Gal News

Port Angeles, Wash. boatbuilder BRIX Marine announced the forthcoming launch of the 4615-HTC, a new addition to its line of purpose-built vessels.Currently undergoing construction, the 4615-HTC LandingCat, named Chenega, will have 46-foot-long hull (40 feet at the waterline) and will be about 50 feet long overall, with a 15-foot beam.Designed to perform various tasks, from coastal patrols to offshore support, the newbuild will be powered by quad Yamaha 450-horsepower outboards.

Port Angeles, Wash. boatbuilder BRIX Marine announced the launch of its latest survey boat, the 3011-CTC, named Lugudi Barana.The hull features 5086 alloy aluminum hull skins, 5052 alloy aluminum interior transverse frames, and longitudinal T-bars, ensuring reliability even in challenging conditions, the builder said. The vessel's self-bailing aluminum decks, watertight bulkheads and anodes for cathodic protection further enhance its safety and longevity.The Lugudi Barana is equipped with a comprehensive array of accessories for efficient survey operations…

Hurtigruten Group's expedition cruise line Hurtigruten Expeditions is rebranding with a new name, HX.The new HX brand and logo will be fully implemented starting in December, and repainting of the fleet’s six ships will commence over the next 18 months.Hurtigruten Norway will continue with the name simplified to just Hurtigruten.Both Hurtigruten Expeditions and Hurtigruten Norway are 100% owned by Hurtigruten Group and form a portfolio of sustainable travel brands that includes land-based activities…

U.S. boatbuilder ReconCraft has been awarded a contract to build for two Combatant Craft Medium vessels for Norway, the Pentagon announced.The $22,070,151 firm-fixed-price contract contract includes options which, if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $30,950,521.Work will be performed in Clackamas, Ore., and is expected to be completed by August 2025. If all options are exercised, work will continue through January 2026.Combatant Craft Medium Mk1 (CCM)Designers: Vigor…

Singapore’s Majestic Fast Ferry Pte has welcomed the arrival of three new Incat Crowther-designed passenger ferries: Majestic Peace, Majestic Spirit and Majestic Flair are the first of a fleet of nine Generation 2 Incat Crowther 39s vessels to be added to Majestic’s fleet.Built in Indonesian shipyard PT Cahaya Samudra Shipyard, the 39-m ferries are capable of transporting 312 passengers at speeds of up to 32 knots. The main deck seats all 312 passengers in air-conditioned comfort…

Lindblad Expeditions has shared images of its newest fleet addition ahead of the vessel's inaugural voyage in the Galápagos Islands.The National Geographic Islander ll is an expedition cruise ship acquired to replace Lindblad Expeditions' vessel National Geographic Islander for year-round operations in the Galápagos. Accommodating just 48 guests in 26 suites, the ship will sail for Lindblad Expeditions with a 1:1 guest-to-crew ratioThe 3,370 GT, 280-foot-long ship was built by…

Lindblad Expeditions has take delivery of the secondhand expedition cruise ship National Geographic Islander II.The vessel, which was previously named Crystal Esprit and operated by Crystal Cruises, will sail year-round in the Galápagos Islands, replacing Lindblad Expeditions' vessel National Geographic Islander.The 3,370 GT, 280-foot-long ship was built by Flender Werft in Germany from 1989-1991 and was operated by Windsor Lines and Star Cruises before its sale to Crystal Cruises in 2015.Accommodating just 48 guests…

Spanish renewables giant Iberdrola has informed that it has started construction work for the Vineyard Wind 1, the United States' first large-scale offshore wind farm.The offshore wind farm will be located off the coast of Massachusetts. It is 25 times larger than an existing offshore wind farm in Rhode Island, which has 30 MW installed capacity and supplies electricity to 17,000 homes.With 800 MW capacity, Vineyard Wind 1 will meet the electricity needs of more than 400,000 households and…

The Indian Navy mounted a massive air and sea rescue mission on Tuesday for 81 missing oil workers and crew whose barge sank in heavy seas following a powerful cyclone that tore up the west coast of the country.Around 180 of those on board the barge were rescued from the water as it sank off Mumbai. Efforts had started to move crew stuck on a second barge that was driven aground by the storm, the navy said."There are waves of 20 to 25 feet, the winds are high and the visibility is low," said navy spokesman Vivek Madhwal.

Crowley Engineering Services announced Monday it has designed the first fully electric U.S. tugboat with autonomous technology, engineered as a zero-emissions, high-performance solution for ship assist and harbor services.The Crowley design, powered by the expertise of recently integrated subsidiary Jensen Maritime, leverages a large battery system and power saving technology to operate in a fully electric mode while producing zero air emissions or greenhouse gases, Crowley said.

It takes a thick skin to live in New York City, let alone to run its Staten Island Ferry service. James C. DeSimone, Deputy Commissioner, Ferry Division, New York City Department of Transportation, has been charged with running the ferry service for the last 16 years. We met with him for his insights on the challenges of keeping the iconic ferry running safely and efficiently.Jim DeSimone has led a maritime life, with his time equally split between the private and public sectors. His maritime affiliation is literally in his blood, as his father Guy J.

