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British Isles News

03 Apr 2022

Holland America Line Ship to House Ukrainian Refugees

A Dutch-flagged cruise ship will provide a temporary home to some 1,500 Ukrainians who fled their country in the wake of Russia's invasion.Holland America Line said its vessel Volendam will be used to accommodate Ukrainian refugees as part of an agreement announced by Netherlands and City of Rotterdam government officials. The ship will dock at Merwehaven, a cargo port on the north side of the River Maas in Rotterdam, for three months to provide a temporary home for approximately 1,500 Ukrainians, part of a larger commitment from the Netherlands to accommodate 50,000 people who fled the war in their homeland.“We are in a unique position to accommodate the immediate need for food and housing…

24 Aug 2021

MS Otto Sverdrup: Hurtigruten's Third Battery-Hybrid Expedition Cruise Ship

MS Otto Sverdrup offers year-round expedition cruises along the spectacular Norwegian coastline, and is Hurtigruten Expeditions' third battery-hybrid powered ship. Photo: AGURTXANE CONCELLON/Hurtigruten Expeditions

When MS Otto Sverdrup departed Hamburg, Germany, on itsmaiden voyage on August 24, Hurtigruten marked off three milestones: Introduction of Hurtigruten Expeditions’ third battery-hybrid powered cruise ship; Introduction of the first year-round expedition cruises from Germany; and a return of expedition cruises after more than a year of pandemic pause.Since the very first expedition cruise in 1896, Hurtigruten Expeditions has helped to define the expedition cruise category, with today a growing fleet of smaller…

26 May 2021

Fincantieri Delivers Second of Three Lengthened Ships for Windstar Cruises

Windstar Cruises’ President Chris Prelog (on left) finishes signing handover documents for Star Legend at the Fincantieri shipyard in Palermo, Italy. (Photo: Windstar Cruises)

Italian shipbuilding group Fincantieri announced it has handed over Star Legend, the second of three lengthened and refurbished ships for U.S.-based boutique passenger yacht operator Windstar Cruises. The vessel was was delivered from Fincantieri's shipyard in Palermo.The Star Plus Initiative program, worth $250 million and involving the cruise ships Star Breeze, delivered last year, Star Legend and Star Pride, envisaged three main complex activity areas: installation of a new 25.6 meters mid-body section…

03 Aug 2020

Norway Suspends Cruises Carrying 100+ People After Outbreak

MS Roald Amundsen (File photo: Hurtigruten)

Norway stopped all cruise ships with more than 100 people on board from disembarking at its ports from Monday, after an outbreak of COVID-19 was reported late last week on a ship that had already disembarked at the port of Tromsoe.At least 41 passengers and crew who were on board the cruise ship MS Roald Amundsen, operated by Norwegian company Hurtigruten, have so far tested positive for the coronavirus, while hundreds more on board were told to self-isolate for 10 days, local public health officials said on Sunday.Norway is in touch with Germany…

03 Aug 2020

Hurtigruten Halts Cruises After Coronavirus Outbreak

Roald Amundsen (File photo: Hurtigruten)

Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten is halting all its so-called expedition cruises until further notice following an outbreak of COVID-19 on one of its vessels last week, the company said on Monday.At least 41 passengers and crew from the MS Roald Amundsen have so far tested positive for the coronavirus, while hundreds more have been told to self-isolate for 10 days, public health officials said.“A preliminary evaluation shows a breakdown in several of our internal procedures,” Chief Executive Daniel Skjeldam said in a statement.“Our own failure…

02 Aug 2020

At Least 40 Infected with COVID-19 on Hurtigruten Cruise Ship

MS Roald Amundsen (File photo: Hurtigruten)

At least 40 passengers and crew from a luxury cruise liner have tested positive for COVID-19 and the authorities are still trying to trace a number of passengers from two recent Arctic voyages, public health officials in Norway said on Sunday.Four crew members on the MS Roald Amundsen were hospitalized on Friday when the ship arrived at the port of Tromsoe, and later diagnosed with the respiratory illness. Tests showed another 32 of the 158 staff were also infected.While the crew was quarantined on the ship…

