Beth News

The Biden administration on Friday unveiled a plan to phase down oil and gas auctions in federal waters with the release of a long-awaited leasing schedule that includes a maximum of three sales in the Gulf of Mexico through 2029.The Interior Department's plan includes by far the lowest number of sales since the agency began producing Congressionally-mandated five-year oil and gas leasing schedules in 1980. Previous programs have ranged between 11 and 41 sales, according to Interior's U.S.

The installation of the first monopiles and transition pieces has kicked off for the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the United States - the Vineyard Wind 1.“We can finally say it – as of today, there is ‘steel in the water,’” said Klaus S. Moeller, CEO of Vineyard Wind, the company developing the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm, located in a federal wind energy area 15 miles south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, and 35 miles from mainland Massachusetts.Vineyard…

Norwegian Cruise Line must pay $110 million in damages for use of a port that Cuba's government confiscated in 1960, a U.S. judge ruled on Friday, a milestone for Cuban-Americans seeking compensation for Cold-War era asset seizures.The decision by U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom in Miami follows her March ruling that the use of the Havana Cruise Port Terminal constituted trafficking in confiscated property owned by the plaintiff, Delaware-registered Havana Docks Corp."Judgment is entered in favor of Plaintiff Havana Docks Corporation and against Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings…

U.S. shipbuilder Vigor launched the first in a series of modernized landing craft for the U.S. Army at its  fabrication facility in Vancouver, Wash.The Maneuver Support Vessel (Light), or MSV(L), will replace the Landing Craft Mechanized-8, (LCM-8,) a Vietnam-era watercraft that is unable to transport some of today's equipment due to the weight of modern combat vehicles. Designed with increased payload capability, increased speed and maneuverability, and improved draft, the MSV(L) will improve the speed and effectiveness of the Army’s dynamic force repositioning in inter-coastal areas…

An ailing crewmember was medevaced from a towboat Friday afternoon, approximately seven miles south of Pascagoula, Miss., the U.S. Coast Guard said.Coast Guard Sector Mobile watchstanders received a call from the crew of the U.S.-flagged Miss Beth reporting a 60-year-old crewmember on board was experiencing heart attack-like symptoms.The watchstanders coordinated the launch of a Coast Guard Station Pascagoula 29-foot Response Boat - Small boatcrew to assist. The boatcrew arrived on scene, loaded the crewmember and transferred him to awaiting emergency medical services personnel at Station Pascagoula.The man was last reported to be in stable condition.

Cruise line Azamara has officially added Azamara Onward vessel to its now four-ship fleet on Tuesday, following a festive naming ceremony in Monte Carlo. The christening ceremony was led by the President of Azamara, Carol Cabezas, and Azamara Onward Godmother, Beth Santos, founder and CEO of global community and lifestyle brand Wanderful."We are thrilled to introduce Azamara Onward and share this special moment with our loyal guests," said Carol Cabezas, President of Azamara.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced Beth Rooney has been named Director of the Port Department, taking over for Sam Ruda who is departing to return to the West Coast.A maritime industry veteran, Rooney will assume the role on May 2 following three years as the ports Deputy Director and more than three decades of experience. She has been with the Port Department since 1993.Together, Ruda and Rooney have led the East Coast’s busiest and largest seaport, and third in the nation behind the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach.

Containerized cargo volumes through Alabama's Port of Mobile continue to climb in 2021 as shippers seek uncongested gateways servicing key North American markets. In August, container volumes increased 34% over August 2020 volume, while year-to-date volume posted 27% over the same period last year, the port said Thursday, attributing part of that success to a 37% increase in refrigerated containers due to nearly $74 million in refrigerated facilities investment at the port to support cold cargo supply chains.

A fire on the ocean surface west of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula early on Friday has been extinguished, state oil company Pemex said, blaming a gas leak from an underwater pipeline for sparking the blaze captured in videos that went viral.Bright orange flames jumping out of water resembling molten lava was dubbed an "eye of fire" on social media due to the blaze's circular shape, as it raged a short distance from a Pemex oil platform.The fire took more than five hours to fully put out…

The Wuhan coronavirus outbreak has placed the shipping industry on high alert amid a rising death toll in China and reports that the fast-spreading illness is reaching new shores.The flu-like coronavirus, first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China on December 31, has killed more than two dozen people in China and is believed to have infected more than 900 worldwide, according to several media reports. Cases have been confirmed in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong, and internationally in travelers returning from China to Japan…

Two cruise ships collided in a port in the Mexican Caribbean resort of Cozumel on Friday, causing damage to the stern of Carnival Corporation's Carnival Glory and leaving one passenger with a minor injury, Carnival said."Carnival Glory was maneuvering to dock when it made contact with Carnival Legend which was already alongside," Carnival said in a statement. "We are assessing the damage but there are no issues that impact the seaworthiness of either ship."Civil protection authorities…

Canadian and U.S. government representatives will arrive in Mexico on Tuesday to sign the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said.The three countries have come to an agreement over labor, steel and aluminum, he said at his regular daily news conference. (Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon and Abraham Gonzalez, Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)

