congested, unsafe or the port authorities deny access, a provision has been added that expressly allows Notice of Readiness to be tendered in such circumstances from a place as near as the vessel can safely get.
Sub-clause (a) reflects that the agreed laytime is calculated in running hours and that it includes use of the cargo re-heater or booster pump, where available.
Sub-clause (b) deals with the eventuality of loading and discharging taking place at night time and consists of two provisions: the first, allowing charterers to load/discharge during night, and the second, providing that time lost due to any restriction on night time operations shall still count as laytime.
Finally, sub-clause (c) provides that any discharge rates expressed in the charter party is stated for the purpose of laytime calculations only and should not be taken as the Owners making any guarantee that the Vessel can discharge at that rate.
However, if the charterers decide to take the vessel before the first layday, sub-clause (b) provides that laytime will start from the commencement of loading and not from mooring - as otherwise any delays after mooring but before loading could be credited to waiting time at the discharging port, which would not be fair to the owners.
Sub-clause (a)(i) prescribes that time spent moving from the waiting place to the first loading/discharging place will not count as laytime or demurrage.
In sub-clause (c), provision has been made for dealing with delays due to weather conditions by incorporating the CONOCO Weather Clause, which stipulates a reasonable 50/50 split of time.
Sub-clause (d) covers the situation where the vessel tenders NOR but is in fact found not to be ready, in which instance time stops counting until the vessel is ready.
Finally, sub-clause (e) deals with the strikes or lockouts or other named events preventing or delaying the vessel from, e.g., entering the port or place of loading or discharging or from loading or discharging the cargo. In such event, half demurrage accrues at loading and discharging ports during the delay.
The final paragraph contains a 90-days’ demurrage time bar provision. The owners must present their demurrage claim within 90 days of completion of discharge failing which a claim will be considered null and void.
The second paragraph permits the connection or disconnection of hoses to be undertaken by the owners at the charterers’ request.
Sub-clause (b) states that the charterers are responsible for the seaworthy trim not only between berths but during the sea voyage as well. To maintain focus on safety, it is considered essential that the charterers are kept in the picture throughout the voyage.
The second paragraph limits the owners’ liability for loss or shortage to the charterers’ FOB figure plus freight (if paid), where the charterers are the owners of the cargo. Where the cargo owner (cargo receiver) is not the charterer the charterers have to indemnify the owners for the difference between the FOB price and the market value. This method is designed to prevent a double claim. It should be noted that the indemnity is implied rather than express.
(a) BIMCO General Clause Paramount
This is the BIMCO General Clause Paramount.
(b) Both to Blame Collision Clause
This is the standard Both to Blame Collision Clause.
(c) General Average and New Jason Clause
This is the standard General Average and New Jason Clause.
(d) War Risks (VOYWAR 2004)
Sub-clause (d) incorporates BIMCO’s VOYWAR 2004, adopted by the Documentary Committee in November 2004. The clause makes reference to, inter alia, acts of terrorism.
The Clause is an optional provision that does not apply unless the parties specifically agree to its application in the fixing confirmation (which can be the BIMCO GASVOY 2005 Part I or similar form). It is left to the parties to ensure that if the actual Part I is not used then any alternative recap corresponds to the cross-references in Part II.
The second sentence of the Charter Party Administration Clause states that the fixing confirmation should include details of the terms and changes, additions and deletions - this is to avoid the note being no more than a simple confirmation.
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