Amsc News

Maritime Partners, a Louisiana-based provider of maritime financing solutions primarily focused on Jones Act vessels, announced that on September 20, 2023, one of its managed funds acquired Norfolk, Va.-based U.S. Marine Management LLC (USMMI) from Maersk Line, Limited.USMMI owns and operates U.S. flag vessels—including one owned maritime support vessel, three owned tankers, and one bareboat chartered tanker—for charter to the U.S. Navy's Military Sealift Command. It also performs operation and maintenance of U.S. government-owned vessels, and currently has one O&M contract supporting U.S.

Dave Lee recently joined Louisiana-based maritime leasing and financing company Maritime Partners as its new vice president of technology and innovation. A well-known figure in the U.S. maritime sector, Lee has previously held leadership positions at ABB, American Commercial Barge Line (ACBL) and Jeffboat. His next task: help guide one of the nation’s leading maritime companies through the next chapter of technological advancement.“Right now, every marine company around the globe…

New Orleans-based Maritime Partners has reached a deal to acquire AMSC subsidiary American Tanker Holding Company, which owns a fleet of 10 Jones Act tankers.Maritime Partners' newly formed Project Merchant Acquisition arm signed a share purchase agreement with Oslo-listed AMSC to acquire AHTC for an enterprise value of $746.7 million. AMSC will receive $249.3 million in gross cash proceeds from the sale.The transaction is expected to close on or before October 31, 2023, subject to certain closing conditions and AMSC shareholder approval.ATHC…

American Shipping Company (AMSC) has signed a deal with Project Merchant Acquisition LLC, a newly-formed company owned and controlled by a fund managed by Maritime Partners, for the sale of its subsidiary American Tanker Holding Company.Pål Lothe Magnussen, CEO of AMSC, said: “The management team at AMSC is pleased that a Maritime Partners managed fund, a leading Jones Act leasing company, is acquiring our Jones Act business. We believe this is the ideal new owner of this business for the next phase in the lifecycle of these assets.

Norwegian offshore vessel operator Solstad Offshore said Friday it had has received a Letter of Intent from an undisclosed subsea contractor for hire of the construction support vessel (CSV) Normand Maximus.The subsea contractor would hire the CSV for a period of a minimum of 490 days with the start-up in the first quarter of 2024.The commercial terms are confidential between the parties but are in line with present market terms for this vessel category, Solstad Offshore said.The subsea construction vessel Normand Maximus is the largest vessel in the Solstad fleet…

Norwegian offshore vessel operator Solstad Offshore  said Friday it had  secured letters of awards from multiple unnamed subsea contractorsfor the hire of the construction support vessel Normand Maximus for the execution of projects during 2023.The projects have a combined duration of at least 200 days, plus additional option periods.

American Shipping Company ASA (AMSC) has completed the acquisition and taken delivery of the Normand Maximus construction support vessel.The vessel has already started a long-term bareboat charter with a subsidiary of the Norwegian offshore vessel operator Solstad Offshore upon delivery."The Normand Maximus is a premier offshore construction vessel and one of  the most modern heavy duty subsea vessels. Solstad is a leading offshore services company with a large fleet of offshore vessels operating  globally.

American Shipping Company ASA (AMSC), A Norwegian-based ship finance company focused on the intercoastal U.S. Jones Act shipping market, announced it has entered into bareboat charters for two of its vessels commencing in December 2022 with U.S. tanker operator Keystone Shipping Co.The bareboat charters have minimum terms of three years which may be extended at the charterer’s options. The charters are secured by back-to-back time charters of the same duration between Keystone and a major U.S. based oil and refinery group.AMSC said the new charters add almost $60 million to its existing charter backlog, excluding any proceeds from the profit share component of the charters.AMSC CEO Pål Lothe Magnussen said…

American Shipping Company ASA (AMSC) has agreed to acquire the Normand Maximus construction support vessel from Maximus Limited, a company controlled by its secured lenders.In parallel with the transaction, AMSC will enter into a long-term bareboat agreement with a subsidiary of the Norwegian offshore services provider Solstad Offshore. Solstad Offshore has managed the vessel for years, and the deal with AMSC means it will continue to do so.The total purchase price for the vessel is about USD 157 million…

Niels Aalund was elected President of the International Propeller Club at their 93rd International Convention and Conference. The prominent maritime industry stakeholder will serve a two-year term, commencing from October 17th. Aalund, a well-known maritime subject matter expert and executive, also serves as an Officer and as Senior Vice President of the West Gulf Maritime Association (WGMA). WGMA communicates and coordinates with various governmental entities throughout the West Gulf…

Florida-based tanker shipping company Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) has exercised options to extend its bareboat charter agreements with Norwegian-American shipowner American Shipping Company (AMSC) for four vessels currently under charter from AMSC.The New York-listed Jones Act player said each bareboat charter agreement was extended for additional three-year terms, commencing from December 2020 and ending in December 2023.OSG previously exercised its options to extend charter agreements for all of the six other vessels that it leases from AMSC. As a result, all ten bareboat charter agreements with AMSC have now been extended for additional periods.OSG’s CEO Sam Norton said…

Niels Aalund was elected at the 93rd International Convention and Conference in New Orleans on October 17th.New Orleans, LA: Prominent maritime industry stakeholder Niels Aalund has been elected President of the International Propeller Club. Mr. Aalund will serve a two-year term, commencing from October 17th. Aalund, a well-known maritime subject matter expert and executive, currently serves as an Officer and as Senior Vice-President of the West Gulf Maritime Association (WGMA).

