Daewoo Ship News

San Diego shipyard General Dynamics NASSCO said it has begun building the first of two liquefied natural gas (LNG)-capable combination containership/roll-on, roll-off (ConRo) vessels for Matson Navigation Company, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Matson, Inc. The 265-meter-long, 3,500 TEU Kanaloa class design was developed by the shipyard in partnership with Daewoo Ship Engineering Company, and incorporates Tier III compliant LNG-capable main and auxiliary engines, with accommodation for future LNG fuel gas system installation.

The Palmetto State, the eighth and final tanker to be constructed at General Dynamics NASSCO as part of a dual-customer program, has recently returned from its first run at sea. The Palmetto State and her sister ships are the most fuel-efficient tankers to service the Jones Act trade, according to NASSCO, who built all of the vessels at its San Diego shipyard and partnered with South Korean ship designer Daewoo Ship Engineering Company (DSEC) for the vessels’ design. With an “ECO” design, the tankers offer 33 percent increased fuel efficiency and cleaner shipping options.

U.S. shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO has delivered the third and final ship for SEA-Vista LLC as part of the builder’s larger eight-ship ECO Class tanker program. The LNG-conversion-ready Jones Act tanker Liberty was delivered on March 1, and is the last of three 610-foot-long, 50,000 deadweight-ton product carriers ordered by SEA-Vista in 2013. The construction program began in November 2014, and the first two ships, Independence and Constitution, have been delivered and are servicing the Jones Act trade. Each of the three ECO Class tankers features 330,000 barrel cargo capacity.

Gail India Ltd has scrapped a tender that would have led to the construction of three massive liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers at Indian shipyards. After postponing tender deadline thrice and also one year later, state-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd has not found any bidder for its USD 7 billion tender to hire newly-built LNG ships to ferry gas from the US. GAIL's tender to hire nine newly-built liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers drew a blank due to the government's condition of building a third of the ships in India, officials said. "There was no response from ship owners and GAIL decided not to extend the tender beyond 17 February. The tender has lapsed," a company spokesperson said.

The state-owned gas utility GAIL (India) has postponed the tender date for its $7.6 billion newly built LNG ships for the third time as it did find any takers. The company first postponed the last date of bidding from October 30 to December 4 and then to January 6. Today it put it off till February 17, according to a notice issued by GAIL. This is because the PSU firm is not able to get responses from international shipbuilders, given the condition that they should lend their technology to Indian firms. There is a mandatory provision in the tender that one ship in each lot has to be built in partnership with Indian shipyards. This is a part of the ‘Make in India’ effort.

As Tote pioneers the use of natural gas as a marine fuel with two groundbreaking projects, Anthony Chiarello combines the strength and diversity of the Saltchuk group of companies with a forward-thinking, environmentally correct Tote business plan. As TOTE prepares to bring the world’s first natural gas-powered containerships to the maritime industry, the firm will also be the first to convert its existing fleet to run on natural gas. Two Orca Class vessels, operated by Totem Ocean Trailer Express (Totem Ocean) in the Alaska trade, will be converted with minimal time out of service and return as the most environmentally advanced ships in the nation.

DNV gathered before and after operational-performance data which indicate that redesigning the bulbous bow of slow-steaming container ships can produce fuel savings of 5% or above. These “nose jobs” can have a payback time of less than a year, DNV said. Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) operates a series of 8,600 TEU container vessels which were designed and built for high speed. These vessels are actually able to operate at 27 knots. However, today the vessels are “slow steaming”, operating in the range of 15 to 18 knots. At these speeds, the existing bulb is not efficient. To quantify the possible savings potential, DNV carried out a comprehensive study to develop a new bulbous bow shape optimized for the expected trading conditions.

Last month U.S. ship owner Tote Inc. shocked the maritime community in ordering the world’s first LNG-powered containerships; in one fell swoop energizing the U.S. shipbuilding sector. On the occasion of this historic contract, top executives from TOTE, NASSCO and MAN spoke to Maritime Reporter & Engineering News to weigh in on the deal’s significance. In recent decades, particularly in the large commercial ship niche, it is fair to say that the U.S. has not been a world force.

Having sat in this chair for more than two decades, I must admit that I have become somewhat jaded in the sense that there are few developments which actually give me cause to pause. Of course there are the spectacular casualties that will never cease to amaze, but on the business side there are very few real showstoppers. Then there was last month. Just as I was literally packing up to head down to New Orleans for the International Workboat Show, news broke  that U.S. ship owner TOTE Inc.

According to a report from Reuters, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering and Hyundai Heavy Industries said they were jointly in preliminary deal to build up to eight LNG carriers for Greece's Maran Gas.   Source: Reuters

According to a Nov. 1 report from Bloomberg, STX Offshore & Shipbuilding Co., the world’s fourth-largest shipyard, led advances among South Korean shipbuilders in Seoul trading on expectations that growing global trade will prompt more orders. STX Offshore gained 8.1 percent to 28,550 won, the highest price since August 2008, at the 3 p.m. close of trade in Seoul. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., the world’s second-largest shipyard, climbed 3.2 percent to 30,600 won after winning a $510m contract. (Source: Bloomberg)

(Source-Bloomberg)

Despite a sliding stock market, bidders for 's Daewoo Shipbuilding may have to pay a hefty premium and large fees to snap up the coveted $4 billion asset amid upbeat prospects for the sector. Slow progress in the bidding process due to union protests and delays in selecting a lead manager, which coincided with a retreat in global stocks and a decision to exclude foreign bidders, has benefited potential buyers by reducing competition and the value of the deal by $2 billion from a year ago. But a global credit squeeze and recent warnings from Korean regulators against debt-financed buyouts mean a successful buyer will have to give up some of their assets or pay hefty fees to win the world's third-largest shipbuilder.

After over five decades of its involvement in crude oil and gas exploration without involving in crude oil transportation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), has signed a joint venture agreement with Daewoo Ship-building and Marine Engineering (DSME) of South Korea, to establish a world class shipping company which will be involved in crude oil transportation. Already, $10 million has been released as the initial capital for the joint venture business, which would be called Nigera-Daewoo Shipping Ltd (NIDAS). The NNPC will aquire a controlling equity interest of 51 per cent, while DSME will have 49 per cent . A release signed by Dr Levi Ajuonuma…

General Dynamics NASSCO, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), and Daewoo Ship Engineering Company (DSEC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) based in Busan, Korea, announced a formal teaming agreement to build ships for the U.S. market under the Jones Act. The Jones Act, among its many provisions, requires ships that carry cargo between U.S. ports to be built in the United States. Under the agreement, DSEC will provide the detail designs, support services and some of the material necessary for ship production. NASSCO will also procure material and will provide the labor and facilities to construct the ships here.

The Shipping Corporation of India Ltd (SCI), today signed contracts with Daewoo Ship Building and Marine Engineering CoLtd of South Korea for building and delivering two Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCS). The tankers, to be built at DSME's shipbuilding yard in South Korea, would have a deadweight of about 300,000 tonnes at the design draft of 21.5 metres. The tankers would be built as per the latest and most stringent International Regulations and would be classed with the ABS and IRS Classification Societies.