New Fleet

EMS SATCOM Fleet 55 Satellite Terminal Gains Type Approval

Following a rigorous program of beta testing and evaluation on a number of vessels from various market segments, EMS SATCOM, a division of EMS Technologies, Inc., has received full Inmarsat type approval for its new Fleet 55 Maritime satellite terminal. The Fleet 55 terminal provides global voice services, as well as 64kbits/s Mobile ISDN (including G-3 fax at 14.4kbps, or full-blown G-4 fax) and Mobile Packet Data. It supports a comprehensive selection of interfaces, including ISDN, X.21, RS449, RS232, and two RJ11 ports, as well as optional STUIIB/III service for reliable secure communications.

Delta Queen Coastal Voyages Launches Second Ship

Just five months after the shipyard launch of Delta Queen Coastal Voyages' first vessel, the second ship in the new fleet was christened at Atlantic Marine, Inc., in Jacksonville, Fla., Friday, November 17, 2000. The 226-passenger coastal vessel will inaugurate nine cruise itineraries featuring the Great Lakes, Canadian Maritime Provinces and U.S. eastern seaboard in 2001. The ship launched Friday, the CV Cape Cod Light, will debut Aug

Xantic To Offer Fleet 33, Fleet 55 Services Globally

Xantic has become the first company to announce the availability of the new Fleet 33 and Fleet 55 services. Last Friday a contract was signed with Nera for upgrades of both Xantic Land Earth StationsLES’s in Holland (Burum) and Australia (Perth). The services will be available early April and will be provided in the 4 Ocean regions. At the same time Xantic’s Fleet 77 service will be enhanced by the addition of a 9.6k fax channel.

Austal Wins Six Boat Contract

Austal won a contract for the design, construction and supply of six 16-m aluminium monohull boats for the Water Police in the Australian state of New South Wales. This order will add to the previous Austal delivery of two 22 m and seven 16 m patrol boats delivered in 2000. As with the previous vessels this order will be built over a period of approximately 10 months. The boats have been ordered as part of a four-year upgrade of the Water Police fleet

Hellespont Expands into Singapore

The Hamburg-based Hellespont group has expanded its operations by opening a new company in Singapore. Hellespont Singapore Pte Ltd is responsible for developing relationships with key offshore charterers in Singapore, sourcing crews for the Hellespont-managed PSV fleet and establishing Hellespont as operators of offshore vessels in Singapore. Phrixos Papachristidis, Managing Director of Hellespont AG & Co KG, the parent company of the German-based Hellespont ship management and marine

Stena Sonangol Suezmax Pool Adds Eight Vessels

Stena Bulk of Sweden announced that a newly created fleet of seven modern Suezmax Tankers will join the Pool, immediately growing this premium Pool to 18 vessels. The new fleet is owned by Veritable Maritime Holdings and is under the control of recently formed Principal Maritime Management. Both Veritable and Principal are portfolio companies of the New York asset management firm Apollo Management L.P. The Suezmax vessels joining the pool in succession will be Princimar Truth (built 2007)

Snohomish is Launched

Washington State Ferries' newest ferry Snohomish was launched last month. It is now undergoing last-minute installations and sea trials before officially entering service on the Seattle/Bremerton route. The sleek ferry is the sister ship of Chinook, already in service on the Seattle/Bremerton route. With a few minor exceptions - the biggest being a new bow configuration so it can front load at auto ferry slips - Snohomish is a replica of Chinook.

Shell to Manage Nakilat’s LNG Fleet

Qatar Gas Transport Company Ltd (Nakilat) has appointed Shell International Trading and Shipping Company Limited (Shell) to manage its fleet of at least 27 new LNG carriers in a 25-year deal. Under this arrangement it is expected that Operational Management will be transferred to Nakilat within 12 years. The agreement will involve Shell providing a range of shipping services to Nakilat including ship management as well as the transfer of know how and expertise to allow Nakilat to

Linde Group to Supply Reliquefaction Equipment for New Fleet of LNG Carriers

Cryostar has won an order from Samsung Heavy Industries totalling over $50m. As part of this order, Cryostar will supply on-board boil-off gas reliquefaction plants for five LNG tankers to be built by 2008. The modern membrane carriers with a cargo capacity of 265,000 cubic meters will be the largest ever built and are destined for LNG trade between Qatar and the U.S.A. The larger the vessel, the more important the boil-off gas management for the LNG

Denmark's Three New Frigates Terma Equipped

Terma has delivered radar, command control systems for the Danish Navy’s new fleet of frigates that are now preparing for operation. Denmark’s three new frigates in the Iver Huitfeldt-class, Iver Huitfeldt (F361), Peter Willemoes (F362), and Niels Juel (F363) have cruised together for the first time out of Denmark’s coast. Terma has delivered a number of mission-critical solutions for the Danish frigates, including the SCANTER 6000 radar