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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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Two Years News

13 Mar 2024

Equinor Extends Drilling Contracts

Photo: Arne Reidar Mortensen / Equinor

Equinor, on behalf of the partners, is exercising two options to extend contracts with Archer AS, KCA Deutag Drilling Norway AS and Odfjell Operations AS for a total of four years.The options for drilling services on fixed installations on the Norwegian continental shelf provide jobs for 2,000 people per year and have an estimated value of NOK 18.4 billion.The contracts were signed in 2018 with three option periods of two years. The first two-year option was exercised in 2022.

08 Mar 2024

Vard to Deliver Tailor-Made Offshore Wind CSOV for Norwind Offshore

VARD 4 19 CSOV vessel for Norwind Offshore (Credit: Vard)

Norwegian shipbuilder Vard has secured a contract for the design and construction of one tailor-made offshore wind commissioning service operation vessel (CSOV) for Norwind Offshore, with options for two additional vessels.Vard signed the contract with Navigare Capital Partners, a shareholder in Norwind Offshore.The new CSOV vessel, scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2026, is of VARD 4 19 design, developed by Vard Design in Ålesund in close collaboration with Norwind Offshore.The hull will be built in Vard Shipyards Romania ā€“ Braila and the outfittingā€¦

05 Mar 2024

Ukraine Says it Sunk a Russian Patrol Ship Near Crimea

(Photo: Ukraine Defense)

Ukrainian sea drones hit and sank a Russian Black Sea Fleet patrol ship off occupied Crimea in an overnight attack, the Ukrainian military said on Tuesday.Ukraine's GUR military intelligence agency said a special unit called Group 13 had fired Magura V5 maritime drones at the Sergey Kotov near the Kerch Strait, which connects the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea.It said on the Telegram messaging app that the vessel had sustained damage to the stern, starboard and port sides, at an estimated cost of $65 million."Right now this ship is on the seabed as a result of fire damage by unmanned boatsā€¦

05 Mar 2024

Dutch Defense to Spend Billions on New Frigates

Ā© Wojciech Wrzesień / Adobe Stock

The Dutch government on Friday said it would replace nearly its entire navy fleet in the coming 15 years, in a project worth several billion euros that it said would mainly benefit Dutch industry.A large part of the project would consist of the replacement of four air defense frigates, the government said, confirming an earlier report by RTL Nieuws.The government said it would work closely with Dutch industry in building the ships, with large roles for shipbuilder Damen and the Dutch arm of French defense company Thales, which would likely supply radar and missile guidance systems."This will s

05 Mar 2024

Turkish Oil Terminal Halts Russian Oil Business

Ā© Kalyakan / Adobe Stock

One of Turkey's mid-sized Mediterranean oil terminals - the Dortyol terminal - will no longer accept Russian imports after receiving record volumes last year, amid an increase in sanctions pressure by the United States.Turkey has become one of the biggest importers of Russian crude and fuel since 2022, after the West imposed sanctions on Moscow for the invasion of Ukraine. Russia responded by re-routing oil away from Europe and the U.S. to Asia, Turkey and Africa.Global Terminal Services' (GTS)ā€¦

04 Mar 2024

Egypt Studying Further Expansion of Suez Canal

Ā© Nancy Pauwels / Adobe Stock

Egypt is studying further expansions of the Suez Canal to extend and complete a second channel of the waterway, the canal's head said on Monday, a move that could allow for higher volumes of shipping and prevent blockages from halting traffic.The comments come as the canal is seeing a sharp fall in revenue due to shipping companies diverting away from the waterway, the shortest route between Europe and Asia, because of attacks by Houthi militants in Yemen against ships in the Red Sea.Any new extension would come on top of current work to extend the second channel by 10 kilometers, and to deepe

01 Mar 2024

Ukraine Expands Ship War Insurance with Marsh & Lloyd's to Iron Ore, Steel

Ā© glebzter / Adobe Stock

Insurance broker Marsh and Lloyd's of London underwriters have expanded a marine war insurance program backed by Ukraine from grain shipments to all non-military cargo, such as iron ore and steel, Marsh said on Friday.Marsh, Lloyd's and Ukrainian state banks launched an initial program in November to cut the cost of claims for damage to ships and crew transporting grain through the Black Sea corridor, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine two years ago."Expanding insurance to cover ships carrying all non-military cargo is extremely important for Ukraineā€¦

29 Feb 2024

Steve Nevey Tapped to Lead Washington State Ferries

Steve Nevey (Photo: WSDOT)

