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Christmas News

27 Mar 2024

Baltimore Bridge Port Blockade Won't Trigger New Supply Chain Crisis, Experts Say

Satellite image ©2024 Maxar Technologies.

The catastrophic bridge collapse that closed the Port of Baltimore to ship traffic is unlikely to trigger a major new U.S. supply chain crisis or spike goods prices, due to ample and growing spare capacity at competing East Coast ports, economists and logistics experts say.With six people still missing after a container ship collision destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, it remained unclear how long the span's twisted superstructure would block the harbor's mouth.But port officials…

07 Jan 2024

Air Circulation Begins on Genius Star XI

Source: US Coast Guard

An air circulation operation has begun on the 410-foot general cargo vessel Genius Star XI which is currently at anchor off Dutch Harbor, Alaska.The vessel, carrying lithium-ion batteries, caught fire on Christmas Day. In response, the crew released carbon dioxide into hold No. 1 and sealed it over concerns of an explosion.The purpose of the air circulation is to increase air flow in the cargo holds so that personnel can enter. Additional technical experts are enroute to evaluate options for conducting visual inspections.

30 Dec 2023

Burning Vessel Diverted to Dutch Harbor, Alaska

Source: US Coast Guard

The US Coast Guard is continuing to assess a fire reported on the 410-foot general cargo vessel Genius Star XI off Dutch Harbor, Alaska.The vessel is carrying lithium-ion batteries, and the fire started on Christmas Day in cargo hold No. 1. The crew released carbon dioxide into the hold and sealed it over concerns of an explosion.The Coast Guard then diverted the vessel to Dutch Harbor while an HC-130 airplane from Air Station Kodiak and Coast Guard Cutter Alex Haley (WMEC-39) were dispatched to assist.The Coast Guard confirmed there are no injuries to the 19 crewmembers.

28 Dec 2023

Island Offshore Lines Up Long-term Work for Island Condor

(Photo: Kongsberg Maritime)

Norwegian shipowner Island Offshore announced it has secured long-term employment for its offshore support vessel Island Condor, commencing in autumn 2024."This is a fantastic Christmas gift for the company! We have worked purposefully to secure longer assignments and are grateful for the trust the customer has shown us," said Tommy Walaunet, managing director of Island Offshore Management AS.Having worked as a walk-to-work vessel in the British sector for many years, apart from Norwegian projects in the past year…

18 Dec 2023

Dales Marine Services Buys 20 Welding Generators

Left to right: Gary Norrie, Project Manager at Dales Marine with Graeme Chapman – Heavy Haulage Specialist, MB Plant, Peterhead. (Photo: Dales Marine Services)

U.K. based ship repair and marine services form Dales Marine Services announced it has acquired 20 new welding generators from MB Plant, Peterhead.The newly acquired welding generators are replacements for older machines and will be utilized on-site at Dales Marine facilities including Aberdeen, Leith, Greenock and Troon, as well as remotely at clients' sites, as required.Dales Marine said its main facilities have been experiencing a steady increase in the number of vessels coming to their docks for scheduled maintenance and repairs…

10 Dec 2023

Philippines, China Trade Accusations over South China Sea Collision

© olinchuk / Adobe Stock

The Philippines and China traded accusations on Sunday over a collision of their vessels near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea as tensions over claims in the vital waterway escalate.The Philippine coast guard accused China of firing water cannons and ramming resupply vessels and a coast guard ship, causing "serious engine damage" to one, while China's coast guard said the Philippine vessel intentionally rammed its ship.China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce…

04 Dec 2023

Meyer Werft Delivers Cruise Ship Carnival Jubilee

(Photo: Meyer Werft)

German shipbuilder Meyer Werft announced it has delivered Carnival Jubilee, the latest cruise ship for Carnival Cruise Line.The 183,200 GT ship is 345.4 meters long, 42 meters wide and can accommodate 5,374 passengers in 2,626 passenger cabins, plus 1,551 crew. It has 20 decks.The RINA-classed Carnival Jubilee has a wide range of entertainment options and numerous restaurants. The highlight on the upper deck is the "Ultimate Playground" with a waterpark including large slides and the "BOLT" roller coaster.The newbuild is the first ship for Carnival Cruise Line to be built in Papenburg.

