Refer our earlier 2 post on the STS notification rewuirment and revisison of STS Manual 1. Panama Flag Tightens STS Requirement to Stop Dark Fleet Tankers 2. Panama Flag Vessel’s STS Plan Immediate Revision Required

The revised circular incorporates the above resquirement and is summarized as below 1. This Merchant Marine Circular is applicable for Panamanian Oil Tankers of 150 GRT and above. 2. The requirement for an STS Operation Plan does not apply to: a.Vessels engaged in Fishing related activities. b. Bunkering operations; c. STS operations within the territorial sea or exclusive economic zone of Panama must follow the provisions of Resolution J.D. No. 038-2022 of August 25th, 2022; d. Oil transfer operations associated with fixed or floating platforms, including drilling rigs; e. FPSOs used for the offshore production and storage of oil; and FSUs used for the offshore storage of produced oil; f. STS operations necessary for securing the safety of a ship or saving lives at sea, or combating specific pollution incidents to minimize damage from pollution; g. STS operations where either of the ships involved is a warship, naval auxiliary or other ship owned or operated by a State and used, for the time being, only on government non-commercial service. h. Fishing vessels. 3. All Ship Operator Companies of all Panamanian flagged oil tankers of 150 GT and above shall update their STS Operations Plan to include the Notification to the Flag State regarding when and where this STS operations will take place and get approved from the RO. 4. STS Operations Plan shall be revised by the authorized Recognized Organizations (RO) no later than the first annual, intermediate or renewal survey of the International Oil Pollution Prevention Certificate (IOPP), whichever occurs first, after August 6, 2025. 5. Starting from August 6th, 2025, all Panamanian flagged oil tankers, acting as discharging or/and receiving vessel must notify their STS transfer operations to the Flag State through the E-Segumar Platform. 6. All the Panamanian flagged oil tankers must maintain valid and updated Continuous Synopsis Record (CSR) and Conformance Test Report (CTR) on board at the time of notifying the STS operations. Failure to comply with the aforementioned will result denying the authorization for STS operations until compliance is demonstrated. 7. The STS transfer Notification must be provided well in advance and at least forty-eight (48) hours prior to the planned STS transfer operations. An acknowledgement of receipt will be issued by the Flag State through the E-Segumar Platform which shall be kept on board in electronic format for a minimum period of three (3) years. 8. The STS transfer notification shall include the following information:
a. Name, flag, call sign, IMO Number and estimated time of arrival of the oil tankers involved in the STS transfer operation.
b. Date, time and geographical position of the commencement of the planned STS transfer operation.
c. Mode in which the STS transfer operation will be carried out: at anchor or underway.
d. Type of oil and its quantity.
e. Expected duration of the STS transfer operation.
f. Identification and contact information (email, telephone number) of the Designated Person Ashore (DPA) of each oil tanker involved in the STS operation.
g. Confirmation that the oil tanker has on board an STS operations Plan complying the requirements of regulation 41, Annex I, MARPOL Convention. 9. If the estimated time of arrival of an oil tanker at the location or area for the STS transfer operation changes by more than six hours or in the event that the STS operation is cancelled due to any issue, the Master, Owner, or Designated Person Ashore (DPA) must immediately inform the Administration via the following email address: stspma@amp.gob.pa