Regulations

Article 2

The maximum draught of ships negotiating the Canal, in relation to their width, is defined as below, assuming normal water level and normal weather conditions.

The maximum draught for boats of less than 14.00 metres width is 7.20 metres. The maximum width must not anyhow exceed 18.30 metres (60 feet).
Special instances will be examined by the Master and the Canal Servise in collaboration.

Article 3

The speed of a ship navigating the Canal must not exceed 6 knots (Nautical miles per hour). Upon entering and leaving the Canal, however, speed must be reduced to the minimum to avert damage to ships anchored alongside the piers at Isthmia and Poseidonia.

1. Towing is compulsory :

•  For sailing boats without a propulsive engine or with an engine of inadequate capacity.
•  For ships of 800 Net Registered tonnage and over.
• For ships of less than 800 Net Registered tonnage, in cases
  where the Service deems a passage without towing insecure, on the strength of definite evidence.
•  For ships carrying explosives, inflammable and dangerous
  cargoes in general, as well as for empty Oil tankers.

2. The Canal Service is obliged to furnish a tug to ships of less than 800 Net Registered tonnage, if so requested by the Master.

3. Towing operations are performed by the tugs provided by the Canal for that purpose.

4. While negotiating the Canal, the ships engine must be kept running, granted that the chief function of the tug is to keep the ship on the canal’s axis.

5. The ship must provide the cables and hawsers required for towing with her engines idle.

Article 5

1. Ships Not under Command : These are only permitted to make the passage in daytime and when there is an adverse current, provided that two tugs are used, one for ward and one aft, of which at least one must belong to the Canal.

2. Auxiliary craft, such as barges, lighters etc., and also floating constructions such as floating cranes, dredgers etc., which sail through the Canal under tow, are not obliged to use a second tug.

3. Situations concerning the towing of more than one floating
construction Not under Command will be examined according to their merits by the Canal Service by taking into account the size and type of floating construction, as wall as the prevailing weather conditions.

Article 6

Ships preparing to negotiate the Canal are obliged to perform the following actions, prior to their entry:

• To lash in the rigging and other equipment projecting from the sides, as well as the life – saving equipment.
• To have ready on both sides of the ship sufficient fenders for use as buffers.
• To have the main anchorage system in readiness and also, if available, to have the back anchor ready for dropping.
• To have in readiness the towing ropes and all necessities for mooring.
• To keep in readiness for immediate activation an auxiliary motor Generator set, if such a generator is available.
• To prepare the Jacob’s ladder (pilot ladder) for the embarkation and the disembrakation of the pilot and collector of dues, in accordance with the provisions of SOLAS, and to have posted a ship’s officer to supervise the ascent and descent to and from the ship of the pilot and collector.

Article 7

1. Permission to pass signals:

•  A blue flag by day and a white light by night, show that entrance is permitted.
•  A red flag by day two vertical white lights by night show that entrance is not permitted (ENTRY PROHIBITED).

2. Current direction signals :

•  Two white triangular signals in day – time ,and two vertical lights by night, the upper of which is red and the lower one white, show that the current is favourable to an incoming ship.
•  One triangular white signal by day, and by night two vertical red lights show that the current is unfavourable to an incoming ship.
•  The absence of any of the above defined signals shows that there is no current at that time in the Canal.
•  Pilot’s signal:
  This has been laid down as follows :
  Two long and one short blasts of the ship’s whistle or horn denote a request for a pilot.

4. Tug-boat signals:
It has been laid down that four long whistle blasts or horn signify a request for a tug.

5. Launch signal:
Three long blast denote a request for a launch.

6. Readiness and permission to enter signal:
It has been laid down that one long blast will denote the above.

7. Alarm signal :
Five or six short blasts, reppeated at intervals, show the occur, rence on board of an accident or obstacle effecting the security of the ship or impeding her passage.

Article 8

1. No ship may enter the Canal unless in receipt of a permit from the Canal Service.

2. The precedence of sailing is laid down by the Canal Service, taking into considetation the time of anival or previous notification regarding a passage. Priority is awarded to passanger craft.

