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Jeffrey Benkoe News

06 Mar 2019

PDVSA Declares Maritime Emergency

Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA declared a maritime emergency on Tuesday after Bernhard Schulte Shipmanagement (BSM) disclosed plans to return 10 tankers over unpaid fees, according to a document from the state-run firm and sources.BSM, operator of a portion of PDVSA's tanker fleet, last month confirmed its crews would abandon the tankers Rio Arauca and Parnaso, which were held in Portugal over unpaid fees to a shipyard and port authority. A third vessel also operated by BSM, the Icaro, separately was seized in Curacao by a group of shipping firms claiming unpaid bills from PDVSA.(Reuters reporting by Marianna Parraga; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

26 Dec 2018

Exxon Mobil: Drilling Continues Offshore Guyana

Exxon Mobil Corp said on Wednesday its oil drilling and development activities offshore Guyana were unaffected despite neighboring Venezuela's navy stopping two seismic survey vessels the company had hired.The closest of 10 oil finds Exxon has made off Guyana's coast is 110 kilometers (68 miles) away from the northwest part of the Stabroek block, where the navy halted seismic data collection on Saturday, the company said. Each country's government says the incident took place in its territorial waters."Exploration and development drilling is continuing in the southeast area of the Stabroek Block," the company said in a statement. Exxon did not say whether the two vessels…

19 Jun 2018

House Set to Debate Offshore Wind Energy Bills in US Waters

© diak / Adobe Stock

A U.S. House committee will kick off debate next week on three new bills aimed at boosting offshore wind energy leases in federal waters.The House Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources will hold a hearing on Tuesday on three bipartisan offshore wind proposals.One proposal would require the Interior Department to develop a leasing plan or schedule for federal offshore leases, a second would create a federal grant for educational or career programs for the offshore industry…

15 Jun 2018

Trump Announces 25% Tariff on Chinese Technology

© zhu difeng / Adobe Stock

President Donald Trump on Friday announced that the United States will implement a 25 percent tariff on $50 billion of goods from China related to intellectual property and technology, and pledged to impose further levies if the Asian nation takes retaliatory measures.Trump said the tariff list includes goods from China's "Made in China 2025" strategic plan to dominate high-technology industries that will "drive future economic growth for China, but hurt economic growth for the United States and many other countries."(Reporting by Lisa Lambert and David Lawder Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

29 May 2018

Brazil Denies Total License to Drill Amazon Basin

Brazilian environmental agency Ibama on Tuesday rejected French oil company Total SA's application for an environmental license to drill in the sensitive Foz do Amazonas basin.It is the fourth time that Ibama has rejected the application and requested additional information.(Reporting by Jake Spring Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

25 May 2018

U.S. Alarmed by Strike on Turkish Ship Delivering Wheat to Yemen

The United States said on Friday it was concerned about a Houthi missile strike on a Turkish vessel carrying wheat to Yemen this month and another attack on an oil tanker in the Red Sea. "The United States is alarmed by the Houthi missile strike against a Turkish cargo ship 70 miles off the coast of Yemen that was attempting to deliver 50,000 metric tons of wheat to Yemen’s Saleef port near Hudaydah," the White House said in a statement. "This proves yet again that missile proliferation in Yemen is a real threat to all countries and underscores the need to fully enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 2216."  Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe

10 May 2018

McDermott Closing CB&I Deal

Offshore engineering firm McDermott International Inc will close its acquisition of Chicago Bridge and Iron Co NV on Thursday, creating an integrated onshore and offshore services group that will expand its presence in the Middle East.McDermott's offshore engineering and construction work will combine with CB&I's onshore skills including liquefied natural gas (LNG) and power plants. McDermott will bolster its service offerings in Saudi Arabia, where it is already adding facilities and has contracts with national oil company Saudi Aramco.David Dickson, McDermott's chief executive officer who this week met with Saudi Aramco executives in Houston, said on Tuesday the kingdom "is going to be a big part of our future.

