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19 Feb 2024

Brassavola Completes Maiden Ship-to-Ship LNG Bunkering Operation

Brassavola vessel (Credit: Seatrium)

Pavilion Energy, the charterer of Singapore’s recently delivered first membrane LNG bunker vessel Brassavola, has concluded its first Ship-to-Ship (STS) LNG bunkering operation.Pavilion Energy said on February 19, 2024, the bunkering operation to Rio Tinto chartered dual-fueled bulk carrier, Mount Api was successfully completed.Brassavola was recently delivered by Seatrium, to owner Indah Singa Maritime, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mitsui O.S.K Lines (MOL).Seatrium Delivers Singapore’s…

13 Feb 2024

Oil Industry, Green Groups Challenge Biden Offshore Drilling Plan

© Lukasz Z / Adobe Stock

Oil and gas companies and environmental groups on Monday filed dueling legal challenges to the Biden administration's five-year plan to offer drilling leases in the Gulf of Mexico.The petitions to a U.S. appeals court come four months after the Interior Department unveiled a congressionally-mandated plan for offshore leasing that included just three sales, the lowest since the government began publishing the schedules in 1980.The American Petroleum Institute, an oil and gas trade group…

12 Feb 2024

Future Ships: Picture Perfect

(Image: Siemens)

Big data, advanced computers and AI are allowing vessel designers to prepare models that leave essentially nothing to chance.“Lastly, it may be of considerable importance to form from the draught a block model of the vessel from which a still more accurate judgment may be formed of the fitness and beauty of the body. And should any defect be discovered, farther alterations must still be made, till the draught and the model are perfectly approved of. These different alterations and repeated calculations may appear very tedious…

03 Dec 2023

COP28: US Cracking Down on Methane from Oil and Gas

Credit: COP28 / Anthony Fleyhan

The Biden administration on Saturday unveiled final rules aimed at cracking down on US oil and gas industry releases of methane, part of a global plan to rein in emissions that contribute to climate change.The rules, two years in the making, were announced by US officials at the United Nations COP28 climate change conference in Dubai. The US and other nations attending the summit are expected to detail how they will achieve a 150-country pledge made two years ago to slash methane emissions by 30% from 2020 levels by 2030.Methane tends to leak into the atmosphere undetected from drill sites…

27 Nov 2023

Study Calls for 'Liberation of Data' in Shipping Shift for Decarbonization

Interconnection of disparate shipboard systems is seen as necessary to drive digitalization for enhanced operational efficiency. Image: BV

Siloed data systems represent a “recipe for duplicative and multiplicative cost inside a company and across companies”, an OrbitMI-hosted panel at the recent Shipping Insight event in the US was told, as a Bureau Veritas-backed study highlighted this as a big barrier to data collaboration for digitalization of shipping to cut emissions.Vast amounts of data are generated from ship operations - such as from sensors onboard or vessel performance management systems - as well as from…

15 Nov 2023

US Appeals Court Orders Gulf Lease Auction Within 37 Days

Source: Earthjustice, Credit: NOAA

A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday ordered that a postponed federal auction of drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico be held within 37 days, a setback for environmentalists seeking expanded protections for the endangered Rice's whale.According to court papers, the New Orleans-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit dismissed an effort by four green groups to block an expansion of the sale ordered by a lower court judge in September.The judges said the groups lacked standing to challenge the September decision.

02 Nov 2023

US Postpones Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Auction Due to Litigation

Credit: james_pintar/AdobeStock

The Biden administration on Thursday postponed a Nov. 8 sale of offshore drilling rights in the Gulf of Mexico pending the outcome of a lawsuit over oil and gas development and federal protection of an endangered species of whale.The move comes after a U.S. appeals court on Oct. 26 temporarily paused a lower court order requiring the Interior Department's U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to expand the auction, which was originally scheduled to be held in September.Oral arguments are scheduled for Nov.

