{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2011-296/schedule-ANNEX/chapter-III/section-4",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2011-296/schedule-ANNEX/chapter-III/section-4.json",
  "legislation": "eudn/2011/296",
  "legislation_title": "Council Decision of 24 February 2011 on the signing, on behalf of the Union, and provisional application of the Protocol setting out the fishing opportunities and financial contribution provided for in the Fisheries Partnership Agreement between the European Union and the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe (2011/296/EU)",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/eu-decision-2011-296",
  "path": "schedule/ANNEX/chapter/III/section/4",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "4",
  "heading": "Satellite monitoring",
  "text": "European Union vessels operating under this Protocol must be monitored, inter alia, by the satellite-based monitoring system, without discrimination, in accordance with the following provisions.\n1.. For the purposes of satellite monitoring, the São Toméan authorities shall communicate the geographical positions of the limits of the São Toméan fishing zone to the representatives or agents of the shipowners and to the Control Centres of the flag States.\n2.. Using the model provided in Appendix 4, the Parties shall exchange information on https addresses and the specifications for electronic data transmission between their Control Centres in accordance with points 4 and 6. Such information shall include the following where they exist: names, telephone, telex and fax numbers and e-mail addresses which may be used for general communications between Control Centres.\n3.. The position of vessels shall be determined with a margin of error of less than 500 metres and a confidence interval of 99 %.\n4.. When a European Union vessel which is operating in São Toméan waters under this Protocol and is the subject of satellite monitoring pursuant to European Union legislation enters São Tomé and Príncipe’s fishing zone, the subsequent position reports shall immediately be transmitted by the Control Centre of the flag State to São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre at intervals of no more than 2 hours. The messages concerned shall be identified as position reports.\n5.. The messages referred to in point 4 shall be transmitted electronically in https format, without any further protocol. They shall be communicated in real time in the format set out in the table in Appendix 4.\n5.1. It is prohibited for vessels to turn off the satellite monitoring equipment when they are operating in São Toméan waters.\n6.. Where the continuous satellite monitoring equipment installed on board a fishing vessel develops a technical fault or breaks down, the skipper of the vessel shall transmit the information specified in point 4 to the Control Centre of the flag State in good time. In such circumstances, it will be necessary to send a position report every 24 hours while the vessel is in São Toméan waters.\n6.1. This global position report shall include the hourly positions as recorded by the skipper of that vessel during those 24 hours.\n6.2. The Control Centre of the flag State or the vessel itself must forward these messages to São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre without delay.\n6.3. In case of need or doubt, the competent São Toméan authorities may request additional information from the Control Centre of the flag State about a particular vessel.\n7.. The defective equipment shall be repaired or replaced as soon as the vessel completes its fishing trip and, in any case, within one month at the latest. After this deadline, the vessel in question may not undertake any further fishing trips until the equipment has been repaired or replaced.\n8.. The satellite monitoring system’s software and hardware components shall be tamper-proof, i.e. they must not permit the input or output of false positions or be capable of being manipulated. The system shall be fully automatic and operational at all times regardless of environmental conditions. Destroying, damaging, rendering inoperative or tampering with the satellite monitoring system shall be prohibited.\n8.1. The skipper of the vessel must ensure in particular that:\ndata are not altered in any way,\nthe antenna or antennas connected to the satellite monitoring equipment are not obstructed in any way,\nthe power supply of the satellite monitoring equipment is not interrupted in any way,\nthe vessel tracking device is not removed from the vessel or from the place where it was originally installed,\nany replacement of the vessel tracking device shall immediately be notified to the competent São Toméan authorities.\n8.2. Any violation of the above-mentioned requirements may make the skipper and the shipowner liable under the laws and regulations of São Tomé and Príncipe, provided that the vessel is operating in São Toméan waters.\n9.. The Control Centres of the flag States shall monitor the movements of their vessels in São Toméan waters. If the vessels are not being monitored in accordance with the conditions laid down, São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre shall be informed immediately and the procedure laid down in point 6 shall apply.\n10.. The Control Centres of the flag States and São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre must cooperate to ensure the implementation of these provisions. If São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre establishes that a flag State is not transmitting the data in accordance with point 4, the other Party must be informed immediately. Upon receipt of notification, the latter must respond within 24 hours by informing São Tomé and Príncipe’s Fisheries Monitoring Centre of the reasons for non-transmission and stating a reasonable deadline for complying with these provisions. If these provisions are not complied with within the time limit set, the two Parties shall resolve the dispute in writing or as provided for in point 14 below.\n11.. The monitoring data communicated to the other Party in accordance with these provisions shall be intended solely for the purposes of the São Toméan authorities in controlling and monitoring the European Union fleet fishing under the Fisheries Partnership Agreement. Such data may not, under any circumstances, be communicated to third parties.\n12.. The Parties agree to exchange, upon request, information on the equipment used for satellite monitoring, in order to ensure that each piece of equipment is fully compatible with the requirements of the other Party for the purposes of these provisions.\n13.. The Parties agree to review these provisions where appropriate, in particular in the event of a malfunction or anomaly relating to the vessels. These cases should be notified by the competent São Toméan authority to the flag State at least 15 days before the review meeting.\n14.. Any dispute over the interpretation or application of these provisions shall be the subject of consultation between the Parties within the Joint Committee provided for in Article 9 of the Fisheries Partnership Agreement.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [],
  "outstanding_effects": [],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/eudn/2011/296/schedule/ANNEX/chapter/III/section/4",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-11-01T15:15:47.321730+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}