Bi News

Aloha Marine Lines has added a new barge to its fleet to serve customers in the Seattle to Hawaii trade lane.The Makani Loa was constructed at Gunderson Marine & Iron in Portland, Ore., and launched on March 2 as a sister to the Kamakani and Namakani, which were added to the Aloha fleet in 2020. Together, they represent Aloha Marine Lines’ family of Makani Class barges that will continue to maintain regular, bi-weekly barge service between Seattle and Hawaii.Designed by Hockema Group, Inc., the Makani Class barges are 438 feet long, 105 feet wide with a deadweight capacity of 16,900 tons.

As the offshore oil and gas industry transitions to more sustainable practices, drilling rig operators are faced with demands to implement greenhouse gas (GHG) abatement measures as part of their workload. Being the owner of the first ever drillship that secured DNV’s Abate(P) notation, Scotland-based offshore drilling contractor Stena Drilling discusses everything the company is doing to make its drill-ships ‘greener’.The first step to reducing its carbon footprint for Stena…

A 300-acre property along the Mississippi River in Herculaneum, Missouri recently received Port District zoning making way for redevelopment as an intermodal transportation hub and industrial park.Located on the shipping lanes of the Mississippi River, the site has been utilized since the 1700s as a port. With its easy access for barge loading and offloading and the site’s proximity to early lead mines in adjacent Washington County, under early French ownership the port was utilized to ship lead cannonballs and shot to Europe to support Napolean’s army.

The boarding of a Taiwanese tourist boat by China's coast guard near sensitive frontline islands triggered "panic" among Taiwan's people, a government minister said on Tuesday, but Taiwan's military added it was not planning to get involved.Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory despite the island's rejection, has been wary of efforts by Beijing to ramp up pressure on Taipei following the election last month of Lai Ching-te as president, a man Beijing views as a dangerous…

Norwegian offshore wind vessel owner Edda Wind announced it has appointed Hermann Hovland Øverlie as its new chief financial officer (CFO) following the resignation of Tom Johan Austrheim. Øverlie will join Edda Wind March 1, 2024.Øverlie is currently senior vice president of business development at Flex LNG and was previoulsy CFO at Amar Group. Øverlie has also extensive experience from financial/liquidity planning, risk management and financial analysis from Knutsen NYK Offshore Tankers and DnB. He holds a master’s degree in financial economics from BI Norwegian School of Management.

HydroWing is gearing up for deployment of its tidal energy technology, following the recent announcement that it has been awarded a contract for a 10MW tidal stream energy project in Wales.HydroWing was the largest tidal stream project in Wales to be successful in the UK government’s latest Contracts for Difference round. The project will be located at the Morlais tidal energy site in Anglesey, which is managed by the social enterprise Menter Môn. The Morlais site is the UK’s largest consented tidal energy scheme.Richard Parkinson…

A new high-speed low-draft landing craft Island Guardian has been delivered to the Great Barrier Reef Joint Field Management Program in Australia.The new 21-meter vessel has been custom-designed by Incat Crowther and built by Norman Wright & Sons to enhance island protected area management, research, incident response and facilitate more efficient management of the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area.The Great Barrier Reef Joint Field Management Program is delivered jointly by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority and the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service…

A tanker carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) arrived at Finland's Inkoo terminal on Tuesday, vessel tracking data showed, the first such cargo to appear following the Oct. 8 outage of a Finnish-Estonian gas pipeline.The Maran Gas Vergina, carrying U.S. natural gas, docked next to the Exemplar floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), which was installed late last year to facilitate LNG imports and thus boost Finland's energy security.The cargo belongs to Finnish gas supplier Gasum…

DNV has awarded Hanwha Ocean an Approval in Principle (AiP) and an Approval of Service Suppliers (AOSS) for two innovations: a large-scale liquefied carbon dioxide (LCO2) carrier tank and an underwater radiated noise (URN) measurement.DNV’s AiP relates to the design of a cargo hold of a 70,000 cbm LCO2 carrier, integrating Hanwha Ocean's patented Bi-Lobe cargo hold, a vertical asymmetric structure that maximizes cargo capacity. The concept specifically incorporates LNG propulsion engines and allows sufficient space for installing shipboard carbon dioxide capture and storage systems…

Funds managed by global investment firm Carlyle and private equity firm Stellex Capital Management announced they have completed the sale of Titan Acquisition Holdings, a bi-coastal leader in ship repair services and marine and heavy complex fabrication, to an affiliate of Lone Star Funds. The initial definitive agreement of the sale was announced in February 2023 and the final close took place on June 15, 2023.Titan is comprised of Vigor Industrial LLC, an infrastructure, defense…

Ulstein Design & Solutions has signed a contract with Turkey's Tersan Shipyard for two methanol-fuelled ULSTEIN SX216 Construction Service Operating Vessel (CSOV) designs. The vessels will be constructed for the Dutch company Acta Marine and will be number 3 and 4 with the TWIN X-STERN solution in the Acta Marine fleet.The SX216 vessel series has a length of 89,9m, a beam of 19,2m and accommodates up to 135 POB. It has a walk-to-work (W2W) motion-compensated gangway for safe personnel transfer to the turbines…

