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12 Mar 2024

US Unions ask Biden Administration to Probe Chinese Shipbuilding

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Five U.S. labor unions on Tuesday filed a petition with the office of U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai requesting a probe into China's alleged unfair policies and practices in the maritime logistics and shipbuilding sectors, the USTR office said.The petition was filed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, a statute aimed at combating trade partners' unfair practices.Trade practices are only one component of strains in U.S.-China relations in recent years. Other contentious issues include Taiwan…

11 Jan 2024

Shipping Attacks Push US and Allies to Mideast Crunch Point

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When the United States and 11 allies published a joint statement last week calling for an end to Houthi attacks from Yemen on Red Sea shipping, they hoped the implicit threat of force might at least reduce the intensity of fire on foreign vessels.Instead, Wednesday saw the largest single attack yet on foreign vessels, according to Western defence officials, launched seven days after the joint statement. It appeared a clear attempt to call the West's bluff, just as other tensions across the Middle East appear to be on the rise.In Iraq and Syria, U.S.

08 Nov 2023

Gibdock Applies Graphene-based Fouling Release Coating

(Photo: Gibdock)

Gibraltar ship repair and conversion yard Gibdock said it recently hosted the Vulica Shipping Company-owned bulk carrier Donald M James for a 30-day project which brought a first opportunity to work with a new type of coating from GIT Coatings (Graphite Innovation & Technologies Inc).The 229-eterm-long ship entered Gibdock’s No.1 Dock for extensive works, including renewal to cargo holds, piping, thrusters, tail shafts and rudders. The yard also applied shipping’s first antifouling…

31 Aug 2023

Iran's Oil Output, Exports Rise as Washington, Tehran Talk

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Iran's oil output and exports jumped in August despite U.S. sanctions, according to consultants and companies that track tanker shipments, as Tehran sells to buyers including China.Analysts said the higher exports appear to be the result of Iran's success in evading U.S. sanctions and Washington's discretion in enforcing them as the two countries seek better relations.The United States has sought to limit Iran's oil exports since Donald Trump exited a 2015 nuclear accord in 2018 and re-imposed sanctions aimed at curbing revenues to Iran's government.

11 Jul 2023

US Court Revives Lawsuit Against Royal Caribbean Over Toddler's Death

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A federal appeals court on Tuesday revived a lawsuit against Royal Caribbean Cruises by the parents of an 18-month-old girl who died after slipping through her grandfather’s hands and falling through an open cruise ship window.The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta restored two negligence claims over the July 2019 death of Chloe Wiegand, who had been in a children’s play area aboard the ship Freedom of the Seas, which was docked in San Juan, Puerto Rico.Her grandfather Salvatore Anello testified that he picked Chloe up and put her feet on the windowsill…

07 Jul 2023

Inside the Subsea Cable Firm Secretly Helping America Take on China

On Feb. 10 last year, the cable ship CS Dependable appeared off the coast of the island of Diego Garcia, an Indian Ocean atoll that’s home to a discreet U.S. naval base.Over the next month, the ship’s crew covertly laid an underwater fiber-optic cable to the military base, an operation code-named “Big Wave,” according to four people with direct knowledge of the mission, as well as a Reuters analysis of satellite imagery and ship tracking data.The new super-fast internet link to Diego Garcia, which has not previously been reported, will boost U.S. military readiness in the Indian Ocean, a region where China has expanded its naval influence over the last decade.The CS Dependable is owned by SubCom…

14 Apr 2023

Biden Admin Greenlights LNG Exports from Alaska LNG Project

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The Biden administration on Thursday approved exports of liquefied natural gas from the Alaska LNG project, a document showed, as the United States competes with Russia to ship natural gas from the Arctic to Asia.The Department of Energy approved Alaska Gasline Development Corp's (AGDC) project to export LNG to countries with which the United States does not have a free trade agreement.Backers of the roughly $39 billion project expect it to be operational by 2030 if it gets all the required permits.

08 Mar 2023

US Plans No Wider Easing of Sanctions on Venezuela, Official Says

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The U.S. government is not planning a systematic easing of sanctions on Venezuela after an initial round allowed partners of state-run oil firm PDVSA to resume taking oil for past debts, a State Department official said.In November, Washington issued a six-month license allowing Chevron Corp. to expand operations and export Venezuelan oil to the United States. Eni and Repsol also began taking Venezuelan crude for debt with U.S. approvals, This year, Trinidad and Tobago received a U.S. nod to jointly development an offshore natural gas field with Venezuela. Those moves by U.S.