Hackers demanded about $5 million in bitcoin from Mexico's Pemex, they told Reuters on Tuesday, saying the state oil firm missed a special discount by not paying immediately after a cyberattack that fouled up the company's systems.The hack, which Pemex said it detected on Sunday, forced the company to shut down computers across Mexico, freezing systems such as payments, according to five employees and internal emails.Hackers have increasingly targeted companies with malicious programs that can cripple systems overseeing everything from supply chains to manufacturing…

Panama's Canal Authority said on Wednesday that the canal was operating normally and without delays, adding that no ships had been detained in the trade waterway.The entity posted the statement on Twitter in response to a tweet from Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, who said a ship carrying 25,000 tonnes of soy had been detained in the canal.Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon

Contract negotiators between striking Alaska ferry boat workers and state officials have reached a tentative deal to end a 9-day-old walkout that has shut down the state Maritime Highway System, a federal mediator said on Friday.About 420 members of the Inlandboatmen's Union of the Pacific (IBU) walked off the job on July 24, idling a ferry network that serves more than 30 coastal and island communities statewide. It was the first strike against the Alaska Maritime Highway System in 42 years.The Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service…

Panama's Maritime Authority said on Thursday that Grace 1, a giant Iranian oil tanker seized by British Royal Marines in Gibraltar, was no longer listed in Panama's international boat registry as of May 29.The Panamanian authority added that Grace 1 had been de-listed after receiving an alert indicating that the ship had participated in or was linked to terrorism financing. Although the tanker flies a Panama flag, Iran claimed ownership and objected to the seizure of its ship. (Reporting by Elida Moreno; Writing by Daina Beth Solomon; Editing by Anthony Esposito)

Island Raider, the newest articulating tug in Island Tug and Barge’s (ITB) fleet, was christened September 28, during an afternoon ceremony at ITB’s headquarters in Burnaby, B.C.The new vessel is first of two in a series built by on-site at ITB’s Annacis Island facility along the Fraser River. The Island Raider, along with its sister the Island Regent (delivery February, 2019), was designed by renown Robert Allan Limited naval architects and marine engineers of Vancouver, B.C. to be paired with ITB’s double-hulled oil tank barge, the ITB Resolution, as an articulated tug and barge (ATB).

About 500 people gathered at the Long Beach Convention Center for the event, which brings together a panel of shipping and trade experts to offer their perspectives on industry trends and how they affect the San Pedro Bay port complex. One of the panelists, Drewry Maritime Research Senior Quantitative Economist Mario Moreno, predicted Asia-U.S. trade will grow 6.8 percent in 2018, the fastest pace in more than half-a-dozen years. He also estimated the overall U.S. economy will expand 2.8 percent. While President Donald Trump and China have proposed higher tariffs, an all-out trade war between China and the United States appears unlikely, according to Moreno. “Both nations have a lot to lose,” Moreno said.

We have had a great first couple of months at the Dredging Contractors of America. As the new CEO and Executive Director, I have begun to visit the companies, their facilities and associated dredging projects. So far, I have surveyed the beach re-nourishment project in Ocean City, Md. undertaken by Great Lakes Dredge and Dock. I’ve canvassed Weeks Marine’s repair and yard facility in Jersey City, N.J. In the last week of February, I visited Mike Hooks Inc.’s corporate headquarters and boatbuilding and repair yard in West Lake, La.

Trelleborg’s marine systems operation has supplied the Association of Maryland Pilots with SafePilot Portable Pilot Units (PPUs) and a Port System server solution to facilitate consistent, real-time information sharing between almost 70 pilots. The SafePilot system is part of Trelleborg’s Smarter Product Portfolio, which its marine systems operation is evolving to support the ‘Port of the Future’. The Association of Maryland Pilots serves the Chesapeake Bay, the longest pilotage route on the East Coast of the United States, with its nearly 200 miles of waters. The scale of the waters put particular demands on the operational battery time the piloting equipment requires.

A fire that broke out aboard the passenger vessel Caribbean Fantasy at 7:42 a.m. on August 17 has been extinguished, and the vessel has been moored safely in port. The Caribbean Fantasy is covered under Ardent’s OPA-90, Salvage and Marine Fire Fighting “SMFF” coverage program. Prior to Ardent operations, the U.S. Coast Guard responded to the vessel, and successfully evacuated more than 500 passengers and crew members. “We did a dive survey of the vessel at sea, found that there was minimal damage to the hull, and brought her to port with the USCG’s approval.

A team of scientists will set sail from Southampton to drill through the Earth’s mantle in the center of the Atlantic Ocean. They leave on board the Royal Research Ship James Cook on October 26, 2015 to explore the Atlantis Massif, a 4000 meter high underwater mountain. This is the first time a UK research ship will be used for this branch of science. The expedition is conducted by the European Consortium for Ocean Research Drilling (ECORD) as part of the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP).

Rear Adm. Michael White, commander, Naval Education Training Command, from Denver, accepted a proclamation from Cheyenne's Mayor Richard Kaysen during the Cheyenne Navy Week Kick-Off Concert, July 14. The Kick-Off Concert featured U.S. Navy Band Southwest's Brass Quintet and their popular music group the "Destroyers," as well as a screening of "Top Gun". "We here in Cheyenne are proud to be one of 12 cities chosen to host Navy Week," the mayor said. More than 150 residents came to show their support to their Navy, while also enjoying the festivities. "This community has been extremely welcoming for myself and all of the Sailors here," said White.