Bahia News

A vessel carrying wheat that ran aground near the main channel of South America's Parana River has been freed but the waterway remains closed while checks are being made, the Argentine Naval Prefecture said on Tuesday.The vessel ran aground on Feb.17 and "was heading outbound in laden condition, navigating with a draft of 10.23 meters and carrying 31,121 metric tons of wheat," Inchcape Shipping said in a notice.The Parana River runs through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina.

An ailing towboat captain was medevaced from a U.S. flagged vessel near Port Aransas, Texas, Sunday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.The Coast Guard said its watchstanders at Sector Corpus Christi received a medevac request at 10:49 p.m. Saturday from the Corpus Christi Harbor Master's Office stating the 59-year-old captain of the towing vessel Endurance was experiencing abdominal pain and nausea. Watchstanders consulted with the duty flight surgeon, who recommended a medevac.Watchstanders…

Arnold W. Donald, president and CEO of Carnival Corporation & PLC, has been selected as the recipient of Seafarers’ House International Golden Compass Award for 2022. The award is given each year to those who have achieved distinction in the maritime world, those whose vocation or avocation has been the sea, or those who have ministered to or otherwise assisted seafarers.Donald grew up in the Ninth Ward in New Orleans with 27 foster brothers and sister. His parents’ generosity made a significant impact on his life.

Heavy rainfall in southeastern Brazil has prompted miners including Vale SA to suspend some operations, they said on Monday, after downpours caused deadly floods in the northeast and threatened to delay harvests in the midwest.Rainfall is expected to remain heavy this week in most of top mining state Minas Gerais, after runoff closed roads and railways.The rains may also have contributed to the dramatic collapse of a canyon rock face in the state on Saturday, killing 10 people visiting a waterfall on boats.In the northeastern state of Bahia…

Dutch shipbuilder Royal IHC has delivered a trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) to SEMAR (Secretaria de Marina) at the Port of Veracruz in Mexico. The Bahia San Carlos dredger, of the n Easydredge 2700 type, was built from stock at the Krimpen aan de IJssel and Kinderdijk shipyards in the Netherlands. Being built from the stock program allowed Royal IHC to comply with SEMAR’s request for an ultra-short delivery time, the Dutch company said.Following successful sea trials in the North Sea in October…

Excelerate Energy has started natural gas deliveries to the Brazilian market at the Bahia Regasification Terminal (TR-BA) in Salvador, Bahia, in Brazil.Excelerate's floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Excelerate Sequoia, which has an LNG storage capacity of 173,400 cubic meters, is providing regasification services at TR-BA. The terminal has a regasification capacity of up to 700 million cubic feet per day.Excelerate and Petrobras signed the lease contract for TR-BA on September 28, following a competitive international tender process.

Excelerate Energy will deploy one of its FSRUs in Bahia, Brazil, having recently successfully concluding negotiations with Petrobras over the tender process for the lease of the Bahia Regasification Terminal.Excelerate will deploy one of its existing Floating Storage and Regasification Units (FSRU) for service at the Bahia Regasification Terminal, start importing LNG and selling regasified natural gas to its Brazilian customers, once the financial and legal qualification and certification stages have been concluded and all necessary regulatory approvals have been obtained.Steven Kobos…

Excelerate Energy’s floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) the Exemplar has begun operations in Bahia Blanca, a port city located 400 miles south of the Argentine capital Buenos Aires.The Exemplar, with a storage capacity of 150,900 m3, will deliver liquefied natural gas (LNG) for the 2021 winter season in Argentina, providing reliability and stability to the country’s energy system despite operating in the challenging conditions of the South Atlantic.“We are excited…

The pilot channel connecting the Bahia Grande tidal basin and the Brownsville Ship Channel will be closed until the Fall for major enhancements to increase tidal exchange and restore the Bahia Grande as a major fish, wildlife and waterfowl nursery, the Port of Brownsville announced.Access to the narrow waterway, also known as the Carl “Joe” Gayman channel, will be closed to the public beginning May 1, 2021 through early November when the project is expected to be completed.The Bahia Grande is a 10…

The union representing Argentine port-side grain inspectors said on Thursday it had ended a month-long wage strike after reaching a contract deal with export companies that will allow international soy, corn and wheat shipments to return to normal.The deal was struck after a marathon negotiation session with Argentina's private ports chamber on Wednesday. The work stoppage by the union, known by its Spanish acronym Urgara, started on Dec. 9 and had hit operations in key ports throughout Argentina…

Brazilian maritime logistics and port operator Wilson Sons has accepted the resignation of Cezar Baião from the position of CEO of Operations in Brazil, effective from March 5, 2021. The company has this week said that its board has accepted the nomination and decided to appoint Fernando Fleury Salek as CEO of Operations in Brazil.Salek has acted as CFO of the company's Brazilian subsidiaries and Head of Investors Relations for the past five years. He is an economist having graduated from PUC-Rio with a specialization in Corporate Finance, International Finance, and Marketing.

