The Liberian Registry has developed and released a dynamic Detention Prevention Programme (DPP), which is an automated Port State Control (PSC) risk assessment system that focuses on preparedness before Liberian vessels enter into port.  This valuable tool and pl­­atform is offered to Liberian-flagged ships free of charge.

Liberia’s unique system is the ONLY Detention Prevention Programme of its kind offered by any Flag State. The system aggregates data from across the industry, including Flag State data, Port State data and Class Society data, for a PSC boarding analysis of its entire fleet in real-time.

The system calculates and assigns a PSC boarding risk category to all 4,500+ Liberian-flagged vessels, which allows Liberia to focus its efforts on vessels that are more likely to have a PSC boarding, detention or deficiency. The score for each vessel adjusts in real time based on the port which the vessel is entering. For instance, a vessel may be categorized as low risk for boarding in Singapore, while the same vessel may be high risk for boarding in Houston. Each PSC MoU, each country and each port have their own specific requirements and their own PSC trends that the system considers when determining a vessel’s risk score.

To help vessels prepare for port arrival, LISCR provides dynamic pre-arrival checklists, and schedules inspections upon arrival as necessary. This allows owners and operators to take early and effective action to ensure their vessels remain in compliance with applicable requirements, which of course leads to saving valuable time and money.

Alfonso Castillero, COO of the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry (LISCR), the US-based manager of the Liberian Registry, says, “We are proud to be recognised as the most technologically advanced flag, and we continually invest in technologies that help save our shipowners time and money.”

Castillero continues, “In 2019 we saw an increase in PSC activity in the United States, and a particular focus on ISM issues.  This led to an increase in detentions that was frankly unprecedented for us.  And though we still have many of these under appeal—having already won two, we felt we had to act.  We knew we had to invest in an early detection system that was dynamic, smart, and easy to use.  This gave birth to the new DPP. We immediately hired ex-USCG officers to build up our regional compliance manager team which is now represented on every US coast, and key international ports.  Further, with the right boots on the ground, this massive investment and sea-change in the way we proactively pre-vet Liberian vessel arrivals has yielded great results and a 54% drop in detentions in the US. This system will facilitate a fast return to Qualship 21 status, and ensure our continued top positioning on the White Lists of the Tokyo and Paris MOU’s.

“Liberia’s Detention Prevention Programme is automatic, real-time, completely dynamic and free of charge for Liberian-flagged vessels. LISCR’s dedicated IT and Fleet PSC Performance departments have spent countless hours working to perfect our Detention Prevention Programme, and what we have built is truly ground-breaking.

“By bringing together data from multiple key industry sources, we are able to see the complete picture of our vessels, their history and thus, their potential risk factor. Our accurate algorithm has already helped prevent detentions in various circumstances all over the world, and this is just the beginning.”

The Liberian Registry continuously monitors, evaluates and implements ongoing compliance efforts while maintaining its position as the world’s fastest growing open registry.