Classification
- Incident Type: Collision
- Severity: Medium
- Tug involvement: yes
- Tug mechanism: RT STEPHANIE and RT PETER were assisting MOL EFFICIENCY; RT PETER helped pull the vessel aside after the danger became apparent.
Vessel Details
The available information is grouped below.
MOL EFFICIENCY
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Vessel Name | MOL EFFICIENCY |
| Vessel Type | Container |
| Flag State | Panama [PA] |
| IMO Number | 9251365 |
| MMSI | 351166000 |
| Call Sign | HOZY |
| Gross Tonnage | 53822 |
| LOA (m) | 294.09 |
| Year Built | 2003 |
| Crew Size | 24 |
SPLITTNES
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Vessel Name | SPLITTNES |
| Vessel Type | Bulk Carrier |
| Flag State | Antigua and Barbuda [AG] |
| IMO Number | 9101730 |
| Gross Tonnage | 11538 |
| LOA (m) | 166.20 |
| Year Built | 1994 |
| Crew Size | 17 |
Incident Details
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Date | 2011-11-22 |
| Location | River Weser near buoy 53, Germany |
| Coordinates | 53.581667, 8.525000 |
| Region | North Sea |
| Fatalities | 0 |
| Injuries | 0 |
| Missing | |
| Outcome | SPLITTNES sustained a 15 m shell-plating gash and a list, while MOL EFFICIENCY sustained aft port-side and steering damage; no one was injured and minor diesel-oil pollution was contained. |
| Direct Damage | |
| Estimated Economic Damage | More than EUR 1 million for SPLITTNES; combined damage total not stated. |
| Investigation Body | Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation (BSU) |
Key facts
- SPLITTNES was inbound to Bremen fully laden with 17,273 tonnes of grit; MOL EFFICIENCY was ahead and preparing to turn and berth.
- Visibility was very poor because of dense fog, and a rising tide of about 2 knots was running.
- The original plan was for SPLITTNES to wait, but at about 20:09 the plan changed by VHF so SPLITTNES would overtake first.
- SPLITTNES sustained a 15 m shell-plating gash, water ingress, and a list of up to about 20 degrees; MOL EFFICIENCY sustained aft port-side, transom, helm, rudder-post, and rudder-blade damage.
- Nobody was injured. Minor diesel-oil pollution from a damaged day tank was contained with oil booms.
- BSU did not identify a single specific cause and instead described a chain of contributing factors.
Narrative
On 22 November 2011, the Panama-flagged container ship MOL EFFICIENCY and the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged bulk carrier SPLITTNES were navigating the River Weser in dense fog. SPLITTNES was proceeding toward Bremen fully laden with 17,273 tonnes of grit. MOL EFFICIENCY was ahead, with RT STEPHANIE made fast forward and RT PETER aft, preparing to turn and berth after OCEAN PEGASUS had passed. The original plan was for SPLITTNES to wait.
At about 20:09, the plan changed by VHF so that SPLITTNES would overtake MOL EFFICIENCY before the container ship turned. SPLITTNES accelerated and attempted to return toward the middle of the fairway while MOL EFFICIENCY continued moving astern. The vessels were operating close to one another in very poor visibility, and the change did not produce a sufficiently clear shared understanding of the manoeuvre or of MOL EFFICIENCY's astern movement.
SPLITTNES's starboard side contacted MOL EFFICIENCY's aft port side and the vessels scraped past each other. SPLITTNES suffered a 15 m shell-plating gash, took on water, and listed by up to about 20 degrees. MOL EFFICIENCY sustained damage to its aft port side, transom, helm, rudder-post, and rudder blade. The tugs assisted MOL EFFICIENCY after the danger became apparent, and both vessels remained afloat. Minor diesel-oil pollution from a damaged day tank was contained with oil booms, and no one was injured.
The Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation did not identify one isolated cause. Its analysis described a chain involving dense fog, the sudden VHF change to an overtaking plan, SPLITTNES being asked to overtake at close range, MOL EFFICIENCY continuing astern, and the absence of an informative intervention about that astern movement.
The vessels remained afloat after the contact. The report therefore treats the casualty as a chain of communication and manoeuvring failures rather than one isolated navigational action.
Sequence of events
| Date/time | Event |
|---|---|
| 2011-11-22 | MOL EFFICIENCY proceeded ahead with tug assistance while SPLITTNES approached toward Bremen. |
| 2011-11-22 about 20:09 | The plan changed by VHF so SPLITTNES would overtake before MOL EFFICIENCY turned. |
| 2011-11-22 about 20:13 | SPLITTNES and MOL EFFICIENCY collided near buoy 53 on the River Weser. |
| 2011-11-22 | SPLITTNES took on water and listed; tugs assisted MOL EFFICIENCY and minor pollution was contained. |
Contributing factors
| Factor | Evidence status | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Dense fog | Confirmed finding | Visibility was very poor during the close-range manoeuvre. |
| Sudden VHF plan change | Confirmed finding | The original waiting plan changed shortly before SPLITTNES attempted to overtake. |
| Close-range overtaking | Confirmed finding | SPLITTNES accelerated and attempted to return to the fairway while the vessels were operating in restricted visibility. |
| Unclear awareness of astern movement | Confirmed finding | MOL EFFICIENCY continued astern without an informative intervention that established a shared understanding. |
Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Maritime Casualty Investigation investigated the casualty in report 507/11, published on 28 January 2013. BSU did not identify a single specific cause. It described the collision as the result of a chain of navigation, communication, visibility, and manoeuvring factors, and documented the damage, tug response, contained pollution, and absence of injuries.
References
- BSU source note
- BSU report 507/11