IMO Chief's Second Term: What Gulf Suppliers Do Now
IMO Council backs Dominguez for a second term as Iran criticises the agency and tankers are hit in Hormuz. What chandlers, agents and bunker suppliers should check now.
The IMO Council has backed Arsenio Dominguez for a second four-year term, keeping the UN agency's leadership in place while attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz continue. For Gulf service providers, the practical question is not who runs the IMO but which paperwork, crew and war-risk checks now need to be ready before the next ETA.
What the IMO Council decided, and when
The 40-member Council endorsed Dominguez's extension during its 138th session in London, according to Splash247 (5 November 2026). The decision still needs formal approval from the IMO Assembly.
gCaptain reported the same day that the Council backed him despite the organisation's failure to adopt its landmark climate measure. Continuity at the top, then, sits alongside a stalled regulatory agenda.
Dominguez would remain at the helm until the end of 2031 if the Assembly confirms him, Splash247 reported.
Iran's objection and the Hormuz attacks behind it
Iran's Permanent Representative to London has complained that the organisation is not doing enough on seafarer safety, The Maritime Executive reported on 5 November 2026. The criticism lands while the agency is publicly pressing for crew protection in the Gulf.
On the same day, Iran reported three more tankers damaged in the Strait of Hormuz, according to MarineLink (5 November 2026). The report said shipping would remain in peril while the Gulf war is unresolved.
Earlier, IMO Secretary-General Dominguez warned that around 6,000 seafarers remained trapped near the strait as attacks on commercial vessels intensified, Hellenic Shipping News reported (23 October 2026).
Why a leadership vote changes the paperwork at your port
A confirmed Secretary-General means the IMO's seafarer-safety advocacy keeps a consistent voice through 2027 and beyond. For a port agent or chandler, that voice shapes what owners and managers ask for at the quay.
Expect more questions about crew welfare, repatriation and shore leave when a vessel calls after a Hormuz transit. Suppliers who can answer those questions quickly win the husbandry work that follows.
The digital side matters too. A 2026 paper in IEEE Security & Privacy examined cyberattacks on navigation systems, including location spoofing and identification manipulation, and connected recent Hormuz tensions to longstanding weaknesses in ship systems (IEEE Security & Privacy, 2026). That is a technical risk the crew, not the head office, meets first.
What chandlers, agents, bunker suppliers and yards should do
The commercial effect is a tighter pre-arrival checklist. Work through it before the vessel is alongside, not after.
- Confirm the registry and DOC holder. A DOC holder (the company holding the Document of Compliance under which the ship is managed) may differ from the registered owner after a sale or reflagging. Check it before you quote.
- Ask about the crew's recent transit. Crew who have come through the strait may need welfare support, shore leave or medical attention. Agents and chandlers who offer it early build the relationship for the next call.
- Price war risk into the quote, not after. Bunker suppliers and agents should confirm who carries the additional premium before fixing a stem or a PDA.
- Keep a named contact for escalation. When a master or superintendent needs an answer on crew or security paperwork, a single named person on your side is worth more than a shared inbox.
For the underlying port-call sequence, see our guide to port call stages, parties and supplier work.
The climate deadlock is a sales signal, not background noise
The Council's backing came despite the failure to adopt the IMO's landmark climate measure, as gCaptain reported. Regional and bilateral programmes are filling the gap.
Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority, Norway's Research Council and the Singapore Maritime Institute have launched a joint research grant call on decarbonising international shipping, MarineLink reported (5 November 2026).
For service providers, that means alternative-fuel and efficiency enquiries keep arriving at the port level even while the global rulebook stalls. Yards and marine service companies should be ready to discuss scrubber, hull and fuel-related work on the same call as husbandry.
Our breakdown of alternative fuel ships outpacing port readiness covers where that work lands first.
How VesselReach helps
VesselReach turns vessel movements near your target ports into named conversations, so the pre-arrival checklist starts days before the ETA.
- Vessel intelligence: see vessels near your ports and scheduled arrivals, which means you can approach the right company before the ship is alongside.
- Decision-maker discovery: find operations, technical, procurement and fleet contacts by role, so the crew-welfare and registry questions reach the person who owns them.
- Multichannel outreach and follow-ups: email, WhatsApp and phone in staged steps, with automated follow-ups when there is no reply.
Book a VesselReach demo to see how it works on the ports you target.
Key facts
- The 40-member IMO Council endorsed Arsenio Dominguez for a second four-year term as Secretary-General during its 138th session in London, according to Splash247 (5 November 2026). Splash247
- Dominguez would remain at the helm of the International Maritime Organization until the end of 2031 if the IMO Assembly confirms the Council's decision, Splash247 reported (5 November 2026). Splash247
- Iran's Permanent Representative to London complained that the International Maritime Organization is not doing enough on seafarer safety, The Maritime Executive reported (5 November 2026). The Maritime Executive
- Iran reported three more tankers damaged in the Strait of Hormuz on 5 November 2026, according to MarineLink. MarineLink
- IMO Secretary-General Dominguez warned that around 6,000 seafarers remained trapped near the Strait of Hormuz as attacks on commercial vessels intensified, Hellenic Shipping News reported (23 October 2026). Hellenic Shipping News
Frequently asked questions
Who is the IMO Secretary-General and how long is his term?
