G2 Ocean takes strong action against COVID-19

Mar 30, 2020Uncategorized0 comments

Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19 and the uncertainty across the world, we at G2 Ocean, are continuously working to ensure that we can deliver customer’s cargo per their requirements.

As usual, all our vessels are fully operational, and our shore staff are dedicated to serving the needs of our customer’s with passion, expertise and team spirit.

Safety first

We take our social responsibility for containing the coronavirus very seriously and have been quick to respond to these unprecedented times to protect people, and especially vulnerable groups, from becoming infected or exposed to COVID-19. Here is a short outline of our latest actions:

Working remotely: No obstacle

To comply with guidelines from various national authorities, 80 per cent of our office staff are currently in home-offices. We are also restricting all domestic and international travel, meaning that in-person events, meetings and operational activities are postponed for the time being.

Fortunately, G2 Ocean’s staff are used to working remotely. Everyone is fully operational and, as usual, dedicated to keeping the vessels, business, and – first and foremost – our customer’s cargo moving. In the absence of a physical meeting room, we are happy to take virtual meetings with any of our business partners, whenever it is convenient.

Safety at sea

Together with our owners, Gearbulk and Grieg Star, we have taken several measures for the protection of the health of our seafarers and to reduce the risk of potential virus transmission. We are pleased to report that our actions are working, and none of our employees onshore and at sea have, to date, contracted COVID-19.

Here is an overview of our COVID-19 measures at sea:

1. We raise awareness about COVID-19 amongst crew members, including information about the risk of disease transmission, how the virus spreads and precautions to be taken to avoid becoming infected.

2. Seafarers are instructed to practice good hygiene. Some practices include:

  • Washing hands frequently and avoid touching eyes, nose and mouth.
  • Practising respiratory hygiene (covering coughs and sneezes with flexed elbow or tissue).
  • Maintaining social distancing, both at the vessel and in port.

3. When calling ports in affected areas:

  • Ship-shore activities, including boarding visits, are kept to a minimum.
  • Visitors are given limited access onboard. We are also strengthening our gangway control by registering all personnel boarding the ship. Visitors can also be required to wear a facemask and will be expected to sanitise their hands before accessing the vessel.
  • We keep the right to reject access to visitors that do not comply with our safety regulations onboard or people who show any signs of illness.

4. Daily meetings onboard the vessels are conducted with limited attendees and, if possible, held on the dockside or outside.

Port Restrictions

With the COVID-19 outbreak, ports are imposing various restrictions on vessels and crew, which leaves us exposed to longer waiting times at ports. To minimise our delay exposure and its negative impact, we are continuously monitoring port developments worldwide. Our ship operators and masters are in close contact with port authorities ship agents to get guidance on restrictions and other preventive measures currently in effect.

We put great efforts into our vessel planning and will keep you updated on ports and vessel schedules which could impact your cargo shipments. For frequent updates of the latest port restrictions worldwide, please see the below map provided by Wilhelmsen. 

Manning situation

To minimise the risk of infection, many countries and ports are imposing prohibitions on shore leave and crew changes. Consequently, seafarers are required to stay onboard the vessel past their individual contracts.

Together with our fleet managers, we are doing our utmost to protect the health and safety of our crew. Once the situation improves, we are prepared to help seafarers return home and let on-signers onboard.

We express our deepest gratitude to our employees, onshore and at sea, for their spectacular effort, determination, commitment and courage to overcome this challenge.

We will keep you updated

Due to COVID-19 development, we are experiencing rapid changes in cargo bookings. We will always endeavour to be as flexible and responsive as possible to accommodate the changes required at this volatile time.

We hope you are well, and we are looking forward to bringing our shipping services to you – safely and efficiently.

Kind regards,

Your G2 Ocean Team