24 Jan 2023

NY Waterway to Upgrade Ferries with Hybrid Propulsion

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NY Waterway announced plans to repower four more of its older ferries, transitioning from traditionally diesel driven units to hybrid technology before eventually operating on pure electric.The private company, which runs ferry and bus service in the Port of New York and New Jersey and in the Hudson Valley, was awarded $7.298 million in grant funding for the project through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Passenger Ferry Grant program with the support of NJ TRANSIT.Each ferry upgrade consists of removing all main engines and generators…

18 Jan 2023

Nonprofit Honors Boysie Bollinger for Outstanding Achievements

Donald T. “Boysie” Bollinger (Photo: Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc.)

Horatio Alger Association of Distinguished Americans, Inc., a nonprofit educational organization honoring the achievements of outstanding individuals and encouraging youth to pursue their dreams through higher education, today announced that Donald T. “Boysie” Bollinger, Chairman and CEO of Bollinger Enterprises, LLC and retired Chairman and CEO of Bollinger Shipyards, has been selected for membership in this prestigious organization. Mr. Bollinger joins 12 other exceptional business, civic and cultural leaders from across North America in receiving 2023 honors.

16 Jan 2023

Iranian Oil Exports End 2022 at a High, Despite No Nuclear Deal

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Iranian oil exports hit new highs in the last two months of 2022 and are making a strong start to 2023 despite U.S. sanctions, according to companies that track the flows, on higher shipments to China and Venezuela.Tehran's oil exports have been limited since former U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018 exited a 2015 nuclear accord and reimposed sanctions aimed at curbing oil exports and the associated revenue to Iran's government.Exports have risen during the term of his successor President Joe Biden, who had sought to revive the nuclear deal, and hit the highest since 2019 on some estimates.

05 Jan 2023

Obituary: Donald Keehan, founder, Advanced Polymer Coatings

Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC), based in Avon, Ohio, announced the passing of its founder Donald Keehan on December 28, 2022, aged 87. Photo courtesy APC

Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC), based in Avon, Ohio, announced the passing of its founder Donald Keehan on December 28, 2022, aged 87.In a statement the Keehan family said:“Don was key driving force behind the business, but much more than that, he was a brilliant mind, a great friend, and an extraordinary human being. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit, Don was involved in starting and running several polymer-based technology companies since the 1960’s, holding more than 14…

21 Nov 2022

At Least One Dead after Cuban Migrant Vessel Capsizing off Florida

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The U.S. Coast Guard on Sunday said it had recovered the body of one person after a vessel carrying Cuban migrants capsized off Florida's Little Torch Key, adding it rescued nine people and was searching for five others. Survivors told rescuers a total of 19 people were originally on the homemade vessel and that four people drowned immediately after it capsized, Coast Guard spokesperson Nicole Groll said. Rough seas and winds of 30 miles per hour made an already dangerous voyage more perilous, she said.

19 Oct 2022

Peacock Set to Take Over as CEO of The Shipowners’ Club

Simon Swallow and Simon Peacock (Photo: The Shipowners’ Club)

The Shipowners’ Club, a P&I insurer in the smaller and specialist vessel sector, announced Simon Peacock will take over as CEO in 2023.Current CEO Simon Swallow will be stepping down on May 25, 2023 before starting his retirement on August 3, 2023. The current Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Simon Peacock, will be the incoming CEO on May 25, 2023. Marcus Tarrant, currently Director and Chief Actuary of the Club’s management company, will become the Club’s CFO.Swallow joined the Shipowners’ Club in July 1991 and after a spell as Underwriter he assumed the role of Director of Underwriting.

17 Oct 2022

US Grants LNG Shipping Waiver for Puerto Rico after Hurricane

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The Biden administration late on Sunday approved a waiver of U.S. shipping rules to address Puerto Rico's urgent need for liquefied natural gas (LNG) after Hurricane Fiona. The Homeland Security Department (DHS) issued a waiver of the Jones Act, a century-old law that requires goods moved between U.S. ports to be carried by U.S.-flagged ships "to address Puerto Rico’s needs as recovery efforts from Hurricane Fiona continue," the department said. In late September, the DHS approved…

09 Oct 2022

US Sanctions Firms Transferring Oil to North Korean Ships at Sea

The United States on Friday imposed new sanctions following North Korea's latest missile launches this week, targeting a fuel procurement network that Washington said supports Pyongyang's weapons programs and its military.Friday's action targeted two Singapore-registered companies and a Marshall Islands-registered firm, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement, as Washington seeks to hold North Korea accountable for ship-to-ship transfers that circumvent United Nations sanctions on the country."By designating these entities and individuals, the United States is sending a clear message that we will continue to take actions against those who support the development and sustainment of the DPRK’s military and weapons arsenal," U.S.