14 Nov 2023

Babcock CEO Optimistic Aabout Further Type 31 Orders

(Image: Babcock)

Babcock’s chief executive is optimistic the company will secure further orders for the Type 31 frigate, and talks are ongoing with three countries who are interested in the ship.“We’re still optimistic about further export orders,” CEO David Lockwood said in an interview on Tuesday, adding that he had a couple of visits to potential customers planned before Christmas.“Warships are always political so they’re never done until they’re done.”Babcock is building the Type 31 frigate for Britain, and Poland and Indonesia have ordered vessels based on the same Arrowhead 140 design.

15 Sep 2023

Port of Los Angeles Says Cargo Lost During West Coast Talks is Returning

© Brad Nixon / Adobe Stock

Cargo volume at the Port of Los Angeles jumped from July to August after business lost during the now-finished West Coast labor talks began returning, the top executive at the nation's busiest ocean trade gateway said on Thursday.That data comes as seaports on the U.S. West Coast are battling to regain market share lost to rivals on the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico during the 13-month union negotiations, and as ocean cargo volumes tumble from early pandemic highs.In August, the Port of Los Angeles handled 828,016 20-foot equivalent units, a measurement standard for ocean cargo.

12 Sep 2023

Panama Canal to Further Reduce Daily Transits if Drought Continues

© BlackMac / Adobe Stock

The Panama Canal could further reduce the maximum number of authorized daily vessel transits if this year's drought continues, the waterway's administrator said on Tuesday.A backlog of ships is waiting to pass through the trans-oceanic canal, which handles an estimated 5% of world trade. It began restricting vessel draft and daily passage authorizations this year to conserve water.Many vessels have had to lighten cargoes before passing, and freight costs have risen ahead of the Christmas shopping season.Up to 32 ships are currently authorized to transit every day…

06 Sep 2023

Panama Canal Water Levels at Historic Lows, Restrictions to Remain

© Arthur / Adobe Stock

The Panama Canal's water levels have not recovered enough as the end of the rainy season approaches and limits on daily transit and vessel draft will stay in place for the rest of the year and throughout 2024, the waterway's authority said on Tuesday.The restrictions, implemented earlier this year to conserve water amid prolonged drought, triggered a backlog of ships waiting to pass the key global waterway, which handles an estimated 5% of world trade, contributing to more expensive…

25 Aug 2023

Panama Canal to Extend Transit Restrictions

© searagen / Adobe Stock

The Panama Canal expects to maintain restrictions on daily vessel transit and maximum draft for at least 10 more months amid a prolonged drought that has lowered the water level, an official from the waterway said on Thursday.The canal's authority earlier this year began imposing restrictions, causing a backlog of vessels waiting to pass. The curbs have forced vessel owners to lighten cargoes or shift to alternate routes as freight costs increase for some routes.The extension of the restrictions would give the canal room for preserving water before the next rainy season arrives…

21 Aug 2023

Historic Drought, Hot Seas Slow Panama Canal Shipping

Source: Panama Canal Authority

Before the Ever Max ship carrying lava lamps, sofas, Halloween costumes and artificial Christmas trees could make its inaugural Panama Canal voyage this month, a historic drought forced it to drop weight by offloading hundreds of containers.Weather-related disruptions denied the vessel, owned by Taiwanese shipping company Evergreen Marine, a chance on Aug. 1 to set a record for carrying the most containers through the vital maritime shortcut that connects the Pacific and Atlantic…

16 Aug 2023

Panama Canal Extends Transit Restrictions through September 2

© BlackMac / Adobe Stock

The Panama Canal Authority on Wednesday notified shippers it is extending through September 2 restrictions for vessels to transit through the waterway and keeping the number of vessels authorized to pass per day to a maximum of 32.The Canal restrictions, implemented in recent months as the rainy season in Panama has come late this year, could add more pressure on consumer goods prices, according to maritime firms and experts, as delays and extra fees add to shipping costs.The Panama Canal is key for moving consumer goods from Asia to the United States…

15 Jun 2023

Tentative US West Coast Port Contract Deal Reached

© ADLC / Adobe Stock

The Longshore union and employers of 22,000 dockworkers at U.S. West Coast ports on Wednesday said they have reached a tentative deal on a new six-year contract, ending 13 months of talks and easing supply chain worries.The deal was reached with assistance from Acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) employer group said in a joint statement.President Joe Biden, who dispatched Su to the negotiations in San Francisco earlier this week…

05 Jun 2023

Retailers, Manufacturers Urge White House to Mediate in West Coast Ports Labor Dispute

