UKHO Chinese agreement
The UK Hydrographic Office has signed a new bilateral agreement with China’ s Maritime Safety Agency (MSA) under which it is to distribute all 257 Electronic Nautical Chart (ENC) cells covering Chinese domestic waters via its Admiralty Vector Chart Service (AVCS).
The agreement represents a continuation of the close historical relationship between the two bodies while supporting the inter-governmental International Hydrographic Organization’s commitment to provide adequate global ENC coverage of all main shipping routes by 2010. The inclusion of official Chinese data is thus seen as a significant addition to present coverage of Far East shipping lanes, which are accustomed to particularly high volumes of traffic.
The deal also marks a further progressive stage in the UKHO’S seamless AVCS facility introduced last year in response to studies showing that use of ENCs in ECDIS equipment can lead to major improvements in shipping costs and safety while reducing environmental risks arising from marine accidents. The Taunton based organisation, which is part of the Ministry of Defence, is widely regarded as the world’s leading charting authority with nearly 70% of international shipping using its products.
