Global Alliance News

Since early Spring 2020, American consumers have received a practical education in supply chain operations. One lesson is that it takes more than simply going online and clicking a “Buy Now” button for goods to show-up on our front porches. While the networks and systems that deliver commodities from around the globe might have been stretched as a result of COVID-19 related impacts, the men and women who move the freight have worked selflessly and tirelessly to meet consumer and manufacturing demand.Early on in the response to COVID-19…

Carnival Corporation has announced it has joined the Getting to Zero Coalition.Carnival Corporation is the first cruise company to join the global alliance.The coalition’s goal aligns with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping by at least 50% by 2050 as compared to 2008 emissions. To meet the target, the Getting to Zero Coalition aspires to having technically feasible, commercially viable zero emission deep sea vessels (ZEVs) entering the global shipping fleet as early as 2030.

Major container shipping lines are preparing a lineup a new tie-up -  a new global alliance - to respond to rapid container shipping consolidation, reports WSJ. William Doyle, member of U.S. shipping regulator Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) said that representatives of the companies will meet today (Wednesday) to discuss their proposal. Doyle declined to name the carriers meeting with members of the regulatory body or say how many operators were involved in the discussions. The Ocean Alliance intends to put its agreement into motion in April 2017, and Doyle said he expects the carriers to make a formal application for review within the next two months. Several of the world’s major shipping lines, including Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd AG and South Korea’s Hanjin Shipping Co.

The new alliance was announced at the 10th WTO Ministerial Conference in Nairobi, Kenya and consists of governments, international companies such as Maersk Group, DHL and Wal-Mart, and the International Chamber of Commerce and the World Economic Forum. The objective of the Global Alliance for Trade is to accelerate trade facilitation reforms by supporting swift and wide implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). Today, customs processes can involve large amounts of documentation that typically are not digitalised. This and lack of coordination between private and government actors adds unnecessary waiting time and delays to traded goods, resulting in added inventory costs and the risks of penalties for importers and exporters.

Subsea 7 and Houston-based OneSubsea have announced the signing a global alliance agreement to combine resources and collaborate on selected projects. The firms will jointly design, develop and deliver integrated subsea development solutions. OneSubsea is owned by Cameron and Schlumberger. The alliance will bring together Subsea 7’s experience and technology in seabed to surface engineering, construction and life-of-field services with OneSubsea’s unique reservoir expertise and state-of-the-art subsea production and processing systems technologies. The alliance will combine both companies’ resources to collaborate on selected projects, engaging early to improve field development planning from the reservoir to the production facility.

Southern African Shipyards (SAS) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with China Shipbuilding Trading Company (CSTC), a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, in a union between the largest shipyard in Southern Africa and the largest shipbuilding group in the world. Operation Phakisa was launched by President Jacob Zuma in 2014. One of its two key focus areas is to develop South Africa’s maritime economy in sectors such as marine transport and manufacturing and offshore oil and gas.

AVEVA and Capgemini today announced the signing of a global alliance agreement, which the companies expect will benefit asset-intensive industries such as oil and gas, process, power, marine and transport infrastructure. Building upon the alliance’s capabilities, customers will be able to achieve increased efficiency in construction, revamp and modification projects, as well as to extend the life of, and improve the integrity of operational information in, existing assets. For newbuild projects, AVEVA’s Integrated engineering and design solution enables rapid project setup, highly productive clash-free 3D design and real-time collaboration across different locations and disciplines…

Technip was awarded by Air Products a contract to provide project management, as well as engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) services for a new industrial gas complex for Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited – Kochi Refinery (BPCL-KR) located in the state of Kerala, India. Being built on a “Build-Own-Operate” basis (BOO), the industrial gas complex of Air Products is designed to cater to the requirement of industrial gases (Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Oxygen) of BPCL-KR  for its Integrated Refinery Expansion Project (IREP), which will increase BPCL-KR’s crude refining capacity from 9.5 million metric tons per annum to 15.5 million metric tons per annum (from 190…

The Caterpillar Foundation, supported by Caterpillar Inc. , continues working to alleviate poverty worldwide, including on the African continent, through a series of investments. Since 2010 alone, corporate social innovation has driven the Caterpillar Foundation to invest $30 million in African programs that address access to clean water, energy, empowering girls and women and microfinance, as well as food and shelter. The Foundation targets investments to organizations working in areas of policy that will enable sustainable growth and development across the continent. “The Caterpillar Foundation is committed to finding ways to spur vibrant growth in Africa,” said Doug Oberhelman, Caterpillar Chairman & CEO.

GAC Bahrain has secured the coveted FAIMplus certification for its international moving operations, after completing what is considered the most strenuous quality assessment in the industry. FAIM is an industry-leading standard for the logistics business, developed by FIDI Global Alliance. By assessing the international moving activities of logistics companies, the FIDI-FAIM accreditation provides a globally recognised common standard for service delivery. The 3.0 version of FAIMplus is the strictest yet - treating quality as a living platform that requires constant self-assessment. Verifiers Ernst & Young awarded the certification after a series of evaluations that were part of a three-year audit cycle that covered the fulfilment of prerequisites…

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission Chairman, Mario Cordero, issued a call to fellow regulators in the European Union and the People’s Republic of China, to join with him in a Global Regulatory Summit on the proposed P3 Global Alliance of the world’s three largest container carriers, Maersk Line, CMA-CGM, and Mediterranean Shipping. The Summit would take place in Washington, D.C., with regulators to discuss their respective regulatory roles in considering the impact of the announced Alliance.

