Source of Huntington Beach Oil Spill Uncertain
The Unified Command concluded its response to an oil sheen observed offshore of Huntington Beach, California on Monday, but the source of the oil remains unclear.Over the weekend, cleanup crews recovered approximately 85 gallons of product from offshore recovery efforts and removed roughly 1,050 pounds of oily waste/sand and tar balls from the shoreline.The U.S. Coast Guard and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Office of Spill Prevention and Response (CDFW-OSPR) collected samples from the offshore sheen and tar balls along the shoreline to help determine the source of the oil.
Venezuela to Support Reconstruction of Cuban Port Damaged by Oil Fire
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday that Venezuela would support Cuba in the reconstruction of its only supertanker port in Matanzas, which was partially destroyed by a fire after lightning struck one of the its crude tanks.Cuba has long relied on the 2.4 million-barrel Matanzas terminal, about 130 km from Havana, for most imports and storage of crude and heavy fuel oil.Maduro directed Venezuela's oil minister and the president of state-run PDVSA to get in touch with the corresponding Cuban authorities "to begin the design of the reconstruction of the supertanker yard," he said
A Shipyard Grows in Trinidad & Tobago
Spurred by Panama Canal Expansion and U.S. As Trinidad and Tobago seeks to diversify its economy, it is banking on a massive shipyard construction project as the centerpiece of a maritime industry and economic revival. A Trinidad and Tobago Parliamentary debate earlier this year centered on the Motion, ‘Increase of Loan Ceiling under The Development Loans Act.’ One diversification strategy involves the country’s thrust into the development and expansion of the maritime sectors, particularly Shipbuilding and Repair.
China Refineries Enters Global Oil Trade
During the last year, China’s “teapot” refiners are helping to boost China’s crude import demand and their influence is expanding, says Clarkson Research Services. Chinese crude oil imports have historically been dominated by a handful of state-owned companies. However, since mid-2015 Beijing has started to liberalise China’s oil market, and is gradually allowing more independent refiners to process imported crude, and import crude oil directly. China’s independent, typically small, “teapot” refiners account for an estimated 20-30% of Chinese refinery capacity, with Shandong province home to around 70% of total “teapot” refinery capacity.
China Merchants to Take 21.05% Stake in Dalian Port
China Merchants Holdings (International) Company Limited, has announced that it has signed a share subscription agreement with Dalian Port (PDA) Co., under which Dalian Port will issue 1.1bn new shares to China Merchants for HK$4.3bn ($554m). Upon completion of the transaction, China Merchants will hold a 21.05% equity stake of Dalian Port, becoming the second largest shareholder. China Merchants Holdings, which will become Dalian Port's second-largest shareholder after the purchase, said the deal allows it to strengthen its ports network within China and enhance its port-service network. China Merchant said it has been striving to further strengthen its ports network within China…
SSE Rolls Out Two Shipping Indices
Shanghai Shipping Exchange launched on Wednesday the "Belt and Road" shipping indices, tracking trade data and shipping freight rates under the initiatives of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, reported China Securities Journal. The indices, with January 2015 used as the base period, will be released on the last Monday of every month. The Belt and Road Freight Trade Index (SRFTI), is designed to track the volume and value of international trade between China and 66 countries along the Belt and Road, which are in Asia, North Africa, Europe, and Oceania, a statement of SSE said. The Maritime Silk Road Freight Index (MSRFI), tracks the shipping freight rates of imported and exported containerised cargoes, imported dry bulk cargoes, and imported crude oil.
New Mangalore Port Traffic Up 6.29%
New Mangalore Port recorded growth of 6.29% in cargo handling during the financial year 2013-14, GAC informs. The port handled 39.36 million tons of traffic, compared to 37.03 million in 2012-13. Of the total, 14.94 million tons (up from 14.21 million) was imported crude oil for the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd. Coal, another major import commodity for the port, contributed 8.34 million tons (up 6.91 million to the total cargo handled. gac.com
AWO, WCI Address Mississippi River Conditions
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Coast Guard, Barge Industry and Shipping Industry Representatives Hold Press Conference to Address Ongoing Mississippi River Navigation Concerns Due to Continued Drought and Low Water Conditions. Representatives of the barge and shipping industries, along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and U.S. Coast Guard, held a press conference on the Mississippi River near St. Louis to address navigation and shipping concerns, as well as government-industry cooperation in managing the Mississippi River during continued drought and low water conditions.
Moose Boat Delivers Rescue Fire Boat
Moose Boats, an aluminum boat manufacturer recently delivered a M1-44 Fire/Rescue boat to the Lewes Fire Department of Lewes, DE. This vessel was designed to meet mission-specific needs for firefighting, search and rescue, medical, incident command, and regional, all weather response in a region covering the Delaware Bay, Lewes-Rehoboth Canal, Roosevelt Inlet, Broadkill River, smaller tributaries, and approximately 50 square miles of the Atlantic Ocean. Lewes Fire Department took…
LOOP Crude Deliveries Hold Steady
Crude deliveries to Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP), the only deep-water U.S. oil port and a major conduit for the country's crude oil imports, will hold steady at stronger levels in November. LOOP unloads more than 900,000 bpd of imported crude oil from tankers in the Gulf of Mexico and over 300,000 bpd of domestically produced crude oil from the offshore Mars platform in the Gulf of Mexico. Speculation that November LOOP throughputs might fall because refiners would be able to use oil secured in the U.S. government's release of crude from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) did not materialize. The terminal, located 20 miles south of Grand Isle, La., is linked to a 50-million barrel onshore storage facility that supplies refineries in Louisiana, Texas and the Midwest.
Liberia First Major Flag State to Ratify Treaty
LISCR, First in Safety & Security, today applauded Liberia for taking the lead and ratifying MARPOL Annex VI, an international convention to prevent air pollution from ships. "Liberia is the first major flag state to ratify MARPOL Annex VI," said Yoram Cohen, CEO of LISCR, the U.S. company that manages the day-to-day operations of the registry. "We are proud of the registry's leading role to protect the environment. To implement the treaty, it must be ratified by 15 International Maritime Organization (IMO) members and flags, representing 50 percent of the world tonnage. LISCR is the second largest ship registry, with about 1,800 vessels (56 million gross tons) or about ten percent of the world's ocean-going fleet.
Single-Hull Phase-Out Bill Introduced
Representative Capps (D-CA) introduced a bill (H.R. 880) to amend title 46, United States Code, to accelerate to 2007 the application of the requirement that a tanker that carries oil in bulk as cargo must be equipped with a double hull, and for other purposes. Representative Capps said, the bill would, if enacted, accelerate the phase-out of single-hull tankers in U.S. waters to 2007. Single-hull tankers operating within 100 miles of the U.S. coast would have to be accompanied by a response vessel. The tax on imported crude oil would be reinstated, but only for oil imported in single-hull tankers.
Cargo Ship and Fishing Trawler Collision off Newfoundland Kills Three
A Cypriot tanker is being been detained in the eastern Canadian province of Newfoundland after a reported collision between a cargo ship and a U.S. trawler off the coast of Massachusetts killed three fishermen, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Wednesday. The sinking of the U.S. fishing boat Starbound, which happened on Sunday night, was first reported by the Lloyds Shipping wire service out of London. Canadian television showed footage on Wednesday of what it said were gouges on the side of the tanker Virgo and of a hearse driving away from the dock after the ship was detained. The U.S. Coast Guard is leading the investigation into the incident and one U.S.