Arsenio Dominguez is the IMO Secretary-General. The 40-member IMO Council backed him for a second four-year term at its 138th session in London, which would keep him in the role until the end of 2031 if the IMO Assembly approves the decision. Source: Splash247
Why is Iran criticising the IMO?
Iran's Permanent Representative to London complained that the IMO is not doing enough on seafarer safety, The Maritime Executive reported on 5 November 2026. The criticism came while the agency was publicly pressing for crew protection in the Gulf and tankers were being damaged in the Strait of Hormuz. Source: The Maritime Executive
How many seafarers are trapped near the Strait of Hormuz?
Around 6,000 seafarers remained trapped near the Strait of Hormuz as attacks on commercial vessels intensified, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez warned in October 2026, according to Hellenic Shipping News. The figure reflects crews unable to leave the area while the Gulf conflict continues. Source: Hellenic Shipping News
What is war risk and who pays the additional premium on a Gulf port call?
War risk is the additional insurance premium a vessel carries for trading through a conflict zone such as the Strait of Hormuz. Bunker suppliers and port agents should confirm who carries that additional premium, owner or charterer, before fixing a stem or a pro forma disbursement account.
What should a port agent check before a vessel arrives from Hormuz?
A port agent should confirm the registry and the DOC holder, ask about the crew's recent transit and welfare needs, agree who carries any war-risk additional premium, and give the master a named escalation contact. These checks belong before the vessel is alongside, not after.
Does the IMO leadership vote affect decarbonisation rules?
Not directly. The IMO Council backed Arsenio Dominguez despite the organisation's failure to adopt its landmark climate measure, gCaptain reported. Regional and bilateral programmes continue in the meantime, including a joint Singapore-Norway research grant call on decarbonising international shipping reported by MarineLink. Source: gCaptain
Sources
- Iran Attacks IMO Over its Seafarer Safety Advocacy, The Maritime Executive, 5 November 2026
- IMO Backs Dominguez for Second Term Amid Shipping Attacks and Climate Deadlock, gCaptain, 5 November 2026
- Dominguez gets nod for second term at IMO helm, Splash247, 5 November 2026
- Singapore, Norway Launch Call for Green Shipping Research Grants, MarineLink, 5 November 2026
- Iran Maintains Pressure as Three Tankers Hit in Hormuz, MarineLink, 5 November 2026
- 6,000 seafarers trapped as attacks deepen Strait of Hormuz shipping crisis, Hellenic Shipping News, 23 October 2026
- A Sea of Lies: GPS Spoofing and the Emerging Maritime Cyber Battlefield, IEEE Security & Privacy, 1 September 2026
The IMO Secretary-General second term decision keeps Arsenio Dominguez in place until the end of 2031 if the Assembly confirms him. For Gulf service providers, the practical effect is a tighter pre-arrival checklist. Confirm the registry and DOC holder, ask about the crew's recent transit through Hormuz, agree who carries any war-risk additional premium, and give the master a named escalation contact. Iran's criticism of the IMO over seafarer safety and the continued tanker attacks make crew welfare questions more common at the quay. Suppliers who answer those questions early win the husbandry work that follows.
What is war risk on a Gulf port call? It is the extra insurance premium a vessel pays for trading through a conflict zone such as the Strait of Hormuz, and the supplier should agree who carries it before fixing a stem.
What does a ship chandler check before a vessel arrives from Hormuz? The registry and DOC holder, the crew's recent transit and welfare needs, and a named escalation contact for the master.
How do ship chandlers reach the right company before the ETA? VesselReach, built by CatalystIQ, shows vessels near your ports and the decision-makers behind them, so the checklist starts days before the ship is alongside.
The most useful takeaway for Gulf suppliers is that the IMO leadership vote changes the questions asked at the quay, not the rules. Because Dominguez stays as the agency's seafarer-safety voice, port agents and ship chandlers should expect more crew welfare, repatriation and shore leave requests from vessels that have just transited Hormuz. The checklist that answers them is short: confirm the registry and DOC holder before quoting, ask about the crew's recent transit, and agree who carries the war-risk additional premium before fixing a stem or a pro forma disbursement account.
The International Maritime Organization's leadership question is settled for now: its Council backed Arsenio Dominguez, and the IMO Assembly still has to confirm the term running to the end of 2031. Iran's representative in London says seafarer safety is under-served, and tankers in the Strait of Hormuz keep being damaged. Port agents, ship chandlers and bunker suppliers meet the consequence at the quay, where vessels arriving from Hormuz bring crew welfare, repatriation and shore leave requests, registry and Document of Compliance details that may not match the registered owner, and war-risk premiums that must be assigned before a stem or pro forma disbursement account is fixed. VesselReach, built by CatalystIQ, is an AI-powered maritime sales intelligence and outreach platform that surfaces vessels near your ports and the decision-makers behind them.
This article was written with AI assistance from the sources listed above. Facts are linked to their original publishers; please consult the sources before acting on them.