BIG GEORGE (IMO 9142942) detained at Tianjin, October 2026
The 29-year-old container ship BIG GEORGE has been detained at Tianjin for the second time in eight months, following a deteriorating inspection record that has seen deficiency counts surge since late 2024. The vessel's ISM manager changed in January 2025, just weeks before its first detention in Dalian, and the ship has accumulated 13 initial inspections across Chinese and Korean ports in under two years.
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BIG GEORGE was detained at Tianjin on 14 October 2026 by Chinese port state control authorities operating under the Tokyo MoU. The deficiency count and specific codes for this detention have not yet been published. The vessel's recognised organisation is DNV, and her ISM manager is Executive Ship Management Pvt Ltd of Mumbai. At the time of detention, the vessel's AIS destination was recorded as Busan, Korea, with an ETA of 17 October.
The vessel
BIG GEORGE is a 2,442-TEU geared container ship built in 1997 at Siag Nordseewerke in Emden, Germany. She measures 199.85 metres LOA with a beam of 29.8 metres, 25,499 GT and 34,167 DWT, powered by a two-stroke Mitsubishi 8UEC60LS diesel. She flies the Liberian flag, which she has held continuously since August 2012 following earlier spells under both German and Liberian registries. DNV (formerly DNV-GL, formerly Germanischer Lloyd) has classed the vessel since at least January 2013. The ship has sailed under six names: Pembroke Senator at delivery, then CMA CGM Emerald, Kota Pahlawan, Pembroke, Messini, and finally BIG GEORGE from May 2022. At 29 years old, she is well beyond the average age for container tonnage in active service.
Inspection history
The full PSC record spans 58 inspections across five MoU regimes dating back to May 1998, with 100 recorded deficiencies and one prior detention. For most of her life, BIG GEORGE was a clean ship. Between 1998 and 2022, she underwent 40 inspections and recorded just 27 deficiencies with zero detentions, an average of roughly one deficiency per inspection and often none at all. The US Coast Guard examined her seven times between 2001 and 2012 without recording a single deficiency. The picture changed dramatically from late 2024. Since November 2024 the vessel has faced 10 initial and follow-up inspections in Chinese and Korean ports alone, accumulating at least 54 deficiencies. An initial inspection at Dalian on 20 February 2025 logged 12 deficiencies spanning ISM shortfalls, ballast water management failures, oil record book defects, fire safety, steering gear alarms, abandon ship drill failures, and hatch condition issues, resulting in detention. A follow-up inspection the next day cleared the vessel. Subsequent inspections continued to find problems: eight deficiencies at Busan in June 2025, four at Dalian in September 2025, and then 13 deficiencies at Tianjin in June 2026, the highest single-inspection count in the vessel's history. That June 2026 inspection required two follow-up visits before the vessel was cleared. Most recently, Busan recorded seven deficiencies in August 2026 across alarms, fire safety, ISM, lifejackets, engine room cleanliness, and gangway issues. Steering gear alarm deficiencies and ISM-related findings have recurred across multiple inspections, indicating systemic rather than isolated problems.
Ownership and management
The registered owner is Phoenix Shipping Ltd of Bermuda, care of Mount Street Portfolio Advisers GmbH in Düsseldorf, recorded since March 2022. Mount Street Portfolio Advisers also holds the ship manager and commercial manager role, effective June 2022, and operates a fleet of just four vessels. ISM management changed hands in January 2025 from V Ships Greece Ltd, which had held the role since April 2013, to Executive Ship Management Pvt Ltd of Mumbai. That handover occurred less than one month before the vessel's first-ever detention at Dalian on 20 February 2025. The company history shows considerable churn over the vessel's life. Before V Ships Greece, ISM management passed through Ciel Shipmanagement SA (August 2012), Laeisz Reederei (August 2009), and Laeisz F Schiffahrts MbH & Co (May 2003). The registered owner changed from Joyner Carriers SA to Phoenix Shipping in March 2022, at roughly the same time the vessel was renamed BIG GEORGE. Prior to the current ownership, the vessel traded under Costamare Shipping Co SA as commercial manager from 2013 to 2022.
Risk profile
VesselScore rates BIG GEORGE at 30 out of 100, placing her in the "very high risk" calibration band with an estimated detention probability of 13.3%. Every scored component contributes to this rating. The deficiency rate component is maxed out at 15 of 15 points, reflecting the recent surge in findings. The severity mix score is also at maximum (10 of 10), driven by ISM-related and pollution prevention deficiencies, categories that PSC authorities weight heavily. The detention history component scores 10 of a possible 20, reflecting the February 2025 Dalian detention. Manager churn adds 10 of 15 points, consistent with the ISM manager change in January 2025. The flag and class component scores 10 of 10, and the age baseline is also maxed at 10 of 10 for a 1997-built ship. AIS behaviour contributes 3 of 5 points, with three loitering events detected. A marine casualty from June 2006, when the vessel traded as Kota Pahlawan, adds a further 2 points. Sanctions screening is clear.
What to watch
The immediate priority is confirmation of the deficiency list for this detention and the timeline for release. Given that the June 2026 Tianjin detention required two follow-up inspections before clearance, a similar pattern is plausible. Charterers should note that the vessel's next port call is Busan, where Korean authorities recorded seven deficiencies just two months ago; a further inspection there is near-certain given the elevated targeting profile created by two detentions within the Tokyo MoU in under two years. The ISM manager change to Executive Ship Management is now 21 months old, and the deficiency trend has not improved under the new manager. Certificate data in the report has not been updated since 2018, so current statutory certificate status should be independently verified. The vessel's age, at 29 years, places her at the outer boundary of operational viability for mainstream container trades.
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