The US-based energy solutions provider AMSC announced it has received a $9 million order for its 5.5 MW wind turbine electrical control systems from the Korean power company Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction (DHIC)AMSC signed an agreement with the South Korea’s wind turbine manufacturer in calendar year 2017 for the rights to design and exclusively supply ECS units to Doosan’s 5.5-megawatt offshore wind turbine.The initial 5.5 MW systems were ordered in January 2018, and AMSC expects to complete shipments under this follow-on order by no later than fiscal year 2020.“We believe that this order represents the beginning of Doosan’s transition into volume production with one of the world’s largest offshore wind turbines,” said Daniel P.

Florida-based oil tanker operator  Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) has entered into a Bareboat Charter Party Agreement with the owner of the vessel known as the Oregon Voyager.The provider of energy transportation services for crude oil and petroleum products in the U.S. Flag markets said in a press release that it will rename the 1999-built U.S. flagged product tanker the Overseas Key West and intends to use this vessel in the U.S. coastwise trade under the Jones Act.The Bareboat Charter extends for 10 years, into 2029. OSG will undertake the vessel’s fourth special survey following the vessel’s expected delivery and expects the vessel to commence commercial operations during the second quarter of 2019.Sam Norton…

Florida-based provider of energy transportation services delivering crude oil and petroleum products Overseas Shipholding Group (OSC) and American Shipping Company (AMSC) jointly announced that OSG has exercised options to extend its charter agreements with AMSC for nine vessels currently under charter from AMSC.AMSC is a  Norwegian-American shipping and shipyard company and part of the Aker Group."A Charter agreements for five of the vessels were extended for additional three-year terms, commencing from December 2019 and ending in December 2022. The charter agreements for four vessels were extended for one-year terms commencing from December 2019 and ending in December 2020…

Ports making up for lost timeDespite the critical role the maritime transportation system plays in the economic health of the United States, and despite its fairly recent embrace of all things automated – cranes, vehicles, surveillance and even vessels – the sector has been slow to warm to the need to protect its digital systems and assets.Post 9/11, security concerns about the nation’s borders, air space and infrastructure, including ports, moved front and center for a brief moment before other concerns…

Resilience planning, Info Sharing Take Spotlight“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” That old chestnut gets turned on its head when it comes to port cyber security. It’s more like “Oh what a tangled web we’ve woven, so much harder to stop data stolen.”Ports today have the physical aspect of security pretty well nailed shut - gates, locks, fencing, alarms, cameras, drones, etc. As Chris Mason, Rajant Corp.’s director of sales for EMEA, notes, “Every…

A U.S. judge ordered Sinovel Wind Group Co Ltd, a Chinese wind turbine maker, to pay a $1.5 million fine after the company was convicted and charged for stealing trade secrets from Massachusetts-based AMSC. U.S. District Judge James Peterson in Madison, Wisconsin, also sentenced Sinovel to one year of probation, during which it must pay the unpaid balance of a $57.5 million settlement it reached with AMSC. The U.S. Justice Department said Sinovel has already paid AMSC, formerly known as American Superconductor Inc…

Over the past two months the world has been rocked by three major hacking events that have garnered international notice. These included the EQIFAX event in which 140 million individuals were reported to be possibly compromised, the WannaCry attack and the NotPeyta event. In the past two years the emphasis on the cyber security of the Marine Transportation System, a vital economic cog to the world has come under increasing scrutiny. In August, trade journals and major international…

On September 24, 2016 the Houston International Seafarers Centers will host their Annual Maritime Gala . Niels Aalund, Senior Vice President, West Gulf Maritime Association, will be honored as the " Bronze Anchor Award” recipient. Niels Aalund, serves as an Officer and as Senior Vice-President, West Gulf Maritime Association, with primary responsibility for advocating on behalf of member companies (steamship agents, vessel owners, and industry stakeholders) with local, state and federal agencies. From organizations such as Washington, D.C, based, National Maritime Association, to the commercial sector, Aalund has provided leadership for a variety of maritime related positions. He has extensive strategic planning experience in both operations and commercial maritime activities.

An increasing number of systems on ships and at marine facilities depend on cyber technologies for routine operations. While cyber technology has improved efficiencies in the marine industry and around the world, it has also created potential vulnerabilities. For example, the towboats that move goods through the Western Rivers and along our coasts rely heavily on electronic navigation systems, including Automatic Identification System (AIS) and Global Positioning System (GPS), to safely transit around riverbends, capes, and shoals.

Aker Philadelphia Shipyard and financial sponsors, including American Shipping Company and funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management, create pure play Jones Act shipping company, Philly Tankers. Aker Philadelphia Shipyard ASA (OSE: AKPS) is pleased to announce the planned establishment of Philly Tankers AS, a Norwegian limited liability company, and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Philly Tankers LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (together “Philly Tankers”). Philly Tankers…

GL Renewables Certification (GL RC) was chosen by AMSC to conduct the A-Design Assessment of its 5.5MW full conversion offshore wind turbine (WT5000FC). The A-Design Assessment comprises a thorough evaluation of the turbine, ensuring that it meets the requirements of GL RC's "Guideline for the Certification of Offshore Wind Turbines, Edition 2005", which addresses the safety philosophy, quality assurance and engineering integrity of the turbine, and verifies that the turbine complies with the standard in terms of its load assumptions and design. "Certification and design validation are essentially for technically reliable wind turbines", explains Andreas Schroeter, Managing Director of GL RC.