At Plant News

Founded as the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) and renamed Military Sealift Command in 1970, MSC today not only support the Navy, but we are the Department of Defense's provider of all sealift. Maritime Reporter & Engineering News recently interviewed Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, U.S. Navy, for insights on the service today and it’s needs to grow in the future.What makes MSC so vital to the Navy’s fleet and our military forces around the world?When we  look at the history of contested logistics in World War II…

Wallenius Wilhelmsen has signed a 20-year lease agreement with the Georgia Ports Authority (GPA), with options up to 30 years for Brunswick port expansion, increasing its strategic terminal and processing networkUpgraded and enlarged Brunswick facilities will further expand the scope and scale of U.S. Southeast operations of Wallenius Wilhelmsen, which is the world's largest RoRo vessel operator.The Brunswick expansion will further cement the company’s position as the favored partner for North American customers…

French energy giant TotalEnergies and Oman National Oil Company (OQ) have reached the final investment decision (FID) on the Marsa LNG project, which will feature an LNG plant completely powered by renewable energy that will produce LNG for use as a marine fuel for maritime transportation.Through their joint company Marsa Liquefied Natural Gas (Marsa), TotalEnergies (80%) and OQ (20%) have launched the integrated Marsa LNG project which combines upstream gas production, downstream gas liquefaction…

My brother and I had a discussion about methanol where we concluded that methanol is a promising sustainable liquid fuel for transportation devices when batteries cannot do the job. While Methanol is initially not carbon zero, as long as we focus on developing zero carbon electrical energy, eventually we can produce zero carbon green methanol. Once there is plentiful green methanol, existing methanol vehicles will automatically become zero carbon transportation.The core argument…

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has signed a basic contract for the marine transport of offshore wind components with JFE Engineering Corporation, while also agreeing to build a new module carrier vessel with Taizhou Sanfu Ship Engineering.This will be first coastal module carrier in Japan to transport components for offshore wind turbine foundation components, according to MOL. MOL DrybulkThe vessel is scheduled for delivery in the spring of 2026, and will then engage in the coastal transport of offshore wind turbine foundations from JFE Engineering's manufacturing base in Kasaoka-shi…

The Coastal Sustainability Alliance (CSA), an industry collaborative effort led by Kuok Maritime Group (KMG), has announced the start of construction of its first fully electric PXO-series tug (e-tug) and supply boat (e-supply boat) by PaxOcean Group.The zero-emissions vessels are among the first and largest local electric harbour craft designed for operation in Singapore’s coastal waters. They are targeted for deployment in 2025, ahead of the nation’s goal for all new coastal…

Bakker Sliedrecht has implemented energy storage systems (ESS) on board of the two Boskalis diving support vessels - BOKA Atlantis and BOKA Da Vinci.The installation of the ESS reduces the vessels’ fuel consumption and associated carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions by an average of up to 20%, according to Bakker Sliedrecht.The systems also provide a power supply and energy storage facility while the vessels are docked and contribute to quieter and more efficient operations…

On 11 March, MV Svenja discharged her cargo of nine modules, marking the completion of the JSI Alliance’s scope of work in the Basrah Refinery Upgrading Project in Iraq for JGC Corporation.The Alliance dedicated two vessels to the project: the Jumbo Kinetic with her two 1,500t cranes, and the MV Svenja with two 1,000t cranes. Together, the vessels undertook transport of 84 modules using JCG's specially designed lifting frame. The two vessels were selected due to their having the required capabilities for lifting and transporting the modules…

HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding division has completed the dry dock portion of the refueling and complex overhaul (RCOH) of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74).Following the recent flooding of more than 100 million gallons of water into the dry dock, USS John C. Stennis was moved to an outfitting berth at the shipyard, where the remainder of the RCOH work and testing will be completed.During the dry dock phase of the RCOH, USS John C. Stennis received significant upgrades and began an extensive overhaul process, both inside and outside the ship.

Esgian reports various drilling contractors disclosing details of discussions with Saudi Aramco regarding jackup contract suspensions in its Week 14 Rig Analytics Market Roundup. These contractors include Shelf Drilling, ADES, Borr Drilling, Arabian Drilling, COSL, and ARO Drilling.Meanwhile, Transocean, Noble, and COSL rigs have firmed up new work in the US Gulf of Mexico, Suriname, and the North Sea, respectively.Report overview:ContractsShelf Drilling has received a notice of suspension of operations on four jackup rigs from a customer in the Middle East.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has started commercial operation of the floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Jawa Satu for the Jawa 1 LNG-fired power plant in Indonesia.MOL owns the FSRU through PT Jawa Satu Regas (JSR), jointly established by PT Pertamina (Persero), Marubeni Corporation, Sojitz Corporation, and other partners.Built by Samsung Heavy Industries in South Korea, the Jawa Satu FSRU has a storage capacity of 170,000 m3, with 300 MMcsfd of regasification capacity.The…