02 Nov 2023

Maersk Supply Service Selects Inmarsat Fleet Data IoT for Battery-powered AHTS

Credit: Inmarsat Maritime
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Danish offshore vessel owner Maersk Supply Service has selected the Fleet Data IoT platform from Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat business, to help optimize the performance of its first vessel battery installation onboard the Maersk Minder anchor handler.The solution will also allow Maersk Supply Service to evaluate how best to optimize the use of zero-emission energy storage systems across its fleet. According to Inmarsat, an end-user API gathers data from onboard equipment, automatically organizes it with time-stamps…

27 Oct 2023

U.S. Appeals Court Blocks Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Sale Expansion, Pending Appeal

Credit: donvictori0/AdobeStock

A U.S. appeals court on Thursday temporarily paused a federal judge's order last month that had required the Biden administration to expand a planned offshore oil and gas auction in the Gulf of Mexico by 6 million acres (2.4 million hectares).The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit stayed the September decision pending an appeal, according to a court document. Oral arguments are scheduled for Nov. 13 in New Orleans.The order was the latest in a legal fight over offshore drilling and federal protection of an endangered species of whale.

19 Oct 2023

Inmarsat Maritime Safety Team Wins IMRF Award

John Dodd, Director of Safety Services and Roger Barry, Safety Engineering Manager, Inmarsat Maritime, with the IMRF Award certificate. Image courtesy Inmarsat

Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat business, won the 2023 International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) Award for Innovation and Technology in Maritime Search and Rescue after a highly respected judging panel led by former IMRF Chair Michael Vlasto selected its entry from a shortlist of 10 individuals and organisations.Acknowledging “volunteer and professional search-and-rescue (SAR) personnel from around the world”, the prestigious award highlights “those who have shown excellence in their field…

02 Oct 2023

Biden Angers All Sides with Scaled Back Offshore Oil Drilling Plan

Credit: Lukasz Z/AdobeStock

The Biden administration's plan to slash offshore oil and gas leasing drew fire from both the fossil fuel industry and environmentalists on Friday, with energy companies saying it will raise fuel prices and greens saying it undermines efforts to stop global warming. The criticism from both sides reflects the difficulty Biden's White House has had in dealing with U.S. oil extraction policies, as it seeks to balance national energy security with the need to cut greenhouse gas emissions to fight climate change.

30 Aug 2023

OceanScore Launches EU ETS Solution

Ships calling at ports in the EU will be liable for the cost of their emissions from 2024 onwards Photo: zhaojiankangphoto/123RF

Maritime data company OceanScore has launched an integrated solution that enables ship operators to manage emissions liabilities and trade carbon allowances under the impending EU ETS regime for shipping.Shipping companies, as the designated Document of Compliance holder (DoC holder) under the EU ETS regime, will be required to surrender to the authorities EUAs based on their annual emissions, starting at 40% of emissions in 2024 and rising to 70% and 100% of emissions in 2025 and 2026…

25 Aug 2023

Oil Companies Sue Over Lease Changes Made to Protect Whales

© Mike Mareen / Adobe Stock

An oil and gas industry trade group, the state of Louisiana and Chevron on Thursday sued the Biden administration over its decision to withdraw acreage from an upcoming oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico to protect an endangered whale.The suit is the latest dispute between the oil and gas industry and the administration of President Joe Biden over leasing federal lands and waters for energy development.Biden paused federal drilling auctions shortly after taking office in 2021 as part of his climate change agenda…

16 Aug 2023

New API Expected to Enhance Operational Efficiency for Shipowners

Source: NYK

RightShip, NYK, and Solverminds have announced their collaboration on a product that links NiBiKi, the NYK Group’s common platform for ship-management operations, with RightShip’s data platform, to transform the workloads of ship owners and managers.This new technology, Port State Control (PSC) Submission application programming interface (API), initially launched on RightShip’s e-commerce platform RightSTORE, is designed to share data across both RightShip’s and NYK’s platforms…

18 May 2023

Report: US Gulf of Mexico Oil Production Leads on GHG Intensity

© Troy V Smith / Adobe Stock

The US National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) has released a study on global oil production emissions that finds that the greenhouse gas intensity of US oil production, particularly in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, is significantly lower than most other regions around the world.Prepared by ICF, the GHG Emission Intensity of Crude Oil and Condensate Production report, calculates that total US oil production has a carbon intensity 23% lower than the international average outside of the US and Canada.

