Analysis of port state control inspection data: the Black Sea Region

Abstract

The Port State Control (PSC) regime, based on the Hague Memorandum signed in 1978, was created to combat the use of substandard ships on a global scale. This mission is presented through "The Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control in the Black Sea Region (BS MoU)". This article analyses the detected deficiencies of vessels and the records of detention within 29,954 PSC inspections conducted in the BS MoU region between 2012 and 2017. the first finding obtained from the analysis is the fact that the main reason for the 1,325 detention cases is the age of the vessel. At the same time, the factors such as the type of vessel, flag of registry, recognised organization, and inspecting authority have been found to be highly effective in detentions. Another important finding of the study is the existence of differences among the inspections, as the member authorities of this memorandum have their own approaches. This study, which specifically presents a panoramic view of the BS MoU inspections, aims to designate the factors required for primary consideration in the selection process of foreign vessels to be inspected by the PSC authorities and seeks to contribute to the literature on this subject.