Shipping company Universal Shipping Alliance Ltd has been fined $63,000 by the Gladstone Magistrates Court for failing to comply with a written safety directive issued by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA). The company was also ordered to pay court costs for its violation.

Universal Shipping Alliance Ltd owns the Liberia-flagged bulk carrier KMAX Leader, which first arrived at the Port of Gladstone in October 2023 after experiencing propulsion issues. Extensive repairs were conducted in November 2023, but the vessel’s propulsion system remained inoperative.

With no effective repair plan in place, AMSA intervened, particularly as the impending cyclone season heightened the risks posed by large, immobilized vessels in the Great Barrier Reef area.

Authorities issued formal instructions requiring the development of a towing and fault correction plan to ensure the vessel’s safe removal. However, both the ship’s captain and Universal Shipping Alliance Ltd failed to respond to AMSA’s demands.

The KMAX Leader was eventually towed out of Australian waters to a foreign port in February 2024 without successfully repairing the propulsion system. Subsequently, AMSA banned the vessel from returning to Australia for six months.

Failing to comply with AMSA directives constitutes a severe breach of the Navigation Act 2012, carrying the risk of legal action and heavy penalties.

AMSA stated that non-compliance with safety directives is unacceptable, warning that it will take swift and decisive action against companies that fail to meet safety requirements, adding that prosecution is a possible consequence in such cases.

An unpowered vessel during cyclone season poses a significant risk, and the failure to arrange towing could have had severe consequences for the port, the environment, and nearby communities.

AMSA has been actively monitoring vessel compliance, issuing 57 safety directions to ships and operators during the 2022-23 financial year for mechanical defects, safety breaches, and maritime labor violations.

AMSA reiterated that it will not compromise on safety standards, ensuring that all vessels operating in Australian waters adhere to strict maritime regulations to prevent serious risks.