South Africa Ports Gear Up for Cruise Season
South Africa’s ports are ramping up for a bumper cruise season with at least eight luxury cruise lines and over ten passenger vessels of varying sizes set to ferry international and domestic tourists across the country’s port cities. The South African cruise season kicked off officially in October with a number of smaller vessels already having called at South Africa’s ports. They are en route to and from travel hotspots in Africa, Europe, the Far East, the Mediterranean, South America and more. However the MSC SINFONIA – a cruise ship in the local cruise calendar – marked a highlight in the 2015/16 cruise calendar when she arrived in her homeport of Durban in the early hours of Thursday, November 19. This was her first South African call this season.
Transnet Awards Bid for Cape Town Cruise Terminal
Transnet National Ports Authority awarded the V&A Waterfront (Pty) Ltd the status of Preferred Bidder for the development of a cruise terminal at the Port of Cape Town, Transnet said on Tuesday. Once all negotiations are concluded, the V&A Waterfront will invest just under R179 million to finance, design, and develop the terminal. In addition, the agreement includes operation, maintenance and transfer of ownership of the facility back to TNPA after a period of 20 years. The facility will remain at E berth, Duncan Dock, in the Port of Cape Town. Once completed, it will be able to accommodate the port‟s current and future passenger vessel fleet. It is also envisaged that the upgraded facility will house value-added retail and hospitality services.
Vallianz Acquires OER Holdings for $28m
Vallianz Holdings Limited, a provider of offshore support vessels and integrated marine solutions to the oil and gas industry, has today announced that it is acquiring OER Holdings Pte. Ltd. for $27.7 million (USD). Headquartered in Singapore, OER is a provider of manpower services to the offshore industry and has been supplying professional crew with proven experience in offshore work and related hospitality services to clients worldwide including Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, India and Mexico. OER was founded by Sugianto Tandio, a respected business entrepreneur who has gained recognition for his achievements through several awards…
U.S. Maritime Security: The Portunus Concept
The mission of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is to strengthen United States’ security through development and application of world-class science and technology. LLNL seeks to enhance the nation’s defense; reduce the global threat from terrorism and weapons of mass destruction; and respond with vision, quality, integrity and technical excellence to scientific issues of national importance. The Portunus concept embodies each of these objectives by thoughtfully and methodically developing technologies and strategies that address desired improvements in our security strategies.
DMC Business, Commercial OpsThrive in 2012
Dubai Maritime City (DMC), the world class maritime cluster built to further maritime activity in the Middle East, saw an increase in business and commercial activity in 2012. The City’s Industrial Precinct has tailor-made solutions for maritime industrial, commercial and trading companies and offers facilities such as large and small workshops, warehouses, ship repair plots, shops and canteens. Over 55 local and international organizations involved in the maritime sector and hospitality services have set up base here.
