Affreightment

Affreightment is a maritime term, which is used in chartering operations.

Affreightment also known as contract of affreightment and refers to the contract signed between shipowner and charterer.

Contract of Affreightment is the expression usually employed to describe the contract between a shipowner and some other person called the charterer, by which the shipowner agrees to carry goods of the charterer in his ship, or to give to the charterer the use of the whole or part of the cargo-carrying space of the ship for the carriage of his goods on a specified voyage or voyages or for a specified time; the charterer on his part agreeing to pay a specified price, called "freight," for the carriage of the goods or the use of the ship.

I have already explained that time charter party, voyage charter party and bareboat charter party are different contract types that are available when hiring bulk cargo vessels.

Affreightment may refer one of these charter party contracts.

Accept/Except

Accept/Except is a maritime term which is usually used in time charter party contracts or voyage charter party contracts.

The term, when used during the negotiation phase of the charter party contracts, explains to the receiver that the counter-party agreed to the offer apart from certain conditions or clauses.

Accept/Except used by either the shipowner’s broker or the prospective charterer’s broker during the negotiations for the charter of a ship to signify that an offer or counter-offer is accepted apart from certain clauses or details.

Objections are then listed together with the amendments sought.

Accept/Except Term Usage Example:

Charter Party Offer

Ship Details: Genco Surprise d.dk 8C Hkg fg built 1998 72495dwt 

Cargo Details: 25,000 MT 10% MOLOO Blk Wheat (sf 46-47`)

Load Port/Discharge Port: One Safe Berth Odessa to One Safe Berth Jeddah 

Freight Rate: USD 33/tonne FIOS 

Arrival and Cancelling Dates: 15/31 August 2015 

Laytime: 12000/9000 Working Days 24 Hours Consecutive Weather Permitted Shipping Sundays and Holidays Excepted (SHEX)

Demurrage & Despatch: Dern USD 8,200pd pro rata D1/2D laytime saved 

Charter Party Contract: Norgrain89 

Total commissions: 1.25 percent of the total freight bill

Any Other Points: Subject Details 

Counter Offer

Accept/Except freight rate (USD 33/tonne FIOT) and arrival and cancelling dates (01/15 August 2015).

Accomplished Bill of Lading

Accomplished bill of lading is a maritime term, which is also used with spent bill of lading term interchangeably.

Accomplished bill of lading is used to define a situation where at least one original copy of bill of lading which has been surrendered to the carrier's agent at the port of discharge in exchange for the goods.

Once an original bill of lading is surrendered to the carrier's agent at the port of discharge, then all original bills of lading copies become void or spent.

According to Simon Baughen spent bill of lading defines a bill of lading which can no longer be used to transfer constructive possession in the goods which it represents, for example, where the person entitled to possession of those goods receives the bill of lading after it has actually taken delivery of the goods.

About

When used in a charter party contract, abt - about, means that  a margin of 5% more or less would apply to quantity of cargo, bunkers or speed.

If it is used in connection with a period of time about refers to usually 15 days, although each case should be considered on its own merit.

Example Usage: Below examples are collected from well-known standard format time charter party contracts under field description of vessel's "Speed Capability in Knots and Fuel Consumption".

NYPE 1946 lines 9 –10
“... and capable of steaming, fully laden, under good weather conditions about ... knots on a consumption of about ... tons of … best grade fuel oil ...”

NYPE 1993 lines 18-20
... Speed about ... knots, fully laden, in good weather conditions up to and including maximum Force... on the Beaufort wind scale, on a consumption of about ... tons of ...

BALTIME 1939

PART I Box 12

Speed capability in knots (abt.) on a consumption in tons (abt.) of m …

PART II lines 10-13

... and fully loaded capable of steaming about the number of knots indicated in Box 12 in good weather and smooth water on a consumption of about the number of tons fuel oil stated in Box 12 ...

Always Accessible or Always Afloat

Always accessible or always afloat is a maritime term which is generally used in charter party contracts. 

This term in charter party contracts which stipulates that the charterer must not order the ship to a port or berth where she would touch the bottom or perhaps be unavailable at any time due to tidal variations.

Example Usage:

Cementvoy 2006 : Voyage charter party for the transportation of bulk cement

It is agreed between the party mentioned in Box 3 as Owners of the Vessel named in Box 5 (hereinafter referred to as “the Owners”) and the party mentioned in Box 4 as Charterers (hereinafter referred to as “the Charterers”) that: The Vessel shall, as soon as her prior commitments have been completed, proceed to the loading port or place stated in Box 8 or so near thereto as she may safely get and there load alongside the berth as nominated or allocated by the Charterers, where she can lie always safely afloat, a full and complete cargo as described in Box 7 which the Charterers bind themselves to ship, and being so loaded the Vessel shall with all reasonable despatch proceed to the discharging port or place stated in Box 9 as ordered on signing Bills of Lading or so near thereto as she may safely get, and there deliver the cargo alongside the berth as nominated or allocated by the Charterers, where she can lie always safely afloat.