15 May 2023

AG EMS selects Hogia Ferry Systems

Picture showing from the left: Jan Meyer (AG EMS), Stefan Beekhuis (AG EMS), Niclas Blomström (Hogia), Maria Åkersten (Hogia), Claus Hirsch (AG EMS). Image courtesy AG EMS

German ferry operator Aktien-Gesellschaft EMS (“AG EMS”) has partnered with Hogia Ferry Systems to implement their standard reservation software BOOKIT.AG EMS operates a ferry service between Emden and the island Borkum, using both traditional and high-speed ferries. The company will also use BOOKIT for its river cruises and excursions.“We had reached the end of opportunities with our current system, and we needed a modern and reliable standard ferry reservation and check-in system to replace it," said Stefan Beekhuis, CIO, AG EMS.

04 Apr 2023

LR and ICS Invest in Crew Insight Software

© andrej pol / Adobe Stock

Lloyd’s Register has acquired a 50% interest in ISF Watchkeeper, a work and rest hours compliance software solution from IT Energy Systems and Consulting Limited. The acquisition will result in LR becoming a joint owner of ISF Watchkeeper with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).Originally developed by ICS and IT Energy, ISF Watchkeeper is a suite of digital solutions that helps global ship operators to plan, manage and report their crew’s rest hours compliance in accordance with International Convention on Standards of Training…

29 Nov 2022

UAB-Online: Digitizing Vessel Handling Workflow

(Photo: UAB-Online)

UAB-Online, creator of a digital platform for optimizing liquid bulk shipping, said it is offering a freemium model for deep sea and inland terminals to give operators rapid access to its software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform.With the freemium model, deep sea and inland terminal stakeholders can rapidly experience firsthand the platform’s benefits, which include making vessel handling operations more efficient, safer and more sustainable, and ensuring compliance with national…

05 Jul 2022

Tankers International Updates Its VLCC Fixture App

© Haris Andronos / Adobe Stock

Tankers International, a shipping pool for very large crude carriers (VLCC), announced an update, including a new subscription scheme, for its VLCC Fixture app.First launched in 2014, the Tankers International VLCC Fixture app provides fixture data for the global VLCC fleet, including data that was once only provided to a select few brokers. The app has received over 259,000 visits a month since it was re-launched in December 2021.Paid app subscribers will benefit from faster data updates and a suite of additional insights.

10 Oct 2022

V.Group Inks Crew Payment Deal with ShipMoney

Founder and President of ShipMoney, Stuart Ostrow (Photo: ShipMoney)

ShipMoney announced a new long-term strategic partnership with ship management compnay V. Group to digitalize its seafarers’ payroll system. The deal also enables V. Group to make international corporate remittances, network payments, money transfers and all other forms of shoreside and onboard payments.Companies using ShipMoney’s Account Management System can pay crew members instantly with a single file upload or from their own crewing/payroll system via an API integration.

12 Oct 2022

Nautilus Labs Partners with OrbitMI

© Denys Yelmanov / Adobe Stock

Nautilus Labs, the technology firm unlocking profitable decarbonization for the ocean supply chain, and OrbitMI, a global provider of maritime software and data products to accelerate digital transformation in maritime, announced their partnership to serve the industry with a comprehensive solution to manage data integrations, operational processes, and optimizations for improved commercial and environmental outcomes.Joint clients of the newly formed partnership can access Orbit Reporter – a flexible…

03 Mar 2022

NAPA, ClassNK Team on New Data Link to Support 3D Ship Design

Image 2 – An example of seamless integration between NAPA and Direct Strength Assessment (DSA) software. Image courtesy NAPA

Upgraded data linkage designed to enable the seamless flow of information between design and class approval software, reducing time spent on information transfer by 30% and fostering closer collaboration.NAPA and ClassNK recently fortified their partnership to support the use of 3D models in the ship design approval process by streamlining data sharing between design and class approval software. “As the capabilities of 3D computer-aided design software improve, we see an acceleration in the use of 3D technologies in the shipbuilding industry," said Dr.

28 Jan 2022

U.S. Judge Annuls Gulf of Mexico Oil Auction Over Climate Impact

A drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico - Credit:flyingrussian/AdobeStock

A federal judge invalidated the results of an oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday saying the Biden administration failed to properly account for the auction's climate change impact.The decision has cast uncertainty over the future of the U.S. federal offshore drilling program, which has been a big source of public revenue for decades but also drawn the ire of activists concerned about its impact on the environment and contribution to global warming.The Gulf of Mexico accounts for 15% of existing U.S.