Buchanan News

Officials dedicated two new Port of Long Beach fireboat stations that are enhancing the Long Beach Fire Department’s waterside and landside emergency response capabilities, better safeguarding visiting ships, cargo and waterfront workers.The facilities – Fireboat Station 15 and Fireboat Station 20 – are the products of a $109 million Port of Long Beach program to preserve business continuity, security and economic interests. With an anticipated lifespan of 50 years, both stations…

Marine operations software developer Helm Operations and AIS services provider ShipTracks launched a new set of integrated features for harbor docking companies designed to streamline and automate the creation of towage orders directly from the AIS system.By linking Helm CONNECT Jobs dispatch software and ShipTracks’ AIS technology, operators are able to achieve greater operational awareness, reduced workloads for dispatchers and increased revenue as they identify and capture jobs that were previously lost to their competitors…

Gulf of Mexico vessel builders – and their customers – adapt to a lean offshore market. After oil prices plunged in late 2014 – pressured by shale output – demand for offshore vessels in the Gulf of Mexico shrank, day rates for boats fell and non-working units were idled. This year, several GoM boat builders filed for Chapter 11, or voluntary bankruptcy, while others consolidated. The most diversified companies kept their heads above water. Today, the outlook's a bit brighter. Crude oil prices hit bottom early last year. Tidewater Inc.

The Pentagon named a senior general to command military relief operations in hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico on Thursday and the Trump administration sent a Cabinet emissary to the island as U.S. lawmakers called for a more robust response to the crisis. The U.S. territory of 3.4 million people struggled through a ninth day with virtually no electricity, patchy communications and shortages of fuel, clean water and other essentials in the wake of Hurricane Maria, the most powerful storm to hit the island in nearly 90 years. The storm struck on Sept. 20 with lethal, roof-ripping force and torrential rains that caused widespread flooding and heavily damaged homes, roads and other infrastructure. The storm killed more than 30 people across the Caribbean, including at least 16 in Puerto Rico.

1832 - USS Potomac, becomes the first U.S. Navy ship to entertain royalty, King and Queen of Sandwich Islands. 1858 - The last bit of cable is laid by USS Niagara and British ship Agamemnon to complete the first trans-Atlantic cable. Niagara's boats carried the end of the cable ashore at Brills Mouth Island, Newfoundland, and the same day Agamemnon landed her end of the cable at England. The first message flashed across August 16 when Queen Victoria sent a cable to President James Buchanan. 1864 - Rear Adm. David G. Farragut successfully navigates through a deadly torpedo field Confederates lay in order to block the channel into Mobile Bay. During the battle, Farragut gives his famous quote, Damn the Torpedoes, Full speed ahead!

Export hulls – through the FMS Program, as well as Direct Sales – are a key piece of the business model. Even as the crash in energy prices feeds the oversupply of offshore support vessels – a key staple of U.S. boatbuilding diets – and the dwindling backlogs of some so-called ‘second tier’ yards,  a number of U.S. boat builders are still seeing robust demand for security vessels. Separately, tightening federal, state, municipal and overseas budgets are being trumped by the increased need for security craft that can perform more than one function.

BHP Billiton Chairman, Jac Nasser, today announced a number of changes to the BHP Billiton Board of Directors. Anita Frew has been appointed to the BHP Billiton Board as an independent Non-executive Director, effective as of 15 September 2015. Ms Frew has over 18 years’ experience as a director and chairman on public company boards across a range of global sectors, including chemicals, engineering and finance. She is currently Chairman Designate of Croda International Plc, the speciality chemicals group and Deputy Chairman of Lloyds Banking Group Plc. Mr Nasser said Ms Frew’s appointment reflected the structured and rigorous approach taken by BHP Billiton to Board succession planning…

Vessels are stacked as Gulf oil operators retrench and day rates fall. In the Gulf of Mexico, vessels serving offshore oil-and-gas exploration and production are being stacked or idled as the rig count there declines. Oil companies are retrenching while crude prices remain weak, with smaller operators and the shallow-water sector scaling back the most. As the situation unfolds, MarineNews asked David Barousse, general manager at Fleet Operators, Inc., a marine transportation firm in Morgan City, La., for his take on today’s predicament and what the future holds.