3. Priority of navigation is granted to Greek warships, as well as to warships of foreign powers, provided that the latter have secured a special authorisation from the ruling authorities of the Greek Navy.

4. In the business of deciding the precedence of passage, the Canal Service lay down as a prerequisite that a ship must preserve a distance of about one nautical mile between any other ship before it.

5. The passage of ships carrying dangerous cargoes of any kind is held to represent a special instance of passage, and will be handled according to the judgement of the Canal Service.

Article 9

During the passage itself and while standing to, in attendance for the same, all ships are subject to the following prohibitions:

•  From sounding blasts on the ship’s whistle or horn, except for the audible signals referred to, in article 7, and those provided for under the International code to avert collisions.
•  Vessels, except for those serving official Authorities and the Canal Service, are forbidden to approach or come alongside a ship.
• From stopping the motion of the ship before the ship emerges from the Canal.

Article 10

1. In the case of immobilisation of the ship as a result of accident, the alarm signals referred to in article 7, paragraph 7 are to be used in order to attract the attention of other imminently approaching ships, and of the Canal Service. In addition, during the night an additional red light is to be fitted aft.

2. In the case of a ship’s running aground or of an accident occuring which impedes the free use of the Canal, the Canal Service has the right to take all the proper measures indicated for salvaging the ship and removing the same from the Canal by all and any means at the Canal Service’s disposal, the expenses being the ship’s liability. Such expenses must be settled prior to the commencement of salvage operations, on the basis of an invoice issued by the Canal Service.

Article 11

1. Piloting through the Canal is compulsory for all towed ships.
For ships not under tow, piloting is optional, unless the Canal Service deems it indispensable. Piloting during the hours of night is compulsory for all ships over 100 Net registered tonnage.

2. To prevent accidents during the passage through the Canal, the pilots must check whether the rudder functions regularly.
If any damage or abnormality of function is thus ascertained, it must at once be reported to the Canal Service, for the purpose of prohibiting the ship’s passage.

3. The pilots set their experiance and knowledge of the conditions in the Canal at the disposal of the ship’s Masters, and offer their advise to the Masters, who take that advise into consideration. The Masters are the only responsible agents for any accident in which their ship is involved, that occurs on
board ship, amogst the crew and/or to the property of the Canal, arising from whatever cause.

4. In a situation where the execution of a very rapid manoeuvre is necessary, the Master may allow the pilot to issue directly the orders required for the steering of the ship. The Master is not. however, thereby relieved of his responsibilities.

5. Masters of ships are obliged to come to stand – still and in such a way as to allow the mooring of the pilot boat on the leeward side, for the safe boarding and dropping of the pilot and the employees of the Company assigned to the boat.

6. Masters of ships are obliged to provide the pilot and delegated Company employees with all information and attestations necessary under these present regulations.

7. The pilots are members of the pilot station personnel and are assigned to a ship on each particular occasion by the Canal Service. At the request of the Master, more than one pilot may be placed at the disposal of a ship.

8. The pilots are entitled to no additional fee, bonus, or consideration whatsoever.

Article 12

1.  The Master of any ship intending to negotiate the Canal is obliged to deliver to the Company employees to the task, the following information by filling out the appropriate from :

•  The name and nationality of the ship.
• The port and number of registration.
• The kind of ship.
• The full name of the Master.
•  The title and address of the shipowner.
• The port of initial provenance.
•  The port of final destination.
• The ships maximum length and width.
• The ship’s maximum forward, and aft draughts.
• The number of crew members.
• The number of passengers.
• The quantity and nature of cargo or of ballast.
•  The Net Tonnage of the ship, in accordance with the definition of that term in chapter 2 of these presents.

2. While navigating the Canal, Masters are under the following obligations.

• To command their ship personally. The ship must fly the flag or ensign of the country to which they belong, before, during and after the passage.
• To maintain an emergency watch in the for castle, to be composed of at least one officer and two hands.
•  To keep the ship’s projector – lights in constant readiness during the night for ignition at the pilot’s request.

