Panama-flagged vessels must notify authority of ship-to-ship transfers

Panama's Maritime Authority said on Friday it would reinforce controls for ship-to-ship operations by Panama-flagged vessels, following an increase in the use of "dark-fleet" tankers to skirt sanctions or evade environmental requirements.

The US has increased pressure on countries with large vessel registries to help enforce sanctions, including Panama, which gives its flag to more than 8,500 ships.

US President Donald Trump has used his criticism of the expansion of a dark fleet of tankers moving sanctioned oil to threaten the Panama Canal with a takeover.

In recent months, Panama has withdrawn several vessels from its registry following investigations over norm violations. In February, the Maritime Authority said it was not "a haven for sanctions evasion".

According to a resolution published earlier this month, all Panama-flagged ships over 150 gross tons must notify Panama's Maritime Authority about their intended ship-to-ship transfers at least two days before operations.

Notifications must include information about the vessels involved, place of the transfer, type and volume of hydrocarbons and fulfillment of international maritime rules.

Dark-fleet ships that transfer oil at sea often turn off their localisation transponders or manipulate coordinates to hide the operations.

(Reporting by Elida Moreno; Editing by Mark Porter, Kirsten Donovan)