Ash News

British maritime security firm Ambrey on Thursday said that a Marshall Islands-flagged US-owned bulk carrier reported that four unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) approached and circled the vessel approximately 87 miles southeast of Yemen's city of Mukalla."One of the UAVs reportedly fell into the water. No damage or injuries were reported. The bulker was not impacted and continued its voyage," Ambrey said in an advisory note.The maritime security firm said that the drones remained in the bulker's vicinity…

Chevron Marine Products said Tuesday that four-stroke engine operators could benefit from its new lubricating oil's versatility.HDAX 9700 was created to provide a solution for engines that run on multiple liquid and gaseous fuels and applications that require a low-sulfated ash lubricant, Chevron said.According to the company, the HDAX 9700t is also suitable for dual-fuel marine engines, as HDAX 9700 has successfully completed more than 20.000 hours of testing on a Wärtsilä dual-fuel power plant.“HDAX 9700 brings many benefits for operators of four-stroke engines.

Chevron Marine Products’ Taro Ultra Advanced 40 oil has successfully passed NOL (No Objection Letter) requirements by engine manufacturer WinGD. This follows the earlier NOL award for Taro Ultra Advanced 40 from MAN Energy Solutions. This latest test validates the suitability of the oil for use in WinGD engines operating with liquid fuels containing sulphur in the range 0.00<1.50 % m/m, which includes very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO). The test also approved the general usage…

A Greek oil tanker is unscathed after being targeted by a Houthi drone attack in Yemen's port of Ash Shihr.Okeanis Eco Tankers Corp. said its Marshall Islands-flagged very large crude carrier (VLCC) Nissos Kea was loading in Ash Shihr on October 21 when a pair of "drone-driven explosions" occurred in close proximity. "Neither explosion impacted the vessel. All crew is safe and unharmed. There was no damage to the vessel and no pollution," the Greek shipping company said in a statement.Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi militias claimed responsibility for the attack…

Massive clouds of steam rose from Cuba's largest fuel depot in Matanzas on Wednesday as firefighters, helicopters and boats poured water and foam on the smoldering remains of the largest fire in the island's history.Black charcoal covered with white ash remained red hot after the flames died down. One firefighter was confirmed dead, and 14 were unaccounted for since blast on Saturday, according to authorities."We can now say that the fire is controlled," Lt. Colonel Alexander Avalos, deputy chief of the firefighters tackling the blaze, told the media at the scene.

U.S. grain shipments via the Great Lakes-Seaway system totaled 312,000 metric tons from March 22 to May 31, up 39% compared to the same period in 2021. Much of the increase is due to exports of corn and soybeans out of the Port of Toledo and some new trade starting at the port of Oswego this shipping season. The rise in shipments, which are predominantly heading to Europe and North Africa, are in part due to shifting global grain trading patterns as the conflict between Russia and the Ukraine — both major grain exporters — continues.“The Great Lakes-St.

Life-saving water supplies from a New Zealand navy ship were distributed across Tonga's main island on Friday, as other countries battled the logistics of delivering aid to one of the world's remotest communities.Six days after the South Pacific archipelago was devastated by a volcanic eruption and tsunami that deposited a blanket of ash and polluted its water sources, the HMNZS Aotearoa docked in the capital, Nuku’alofa.The ship carried 250,000 liters of water and desalination equipment able to produce 70,000 litres more per day, New Zealand's High Commission said."Trucks ...

Chevron Marine Lubricants announced its low sulphated ash trunk piston engine oil Chevron HDAX 9700 has become the first lubricant to gain time-unrestricted approval for use with MAN Energy Solutions’ four-stroke engines running on either liquefied natural gas (LNG) or distillate fuels (with a sulphur content of up to 0.10%).Chevron said the first-of-its-kind approval offers simplicity for operators switching between the two fuels, meaning that they can use just one lubricant, rather than having to change lubricants after a fixed period operating on one fuel or the other.

The research vessel Sikuliaq navigated among and around the chunks and slabs of Arctic sea ice above Alaska for several weeks on two voyages this fall, breaking through frozen slabs when it had to, just as its sturdy hull is designed to do. It's now on a third trip.The Sikuliaq, a 261-ft. ice-capable research vessel operated by UAF, pauses in the Arctic Ocean in June 2021 during its fifth year of operation. A few months later, it traveled farther north than ever before — almost 500 miles beyond Point Barrow.Satellite imagery produced at the Geographic Information Network of Alaska…

Our Cleaner Planet, a non-profit startup with an 'innovative technique to remove plastics from our oceans', said it has completed prototype testing of its first plastic harvester and is now ready to move forward with larger unit testing. The program is scheduled to launch the first of its full-sized, plastic harvesters into ocean operation in 2025.“The test parameters for our 1:164-scale prototype were set up to evaluate speed and control and the first stage of the filtration process,” said Pat Marshall, founder of Our Cleaner Planet.

Mercy Ships is known globally for its charitable work performing medical procedures in developing countries. For the first time, the organization has a new ship, Global Mercy, recently delivered from a shipyard in China. Jim Paterson, Marine Executive Consultant, Mercy Ships takes Maritime Reporter & Engineering News inside the construction of the world’s largest civilian hospital ship.Jim Paterson already had a career and Chief Engineer’s Certificate when he joined Mercy Ships nearly 34 years ago, in search of a life change to make a difference.

To ensure the high level of service that has defined this family-owned business for the past 30 years, DSC Dredge, LLC has five key values: commitment, quality, innovation, service and customization. This is what the foundation of DSC is built upon, and clients who become long-standing business partners and friends only confirms what this company strives to do each and every day.Magnolia Dredge & Dock LLC., headquartered in Mandeville, La., was founded in 2009 through the merging of two companies.

