Bulgaria tightens control over shipping in the Black Sea after attacks on merchant ships

Bulgaria has introduced additional requirements for all vessels planning to pass through its territorial waters. From now on, they must notify the maritime authorities in advance about their route, cargo and technical condition.

This is stated in the avigation warning NAVWARN 775/26, published by the Bulgarian maritime services on October 30, Maritime.bg reports.

According to the new requirements, two hours before entering the territorial waters of Bulgaria, vessels must send a special message (SP) to the email address [email protected].

The message must indicate the name of the vessel, IMO number, flag, radio call sign or other identifier of the ship’s radio station. It is also necessary to indicate the coordinates of the point of entry into the territorial waters, the expected time of crossing the border in UTC, the last port of call and the next port of destination.

Separately, captains must provide information about the cargo, in particular, hazardous substances and gases that may pose a threat to people or the environment.

In addition, it is necessary to report the number of people on board, types and volumes of fuel and lubricants, existing technical malfunctions, as well as contact details of the company responsible for managing the safety of the vessel.

The new requirements apply to all vessels planning to pass through the territorial sea of ​​Bulgaria, regardless of whether their route includes a call at Bulgarian ports.

As Maritime.bg notes, additional measures are aimed at strengthening shipping control and protecting the marine environment against the backdrop of recent attacks on merchant ships in the western Black Sea.

In particular, USM previously reported that on October 28, drones attacked the container ship Contship Jet, which was heading to the Romanian port of Constanta, near the Bulgarian coast. On the night of October 29, the vessel sank. Some of the containers fell overboard, creating an additional danger to shipping.