High-tech deep-drilling company GA Drilling signed a EUR 4.2 million funding agreement with Lead Ventures and a service agreement with MOL Group.Lead Ventures, a Budapest based venture capital firm invested funds provided by MOL Group, and Hungarian Eximbank.The deal gives GA Drilling access to onshore production wells to test its disruptive PLASMABIT plug & abandonment technology in real field conditions.The agreement is a major step in enabling the commercialization of the PLASMABIT technology, which can bring positive environmental impacts, and significant cost and time reductions when compared to conventional methods of decommissioning…

Iberdrola inaugurates the wind farm of Wikinger, located in Germany in the waters of the Baltic Sea, with an investment of 1,400 million euros.In its development have participated companies like the Asturian Windar, with the construction of 280 piles of 40 meters in length, as well as the Danish Bladt and the Spanish Navantia, which have made the 70 foundations (‘jackets’) – a large part in Fene, or Adwen, which has been in charge of the wind turbines.With an output of 350 megawatts (MW), Wikinger has been a challenge for Iberdrola, a leader in offshore wind power development, and which has counted for the construction of the pieces with the shipyard of Navantia and with Windar.Wikinger is the second offshore wind power project in operation of Iberdrola…

Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL) and Silversea Cruises announced agreements to build three new ships for Silversea Cruises, including two luxury vessels as well as a single expedition ship for the Galapagos.Silversea, the luxury and expedition cruise brand that recently joined the RCL family, signed a memorandum of understanding with German shipbuilder Meyer Werft to build two new vessels in its new Evolution Class. The first Evolution Class ship is expected to deliver in 2022.Silversea also signed a contract with Dutch shipbuilder Shipyard De Hoop to construct a new expedition vessel, named Silver Origin, that will serve the Galapagos Islands itinerary currently sailed by Silver Galapagos.

Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation, delivered again for New York City-based Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, Inc., this the sixth 165-ft., 599-passenger sightseeing vessels. Designed by DeJong and Lebet, N.A. and builf from steel, the 165 x 34 x 12.8 ft. vessel has a top speed of 14 knots powered by twin Cummins QSK-38M1 diesel engines delivering a total of 2600 hp and connected to ZF W3355 gear boxes, spinning 60-inch, 5-bladed bronze propellers. For dockside maneuvering, the vessel is equipped with a 125 hp Wesmar bow thruster, powered by an electric motor.

Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation (SLSDC) has awarded a construction contract for a new TundRA 3600 ice class tug to shipbuilder Gulf Island Fabrication, to be built at their yard in Jennings, La. The SLSDC is a wholly owned U.S. government corporation tasked with operating and maintaining the St. Lawrence Seaway between Massena, N.Y. and Lake Ontario, within the territorial limits of the United States. The tug, which will be based in Massena, N.Y., will primarily operate between the Snell and Eisenhower locks with typical duties including icebreaking/ice-management services…

The Lake Pilots Association, District 2, in Port Huron, Mich., has accepted delivery of Huron Spirit, a new Chesapeake Class pilot boat from Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. With a length overall of 52.5’, a beam of 16.7’, and a draft of 4.8’, the all-aluminum pilot boat features the C. Raymond Hunt-designed Deep V hull. It is powered by twin Cummins QSM11 diesel engines, each delivering 602 Bhp at 2300 rpm and a top speed of 25 knots. A Humphree interceptor, with automatic trim optimization, is installed at the transom.

The first U.S.-built Rotortug, ART Trident, has undergone trials and is now in service. Designed by Robert Allan Ltd., and designated as an ART 80-98US, she was built by Master Boat Builders in Bayou La Batre, Ala., and is the first in a series of three being constructed for Seabulk Towing of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. The ART (Advanced Rotortug) designation applies to Robert Allan Ltd. designed tugs featuring the triple Z-drive configuration, originally conceived and developed by Rotortug (KST) B.V. of the Netherlands.

All American Marine (AAM) in February announced a deal for the construction of a new hybrid electric, 600 passenger aluminum monohull vessel to be delivered to the Red and White Fleet of San Francisco, Calif. AAM’s latest contract follows an earlier announcement made by the company regarding a construction agreement for a 500 passenger aluminum monohull tour boat for Argosy Cruises of Seattle, Wash. Both operators were originally pursuing construction contracts for steel monohulls…

U.S. shipbuilder Vigor has launched The Harvest, the first complex liquefied ammonia transport barge built in the U.S. for Jones Act trade since 1982. The vessel was constructed to support the operations of The Mosaic Company, an integrated producer and marketer of concentrated phosphate and potash. The Harvest will be operated by a subsidiary of Savage Companies as part of an articulated tug and barge (ATB) unit. “This is a significant project for both the maritime industry and our community,” said Vigor CEO, Frank Foti.

The City of New York Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) Staten Island Ferry Division and Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) cut steel to officially begin the construction of the first of three new 320’ Staten Island Ollis Class Ferries. The steel cutting ceremony held August 29, 2017 took place in Eastern’s steel processing and pre-fabrication building at its Allanton facility in Panama City, Fla. Attending the ceremony from Staten Island Ferry Division was John Collins, Director of Ferry Engineering and Bill Tomalonis, Vessel Construction Manager SIF Division.

For more than 100 years the U.S. has depended on State Maritime Academies (SMA) to produce USCG licensed merchant officers. The SMA’s have also been an important source of U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard officers, as well as trained personnel for the maritime industry and electric power industries ashore. Key to training these future deck officers and engineers has been the annual sea cruise on dedicated training vessels. The current SMA training ships, all of which were built for other purposes and later converted to be training ships, are getting old.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has taken delivery of Champion, the first of two new 150-passenger, high-speed catamarans built by Gladding-Hearn Shipbuilding, Duclos Corporation. The new vessels – funded by a grant from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) – will operate year-round commuter service in Boston Harbor, in addition to two high-speed ferries built by the Somerset, Mass., shipyard in 1997. Designed by Incat Crowther, the all-aluminum ferry is 90 feet LOA, 28.8 feet abeam, and draws approximately four feet loaded.