31 Jul 2020

Four Crew Members on Hurtigruten Cruise Ship Hospitalized with COVID-19

Roald Amundsen (File photo: Hurtigruten)

Four crew members on a Norwegian cruise vessel were diagnosed with COVID-19 after it arrived at the Arctic port of Tromsoe early on Friday, said the University Hospital of North Norway where they are being treated.All 160 crew members on the Roald Amundsen have been quarantined on the ship, while the 177 passengers - all of whom have already disembarked - are being contacted by telephone and are being told to self-isolate, operator Hurtigruten said.“By the time we were notified, the passengers had left the ship,” Tromsoe municipality chief doctor Kathrine Kristoffersen told a news conference.

15 Jul 2020

Total Shipping Losses Are Declining, But Challenges Persist -Report

The car carrier Golden Ray sits capsized in St. Simons Sound, Ga. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Brian McCrum)

The record low 41 large shipping losses worldwide in 2019 represents a 20% improvement year-on-year and almost 70% over a decade, but the coronavirus crisis could endanger the long-term safety improvements in the shipping industry for 2020 and beyond, as difficult operating conditions and a sharp economic downturn present a unique set of challenges, according to recent report from marine insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS).Consequences of coronavirus and a sustained…

27 Dec 2021

USS Nevada Shipwreck Located

The stern of the wreck has the remains of “36” and “140.”  Nevada’s designation was BB-36 and the 140 was painted on the structural “rib” at the ship’s stern for the atomic tests to facilitate post-blast damage reporting. (Photo: Ocean Infinity/SEARCH, Inc.)

The wreck of one of the U.S. Navy's longest serving battleships has been found 15,400 feet beneath the surface about 65 nautical miles southwest of Pearl Harbor, researchers said Monday.The USS Nevada (BB-36), which served in two world wars over the course of a career that spanned more than three and a half decades, was discovered by underwater and terrestrial archaeology firm SEARCH, Inc. and marine robotics company Ocean Infinity at the bottom of the Pacific.The mission was jointly coordinated between SEARCH's operations center and one of Ocean Infinity's vessels, Pacific Constructor.

18 Mar 2020

Today in Maritime History: Grounding of the Supertanker Torrey Canyon

On the world stage, the grounding of the supertanker TORREY CANYON on Pollard’s Rock in the Seven Stones reef between Cornwall and the Scilly Isles is more significant than the 1989 EXXON VALDEZ oil spill. The TORREY CANYON was one of the first tankers large enough (120,000 tons capacity) to be designated a supertanker. It was also the first loaded supertanker to spill its entire cargo. After salvage efforts failed and the oil flow increased, the British Government decided to bomb the ship in an attempt to burn the oil. This was a radical decision because the wreck was outside the three-mile territorial sea limit prevalent at that time. The Royal Air Force had difficulty hitting the ship, so the Royal Navy sent its planes in.

06 Mar 2020

Tidal Turbines Impact on Marine Wildlife Lower Than Previously Thought

Research by HR Wallingford at the SeaGen tidal power project site at Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland has shown that the impact of tidal power turbines on marine wildlife may be significantly lower than previously estimated.As questions are asked about the impact of turbine blades on marine wildlife, scientists have developed a sophisticated fish collision model for the burgeoning tidal power industry.The model, developed by HR Wallingford, predicts collision rates more accurately than ever before by incorporating the real swimming behaviors of different species of fish for the first time. The journal of ‘Renewable Energy’ has just published a study using the model…

