March 9, 2015 Letter from Directorate General of Land and Maritime Transport to the Industrial Research Institute
To: The Industrial Research Institute
RE: Request for inspection and analysis of a cargo of ammonium nitrate, a substance classified as hazardous, unloaded from the ship “Rhosus” impounded in Beirut Port and stored in the warehouses of the Gestion et Exploitation du Port de Beyrouth
Reference :
- The ruling of the Urgent Matters Judge in Beirut no 429/2014 dated June 27, 2014 concerning both the ship and the cargo
- The ship file
- The applicable [legal] texts
As per the above-mentioned subject and reference,
Whereas the ship called “Rhosus” docked in Beirut Port on November 21, 2013 with 2,570 tonnes of Ammonium Nitrate onboard, [a substance] classified as hazardous, and whereas just afterwards the ship was subject to multiple provisional impoundments, and incurred different debts, thus its situation deteriorated and the sailors onboard left and it became in a bad situation, which requires expediting the adjudication of the case of the ship and the cargo, and whereas the Ministry of Public Works and Transport – Directorate General of Land and Maritime Transport has obtained from the Judge of Urgent Matters in Beirut a decision no. 429/2014 dated June 27, 2014, authorizing the Directorate to refloat the ship and transfer the cargo to an appropriate place to store it under its custody,
And whereas the cargo of the ship is prone to damage, given its characteristics, especially concerning the expiry of its usability date, which requires selling it at auction duly and in an expeditious manner, and whereas we attach to this letter a copy of the ship’s bill of lading and manifest,
We respectfully ask you to get acquainted with the subject and take the necessary urgent and immediate measures, concerning the inspection and analysis of the merchandise present in the Gestion et Exploitation du Port de Beyrouth warehouses, notably the : type, characteristics, end use(s), manufacture date, expiry date, the possibility of disposing of the merchandise in Lebanon as necessary, or abroad, and the cost of such disposal and its constraints, in addition to any inputs and additional information you deem appropriate, and to provide us with the results as soon as they are ready.
Knowing that the necessary funds are available at the Directorate General of Land and Maritime Transport and will be duly paid by a bank transfer issued by the Ministry of Finance.