Gard As News

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) said it has received many reports about withheld pay from individual seafarers working on eight Bahrain-registered vessels owned by Saudi Arabian company Hadi H Al Hamman Establishment. The company, which lists Saudi Aramco among its customers and was buying brand new ships as recently as 2018, has not paid seafarers for more than five months in some cases, the ITF said. One seafarer reported dangerously low levels of food…

Eidesvik Offshore, together with Norwegian shipowner Agalas, has entered into an agreement to build a new construction support vessel (CSV), which is on charter with Reach Subsea.The newbuild will be equipped to perform inspection, maintenance and repair (IMR) work for subsea and offshore wind markets.Equipped with methanol engines and a battery hybrid system, the vessel will be owned by an entity to be named Eidesvik Agalas AS, where Eidesvik will be the majority owner with 50.1%.The…

It might be easy to blame EALs, but the ongoing causes of stern tube damage are varied, and possibly declining.Environmentally Acceptable lubricants (EALs) gained market traction with the introduction of US VGP regulations in 2013. Since then, DNV has observed two major trends. The first, starting in 2013 was early life damage, either during sea trials or within the first five years of operation, where aft stern tube bearings typically failed under extreme load conditions. Then from around 2018…

Eidesvik Offshore, a Norwegian offshore vessel owner, has signed a ship management contract extension with DEME for construction support vessel (CSV) Viking Neptun.The three-year extension also includes a two-year option for further extension, according to Eidesvik Offshore.The company has provided full technical management, crewing and operation of Viking Neptun since December 2022.In November the same year, Eidesvik Offshore completed the sale of Viking Neptun CSV to DEME.“This extension is a testament to the exceptional performance of our dedicated crews.

Oil and gas company Wintershall Dea has declared options to extend the contract for Eidesvik Offshore's supply vessel Viking Princess. The contract extension runs from January 2024 in direct continuation of the current contract, extending the firm period to January 2025.“This extension is a quality mark for the operations and services delivered, and we look forward to continuing our cooperation with Wintershall Dea”, says Gitte Gard Talmo, CEO and president of Eidesvik Offshore ASA.According to Eidesvik Offshore…

BIMCO’s Documentary Committee has approved a revised version of the Continent Grain Charter Party, SYNACOMEX, to reflect changes in the geopolitical landscape following events including the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine. The revised charter party now includes BIMCO’s anti-corruption clause and updated versions of the war risks and sanctions clauses.The charter party is developed by joint copyright holders SYNACOMEX and Armateurs de France, the French Union for Grains and Seeds Trade and the French Shipowners’ Association.

The number of stern tube-related damage claims has increased considerably over the last few years, and this is causing marine insurer Gard some concern.In the past, damage to a stern tube was often considered a relatively straightforward casualty by surveyors. The cause was often obvious – contact with a floating object such as ice, fishing nets or ropes, for example.These causes still exist, but the significant increase in frequency over the past years, without any apparent explanation…

Merchant ships remained backed up in lanes around the Black Sea on Monday as ports struggled to clear backlogs amid growing unease among insurers and shipping companies a day after a Russian warship fired warning shots at a cargo vessel.Russia said its Vasily Bykov patrol ship on Sunday fired on the Palau-flagged Sukru Okan vessel after the ship's captain failed to respond to a request to halt for an inspection. After an inspection, the vessel continued its journey towards the Ukrainian port of Izmail along the Danube river…

Eidesvik Offshore has entered into agreements to sell its three remaining seismic vessels, Veritas Viking, Vantage, and Viking Vision, to two separate buyers. All the vessels are in lay-up and treated as held for sale in the company accounts. Eidesvik Offshore did not say who the buyers were.The company will, at completion of the sales, expected during this summer, recognize a total gain of approximately NOK 63 million (currently around $5,6 million).Gitte Gard Talmo, President & CEO of Eidesvik commented: "We are pleased to announce the sale of these non-strategic assets with a solid gain. The sale will further improve an already strong balance sheet.”

A rise in spot prices for Russian crude oil to above the $60 per barrel cap imposed by western powers has made ship insurers even more nervous of running foul of the rules as they are unable to independently track the value of cargoes, executives said.To curb Moscow's oil revenues following the Ukraine war, the Group of Seven Nations, the European Union and Australia imposed price caps on Russian crude and oil products from December and February, respectively.So long as the prices do not exceed capped levels…

In February Gard published the results of its review of Lloyds Open Form (LOF). Their review indicated a disturbing reduction in the number of LOF contracts, and noted some other concerns with regard to loss of use of LOF in salvage situations.Lloyds Open Form is a classic and, in my mind, cherished, example of the core beauty of maritime. It combines a large number of maritime concepts into a simple device that solves a complex problem.It reminds me of a few of the lines in the song “Wooden Ships” by Crosby, Still, Nash and Young.

After securing a contract for its Viking Princess supply ship with Wintershall DEA on Thursday, Eidesvik Offshore said Friday it had won a deal for the Viking Queen vessel with the same oil company.The contract for the 2008-built Viking Queen is for 12 months, with options for further extensions. The new contract will start in Q2, 2023.According to the Norwegian vessel owner, the 92.3-meter-long Viking Queen is a dual-fuel platform supply vessel also equipped with a battery hybrid system and a shore power system. “We are very pleased to secure this contract for Viking Queen and appreciate Wintershall Dea’s willingness to commit to solutions that are moreenvironmentally friendly.