This five-year agreement covers the Intergraph SmartPlant® and SmartMarine® Enterprise software suites, including SmartPlant 3D, SmartMarine 3D and SmartPlant 3D Materials Handling Edition (collectively known as Smart 3D), SmartPlant Foundation, SmartPlant Construction, SmartPlant Enterprise Engineering & Schematics applications, CADWorx®, CAESAR II® and numerous other solutions. WorleyParsons is a longtime worldwide user of Intergraph technology and the global agreement gives it unlimited access to Intergraph solutions. The unique automation and integration capabilities, as well as the unmatched productivity of SmartPlant Enterprise and SmartMarine Enterprise, are delivering a competitive edge to the company.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has received a formal proposal co-sponsored by a broad array of industry organizations, labor, and governments to require loaded containers to be weighed to determine their actual weight. The proposal was submitted by Denmark, The Netherlands, the United States, BIMCO, the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), and the World Shipping Council (WSC).

Shell and China National Petroleum Company (CNPC) today signed a Global Alliance Agreement emphasizing their shared intent to pursue mutually beneficial cooperation opportunities internationally as well as in China. The two parties also signed a Shareholders Agreement to establish a Well Manufacturing joint venture (50% CNPC and 50% Shell) subject to further corporate and government approvals. It is intended that the joint venture will develop an innovative, highly automated Well Manufacturing System (WMS) that could significantly improve the efficiency of drilling and completing new wells onshore. The details of the parties’ respective contributions to the joint venture will be agreed during the transition phase over the coming months.

Two technical experts from Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) have flown to the U.S. at the invitation of one of the oil spill response companies assisting with the clean-up of the Gulf of Mexico spill. An oil spill equipment technician and a response planning officer from MNZ’s Marine Pollution Response Service (MPRS) have been seconded to support the Deepwater Horizon spill response. They will be working for Oil Spill Response Ltd (OSR), a company contracted to assist the US Government in its management of the spill. OSR, a United Kingdom-based organization, is part of the wider oil spill response network Global Alliance. MPRS Group Manager Nick Quinn said the pair would be tasked with supporting the spill response effort…

The Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism, and Government Information of the Senate Judiciary Committee conducted a hearing on February 26, 2002 concerning Securing our Ports Against Terrorism: Technology, Resources and Homeland Defense. Captain William Schubert, Maritime Administrator, testified about grants to be provided to critical national seaports to finance the cost of enhancing facility and operational security. Bonni Tischler, Assistant Commissioner, Customs Service, testified about the agency’s Container Security Initiative. RADM Kenneth Venuto, USCG, testified about Maritime Domain Awareness. Richard Steinke, representing the American Association of Port Authorities, discussed efforts by U.S. port authorities to improve security.

Linde has formed a Global Alliance with Single Buoying Mooring Inc. (SBM) to develop and market Floating Production, Storage and Offloading units (FPSO) for the growing Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) industry, based on Linde's proprietary natural gas liquefaction technology. After having finalized a generic concept for a LNG FPSO with a yearly capacity off app.2.5 million metric tons of LNG, global marketing efforts will start as of today. The FPSO is designed for any conventional natural gas composition and aims at offshore natural gas fields with recoverable reserves of 1 trillion cubic feet or more. Under the Global Alliance Linde contributes the FPSO topsides including gas pretreatment…

Germany's Linde formed a global alliance with SBM (of the Netherlands to develop and market floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) units for the liquefied natural gas industry. Under the deal, Linde contributes gas hardware such as pretreatment, fractionation and liquefaction based on its proprietary process LiMuM. SBM for its part contributes for example marine technology including hull and LNG storage tanks systems, power generation systems, mooring systems, cryogenic offloading systems and its experience of operating FPSO, Linde added. (Source: Reuters)

Sea NG Corporation said that Marubeni Corporation and Teekay Shipping Corporation have formed an alliance with Sea NG for the worldwide commercial deployment of Sea NG's Coselle system for transporting compressed natural gas (CNG) by ship. The Coselle ship is the only marine vessel fully approved by any international marine classification society for the carriage of CNG. Coselle ships will transport moderate volumes of natural gas (30 to 700 mmscf/d) over medium distances (200 to 1500 miles). Coselle(TM) CNG will economically and reliably serve the segment of the market that cannot effectively be supplied by pipelines or liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Standard & Poor's raised its ratings for Transocean Offshore Inc., renamed Transocean Sedco Forex Inc. (See chart page 2, related story page 8) At the same time, Standard & Poor's assigned to the company an 'A-1' short-term corporate credit rating, an 'A-1' rating for its $500 million commercial paper program, and a single-'A' rating for its $400 million term loan maturing December 2004. The company's ratings are removed from CreditWatch with positive implications, where they were placed on July 12, 1999, upon the announcement that un-rated Schlumberger Ltd. would spin off its marine drilling unit and combine it with Transocean. That merger was completed on Dec. 31, 1999. The outlook is stable.