Harbour Master
Harbour Masters
Worldwide there are approximately 3,000 merchant ports and the work of the Harbour Master can vary widely from country to country and from port to port even within the same country.

The Port of Sillamäe (SILPORT), Estonia, is the most eastern port of the EU, located only 25 km from the EU-Russian border and is one of the largest private ports in the EU. It is a relatively new, multifunctional deep-sea port. Natural depth at the quaysides of the port are sufficient for servicing the largest vessels that can enter the Baltic Sea through the Danish Straights. The port was opened for navigation in 2005 and offers an infra- and superstructure capable of handling all cargo groups from oil-products and dry bulk to containerised cargo.
Theme of the 2021 event; the Climate; ports, terminals, ships and harbour masters. Captain René Sirol, Harbour Master, Port of Sillamäe and the EHMC look forward to welcoming you in 2021. Sillamäe Port will provide shuttle busses from the airport of Tallinn to the venue.
DUE TO CORONA DEVELOPMENTS IT WAS DECIDED TO CANCEL THE EVENT AS SCEDULED FOR THE 6TH OF JUNE 2021.
With a reservation of next years’ developments, the seminar is postponed to autumn 2021. The event, if any, will be a live event, not an online event. The date will be announced here in due time.
A new report from the FAO shows that while most fish stocks remain overexploited, the number of stocks subject to overfishing has decreased for the first time in decades. This was announced from FAO HQ in Rome in mid-December. Readers are invited to see the full report here: http://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cb2429en
After decades of increasing human pressures on the Mediterranean and Black Sea marine ecosystems and fisheries resources, the latest data suggest that a corner is finally being turned on overexploitation of the region's vital fish stocks.
According to a new report on the State of Mediterranean and Black Sea Fisheries (SoMFi 2020), released on 14 December, while 75% of fish stocks remain subject to overfishing, this percentage fell by more than 10% between 2014 and 2018. Exploitation ratios are down by a similar proportion. Taking into account newly assessed stocks, the number of fish stocks with high relative biomass has doubled since the last edition published in 2018.
Crew changes are once more becoming difficult as much of the world locks down again following the emergence of several new and more transmissible variants of Covid-19, crew specialist Danica has warned.
With travel corridors being closed and new travel restrictions imposed, airlines are once again cancelling or reducing flights which poses a problem for crew transiting to vessels. It is understood from Danica that ports too, if they have reopened, are imposing greater restrictions.
Henrik Jensen (pictured), Managing Director of Danica Crewing Services, has warned: ‘I believe we may be heading for a new crew change crisis every bit as bad as last spring. Over the past six months crew changes have been possible in many cases, although they have been costly and complex. However, now we are seeing a range of new restrictions and barriers to crew travel while also facing some serious issues in relation to crew health risk factors. I can foresee this impacting heavily on crew changes for the next few months.’
Danica specialises in crew deployment and has been assisting a range of ship operators in order to achieve crew changes over the past year. As a result, the company is fully aware of the latest rules and restrictions and well-placed to notice how they are impacting crewing.
Jensen explained: ‘In response to the rapid increase in infections around the world, governments are imposing new or additional measures including travel restrictions. Although these measures are understandable in the circumstances, based on scientific evidence, and intended to provide protection for their populations, they also cause operational and logistical problems for crew changes.
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