Approved General Manager

OIL TANKER MANUAL Date 26.12.2014

Chapter 4.5
Revision 1
Page 1 of 2

4.5 CARGO DISCHARGING

4.5.1 General

The general precautions when preparing for cargo operations, described earlier in this chapter, should be
observed prior to and during discharge, and should include a liaison meeting with the responsible terminal staff to
agree an operational plan for the order of cargo handling.

Particular attention should be paid to ship's cargo discharge equipment, such as pumps and pumproom ventilation.

In addition to the Section 4.3 cargo tranfer procedure below consideration shall be taken

4.5.2 Emergency Stop

All Deck Officers and ratings must be fully conversant with the procedures for stopping cargo pumps in an
emergency. Such devices should be tested before each discharge operations. The terminal regulations /
procedures for Emergency Stop Device (ESD) must be discussed and clearly explained to all concerned crew
members prior commencing cargo transfer operation.

In the event of an emergency that requires the shut down of the cargo pumping system, the Officer on duty / the
duty A/B shall press the nearest emergency stop and close the ships cargo manifold valves.

Vessel shall advise the shore contact person immediately and inform him of the shut down. It is important to close
all cargo valves to prevent cargo from shore tanks flowing back to the vessel, or that vessels tanks are siphoned.

Log entries shall be made of such downs and if any cargo was spilled, the applicable notification procedures shall
be adhered to.

In addition to the official reporting an incident report shall be filled out as required by company procedures.

4.5.3 Starting to Discharge and discharge precautions

- Just prior to commencing discharge Checking cargo valves section shall be followed
- HLA and overfill alarms shall be switch on (to be tested before operation)
- Manifold valve and off shore side valves shall be fitted with pressure gauges.
- Discharging should be start with a slow rate and leakage control should be carried out both to other Cargo
tanks and to deck. Should leakage occur from a pipeline, valve, hose or metal arm, operations through
that connection should be stopped until the cause is ascertained and the defect is remedied. Should a
burst occur in a pipeline, hose or metal arm, or if an overflow occurs, all cargo and bunker operations
should be stopped immediately and a state of emergency declared should remain in force until it is
considered that all danger of fire or explosion is passed.
- Offshore side pressure gauges and offshore side of manifold shall be checked by additional crew and be
sure that there is no leakage at offshore side of manifold at the initial stage.
- At the start of discharging, and at regular intervals throughout the process, a check should be made that
cargo is not leaking at the offshore side.
- Off shore side pressure gauges to be checked if there is a leakage
- The pressure shall be increased to permitted pressure slowly, checking if there is any leakage
- Where possible, all tanks to be discharged should be pumped ashore in the initial stage untill HLA
deactivated level (to level % 92 - % 93)
- Instant discharging rate shall never exceed, permitted maximum discharging rate for each tank in any
stage
- During discharge operation possible internal leakage to the other connected tanks shall be checked
regularly
- During tank change special attention to be taken in order to prevent internal transfer. For this reason
After tank change manifold pressure should be checked more frequently. If the manifold pressure is less
than expected, there would be partly or more Cargo internal leakage to the other tanks. İf the manifold
 Approved General Manager
OIL TANKER MANUAL Date 26.12.2014
Chapter 4.5
Revision 1
Page 2 of 2

pressure close to zero, in this case Cargo transfer is completely to the other Cargo tanks. So manifold
pressure is very important sign to understand leakage possibility.
4.5.4 Discharge Pressure Restrictions

Any discharging restriction placed by the terminal must be included in ¶ ‘’Discharging Prodocol’’. ¶

When discharge pressure limitations are imposed, on no account should the discharge pressure exceed the
maximum stated by the shore, otherwise bursting of the hoses may result. Pumping log indicating the hourly
discharge rate and manifold pressure should be filled for every grade and port, such logs should be endorsed by
loading master or terminal representative.

4.5.5 Failure to Cargo Pump

Emergency Portable Cargo Pump must always be kept ready for use in case the regular submersible pump fails.
If the portable pump must be used, P & A manual must be consulted for proper discharge procedure. The vessel
requiring usage of portable Cargo pump for discharging cargo should do so only after obtaining express
permission from all concerned parties such as Cargo Owners/ Charterers and Office.