U.S. inland marine transportation and logistics solutions company American Commercial Barge Line (ACBL) announce it has hired Joel Gard as senior vice president of its newly established Interchange & Logistics business unit.With the associated realignment, ACBL is now comprised of three uniquely integrated strategic business units (SBU): Dry Cargo, Liquid Cargo and Interchange & Logistics.A veteran of the transportation and supply chain sector, Gard brings extensive experience in building and deploying technology to enhance traditional transportation models.

Norwegian offshore support vessel operator Eidesvik Offshore posted what it said was the second consecutive quarter with a revenue level not seen since 2016.The company's revenue was NOK 190.4 million, an increase of 9% compared to Q3 2021. EBITDA increased by 12% to NOK 91 million vs NOK 81.5 million. The company’s operating result was NOK 262.9 million, up from NOK 1 million in Q3 2021."During the period, Eidesvik increased its backlog substantially through the signing of multiple long-term contract awards with an estimated value of NOK 690 million.

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Eidesvik Offshore will manage the construction support vessel Viking Neptun it recently agreed to sell to DEME.The company has now signed a two-year ship management agreement with DEME under which Eidesvik will provide full technical management, crewing and operation of the vessel.Viking Neptun was built for Eidesvik in 2015.In January 2022, Eidesvik entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (“MoA”) with DEME to sell the vessel. The MoA is expected to complete in the fourth quarter of 2022…

Dutch marine services firm Van Oord has, via its offshore wind subsidiary Van Oord Offshore Wind,  awarded Eidesvik Offshore a five-year contract for its Subsea Viking multi-purpose support vessel.The contract, of an undisclosed value, will start in the first quarter of 2023, Norway-based offshore vessel owner Eidesvik Offshore said. Van Oord will also have further extension options and, "on certain" terms, a call option for the vessel after the firm period. The contract comes…

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, which oversees the world's biggest marine refuelling hub, said it is investigating the suspected contamination of bunker fuel supplied to several ships in the port and had ordered supply of the batch to be halted.At least 14 ships that received tainted high-sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) from Singapore suffered loss of power and engine problems, Veritas Petroleum Services (VPS) said late last week."We detected contamination in 34 fuel samples and we are aware of 14 vessels that have suffered damages.

Norway-based offshore support vessel operator Eidesvik Offshore has appointed Arve Nilsen as its new Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Ellen Sofie Ottesen as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO).Nilsen comes from the position of Technical Manager in Eidesvik with responsibility for technology, purchasing, and IT. He has more than 30 years of industry and technology experience and has been with the Company for 13 years.Ottesen comes from the position of Director of Sustainability in Eidesvik.

Commercial insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty released its Safety & Shipping Review, an annual analysis of shipping losses and accidents worldwide. The 2022 report reveals that the maritime sector continues its long-term positive safety trend over the past year with 54 total losses of vessels reported globally, compared with 65 a year earlier. This represents a 57% decline over 10 years (127 in 2012); while during the early 1990s the global fleet was losing 200+ vessels a year.The 2021 loss total is made more impressive by the fact that there are an estimated 130…

MISC Group’s President/Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), YBhg. Datuk Yee Yang Chien announced his plan to retire effective September 30, 2022. Datuk Yee will turn the helm over to Captain Rajalingam Subramaniam, MISC’s Chief Operating Officer and AET’s President & CEO, who will assume the role of MISC Group’s President/Group CEO effective October 1, 2022.Datuk Yee said, “It has been a great honour for me to be given the responsibility to lead MISC Group back in 2015. It is more than a job or duty for me…

Norwegian offshore vessel owner Eidesvik Offshore has named Helga Cotgrove as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Cotgrove will join Eidesvik Offshore October 1, 2022 at the latest. She has more than 20 years of energy sector finance experience in various roles within M&A, strategy, tax, finance, accounting, and auditing. She comes from the position as CFO in Norsk Solar AS. Cotgrove previously worked as Halliburton's director of corporate development in Houston, where she was in charge…

Western ship insurers are terminating cover for Russia's leading shipping company Sovcomflot as multiple sanctions start to bite, companies involved say, adding to the growing challenges for the state-owned company and Moscow's efforts to export oil and gas.Russia's maritime sector is seeing the wind down of multiple services, including ship certification by leading foreign providers - vital for accessing ports and securing insurance - shipping companies pulling out and ship engine…

Norwegian oil and gas company Aker BP has awarded offshore shipowner Eidesvik Offshore a three-year contract for the platform supply vessel Viking Prince.The contract for the 89,6 meters long Viking Prince will begin after the completion of the vessel’s ongoing contract with Equinor. Financial details were not disclosed. The Viking Prince was built in 2012 and has a deck area of around 1 050 m². Gitte Gard Talmo, President & CEO of Eidesvik commented: “Aker BP is an important client for Eidesvik and our collaboration reaches beyond vessel contracts.