Steve Nevey has been selected to serve as assistant secretary for the Washington State Ferries Division, the state's Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar announced on Thursday. Nevey will succeed Patty Rubstello, who is stepping down as head of WSF after more than 33 years of service with the Washington State Department of Transportation.A career mariner, Nevey progressed directly from high school to a maritime academy in the U.K. For the past two years he has served as directorā€¦

27 Feb 2024

Japan Continues to Lead Shipowner Rankings

Ā© Carabay / Adobe Stock

VesselsValue has unveils this yearā€™s top 10 shipowning nations, reviewing the total asset values for vessels by beneficial owner country. From Japan's resolute leadership in the top position with a USD 206.3 billion fleet to the emergence of Hong Kong at USD 44.7 billion, asset values and ownership strategies have changed considerably over the last 12 months, says Rebecca Galanopoulos-Jones, Senior Content Analyst, Veson Nautical.The data provided by VesselsValue and analysed by Veson is valid as of February 2024.

23 Feb 2024

The APAC Offshore Market: Riding the Wave of Success into 2024 and Beyond

Copyright Peter Hermes Furian/AdobeStock

2023 was the first year of real recovery for owners in the offshore supply market and yet we have barely skimmed the surface of whatā€™s to come.The market is still on an upward trajectory with charter rates accelerating month-by-month, availability changing day-by-day, leading to earnings doubling and, in some segments, tripling since the lows of 2020. Current rates will remind many of the glory days of pre-2014 with the demand for OSVs projected to remain elevated for years to come.In generalā€¦

21 Feb 2024

Unifeeder to Add Two More Methanol-powered Vessels

(Image: Unifeeder Group)

Unifeeder Group announced it has completed a long-term charter agreement for two additional methanol-capable container feeder vessels. This follows the agreement for two initial vessels announced in October 2023. The latest agreement is in partnership with German-based ship owning group Elbdeich Reederei and Norwegian shipowner MPC Container Ships (MPCC), who are responsible for one vessel each. The 1,250 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) vessels, scheduled for delivery in 2026ā€¦

21 Feb 2024

Demand for Maritime Shaft Generators Increasing

Controllable pitch propeller.
Source: MAN Energy Solutions

30 years ago shaft generators with PTI capability kept container ships sailing at top speed. That purpose gone, PTI/PTO is making a new comeback in more cargo shipping segments, this time for reducing emissions.Retrofitting a shaft generator is not an insignificant undertaking. Around 50 tons of equipment needs to be installed into the engineroom through a hole in the hull. A new section of shaft is usually required.That a few shipowners are undertaking such projects - Klaveness Combination Carriers on the Ballardā€¦

21 Feb 2024

Maine Selects Sears Island as Preferred Site for Floating Wind Port Facility

Ā© creativenature.nl / Adobe Stock

The government of Maine has selected a section of state-owned area on Sears Island as its preferred site for a port facility development that will support the floating offshore wind industry.The selection of the site, announced by the Governor of Maine Janet Mills, follows an extensive public stakeholder process led by the Maine Department of Transportation and Maine Port Authority to consider the stateā€™s primary port development options, including multiple potential sites in the Port of Searsportā€¦

19 Feb 2024

Insights: Catherine Gianelloni, MITAGS

Catherine Gianelloni, Director, MITAGS East Coast Campus (Photo: MITAGS)

Catherine Gianelloni sailed with the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots (IOMM&P) for about 10 years after graduating from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 2009. But in between times at sea, she would help out at the MITAGS (Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies). Operating simulators evolved into teaching opportunities, and Gianelloni took a full-time position in 2012. ā€œBecause we are the union school, I was allowed to take breaksā€”leave of absencesā€”to go out and sail.

15 Feb 2024

For Ferries to Go Green, Governments Will Need to Provide the Green

Ā© jjfarq / Adobe Stock

Whether it is from international organizations or state government agencies, there is growing pressure on ferry operators to meet stringent goals to reduce the environmental toll from their operations.The California Air Resource Boardā€™s Commercial Harbor Craft Regulation issued the most stringent of these policies, which requires all short-run ferries to achieve zero emission by January 1, 2026. But itā€™s not just California that wants this industry to clean up its act. The Unitedā€¦

12 Feb 2024

Altera Hires DOF to Install Voyageur Spirit FPSO Offshore Ivory Coast

Voyageur Spirit FPSO (Credit: Kishorn Port & Drydock)