29 Jan 2020

Driverless Trucks to Dominate UK Ferry Traffic

Driver-less heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) will be to ship freight between the UK and continental Europe in the future, according to a new white paper published by the British Ports Association (BPA) and the specialist freight transport consultancy MDS Transmodal.Commercial and environmental pressures will encourage freight operators to look at autonomous trucks and they would transform the way the ro-ro market works in Great Britain."Changes anticipated include significant growth in the market share of ‘driverless accompanied’ RORO traffic – particularly through North Sea and Western English Channel ports," it said.Technical developments…

04 Dec 2019

New Hybrid Powered Cruise Ship Completes Sea Trials

Photo: MOTION AIR/Hurtigruten

Hurtigruten’s new hybrid battery powered expedition cruise ship MS Fridtjof Nansen has completed sea trials and will be completed earlier than expected. As a result, Hurtigruten is adding a series of shorter pre-inaugural voyages.MS Fridtjof Nansen is packed with green technology and large battery packs and is, alongside her sister ship MS Roald Amundsen, the world’s first battery-hybrid powered cruise ship.The Vessel is set for delivery by the end of 2019, well ahead of her April 1 inaugural voyage from Hamburg to the Norwegian coast.Departing from London (March 7)…

11 Mar 2019

Hapag-Lloyd: Expedition Fleet to Cruise Without Heavy Oil

Together with the introduction of new expedition cruise catalogues for the 2020-2021 season. Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has also announced that low-pollutant marine gas oil (MGO) will be used exclusively on all routes sailed by its expedition ships in the fleet - the HANSEATIC nature, the HANSEATIC inspiration and the BREMEN from July 2020. Joining the fleet in 2021, the HANSEATIC spirit will also use this fuel.The use of low-sulphur fuels in the Antarctic has been mandatory for several years and already Hapag-Lloyd Cruises uses marine gas oil voluntarily in other sensitive regions, such as the Arctic or Kamchatka. This low-pollutant fuel has a sulphur content of just 0.1 per cent.

27 Aug 2018

Cosco Shipping Ports Net Profit Soars by 70.1% for H1 2018

Cosco Shipping Ports (CSP), one of the world’s largest container terminal operators, said despite the the US-China trade war, as it posted a 70.1 percent jump in adjusted profit for the first six months ended 30 June 2018."2018 is a year full of challenges. Sino-US trade frictions, the rise of trade protectionism, geopolitical uncertainties and the upward trend of interest rates have the potential to place serious pressure on the development of global trade. Despite all these uncertainties, the growth momentum of global economy in 2017 continued in the first half of 2018," said a statement from CSP.Driven by sustained economic growth…

15 May 2018

Seabourn Ovation Christened in Malta

Carnival Corporation's luxury cruise brand Seabourn introduced its newest vessel with a naming ceremony for Seabourn Ovation in the harbor of Valletta, Malta.Seabourn Ovation is the fifth ultra-luxury vessel to join the Seabourn fleet over the past decade, and the second of two ships designed for the line by hospitality design icon Adam D. Tihany.Seabourn Ovation was delivered on April 27 during an official handover ceremony at the Fincantieri shipyard in Genoa, Italy. Following the delivery ceremony, Seabourn Ovation began her maiden season with an 11-day inaugural voyage departing May 5 from Venice, Italy, and culminating with its arrival in Barcelona…

30 Apr 2018

MSC Grandiosa to be Named in Hamburg

MSC Meraviglia officially made her maiden call at the port of Hamburg today, marking the start of her new as well as the brand’s best and most accessible-ever season in Northern Europe. At the traditional exchange of crests attended by Senator Horch from the City of Hamburg as well as representatives from the Ports and other institutions, media and travel partners, MSC Cruises, the Swiss-based world’s largest privately owned cruise line and now for the third consecutive year brand market leader across the whole of Europe, announced that MSC Grandiosa will be christened in Hamburg on 2 November 2019. MSC Cruises Executive Chairman, Pierfrancesco Vago commented, “We are delighted to announce the christening of MSC Grandiosa here in Hamburg.

