Alaska Region News

The Panama Canal welcomed the Norwegian Cruise Lines-operated Norwegian Bliss, the largest passenger vessel which to ever transit the waterway. "The Panama Canal is proud to welcome the Norwegian Bliss and recognizes that this distinct milestone is made possible by the Canal Expansion, as well as the experience and efforts gained in the two years since its inauguration," said Deputy Canal Administrator Manuel Benítez. The Norwegian Bliss left Germany's Meyer Werft shipyard in March to begin a 15-day itinerary this month, sailing from Miami, Florida through the Panama Canal and up along the west coast of Central and North America before reaching its final destination at the Port of Los Angeles in California.

Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. has expanded its regional operations with the addition of a new office in Juneau, Alaska. The new Juneau office will support southeast Alaska through several of Global’s primary service lines: marine construction, marine salvage and emergency response, diving operations and more. Global has been providing marine services in southeast Alaska for years through its Anchorage and Pacific Northwest offices; the new Juneau office is being established in response to client requests for a dedicated base, which will bolster the capacity of operations in that region. Bill Akan, a longtime member of the Global team, will serve as Southeast Alaska Operations Coordinator for the new Juneau location. “I’m thrilled to be returning to Juneau with Global,” Akan said.

NOAA archaeologists have discovered the battered hulls of two 1800s whaling ships nearly 144 years after they and 31 others sank off the Arctic coast of Alaska in one of the planet's most unexplored ocean regions. The shipwrecks, and parts of other ships, that were found are most likely the remains of 33 ships trapped by pack ice close to the Alaskan Arctic shore in September 1871. The whaling captains had counted on a wind shift from the east to drive the ice out to sea as it had always done in years past.

Testing of Shell’s proposed Arctic-ready capping stack system was supervised this week by the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) in Puget Sound, BSEE Director Brian Salerno announced today. BSEE Alaska Region Director Mark Fesmire oversaw the testing to ensure compliance with Federal safety standards for oil and gas exploration on the Arctic Outer Continental Shelf. The capping stack, used to contain the flow of oil in the event that all primary and backup blowout prevention equipment fails during drilling…

On February 20 and 21, 2014 Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Director Brian Salerno and BSEE Alaska Region Director Mark Fesmire traveled to Bellingham, Wash. to meet with senior leaders from the U.S. Coast Guard and the American Bureau of Shipping and see first-hand Shell's containment system aboard the Arctic Challenger. Director Salerno and Alaska Region Director Fesmire also visited with Coast Guard representatives at the Coast Guard's District headquarters in Seattle.

The 3,800-ton Alaska Region Research Vessel (ARRV) R/V Sikuliaq was launched on Oct. 13, 2012, at Marinette Marine in Marinette, Wis. Sikuliaq (pronounced see-KOO-lee-ack) will be operated by the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences for the National Science Foundation as part of the University-National Oceanographic Laboratory System (UNOLS) fleet. The 261-foot global class ice-capable research vessel R/V Sikuliaq was designed by Glosten Associates. "R/V Sikuliaq is one of the most advanced research vessels in the world," said NSF Director Subra Suresh.

On  May 11th 2012, Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. announced the promotion of Ben Daily to Dive Operations Manager - Alaska Region. Mr. Daily, with more than 10 years in the commercial diving industry, has been with Global since 2004. During his tenure, he has been involved in all facets of the commercial diving industry in Alaska, spending the majority of his time working in the Cook Inlet as well as throughout the state. Mr. Daily’s emphasis over the past few years has increasingly been in project management and supervision. In this new role, Mr.

Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. Welcomes New Alaska Region General Manager Deirdre Daily. Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. is proud to announce the advancement of Deirdre Daily to General Manager of the Alaska Region. Throughout her time with Global as the Alaska Region Office Manager she has been involved in all aspects of the daily operations including assisting with estimating and project management. She has built strong relationships with clients, participating in industry associations and exhibiting at various tradeshows, and has fostered overall business development in the region.

Coastal Marine Equipment is continuing its success in supplying marine deck equipment for government and military projects with the latest being equipment for Austal USA’s Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) program. This is in conjunction with Austals’ Joint High Speed Vessels (JHSV) program and Bollinger Shipyard’s Fast Response Cutters (FRC) program which are propelling Coastal Marine to be the leading deck equipment manufacturer for our military. In addition with these multi vessel contracts, Coastal Marine is supplying equipment for the NOAA Fisheries Survey Vessel (FSV) and Alaska Region Research Vessel (ARRV) being constructed at Marinette Marine, T-AGS 66 Oceanographic Survey Ship and TAGM-25 Missile Range Instrumentation Ship being constructed by VT Halter Marine.

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) Director Michael R. Bromwich today named Dr. James Kendall as the Director of the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Region. Dr. Kendall has been serving as the Acting Director for the region since January 1, 2011. “Jim is absolutely the right person for the job. We have very difficult decisions to make regarding energy development offshore Alaska, and the American public must have complete confidence that those decisions will be informed by the best scientific information available,” said Director Bromwich. “Jim embodies the principles of scientific integrity. He is committed to openness and transparency, and he is a dedicated public servant.