© trekandphoto / Adobe Stock

Groups representing major retailers and manufacturers urged the White House on Monday to intervene in contentious West Coast port labor negotiations, citing worries about shipping disruptions during critical holiday shopping seasons.The call came after the largest terminal at Southern California's Port of Long Beach closed on Monday as dock workers rally for better pay. Monday's closure followed similar disruptions on Friday in Oakland, California.More than 22,000 dockworkers…

27 Feb 2023

US Retailers' Ocean Shipping Price Woes Ending as New Delays Threaten

Collapsing ocean shipping rates are not all good news for U.S. retailers, who paid as much as $20,000 to move a container of goods during the worst pandemic disruptions, as they now are bracing for delays due to plummeting demand.Carriers like MSC and Maersk are trying to prop up prices by cancelling voyages and that could spark a new round of cargo delays as containers get bumped from one ship to the next, experts said ahead of a major U.S. ocean shipping conference in Long Beach…

08 Feb 2023

Jadestone Energy Targets End of Month Production Restart for Montara Venture FPSO

Jadestone Energy, an Asia Pacific-focused oil and gas company, has taken a step toward restarting production from its Montara Project offshore Australia.The company shut down production from the Montara Venture FPSO last year, first, to allow for repairs on a tank that leaked oil back in June through a 30-millimeter crack, and then after discovering a defect in water ballast tank 4S.On January 18, 2023, Jadestone said that DNV's independent review of Jadestone's remediation plans and operational readiness for the Montara Venture FPSO had been completed and submitted to NOPSEMA, that Australian offshore safety regulator, as required by the General Direction issued to the company in September 2022.

12 Jan 2023

Lobsters Versus Right Whales

© karenfoleyphoto / Adobe Stock

Lobsters versus right whales: The latest chapter in a long quest to make fishing more sustainableMaine lobster fishermen received a Christmas gift from Congress at the end of 2022: A six-year delay on new federal regulations designed to protect critically endangered North Atlantic right whales.The rules would have required lobstermen to create new seasonal nonfishing zones and further reduce their use of vertical ropes to retrieve lobster traps from the seafloor. Entanglement…

27 Dec 2022

Edda Wind's New CSOV Launched in Spain

Credit: Edda Wind

On Christmas Eve, Spanish shipyard Gondan Shipbuilders inaugurated the Commissioning Service Operation vessel (CSOV) C491, built for Edda Wind.The new ship is a CSOV of similar design as the other six vessels being built at Gondan.These eight vessels, along with the two SOVs being built at Astilleros Balenciaga, comprise Edda Wind's expansion program, with all vessels planned for delivery by 2025.All eight vessels will be able to run on a hydrogen-based propulsion system based on the Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) concept.

23 Dec 2022

Bibby WaveMaster 1 Helps TotalEnergies' Offshore Workers Get Home for Christmas

Credit: Bibby Marine

Bibby Marine's Bibby WaveMaster 1 (BWM1) set sail for Denmark this week, on a charter for Total Energies, to help get some of their personnel home in time for Christmas after weather conditions prevented helicopter transfer.BWM1, a walk-to-work Service Operation Vessel (SOV) with motion compensated gangway that allows the safe transfer of technicians from offshore platforms, was chartered by the company after around 300 workers were unable to leave the field, via helicopter, due to difficult weather conditions.The BWM1 has transported 423 workers (228 inbound and 195 outbound) so far…

12 Oct 2022

“Welcome to a Dying Industry (1988)”

Photo copyright Greg Trauthwein

While pundits have long proclaimed the U.S. maritime industry dying or dead, the recent delivery of Great Lakes laker Mark W. Barker suggests an innovative future instead.Jacksonville Shipyard was a well-known repair yard that was particularly well known for servicing the Jones Act tanker fleet and Gino Ferrari was its New York representative. Each Christmas season Gino hosted a reception at the Four Seasons restaurant for tanker Owners.Gino Ferrari was a close friend of the company and my father always received an invite.

29 Sep 2022

Maersk CEO Expects Holiday Volumes to Be Less than Usual

© lazyllama / Adobe Stock

A.P. Moller-Maersk's chief executive said on Thursday he expects a "modest" pick-up in trade for the upcoming holidays this year amid concerns about the slowing global economy and consumer demand."Volumes headed into the Christmas season are lower than a normal year," Soren Skou said in a Reuters Newsmaker interview.Ocean freight volumes will be flat or lower this year, though there is still congestion in global supply chains, he said. U.S. consumers aren't buying as much as they…