USSM attempts to stop transfer of 15 MSP ships to Maersk

USSM attempts to stop transfer of 15 MSP ships to Maersk    U.S. Ship Management, an operator of 19 U.S.-flag vessels, 15 of which are enrolled in the federal government’s Maritime Security Program (MSP), filed a request for an injunction pending the appeal of a decision made by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Aug. 12 approving the transfer of the 15 MSP ships to Maersk Line Ltd.
   USSM hopes the injunction will stop the transfer of the ships to Maersk Line, which was expected to begin as early as Monday.
   Maersk Line, a U.S.-flag vessel subsidiary of A.P. Moller-Maersk, made the transfer request with the Maritime Administration in November 2002. The company claims that under its 1999 MarAd-approved time charters USSM agreed to transfer direct operations of the former Sea-Land Service vessels to Maersk should the carrier elect to become the MSP operator. The transfer of the 15 MSP ships would make Maersk Line the largest operator in the program with 19 containerships.
   However, USSM cited four errors made in the court’s Aug. 12 decision:
   * Failure to recognize USSM’s “first priority” status with MSP transfers and MarAd’s requirement for vessels eligible for transfer in the program to be less than 10 years of age.
   * MarAd’s apparent ability to pick its own rules when “there is no basis in the statute for MarAd having this discretion.”
   * MarAd’s failure to promote a U.S. merchant fleet “owned and operated under the United States flag by citizens of the United States.”
   * USSM’s inability to anticipate “an unlawful transfer.”
   It’s now up to the court to respond.