13 Jun 2017

Shipping’s ‘Perfect Storm’ is Brewing -Allianz

Š Tim Mueller-Zitzke / Adobe Stock

Large shipping losses have declined by 50 percent over the past decade, mostly driven by the development of a more robust safety environment by ship owners, according to Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE’s (AGCS) fifth annual Safety & Shipping Review 2017. In 2016 there were 85 total shipping losses reported, down 16 percent from 101 a year earlier. The number of shipping incidents declined slightly year-on-year by 4 percent with 2,611 reported, according to the review, which analyzes reported shipping losses over 100 gross tons.

08 Jul 2016

IBIA investigates: Brexit and Sulphur Regulations – what now?

The prospect of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union – nicknamed ‘Brexit’ – has raised a number of questions regarding the status, now and in the future, of sulphur regulations in the UK. In response to some of the questions raised, IBIA has investigated the short term reality and future scenarios. The EU’s sulphur regulations contained in Directive 1999/32/EC and subsequent amendments – the EU Sulphur Directive – go beyond the minimum requirements of the International Maritime Organization’s MARPOL Annex VI. The EU and IMO regulations are aligned regarding the 0.10% fuel sulphur limit for ships operating within an emission control areas (ECAs), but the EU Sulphur Directive has three key extra requirements.

14 Aug 2016

Biggest Cruise Ship to Enter Lerwick Harbor

The record for the biggest cruise ship into Lerwick Harbour will be broken on Today (Sunday) when Celebrity Silhouette enters the Shetland port on a 14-nights British Isles Cruise. On her maiden call at Lerwick, Celebrity Cruises’ 122,210 gross tonne vessel will beat the record set by the 115,055 gross tonne Azura on 30 June. Captain Calum Grains, Lerwick Port Authority’s Harbour Master and Deputy Chief Executive, said: “The visit by Celebrity Silhouette will be another highlight of a record-breaking season and in the long involvement of Lerwick and Shetland with the cruise industry. “The sheltered and safe, deep-water anchorages and proven modern landing-stage facilities make the harbour an ideal port-of-call for large cruise ships.

04 Jan 2018

Four Carnival Brands to Debut New Ships in 2018

Nieuw Statendam, a new cruise ship under construction for Holland America Line brand at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Marghera, Venice. (Photo: Fincantieri)

Carnival Corporation & plc will roll out four new ships in 2018 across four of its 10 global brands, as the company will add 18 new cruise liners to its fleet between 2018 and 2022. The new vessels to set sail in 2018 will be for Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Seabourn and AIDA Cruises, and follow three new ships debuted by Carnival Corporation in 2017. “Our fleet enhancement program enables us to manage the overall fleet by aligning new ship deliveries with our strategy for measured capacity growth over time…

12 Oct 2016

UK’s Wight Shipyard to Build Two Fast Ferries

Photo: Wight Shipyard Co

The largest fast passenger ferry order for a U.K. shipyard in over 25 years has been confirmed by MBNA Thames Clippers. Two new 170 capacity passenger boats will be built at the Wight Shipyard Co on the Isle of Wight, and will join London’s growing river transport network in summer 2017. Representing an investment worth over £6.3 million, the order will see the creation of 75 new jobs across the Isle of Wight and London, and the involvement of over 100 businesses in the South of England as part of the delivery supply chain.

21 Mar 2018

Seabourn Ovation Completes Sea Trials

Seabourn Cruise Line's newest ultra-luxury vessel, Seabourn Ovation, achieved another important maritime milestone with the completion of its final round of sea trials in the Mediterranean off the coast of Italy. Seabourn Ovation departed the Fincantieri shipyard on March 14 for four days at sea, where a team of officers and engineers tested the ship's technical and mechanical systems. Seabourn Ovation returned to the shipyard in Genoa on March 18, and staff and workers are putting the final touches on the ship. The delivery ceremony of the ship is on schedule to take place on April 27, 2018. "We're now weeks away from delivery, and I'm very pleased with the progress and preparedness of the ship now that sea trials are complete," said Richard Meadows, president of Seabourn.