3. Before and after the passage through the Canal, Masters must keep their ships at a distance at least half a mile up to two miles away from the respective outer port piers and off thes axis of the Canal.

4. Masters are obliged to comply absolutely with the provisions of the present code of regulations and to offer their assistance in the observation of the same, in order to secure normal navigation for all concerned.

Article 13

1. The General heading ?Navigation Dues? is divided into three categories, passage dues, tonage dues and pilotage. These dues are arrived at on the basis of the invoices valid in each particular case.

2. Alls hips and vessels are subject to the payment of passage dues, should they navigate the Canal, with the exception of Greek warships and Greek boats of a net tonnage less than, and up to, 3 tons.

3. All ships and vessels making use of the Company’s tugs while passing through the Canal, are subject to the payment of towage dues.

4. All ships and vessels making use of a pilot of the Canal Company while passing through the Canal, are subjetc to the payment of Pilotage.

5. Expences incurred as a result of other services provided by the Company to ships passing through the Canal, are dealt with and paid separately.

Artcile 14

1. The Net Tonnage of the ship, recorded on the actual and Original certificate of Measurement, is taken as a basis for the computation of navigation dues. This certificate of Measurement must have been issued by the official Authorities of the State whose the flag the ship flies.

2. An exception is made in the case of navigation dues for Tugs and Salvage Ships, when the figure of 70% of their Gross Tonnage is taken as the basis of computation.

3. In the case of warships, a figure of 70% of their Full Load is used as the basis for the calculation of the navigation dues.

Article 15

1. In situations where the actual and original certificate of measurement is not available, dues are computed provisionally on the basis of the net tonnage recorded on any copy of such a certificate of measurement as happens to be available, or on basis of the net tonnage deriving from other of the ship’s papers, or from an official edition of an accredited shipping register. Should a difference in figures be establised, as a matter of course, the larger net tonnage will be taken as the basis of computation.

2. In such cases, the Canal Company is entitled to demand the deposit of a bond equivalent to 50% of the dues computed as above. This bond will remain in the Company’s keeping until a final settlement of navigation dues is reached on the basis of the original certificate of measurement prodused for that purpose.

Article 16

1. If it is evidenced from proven data that the Net tonnage of a foreign ship is clearly less than that obtained in accordance with Greek measurement regulations, in a comparable case, and always providing no bilateral agreement or pact exists that would mutually recognige the national certificates of measurement of Greece and of the foreign state whose flag the ship flies, the Canal Company is then entitled to demand an official certificate of measurement from the ship, that will show the Net tonnage in accordance with the measurement regulations effective in Greece.

2. Provisionally, and until such time as a certificate such as the above is produced for the purpose of computing the navigation dues, the net tonnage of the ship will be taken at the figure of 80% of the Gross tonnage of that ship, recorded on the foreign certificate of measurement.
With the production of the certificate demanded as above, the provisionally imposed charges will be de finitely settled on the basis of that certificate.

Article 17

1. On ships with an open shelter deck, described as such in an official issue of an accredited shipping register, and equipped with only one certificate of measurement, the net tonnage recorded in such certificates will be taken as the basis for the computation of navigation dues.

2. On ships with an open/closed shelter deck, described as such in an official issue of an accredited shipping register, and equipped with two certificates of measurement (That is to say, on ships of variable tonnage) the net tonnage that corresponds to the state of the ship when the shelter deck is closed is taken as the basis for computing navigation dues. That is to say, the net tonnage from the larger tonnage pair is used.

Article 18

1. On ships having the tonnage Mark marked on their sides and furnished with a certificate of measurement recording only one tonnage pair, the net tonnage recorded in such certificates is taken as the basis for computation of navigation dues.

2. On ships having the tonnage mark marked on ther sides and furnished with a certificate of measurement recording two tonnage pairs (i.e. on ships with variable tonnage) the net tonnage of the larger tonnage pair is taken as the basis for computing navigation dues.

Article 19

1. Any and all dues owed to the Company for passing through the Canal, will be collected prior to the ship’s passage, or at any other time the Company sees fit so to do, by a delegated official of the Canal Company, in return for a receipt.

