Definition
Under MARPOL Annex VI regulation 18, every delivery of fuel for combustion to a ship of 400 gross tonnage or above must be recorded on a bunker delivery note, which the ship keeps on board for three years. Appendix V lists what it must show: the ship's name and IMO number, the port, the date of delivery, the supplier, the product name, the quantity in tonnes, the density at 15 °C, the sulphur content, and the supplier's signed declaration that the fuel meets the regulation's limits.[1]
The note comes with a sealed representative sample — the MARPOL sample — which stays under the ship's control for at least 12 months, so that a port state can test the fuel actually delivered. Electronic BDNs are accepted following MEPC 80, where the flag and port authorities allow them.[2,1]
Commercially, the BDN is what you pay against. Sign it only after the quantity has been checked (soundings or meter), note any dispute on it or by a letter of protest, and keep the commercial samples as well as the MARPOL one.
Read next on GeoMarineHub
Sources
- [1] Lloyd’s Register — Class News 02/24: bunker delivery notes — https://www.lr.org/en/knowledge/class-news/02-24/
- [2] REMPEC — Introduction to MARPOL Annex VI (PDF) — https://www.rempec.org/en/knowledge-centre/online-catalogue/1-introduction-to-marpol-annex-vi.pdf
A working definition for buyers, not legal advice — the contract, the convention text and your club or class have the last word.