28 Sep 2022

US Approves Temporary Jones Act Waiver for Storm-hit Puerto Rico

The Biden administration on Wednesday approved a waiver of U.S. shipping rules to address Puerto Rico’s immediate energy and other essential needs in the wake of a devastating hurricane.Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said he approved "a temporary and targeted Jones Act Waiver" to ensure Puerto Ricans "have sufficient diesel to run generators needed for electricity and the functioning of critical facilities after Hurricane Fiona." The waiver will allow the use of often cheaper or more readily available foreign-flagged vessels.An estimated 349,000 homes and businesses remained without power in Puerto Rico on Wednesday after Hurricane Fiona hit Sept.

13 Sep 2022

Back to the Drawing Board: Pondering Truths in Design

“The great liability of the engineer compared to men of other professions is that his works are out in the open where all can see them. His acts, step by step, are in hard substance. He cannot bury his mistakes in the grave like the doctors. He cannot argue them into thin air or blame the judge like the lawyers. He cannot, like the architects, cover his failures with trees and vines. He cannot, like the politicians, screen his shortcomings by blaming his opponents and hope that the people will f

In producing a column for the Marine Design issue, I considered a number of subjects, but in starting to write about them, somehow my mind connected to “Beam is Cheap.” I have a faint memory of being made aware of this during a discussion of a ship design by a design luminary very early in my career, but I don’t remember who it was.When first putting pencil to paper on some design, I always think about that when I make my first rough sketch. It is a very powerful truism, and over…

23 Aug 2022

Sunken Tugs Recovered from the Bottom of the Mersey River

(Photo: AAL Shipping)

Salvors have removed two tugs from the Mersey River in Devonport on the northwest coast of Tasmania that had been sunk by a cement carrier in January.New South Wales based emergency response, salvage and environmental support specialist, United Salvage, engaged AAL Shipping to supply the 31,000DWT 700 tonne heavy lift vessel AAL Melbourne for lifting of the tugs and their onward shipment along the East Coast to Brisbane. The first tug, the 420 tonne York Cove, was pulled out of…

22 Jul 2022

Donald L Blount: 1935 - 2022

Donald L. Blount, an international esteemed technical expert in the field of high-speed craft hydrodynamics died on July 14, 2022 at the age of 87.Donald was driven all his life to do one job: design high-speed powerboats that could comfortably and efficiently run through rough water. His fascination with hydrodynamics began when he was a Virginia Tech co-op student working at the David Taylor Model Basin, the Navy's premier hydrodynamic research facility.Donald’s research contributions…

21 Jul 2022

Biden Moves to Expand Offshore Wind to Gulf of Mexico

Credit: BOEM

The Biden administration on Wednesday said it had identified 700,000 acres for possible offshore wind energy development in the Gulf of Mexico, seeking to expand a growing clean energy industry to a major U.S. oil and gas hub.It also said President Joe Biden would direct his Interior Department to move ahead with offshore wind development in areas of the Atlantic coast where former President Donald Trump banned oil and gas development."Today we open up yet another coast and frontier in expanding offshore wind…

04 Jul 2022

Five-year Plan: U.S. to Hold Between Zero and 11 Offshore Drilling Lease Sales

Credit:  flyingrussian/AdobeStock

President Joe Biden's administration on Friday unveiled a five-year proposal for offshore oil and gas development in areas of existing production, and said the final plan may have anywhere from zero to 11 lease sales.The range of options, between two auctions a year and none at all, sought to balance the administration's efforts to fight climate change with its calls to increase oil and gas supplies in the face of soaring fuel prices.The proposed plan includes no more than 10 possible sales in the Gulf of Mexico and one in the Cook Inlet off the coast of Alaska…

30 Jun 2022

Biden Administration Offshore Drilling Plan Delayed

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The Biden administration on Thursday delayed the rollout of a proposed five-year offshore oil and gas development plan that had been promised by the end of the month, according to sources.Interior Department Secretary Deb Haaland in May had vowed to unveil the draft proposal ahead of the June 30 expiration of the current plan. The department will not be able to hold any offshore oil and gas lease sales until a new plan is finalized.Briefings with officials meant to take place Thursday ahead of a public announcement were unexpectedly delayed, according to sources.