Al Khaimah News

Container feeder operator SAFEEN Feeders, part of the AD Ports Group, announced it has acquired a containership that will join its feeder service fleet in the Arabian Gulf.SAFEEN Pearl, formerly called Vega Virgo, will be deployed in its UAE Coastal Service (UCO) providing connection to UAE ports, including the Group’s flagship Khalifa Port, and the coastal ports of Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, Sharjah and Fujairah.Captain Maktoum Al Houqani, Chief Corporate Authority Officer and Acting Head of Maritime Cluster - AD Ports Group…

Damen Shipyards Group has delivered two vessels to RAK Ports in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The deliveries took place on December 5th at the Ras Al Khaimah Cruise Terminal. The vessels in question were a Damen Multi Cat 1908 and a Stan Tug 1907.The Multi Cat is named Hobby. Hobby's first role is positioning more than fifty pontoons for a firework display at New Year. Two world records will be attempted during this high-profile event at Marjan Island in Ras al Khaimah. Following this…

Over recent years the United Arab Emirates has emerged as an important maritime hub with grand ambitions. Mark Venables visited the region to discover what is driving that growth.When the UAE was elected to the IMO Council as a Category B member, it immediately raised its profile within the maritime community. The Emirates have taken a significant step forward in the maritime world.Despite this success, the region remains a challenging market for shipping and logistics. One of…

The new ASD Tug 2913 for Saqr Port, part of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Ports, has been launched at the Albwardy Damen shipyard in Sharjah, UAE. Ordered twelve months ago, the tug will join the RAK Ports tug fleet and operate in the new and impressive deep-water bulk terminal currently nearing completion at the port. There its 80-tonnes of bollard pull will provide additional power for manoeuvring Capesize vessels. The tug was launched in the presence of Capt. Cliff Brand, the Chief Executive Officer of RAK Ports, and Capt. Michael Magee, the Harbour Master of RAK Ports. Capt Brand highlighted in his speech the importance for the UAE economy to build “in the UAE for the UAE” and the added value of having the building yard around the corner for support during the life time of the vessel. Capt.

A keel-laying ceremony was held on August 28 at Damen Shipyards Sharjah for a new ASD Tug 2913 for Saqr Ports, part of Rash Al Khaimah (RAK) Ports. Damen will deliver the vessel to RAK Ports next year, in time for the opening of a new bulk terminal at Saqr Port, the main bulk-handling port in the Middle East. RAK Ports required a tug that was both compact and powerful, in order to handle the large carriers that will call at the port. The keel-laying was attended by Captain Brand…

Saqr Port, part of Rash Al Khaimah (RAK) Ports, has signed a contract with the Damen Shipyards Group for the delivery of an ASD 2913 tug. The vessel will be built a short distance away at Albwardy Damen in Sharjah and will be delivered in time for the opening of the new bulk terminal at Saqr Port in mid-2018. Saqr Port is a major bulk-handing port in the Middle East and a vital part of the regional economy. Located at the foot of the Hajar Mountains, it serves the fast-growing quarry industry in the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.

Dubai-based shipping company Gulf Navigation Holding PJSC (GulfNav) has announced in a press conference at Rose Rayhaan by Rotana April 19 its expansion plans to increase its assets under management and service-based revenue. The shipping company also revealed the appointment of Khamis Juma Buamim as the new Board Member, Managing Director and Group CEO by the Board of Directors during the event. Chairman Abdulla Saeed Abdulla Brook Al Hemeiri, and Khamis Juma Buamim along with other high-level executives…

Gulf Navigation Holding PJSC (GulfNav), the Dubai-based shipping company, has announced in a press conference at Rose Rayhaan by Rotana today (Tuesday, April 19, 2016), its key expansion plans to increase its assets under management and service-based revenue. The shipping company also revealed the appointment of Mr. Khamis Juma Buamim as the new Board Member, Managing Director and Group CEO by the Board of Directors during the event. The move forms part of the company’s intensified strategy to become one of the main industry leaders in the regional maritime and shipping industries. Chairman Abdulla Saeed Abdulla Brook Al Hemeiri, and Mr.

Kongsberg has been selected to deliver a complete Electro, Instrument & Telecom (EIT), propulsion, safety, automation and dynamic positioning package for two new Gusto NG-2500X DP II design, offshore construction Jack-Up vessels. The vessels are owned by Vahana Offshore Pte Ltd in Singapore. The contracts were awarded by builder Eversendai Offshore RMC FZE (Shipyard) in RAK Maritime City, Ras Al Khaimah, UAE. The Kongsberg scope of supply includes engineering and integration services.