2. The payment of dues in drachmas or in foreign currency will conform to the provisions stipulated by the Greek Government Authorities effective at the time of any given transaction.

Article 20

1. The tariffs made effective by the Canal Company at any given time for the payment to them of various dues are held to be an integral part of the present Code of Regulations, without need of any further procedure for their authorisation of publication, other than their authorisation by the board of Directors of the Company.

2. The Canal tolls are computed on the basis of the net tonnage of the ships navigating the Canal. They will not, in any event, be higher than those collected by the Suez Canal Service.

Article 21

The violation of any of the provisions referred to in these presents entitles the Company to indemnity analogous to the act committed by a Master and with reference to its significance as to the financial interests of the Company.

Article 22

The act of claiming the right to sail through the canal is in itself taken as evidence that the Master is in full possetion of the contents of this Code of Regulations.

1. Tonnage.

•  Gross tonnage is the capacity of all closed^and water – tight spaces in the ship, both below and above deck.
•  Net tonnage is the capacity resultant on deducting the volume of certain spaces, such as crew quarters, the engine – room, the bridge, the boatswain’s supplies compartment, etc., from the’ Gross tonnage.
•  The net tonnage of the ship constitutes the amount of usable space at the ship’s disposal.
•  The gross and net tonnage are measured in registered tons (1 registered ton=100 cubic feet or 2.83 cubic metres).
•  The ship’s gross and net tonnage express the official dimentions of the ship and are recorded in the ship’s papers.

2. The ship’s weight, or displacement.
The ship’s displacement is the weight of a loaded ship (i.e. the weight of the ship plus the Dead weight.)
The ship’s weight is divided as follows:

•  Permanent or standing weight. The permanent or standing weight consists of the weight of her Hull together with the engines and her fittings in general. That is to say, it is the total weight of the individual standing weights of the ship’s parts.
•  Dead Weight (D.W.)
  This consists of all the additional and variable weights, and expresses the carrying capacity of the ship in weight.

The sum of the ship’s variable weights consists of:
— Useful freight of all kinds.
— Fuels.
— Fresh water (for drinking and general purpose).
— The reserve water for feeding the boilers.
— Supplies and provisions.
— The crew and their equipment.
— The passengers and their luggage.

3. The ratio of Dead weight to tonnage.
Though the ship’s D.W. is an expression of weight and the Tonnage an expression of volume, without there being between them any natural relationship, it has nevertheless been ascertained by experience that there does exist a numerical relationship between the weight and tonnage- of cargo vessels. According to this ratio, the D.W. is 1.5 times larger than the Gross tonnage and 2.5 to 3 times larger than the Net tonnage (thus a vessel of
7.000 gross tonnage will have a 10.500 ton .DW., approximately speaking).

Note :
For the owner of a cargo vessel it is the ship’s D.W. that is of importance. For this measurement is customarily taken as the basic dimention in the purchase and sale of ships. With passanger ships, on the contrary, the ship’s displacement is taken as the basic measurement, since it produces comparatively higher figures for the classification of the ship, and thus inspires
greater confidence in the passengers.

4. Measurement of ships:
Measurement provides an actual description of a ship’s dimen-tions and precisely defines her tonnage. Moreover, on the basis of the figures thereby arrived at :

•  It is possible to achieve a distinction between ships and boats and to produce a clearly defined register of shipping.
• It is possible to compute the shipping charges and the dues which a ship must pay for the use of ports, canals etc.
•  It is possible to define the composition of the crew and the rates of pay.
•  Ship’s Certificate of Measurement.

This certificate is issued by the Harbour Authorities, or by the Merchant Ships Inspection Administration, after the measuring of the ship. Three copies are issued, one of which is delivered to the shipowner and kept on board the ship as an official paper.’
Apart from measurement certificates isued by the Merchant Ships Inspection Administration, similar certificates issued by the appropriate Authorities of Foreign Powers are also accepted as being valid, by virtue of Bilateral Agreements between the Greek State and such Foreign Powers as are included in those Bilateral Agreements.