The U.S. Coast Guard is working with state and local partners in response to a bulk carrier loaded with sulfur that ran aground in the Gulf of Mexico Tuesday, while transiting outbound from Neches Industrial Park. At approximately 1:30 p.m., watchstanders at the Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Control Port Arthur received a call from the pilot aboard the 615-ft.Panamanian flagged vessel Jian Qiang, stating they ran hard aground approximately 1 mile from the westernmost jetty, outside buoys 33 and 34, in the Gulf of Mexico. There were no reports of significant damage, injury or pollution discharge. The Coast Guard is investigating the incident.

Our annual shipyard report comes at an appropriate, yet uncertain time for the industry. The future direction of the oil and gas markets will, to a large extent, also determine the course for domestic boat builders. That’s because the sustained rally seen in this sector over the course of the last 3 to 5 years came to be thanks to the so-called domestic energy boom. Nevertheless, there are reasons for optimism despite the lowest rig count since March of 2011. Thankfully, there are other reasons for shipyards to stay busy in the coming months. For example, the looming so-called subchapter M towboat rules will likely unleash a flurry of inland repair and newbuild activity.

The Liberian Registry has appointed shipping executive Gerry Buchanan as managing director of its dedicated Hong Kong office, the registry announced today. As the recently retired president of Genco Shipping & Trading, Buchanan has experience in the management and operation of a wide array of ships. After careers with Denholm Ship Management and Canada Steamship Lines, Gerry was appointed as the managing director of Wallem Ship Management in Hong Kong. In 2005 he was appointed president of Genco Shipping & Trading…

For the past six months, Crowley Maritime Corporation has provided critical logistics services in support of Operation United Assistance (OUA), the U.S. military’s mission to fight the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa, the company announced today. Specifically, Crowley has supplied emergency shipping, warehousing, trucking, stevedoring, customs brokerage and other logistics capabilities, first to the U.S. Government’s Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) and now to the U.S. Army in both Liberia and Senegal, Africa. These efforts have supported the more than 3,000 deployed U.S.

Genco Shipping & Trading Limited (OTCBB: GSKNF) has announced that John C. Wobensmith, the company's CFO has been appointed as President effective December 19, 2014. He succeeds Robert Gerald Buchanan, who will retire as of the same date. Buchanan has served as President of Genco since June 2005. "John's appointment as President represents the significant contributions he has made to Genco since joining the Company close to a decade ago as well as his deep knowledge of the drybulk industry," said Peter C. Georgiopoulos, Chairman of the Board. "John has played a critical role in strengthening Genco's prospects and I am confident that under his leadership the Company is poised to both further strengthen its standing in the drybulk industry and create long-term shareholder value.

The CMA CGM Group announce the addition, on its PC north service, of a new direct call in Buchanan (Liberia), located 100km south of Monrovia, thus expanding its service opportunities in Africa and becoming the only shipping line calling Buchanan in 20 years. This new call primarily responds to the needs for the export cargo of wood, rubber, palm oil and minerals produced in the area of Buchanan. The CMA CGM Group will also serve Buchanan for import from worldwide on CMA CGM long haul services through the Tangiers hub. A service operating four vessels of 1,600 TEUs.

Smaller boatyards carve out a profitable niche in this challenging, yet target rich maritime environment. For Kvichak and USMI; so far, so good. The May edition of MarineNews brought analysis of possible downstream consequences of the U.S. federal government’s ongoing austerity measures, especially where it could impact U.S. boatbuilders with backlogs tied to government funding. Susan Buchanan’s “Budget Battles Bumping Backlogs” piece brought out the good, bad and potentially ugly realities of the new normal in Washington, DC, where lawmakers tussle over spending priorities, while also leaving various casualties in their messy wake. The August announcement that the U.S.