Altera Infrastructure has hired DOF to install Voyageur Spirit floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit as well as one floating storage unit (FSO) at Eni-operated Baleine oil field offshore Ivory Coast.The project includes the complete installation of seabed mooring systems, flowline between the FSO ā€“ a converted shuttle tanker Nordic Brasilia - and the Voyageur Spirit FPSO, along with their associated equipment.The contract for the redeployment of the FPSO and the FSO was secured by Altera back in October 2023.Voyageur Spirit is a cylindrical-shaped FPSOā€¦

09 Feb 2024

Furetank Orders Two More Vessels

(Photo: Furetank)

Furetank adds another two Vinga vessels to the order line. Upon delivery, Furetankā€™s fleet will consist entirely of environmentally proven, top standard vessels with an average age of two years, the company said."We did our homework. This development towards sustainability has been an amazing journey," said Furetank CEO Lars Höglund.The vessels are number 20 and 21 in the Vinga series of intermediate size product tankers and will be fully owned by Furetank Rederi AB. They will replace older tonnage.The Vinga series has been rapidly expanded in the last few yearsā€¦

05 Feb 2024

The Digital Revolution & US Shipbuilding

(Image: CADMATIC)

The competitive landscape in shipbuilding has changed dramatically, as ā€˜Industry 4.0ā€™ capabilities driven by the digital revolution have given the edge to those that scout and adopt solutions that deliver on the promise of increasing efficiency while cutting costs. Juan Prieto discusses the CADMATIC suite of solutions for North American shipyards seeking to capture the competitive edge.Digital technologies are evolving at breakneck speed, unlocking tremendous efficiency gains for shipbuilders.

06 Feb 2024

Birdon Acquires Metal Shark's Bayou La Batre Shipyard

(Photo courtesy Birdon Group)

Australia's Birdon Group announced its U.S. subsidiary has reached a deal to acquire Metal Shark Boats' shipyard in Bayou La Batre, Ala.Birdon America said it will utilize the 32-acre facility for vessel repair work as well as newbuild activity, including construction of the U.S. Coast Guard's $1.187 billion 27-vessel Waterways Commerce Cutter (WCC) Program awarded to Birdon in 2022.Birdon Group CEO, Jamie Bruce, said, ā€œThe investment in this facility will not only ensure we deliver on our promise to the U.S.

02 Feb 2024

DOF Vessel to Report for Duty Offshore Australia

PSV Skandi KvitsĆøy (Credit: DOF Group)

Norwegian offshore vessel owner DOF Group has secured ā€˜substantial contractā€™ with an international oil company for the platform supply vessel (PSV) Skandi Kvitsøy.The vessel will work in Australian waters and further strengthen DOFā€™s presence in Australia.DOF Group defines a ā€˜substantial contractā€™ as the one with value between $23 million and $48 million (NOK 250 million to NOK 500 million).The contract is set to start in the first quarter of 2024, with two-year firm and two years optionsā€¦

26 Jan 2024

Freight Through Suez Canal Down 45% Amid Houthi Attacks

Ā© moofushi / Adobe Stock

Freight going through the Suez Canal has dropped by 45% in the two months since attacks by Yemen's Houthis led shipping groups to divert freight, disrupting already strained maritime trading routes, according to UN agency UNCTAD.UNCTAD, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, which supports developing countries in global trade, warned of risks of higher inflation, uncertainty of food security and increased greenhouse gas emissions.Shipping companies have diverted ships from the Red Sea since the Iran-aligned Houthi movementā€¦

23 Jan 2024

Solstad Offshore Hooks $70M in CSV Contracts with Petrobras

CSV Normand Fortress (Credit: Solstad Offshore)

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Solstad Offshore has secured $70 million in new contracts and extensions for two of its subsea construction vessels (CSV) that will be employed offshore Brazil.The new contract is for the CSV Normand Fortress with Brazilian state-run oil company Petrobras.The contract has a duration of two years firm with possibility of two years extension. The vessel will provide accommodation services to support production activities on Brazilian continental shelf.The contract is set to start in the second quarter of 2024ā€¦

18 Jan 2024

Colebrook Rebrands As CSO Shipbrokers

Ā© David Maddock / Adobe Stock

Chartering, sale and purchase, and market intelligence brokerage Colebrook Offshore has changed its name to CSO Shipbrokers in a strategic rebrand.ā€œWe have achieved significant growth over the past two years, more than doubling the size of our team and consistently developing our client base and list of active projectsā€ said Tony Colebrook, Chief Executive Officer of CSO Marine Group.ā€œColebrook Offshore has served us well up to this point, but with Sam Stout now taking the reins as Managing Director of the Brokerageā€¦

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