Pipeline engineering company, STATS Group, has appointed Angus Bowie as Regional Director for the Middle East North Africa (MENA) in a move which heralds a major expansion in the region. Mr Bowie was previously Technical Director and has relocated from Aberdeen to Abu Dhabi where he will oversee the opening of new workshop and warehousing facilities and recruiting staff. STATS Group was recently awarded a 10 year multi-million pound contract by Qatargas and views the Middle East…

Wilhelmsen Ships Service (WSS) Kuwait has recently won a major contract to provide support to the Kuwait Oil Tanker Company (KOTC). KOTC is a subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), which is the holding company integrating KOC, KNPC, KOTC and PIC under government control. It currently owns and operates 25 vessels which include crude, product, LPG and bunker carriers. Since KPC was established in 1980, KOTC assumed responsibility for transportation of its cargos between Europe, West Africa and Far East with Kuwait being the home port. The UAE ports of Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah are the major husbandry ports for KOTC and apart from spares delivery; their vessels perform repairs, crew change, take provisions and provide Cash to Master.

APM Terminals Poti in Georgia is Europe’s newest gateway to the Caucasus and Central Asia, projected to be among the pace-setters ineconomic development and trade growth. Poti, Georgia – In line with APM Terminals investment strategy in high growth markets, the company has announced the acquisition of an 80% share in Poti Sea Port, which is located on Georgia’s Black Sea coast. The shares have been bought from Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA) of the United Arab Emirates.

RAK Petroleum Public Company Limited has chartered the first Topaz Wave Piercer for use in the Gulf the company announced. Designed by Incat Holdings Limited of Australia and built by Topaz Marine based in Dubai, the long-term charter vessel will be used for production crews commuting to and from the Company's offshore Oman platforms. "The use of a fast, stable and fuel-efficient crew vessel will significantly reduce our transportation operating costs and provide more safety for our crew as they commute from Ras Al Khaimah to our platforms in the Strait of Hormuz…

Merchant marine cadets from a United Arab Emirates training ship graduated at a special ceremony held during Seatrade Middle East Maritime 2008, the largest maritime event of its kind in the region, which opened Sunday, 14 December 2008. The deck cadets were the sixth batch of students of the Birla Institute of Technology International Centre for Maritime Studies and Ship Management to pass out after training on the Ras Al Khaimah-berthed training ship Sindbad. Seatrade Middle East Maritime which ran until Tuesday 16 December is under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum…

Regional demand for fast vessels carrying between eight and up to 300 passengers could exceed 400 over the next 10 years, said shipbuilders from countries such as the Netherlands, Turkey, Norway and Australia hoping to win a share of orders. “We are anticipating there is going to be a huge demand for passenger transport of all kinds,” said Martin de Bruijn, Middle East sales director for Damen Shipyards of the Netherlands which recently announced a joint venture with Albwardy Marine Engineering of Dubai.

Titan Maritime recently had its expertise put to the test with the wreck removal operation of a 426 x 105 x 28 ft. (130 x 32 x 8.5 m), 7,279 grt materials barge. The vessel was transiting the area of Mina Saqr Port in Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates on Feb. 3 when it capsized and sank with full load of rock/boulders. Prior to its salvage, the barge had been lying in 105 ft. (32 m) of water, its stern dug into a trench on the seabed over 98 ft. (30 m), with a list to port of 15 degrees. The hull was heavily imploded, cracked open and distorted along almost the total length of the port side shell plating. Significant damage had also been caused to the internal structure of the barge - resulting in most of the longitudinal and transverse bulkheads being breached.

Tanzania has invited energy explorers to bid for six blocks in the east African nation that is fast becoming a new frontier in the hunt for oil and gas. According to a statement by the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation seen by Reuters, the six blocks are all inland and stretch from the southeast of the country to the northwest. Bidders have until December 3 to submit their documents. Tanzania has at least 14 companies exploring at sites both on and offshore, and it has so far found three areas with natural gas deposits. Its last licensing round was in 2004. Prospectors are studying east Africa afresh as insecurity in other parts of the continent and increasing energy nationalism elsewhere push them to seek new sources.

V.Ships has appointed Rishi K. Trivedi as Group Managing Director of the Marine Services Division’s worldwide agency business - V.Ships Agency. The move follows Shay Devine’s (former V.Ships Agency Group M.D.) appointment as Chief Executive Officer of V.Ships - Marine Services Division. Trivedi, who has been with the group since January 2000, joined V.Ships Agency UAE from Inchcape Shipping Services. Rishi holds commercial and LLB degrees from Bombay University. In a career spanning 29 years in the industry to date, he has been an active member of Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, the Executive Committee of the Nautical Institute UAE branch and a member of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport UK.