Greece’s Gastrade said on Thursday it expects to take a final investment decision on developing a second gas floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) off the country’s northern port of Alexandroupolis by the end of the year.With Europe racing to cut its reliance on Russian gas in the wake of the war in Ukraine, Greece is slowly becoming a key transit route for LNG in southeastern Europe.Last year, Athens replaced much of Russian pipeline gas by ramping up deliveries of liquefied natural gas (LNG)…

Allianz just released its 12th Risk Barometer, an annual corporate risk survey incorporating the views of 2,712 risk management experts in 94 countries and territories, including CEOs, risk managers, brokers and insurance experts. The overall global results reveal Cyber incidents and Business interruption as the biggest company concerns for the second year in succession. Macroeconomic developments such as inflation, financial market volatility and a looming recession rose to the third spot followed by the impact of the Energy crisis…

Lone Star Funds has reached a del to buy U.S. shipbuilding and repair group Titan Acquisition Holdings from peer investment firms Carlyle and Stellex Capital Management. Financial terms were not disclosed.Titan is comprised of Vigor Industrial LLC, an infrastructure, defense, and maritime services company based in Portland, Ore.; MHI Holdings LLC, a ship repair, maintenance, and other ship husbandry services company based in Norfolk, Va.; and Continental Maritime of San Diego (CMSD). Key Titan customers include the U.S. Navy, U.S.

Regardless of whether the Republicans seize or the Democrats maintain control of the House and Senate, there is a guarantee that changes in leadership will occur in some of the key Congressional leadership positions that will impact the maritime industry. Two of the most significant Congressional committees of jurisdiction are the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (House T&I) and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (Senate Commerce). Both committees have jurisdiction over the U.S.

Kongsberg Digital (KDI) signed a contract with Singapore-based transshipment company Rocktree to provide its Vessel Insight technology for the Supramax size Bulk carrier modified to an Offshore Floating Terminal (OFT) RT LEO. Together with the Vessel Insight Customer Success team, Rocktree plans to develop dashboards to measure cargo moved in tons/hour, fuel consumption, monitor emissions and benchmark its vessels.“Historically, the Bulk carrier segment has been a bit slow in terms of digitalization compared to Tankers and Offshore…

Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway ships carried an estimated 149 million metric tons of cargo to and from domestic ports, and to overseas markets during the 2021 shipping season — an increase of 7% over pandemic-stricken 2020, a new report from the Chamber of Marine Commerce shows.“This report paints a clear picture that the bi-national Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System supported the economic recovery and growth of many of our key industries in both Canada and the U.S. The…

Key stakeholders behind the efforts to launch innovative container-on-vessel (COV) service to the Midwest on Firday announced that Hawtex Development Corporation is signing on as the lead developer for a new COV port facility in Jefferson County, Mo. to be developed in collaboration with Fred Weber/Riverview Commerce Park LLC and integrating a 300+ acre adjacent parcel owned by The Doe Run Company. The new port will be a critical link on the new, all-water, north-south trade lane connecting the Midwest and the St. Louis region to the lower Mississippi River and on to worldwide destinations.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration (MARAD) announced the launch of a study exploring low carbon options for shipping on the Great LakesThe research group will be led by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), in partnership with the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) and the Conference of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Governors & Premiers (GSGP).Over a period of 16 months, researchers will assess alternative fuels and power options in the region and will develop a detailed profile of Great Lakes fleets, ports and fueling infrastructure.

A fully-electric ferry in Denmark has set a new world record for the longest voyage on a single battery charge.The vessel, Ellen, which usually connects the islands of Ærø and Als in Southern Denmark, broke the distance record on June 9 in Sønderborg, Denmark, where leaders from industry, government, and civil society joined the International Energy Agency (IEA) for the 7th Annual Global Conference on Energy Efficiency. On her return from the conference, where participants explored how international ambition on energy efficiency can be translated into faster and stronger real-world progress…

The November edition of Marine News magazine highlighted the most notable newbuilds delivered in 2022. From sturdy and nimble workboats, to the first new Jones Act laker in a generation, each vessel on display showcases the industry’s engineering prowess and technological ingenuity, with the focus on improving efficiency in operations. The maritime industry has no shortage of challenges to overcome, and each of Marine News’ top vessels will, in one way or another, aid efforts to tackle them.Mark W.

More than a half a billion dollars in recent, current or expected improvements at three Midwestern ports will strengthen these facilities and reinforce their important roles in the global freight network. The significant investments at Port KC, America’s Central Port, and Kaskaskia Regional Port District, along with new infrastructure funding recently secured, will spur an increase in barge services and deliver cost efficiencies that drive profitability for the industry. Port KC is located on the Missouri River.

DNV has awarded an approval in principle (AIP) to Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) for its new liquefied CO2 (LCO2) carrier design.The innovation incorporates customized large cargo tanks (pressurized IMO Type-C) and a reliable cargo handling system with highly efficient reliquefication technology.The AIP, presented at the Gastech 2022 Exhibition in Milan, confirms that DNV has reviewed SHI's design against the requirements of the IGC code and DNV guidelines applicable to CO2 carriers.SHI’s…