Brazilian state-owned oil giant Petrobras said on Monday it exported a record 1 million barrels of oil a day in April, beating the previous record of 771,000 barrels a day in December last year.In a securities filing, Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as the firm is formally known, said that it marked an increase of 145% over the same month a year ago.In the first four months of 2020, exports were up 25% on the same period last year, with 60% of them going to China, Petrobras said.Meanwhile…

Argentine oil company YPF SA has loaded its first commercial liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo for export from a new floating facility, trade sources said on Friday.Argentina's export joins a wave of new supply flooding the spot market which has depressed Asian spot prices to their lowest in a decade for this time of the year.The state-owned firm issued a tender which closed on Nov. 6 to sell 2.1 trillion British thermal unit (Tbtu) of LNG for loading from FLNG Tango, the liquefaction vessel off Bahia Blanca…

Brunswick Corporation has announced that its Sea Ray, Boston Whaler and Mercury Marine brands have set multiple records during the 2019 Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show. Sea Ray, which launched an all-new 320 Sundancer Coupe at Ft. Lauderdale, saw a massive 80 percent increase in show sales from a year ago, demonstrating the success of its reinvention strategy. Boston Whaler continues to benefit from significant year-over-year sales growth in September and October, leading to a very successful Ft.

Brazil President Jair Bolsonaro said on Tuesday that mysterious oil slicks polluting the country's northeastern beaches were likely to have been left there criminally.Had the oil originated from a shipwreck, as Bolsonaro posited on Monday, it would still be seeping onto the beaches, he said.The oil has washed up in recent weeks on more than a hundred beaches in nine northeastern states from Maranhao down to Bahia. Its origin has yet to be explained.Reporting by Pedro Fonseca

Belgian owner and operator of gas carriers Exmar has completed the commissioning of the 16,100 cbm Tango floating liquefaction unit (FLNG).The performance acceptance tests has been successful, the first cargo has been offloaded and will be exported out of Argentina, said a release from the provider of specialized floating assets.With this first shipment the start-up of the Tango FLNG is accomplished in a record time following the contract signing in November 2018 and delivery acceptance of the unit in Bahia Blanca in February 2019. The achievement of this milestone has been possible thanks to the excellent cooperation between the teams of  Argentina's YPF and Exmar.For YPF…

Belgian shipowner Exmar said its first floating LNG (FLNG) production unit Tango FLNG, to be renamed Tango FLNG, has berthed in Bahia Blanca, Argentina.The Nicolas Saverys-led shipowner said in a press release that the Caribbean FLNG will stay in Bahia Blanca and produce LNG for export for YPF over a ten-year period.After contract signing in November 2018, the unit was transported from China to Argentina onboard a heavy lift vessel.The next major project milestone will involve outfitting and commissioning the unit. Departure of the first fully-loaded conventional LNG carrier is expected in the second quarter of 2019.Tango FLNG is the first project using Exmar’s FLNG technology and will soon become the first FLNG to produce LNG in the Americas.

Belgium based EXMAR announced Thursday that its floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility has left China for a 45-day voyage to the destination of its liquefaction operations at the Port of Bahia Blanca in Argentina.The barge-based Tango FLNG (previously named Caribbean FLNG) is on the move just one month after a contract was signed for a firm, 10-year deployment.Upon its arrival, the facility will be put in operation for EXMAR’s customer YPF S.A. and is expected to start up LNG production in the second quarter of 2019.

Belgium's Exmar and YPF of Argentina announced the signing of a firm, ten-year agreement to deploy Exmar’s barge-based floating LNG liquefaction unit (FLNG) currently known as Caribbean FLNG to produce and export LNG from the Vaca Muerta source at the Neuquén Basin in Argentina.The project marks the entry of Argentina to the select club of global LNG exporting nations, with an initial plan to export 500,000 tons of LNG per year to overseas markets.Exmar’s FLNG barge will be named Tango FLNG and be deployed to the port of Bahia Blanca. This will mark the beginning of a close, joint commercial relationship that will transform the country's…

Russian natural gas producer Novatek has shipped its first LNG cargo to the Brazilian market with LNG produced from the Yamal LNG project.A statement from PAO Novatek said that its wholly owned subsidiary, Novatek Gas and Power Asia Pte. Ltd. has shipped its first LNG cargo to the Brazilian market with LNG produced from the Yamal LNG project. The cargo was delivered to the Bahia Regasification Terminal owned by Petrobras.“Our LNG marketing strategy aims to diversify our supply geography and customer base,” noted Leonid Mikhelson, Novatek’s Chairman of the Management Board. Leonid added: “This shipment represents our first LNG cargo produced by our own production to the Latin American market…

Excelerate Energy and Transportadora de Gas del Sur (TGS) have provisionally agreed to jointly assess the viability of an LNG liquefaction and export project at Bahia Blanca in Argentina.Argentina currently imports liquefied natural gas (LNG) through two floating import terminals, particularly during the country's peak winter consumption.The successful development of Argentina's shale gas reserves resulted in a potential excess of natural gas during the summer months. The project aims at studying the technical and commercial viability of liquefying and exporting natural gas during the summer season, allowing a more sustainable development of shale gas resources and reducing Argentina's annual natural gas net import needs.The study is expected to be completed by the end of 2018…

Brazil's policy of setting minimum freight rates is reducing the volume of cargo at Brazilian ports as farmers and agricultural exporters have difficulty arranging transportation at higher cost, according to the head of a Brazilian ports association.The country instituted minimum rates for freight above the previous market rate as part of a deal to end a truckers' strike over high diesel prices in May. The strike paralyzed the country's roadways, preventing agriculture exports…

Argentina's state-run Enarsa launches tender to buy 22 liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes for delivery from May to August for delivery to its two import terminals, trade sources said. Enarsa seeks nine full-size cargoes for its Bahia Blanca terminal and 13 half-size deliveries to its river terminal at Escobar. Bids must be submitted on or before March 6 and pricing must be based on either U.S. Henry Hub or Brent crude oil. Escobar shipments cannot take tankers with a capacity of more than 90,000 cubic metres of LNG due to shallow water conditions.