Technical Circular No: 018/2026
1. Reference is made to SOLAS Regulations V/19.2.1.4 and V/27, which provide the following requirements in respect of nautical charts and nautical publications carried on board ships:
a. SOLAS Regulation V/19.2.1.4 – All ships, irrespective of size, shall have nautical charts and nautical publications to plan and display the ship's route for the intended voyage and to plot and monitor positions throughout the voyage.
b. SOLAS Regulation V/27 – Nautical charts and nautical publications, such as sailing directions, lists of lights, notices to mariners, tide tables and all other nautical publications necessary for the intended voyage, shall be adequate and up to date.
2. Further, SOLAS Regulation V/19.2.1.5 allows electronic means to partly or fully fulfil the functional requirements of SOLAS Regulation V/19.2.1.4, provided that appropriate back-up arrangements are in place.
3. In this regard, the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), at its 111th session held from 13 to 22 May 2026, approved the Guidelines for the Carriage and Use of Electronic Nautical Publications (ENP) Systems vide MSC.1/Circ.1705, with the aim of ensuring standardized implementation of SOLAS Regulations V/19.2.1.4 and V/19.2.1.5.
4. The above-mentioned Circular provides requirements for the carriage and use of ENP System onboard, which includes hardware, software on which electronic nautical publications are installed, displayed, accessed & updated.
5. The salient points from the Circular are provided below:
A. Requirements on ENP system and carriage:
1) Publications included in ENP and issuing authority
An Electronic Nautical Publication (ENP) should be issued officially by or on the authority of a Government, authorized hydrographic office, or other relevant government institution in accordance with SOLAS regulation V/2.2.
2) Hardware and software
a. The ENP system should meet the data format and processing requirements of the ENP.
b. Type approval for the ENP system is not required; however, the ENP system should not interfere with the operation of other navigation and radiocommunication equipment, and electromagnetic compatibility with other systems should be taken into account.
c. Where the ENP system is to be used to run other software applications to support the ship's operations, it should be checked to ensure that there is no conflict between these and the software for ENP.
3) Power supply
As the ENP system should be available at all times during the voyage, the power should be supplied from the ship's main source of electrical power and also its emergency source of electrical power. However, if the ENP system has a built-in battery for portable devices, it is sufficient for the charging facilities to be supplied from both the ship's main source of electrical power and the emergency source of electrical power. The installation and use of a built-in battery or an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) is recommended, in order to eliminate fluctuations in the ship's main supply that would cause an interruption to the ENP system.
4) Display
The size and resolution of the screen of an ENP system should provide a clear display of navigation information. A minimum screen size of 10 inches (diagonal) is recommended. Also, when used on the navigation bridge, the screen should be able to be adjusted in brightness and contrast to enable viewing in all ambient light conditions. Especially for use in darkness, the brightness of the screen and keyboard, as applicable, should not adversely affect the night vision of the bridge watch personnel.
5) Location of ENP system
Nautical publications are required for voyage planning and should also be easily accessible by the master and officers of the watch at all times during the voyage. Therefore, the ENP system should be located in close proximity to the navigation bridge.
6) Backup arrangement
a. In accordance with SOLAS regulation V/19.2.1.5, an appropriate backup arrangement for the ENP system should be provided. The backup arrangement may be a secondary ENP system or official hard copies of nautical publications. If a secondary ENP system is provided as a backup arrangement, it should also satisfy all requirements in these guidelines.
b. If it is not possible to locate the backup arrangement in, or in the vicinity of, the navigation bridge, it may be located at another location easily accessible to officers of the watch.
c. In case the hard copies of nautical publications are provided as a backup arrangement, they should be issued officially by or on the authority of a Government, authorized hydrographic office, or other relevant government institution in accordance with SOLAS regulation V/2.2.
B. Requirements on operation:
1) Update
In accordance with SOLAS regulation V/27, ENP, for both the primary and backup arrangements, should have a facility for updating information at least at the same interval as that provided in any hard copies of nautical publications. Nautical publications used for backup should remain updated at all times. A record of updates should be kept on board.
2) System malfunctions
The procedure for troubleshooting in case of a malfunction of the ENP system should be provided onboard. In the event of a serious malfunction which cannot be resolved by the ship's crew, repairs or remote support by shore personnel should be carried out as soon as possible. If immediate repair is not possible for both the primary and backup ENP systems, all data and information, which can be acquired from nautical publications necessary to sail to a port where repairs can be made, should be provided from the shoreside.
3) Familiarization
The crew using the ENP system should be familiarized on board with these guidelines and user manuals, if provided, to ensure that the ship's master and officers of the watch are able to use and maintain the ENP safely and effectively.
4) Cyber risk management
a. Cyber risk management procedures should be implemented to protect the primary and back-up ENP systems (including a network system, if used) against cyber threats.
b. It should be possible for the user to verify that ENP is authentic. This functionality should allow users to confirm that the data was issued by the relevant authority or data producer.
C. Documented procedures for operation
A documented procedure, which can be part of the ship's Safety Management System, for using and managing the ENP and ENP system should be provided on board, including but not limited to:
- Instructions for use;
- Maintenance procedures, including in case of an ENP system malfunction;
- Periodical updates;
- Backup arrangements and their management; and
- Familiarization.
6. Shipowners/operators and Masters are advised to be guided by the above requirements when the use of ENP onboard ships is authorized by the Flag Administration.
Enclosure:
This Technical Circular and the material contained in it is provided only for the purpose of supplying current information to the reader and not as an advice to be relied upon by any person. While we have taken utmost care to be as factual as possible, readers/ users are advised to verify the exact text and content of the Regulation from the original source/ issuing Authority.