Pop Quiz: Think back to the last time that U.S. Shipyards were operating at the breakneck pace now being seen from coast to coast. Now, think about that in context of slowing global demand brought on by overbuilt bluewater sectors. Next, factor in the breathtaking newbuild programs underway in the offshore support, inland marine and Jones Act sectors. And, don’t forget the increasing demand from foreign operators who, more and more, are beginning to understand that U.S. shipyards can build economically in series, for export and with quality that matches or exceeds global standards. Finally, plug in the shrinking trade deficit represented by energy that could eventually eliminate our dependency on foreign oil forever, powering prosperity that could last for a generation.

The Port of Seattle is now recruiting for its Veterans Fellowship Program. The Port of Seattle says it is dedicated to helping military personnel transition from active duty to civilian employment. The port understands the importance of veterans serving their country and it is estimated that as many as 20% of the port's employee base are veterans or still on active duty (2011). In the picture from left to right: Luis Navarro, Director, Office of Social Responsibility, Rob Porcarelli 
Corporate Counsel, Starbucks; Ricardo Martinez, U.S. Navy, Separated; Nicholas McCallon, U.S.

Offshore energy is a unique animal. I say that because, increasingly, the vessels that provide offshore service are becoming the mainstream of our bluewater merchant marine. Smaller than their containership or tanker cousins – although getting bigger every day – these vessels pack surprising amounts of innovation and technology into every precious inch of their uniquely shaped hulls. As shipyards and operators alike discover that they can build to this scale in a way that competes with foreign yards, the U.S. flag fleet slowly becomes more modern and visible. Along with that comes the realization that this sector has special needs, responsibilities and rules; all of which impacts our ability to produce energy.

Yale University School of Medicine presents preliminary results of the Future Care, Inc. / Yale University Seafarer’s Health Study. In a presentation conducted in the Union League Club in New York City, Yale University Occupational and Environmental Medicine Program in collaboration with Future Care, Inc., reported the initial results of the pilot study on the health of seafarers internationally, initiated in March 2012. Using Future Care’s unique experience as internationally…

Nearly two years ago, the Obama Administration tightened rules for removing “idle iron” – old oil platforms and pipelines – and on plugging unused wells in the Gulf of Mexico. That September 2010 move was part of a federal crackdown on deepwater oil and gas operations following the 2010 BP spill. Since then, heavy-lift companies have continued to rid the Gulf of unused structures and other firms have positioned themselves for that work. Under the 2010 rules, wells that hadn't been used for five years were to be abandoned or “zonally isolated” within three years after Oct. 15, 2010.

The financial report showed a loss attributable to Genco for the second quarter of 2012 of $27.7 million, or $0.65 basic and diluted loss per share. Comparatively, for the three months ended June 30, 2011, net income attributable to Genco was $10.1 million, or $0.29 basic and diluted earnings per share. EBITDA was $26.8 million for the three months ended June 30, 2012 versus $65.8 million for the three months ended June 30, 2011. Robert Gerald Buchanan, President, commented, "During the second quarter, we maintained an opportunistic time charter approach in a challenging drybulk market. Genco's voyage revenues decreased to $62.1 million for the three months ended June 30, 2012 versus $98.5 million for the three months ended June 30, 2011.

With skilled craftsmen in short supply in U.S. coastal areas, many shipbuilders turn to their own, sometimes extensive, internal training. Because fewer young people are entering shipbuilding out of high school, the industry is faced with an aging workforce that will soon have to be replaced. As good jobs for shipfitters and welders go begging, industry leaders say it's way past time to spread the word about these opportunities. Pascagoula, Miss.-based John Lotshaw directs Operations Workforce Training and Development at Huntington-Ingalls Industries (HII).

Silt accumulation and dredging that's been postponed for years have prevented the full use of U.S. waterways and ports, maritime industry leaders said last month. Hundreds of U.S. ports and harbors are meant to be maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to foster navigation. But many of the country's channels are not kept at their authorized depths, and last year the backlog of needed dredging projects swelled. Meanwhile, just over half the fees charged to shippers through the federal Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund are spent on maintenance and operations…