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today announced its search to fill two senior leadership positions for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), one of the two new bureaus being created as part of the reorganization of the former Minerals Management Service. The positions to be filled are the Regional Directors for the Pacific Region and Alaska Region offices, located in Camarillo, Calif., and Anchorage, Alaska, respectively. "The people occupying these senior positions will have the responsibility for managing and directing all regulatory and enforcement programs related to safe and environmentally sound offshore energy development," said BOEMRE Director Michael R. Bromwich.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks and Marinette Marine Corporation held a keel-laying ceremony in April for the R/V Sikuliaq at Marinette Marine Corporation in Marinette, Wis. The 261-ft oceanographic research ship, formerly known as the Alaska Region Research Vessel, will be owned by the National Science Foundation and operated by UAF. The launch of the ship is scheduled for mid-2012 and the ship will be ready for full science operations in 2014. The Sikuliaq will be headquartered at the UAF Seward Marine Center in Seward, Alaska.

MARINETTE, Wis. − April 22, 2011 – Marinette Marine Corporation is currently in the process of recalling all of their laid off employees. Work is ramping up on The Alaska Region Research Vessel, the NOAA Fisheries Survey Vessel, along with continued work on the LCS Fort Worth. Work is also starting on LCS-5 the USS Milwaukee. The recall of the remaining laid-off employees marks an important milestone for the Company. By this summer, Marinette Marine will begin to hire additional employees as the pace of work in the yard increases.   Source: Marinette Marine

Global Diving & Salvage, Inc. announced the advancement of John Juettner to Operations Manager, Alaska Region. Juettner has been in the Commercial Diving industry, in Alaska for the past 17 years. He has been working in operational support, and as a Dive Supervisor, for the past seven years. As Operations Manager, Juettner’s responsibilities will include asset management, estimating, logistical support, and project planning for the Alaska Region. “The development of this new position in our region and more importantly…

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) announced that it will hold a series of public scoping meetings in February 2011 on the Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the proposed 2012-2017 Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program. On December 1, 2010, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced an updated oil and gas leasing strategy for the OCS and identified the areas that would be considered for environmental scoping for the 2012 – 2017 program (http://www.doi.gov/news/pressreleases/Salazar-Announces-Revised-OCS-Leasing-Program.cfm). The final PEIS will cover…

More than three decades ago, marine scientists in the United States first identified the need for a research vessel capable of bringing scientists to Alaska’s icy northern waters. The University of Alaska Fairbanks has announced its intent to award a $123m contract that will meet that need. The university has selected Marinette Marine Corporation of Marinette, Wis. to build the 254-ft Alaska Region Research Vessel. When complete, the vessel will be one of the most advanced university research vessels in the world and will be capable of breaking ice up to 2.5 feet thick.

The Sesok, Crowley's newest triple-screw diesel powered tug joined the fleet of Alaska river tugs this month, when it called St. Mary's on the Yukon River to pick up its first barge. Soon thereafter, the Sesok and her crew made stops along the Yukon River in Emmonak, Nome, Hooper Bay and Bethel to meet with Crowley personnel and villagers to celebrate the vessel's maiden voyage with community barbecues. Residents gathered at the barbecues to learn more about the latest vessel to enter the Alaska region and to hear Crowley's commitment to providing the safest and most environmentally sound fuel and freight delivery services in Alaska. The Sesok will continue to work along the coast throughout the season.

Crowley Maritime Corporation is continuing the expansion of its newly formed marine personnel department through the appointments of Scott Craig, director, West Coast/Alaska and Margaret Reasoner, director, East Coast/Gulf. Craig will have responsibility for the Seattle, Long Beach and Anchorage crewing locations that service operations from southern California to northwestern Alaska encompassing more than 70-crewed vessels and 800-plus mariners. Reasoner will have day-to-day responsibility for more than 65-crewed vessels and approximately 1,200 mariners in locations from Lake Charles, Lou.

For years the citizens of Prince of Wales Island in southeast Alaska were only able to commute to the Island of Ketchikan on a weekly basis, leaving them frustrated and isolated. In January of 2002 the 150 passenger car/ferry Prince of Wales entered service providing a much awaited daily transportation link between the two islands, and providing the 5,000 residents of the remote southeast Alaska region with a critical link and regular, reliable service—something they had long been without. It took long years of hard work to accomplish this contact with the outside. The community, unhappy with the level of service provided to them by the Alaska Marine Highway system…

MMS received no request to continue the sale process for exploring Norton Basin for oil and gas in its first Call for Information for the area that closed on April 22nd. “We didn’t expect much interest from companies at this time,” said MMS Regional Director John Goll. “This first Call for Information got the idea of a small focused sale out to the companies. The areas off Western Alaska are largely unexplored and have no developed infrastructure for supporting oil and gas exploration. They may contain substantial natural gas resources that could be used for local communities, as well export. “WE heard from communities, such as Nome, on St. Lawrence Island, and in the Yukon Delta, that they would like to see new energy sources to improve their economic outlook.

For years the citizens of Prince of Wales Island in southeast Alaska were only able to commute to the Island of Ketchikan on a weekly basis, leaving them frustrated and isolated. In January of 2002 the 150 passenger car/ferry Prince of Wales entered service providing a much awaited daily transportation link between the two islands, and providing the 5,000 residents of the remote southeast Alaska region with a critical link and regular, reliable service-something they had long been without. It took long years of hard work to accomplish this contact with the outside. The community, unhappy with the level of service provided to them by the Alaska Marine Highway system…