A Corpus Christi crew boat runs with renewed power and graceMiss Vivian has a commanding presence while plying the waters off the Texas Gulf Coast.Hardworking crew boat Miss Vivian serves offshore oil platforms and large ships moored in Corpus Christi Harbor. Owned by Sea Level Marine, Inc., in Aransas Pass, Texas, the 28-meter (91-foot) welded aluminum vessel is U.S. Coast Guard-approved for 50 passengers, and its 15x5-meter (50x15-foot) deck offers ample space to transport food provisions, equipment, and other supplies to offshore locations.There’s a rather heroic side to Miss Vivian, too.

Lubricating duel-fuel auxiliary engines: a practical approachChevron Marine has released the latest in a series of white papers focusing on innovations and developments impacting the fast-changing shipping industry.Click Here to Download the Whitepaper.‘Lubricating dual-fuel auxiliary engines: a practical approach’ explores the unique challenge of using engines that run regularly on either fuel oils or LNG. Around three quarters of ships using LNG as fuel have dual-fuel, four-stroke engines.

Vessel owners rarely carry cargo for their own account. More commonly by far, a vessel owner will charter its vessel to another party to carry their (or their sub-charterer’s) cargo. The contracts can vary widely – from voyage charters or contracts of affreightment to time charters to negotiable bills of lading (not to mention the more complex arrangements that one often sees for container cargos). But in most instances, vessel owners are in the business of transporting cargo on behalf of others and, all going well, of being paid to do so.

ARC, the largest U.S.-flag roll-on roll-off (Ro-Ro) carrier, said that it was awarded a 38-day time charter contract  by the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command (MSC), for the charter of the M/V Resolve.The American Roll-on Roll-off Carrier (ARC) said in a press release that approximately 65,000 square feet of military cargo was loaded on to the M/V Resolve today by the 841st Transportation Battalion in Charleston, South Carolina for onward delivery to Ash Shuaiba, Kuwait.Resolve is 623-foot long, American-flag, roll-on, roll-off vessel enrolled in the Military Security Program (MSP).MSP is a Defense Department program that maintains a fleet of U.S.-flag…

Southampton, UK-based hovercraft builder Griffon Hoverwork has won two new orders for its latest model the 995ED.The 995ED was launched at the Exponaval maritime exhibition in Chile in December 2018 following delivery of the first production craft to the Malaysian Government’s Marine Department which is being used for the maintenance of navigation marks and light houses. And now Griffon’s production line is busy building another 995ED for a private client for use in icy conditions.

With a year to go before the implementation of the 2020 Sulfur Cap, few topics will be higher on the list of priorities for shipowners than complying with Annex VI of the IMO MARPOL Convention (2008). However, the reduction of sulfur content in marine fuel from 3.5% to 0.5% in time for the deadline means more than identifying a strategically suitable fuel choice. The importance of choosing the correct lubricant, coupled with incorporating the relevant supporting is also a vital consideration.As both a global lubricant supplier and as a part of the wider Total Group…

Farmers and fishermen in western India have welcomed a U.S. Supreme Court decision to hear their lawsuit against a World Bank agency, which financed a power plant they blame for damaging the environment and their livelihoods.The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear an appeal by the villagers of a lower court ruling that the International Finance Corp (IFC) was immune from such lawsuits under federal law.The court must now consider for the first time whether international organisations are immune from such suits under federal law…

Griffon Hoverwork will launch  its new 995ED model at  Exponaval in Valparaiso, Chile.“Griffon is hugely excited to unveil the highly innovative 995ED which is specially designed for search and rescue, coastguard and surveying work complementing Griffon’s range of marine grade aluminium hovercraft,” said sales and marketing director Nick MacLeod-Ash. “The 995ED, at eight meters (m) length and 30 knots speed at full ‘all up weight’, is the first hovercraft to achieve certification…

Damen Shipyards Group has delivered a new Cutter Suction Dredger (CSD) 250 to South Africa-based Dredging Africa to be used for mining sand from the Ash River, just east of Bethlehem in the Free State Province.Arend van de Wetering, Director of Dredging Africa, said, “We wanted to utilize the best equipment available, to be sure of the best production, reliability and lowest downtime. Ease of transport and commissioning were key for us as were sound after-market support and Damen’s offering met all of these requirements.”“Most dredging projects in South Africa are small- to medium-sized…

SMT Shipping  and The CSL Group announced they have entered into an agreement for CSL to acquire 50% of Eureka Shipping, SMT's pneumatic cement vessel business. The new joint venture will allow Eureka and CSL to combine expertise, resources and innovative technologies to expand services to customers in the seaborne cement powder and fly ash transportation markets around the world. CSL's Australian cement shipping business is not included in the joint venture. "The joint venture represents an important step in CSL's strategy to increase its presence in the global construction material sector," said Louis Martel, President and CEO of The CSL Group. "SMT Shipping is honored to partner with CSL in Eureka," said Mark Voorham, CEO of SMT Shipping.

NACC Alicudi is reported to be the world’s first cement carrier equipped with IMO Tier III compliant diesel engines driving the bulk handling system. Converted in 2017 with a Van Aalst dry bulk handling system, the vessel became a unique and state-of-the-art 120m self-discharging cement carrier, with a cement handling system is based on compressors and vacuum pumps, driven by Tier III Scania engines. Together they form the heart of the unique vacuum-pressure system for pneumatic conveyance of cement…