Global oil benchmark Brent on Tuesday rose above $89 a barrel for the first time since October, albeit briefly, as oil supplies faced fresh threats from Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy facilities and escalating conflict in the Middle East.Brent futures for June delivery were up $1.35, or 1.5%, at $88.76 a barrel by 11:40 a.m. EDT (1540 GMT) after touching a peak of $89.08.U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures for May rose $1.27, or about 1.5%, to $84.98 after touching a peak of $85.46…

Russia's Gazprom is using a replacement vessel for ship-to-ship loadings (STS) of liquefied natural gas from its Portovaya LNG plant on the Baltic Sea while another ship is repaired, LSEG data showed on Monday.The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Marshal Vasilevskiy is designed to supply Russia's Kaliningrad exclave, between Lithuania and Poland, and ensure its gas security in case of disruption to pipeline supplies from neighboring countries.According to LSEG data, the FSRU Marshal Vasilevskiy was on Monday loading LNG ship-to-ship near Kaliningrad onto the Cool Rover vessel, m

Fincantieri and the Indonesian Ministry of Defense have signed a contract for the supply of two Multipurpose Offshore Patrol Vessel (PPA) units.The $1.27 billion (€1.18 billion) deal is part of the framework of collaborative relations initiated by the Italian Ministry of Defense.A PPA is a highly flexible ship with an outstanding technological standard. It has the capacity to serve multiple functions, ranging from patrol with sea rescue capacity to Civil Protection operations and first line fighting vessel.The vessels to be supplied by Fincantieri will be 143 meters long overall…

U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford will reroute affected shipments after a bridge collapse in the U.S. shuttered the Port of Baltimore, but the companies said on Tuesday the impact will be minimal."We expect the situation to have minimal impact to our operations. We are working to re-route any vehicle shipments to other ports," GM said in a statement.The Port of Baltimore is the busiest U.S. port for car shipments, handling at least 750,000 vehicles in 2023, according to data from the Maryland Port Administration.

MAN Energy Solutions and Svitzer have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) focused on the development of a methanol-fuelled version of the MAN 175D engine. Designated 175DF-M (Dual Fuel-Methanol), the MoU targets the finalisation of a field-test agreement based on which a dual-fuel engine and plant equipment will be installed on board one of Svitzer’s newbuild tugs.Svitzer has a long-standing relationship with MAN Energy Solutions, especially recently with the MAN 175D engine.

Japanese trading house Itochu Corp will study joint ownership and operation of ammonia-fueled ships with Taiwan's U-Ming Marine Transport Corp, Itochu said in a statement, as Japan is bets on ammonia to cut emissions.The shipping industry transports about 90% of world trade, and accounts for nearly 3% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions; and installing ship engines that burn cleaner fuels could help slow global warming trends.The IMO has set a target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by around 2050…

Schottel has marked the symbolic start of construction for the expansion of its rudder propeller factory in Dörth, with the construction already advancing towards the planned commissioning in 2025.Schottel is expanding its rudder propeller factory by adding a logistics center measuring around 4,000 m2.As the official ground-breaking ceremony was delayed, it has now taken place symbolically against the backdrop of the shell construction that has already begun.The total investment volume amounts to €9.5 million…

Venture Global LNG said on Sunday it would acquire a fleet of nine liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport vessels, expanding its ability to sell and ship its own cargoes.Venture Global LNG has exported hundreds of cargoes since it started liquefying gas for export in 2022 from the first of its three planned facilities in Louisiana. The vessels it used were owned by other companies and leased.The nine vessels in Venture Global's future fleet will be built in South Korea with the first to be delivered later this year…

NextDecade said on Monday it was targeting a final investment decision (FID) and plans to start construction of the fourth liquefaction train at its Rio Grande liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Texas by the second half of 2024.The Rio Grande LNG export plant has been in development for several years, suffering repeated delays. Last year the company made an FID to construct the first three liquefaction trains at the facility.NextDecade expects to finalize commercial arrangements for Train 4 in the coming months to support the FID.

Imports of fuel oil bound for the U.S. Gulf Coast fell to a five-year low last month as refiners ran more cheap, heavy Canadian crude and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East pressured fuel oil flows.Fuel oil deliveries to the Gulf Coast dwindled in February to just 318,000 barrels per day (bpd), a 20% drop from the prior month and marking their lowest level since February 2019, data from tanker tracking firm, Kpler showed.Heavy fuel oil feedstocks like high sulfur fuel oil…

Wärtsilä Water & Waste, part of technology group Wärtsilä, has relaunched the STC0-23 sewage treatment plant, part of its series of Super Trident technologies.The relaunch, which comes after a gap of more than 13 years, sees several improvements to STC0-23, including the smallest and most compact design of any Wärtsilä Water & Waste sewage treatment plant. The technology works with both gravity and vacuum waste collection systems and utilizes an activated sludge system to speed…

Fort Lauderdale, Fla. based maritime and industrial mechanical service repair specialist Advanced Mechanical Enterprises (AME) announced it has appointed Paul Savage as its new Operations Manager.With over 30 years of leadership and project management experience, Savage joins the AME management team from Veolia North America, where he served as Vice President, managing complex industrial and government contracts. At Veolia, Savage was at the helm of commercial, state, and federal contracts…