23 Jan 2018

Update: Alaska, Canada Tsunami Alerts Lifted

Image: USGS

Alaska and parts of western Canada braced for a possible tsunami on Tuesday after a magnitude-7.9 earthquake struck the Gulf of Alaska, sparking evacuations in coastal Alaska and a tsunami warning for California that was later lifted. In Alaska, people packed into high schools and other evacuation centers after the quake hit shortly after midnight local time (0900 GMT). Officials had warned residents as far south as San Francisco to be ready to evacuate coastal areas but by 5:15 a.m. PST (1315 GMT) the U.S.

19 Dec 2017

US Asks UN to Blacklist 10 Ships over Banned N.Korea Cargo

© Stanislav Komogorov / Adobe Stock

The United States has proposed that the United Nations Security Council blacklist 10 ships for transporting banned items from North Korea, according to documents seen by Reuters on Tuesday. The vessels are accused of "conducting illegal ship-to-ship transfers of refined petroleum products to North Korean vessels or illegally transporting North Korean coal to other countries for exports," the United States said in its proposal. If none of the 15 members of the Security Council's North Korea sanctions committee object to the ships being designated by Thursday afternoon, the U.S.

03 Jan 2017

Trump Names China Critic Lighthizer as US Trade Rep

Donald Trump (Photo: Gage Skidmore)

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday named Robert Lighthizer, an official in the Reagan administration and harsh critic of China's trade practices, to be his chief trade negotiator, responsible for better deals aimed at reducing U.S. trade deficits. Trump, who promised during his presidential campaign to renegotiate international trade deals like NAFTA and punish companies that ship work overseas, said in announcing his choice that Lighthizer would help "fight for good trade deals that put the American worker first."Lighthizer is a former deputy U.S.

21 Oct 2016

China Protests 'Illegal,' 'Provocative' US South China Sea Patrol

China's Defense Ministry said that a patrol by a U.S. warship in the South China Sea on Friday was "illegal" and "provocative" and that it had lodged a protest with the United States. In a statement on its website, the ministry said two Chinese warships had warned the U.S. warship to leave during the patrol. It added that the Chinese military would increase air and sea patrols according to need. U.S. defense officials said the guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur challenged "excessive maritime claims" in a patrol near the Paracel Islands, among a string of islets, reefs and shoals over which China has territorial disputes with its neighbors. The Chinese Defense Ministry said two warships, the Guangzhou and the Luoyang, warned the U.S. vessel to leave.

21 Oct 2016

US Warship Challenges China's Claims in South China Sea

Guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur (DDG 73) operates in the South China Sea (U.S. Navy photo by Diana Quinlan)

A U.S. navy destroyer sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea on Friday, drawing a warning from Chinese warships to leave the area. The U.S. action was the latest attempt to counter what Washington sees as Beijing's efforts to limit freedom of navigation in the strategic waters, U.S. officials said. The Chinese Defense Ministry called the move "illegal" and "provocative," saying that two Chinese warships had warned the U.S. destroyer to leave. The guided-missile destroyer USS Decatur challenged "excessive maritime claims" near the Paracel Islands…

27 Sep 2016

Mark Wahlberg Hopes 'Deepwater Horizon' Film Honors Victims

Mark Wahlberg in Deepwater Horizon. Photograph: David Lee/Lionsgate

Actor Mark Wahlberg said "the biggest responsibility" for himself and the makers of the new movie, "Deepwater Horizon," was to honor the real-life victims of the 2010 oil rig disaster. "The oil can ultimately be cleaned up, (but) those 11 men can't be replaced," Wahlberg told Reuters at the film's London premiere on Monday. "Those were fathers, brothers, husbands, uncles, cousins. We can't replace those guys and so when they approached me about doing this film, I thought, 'What better way to promote their story'," he added.

12 Sep 2016

Marathon Galveston Bay Contractor Feared Drowned

A contractor was feared drowned after falling into the Port of Texas City, Texas, when scaffolding supporting him collapsed at the Marathon Petroleum Corp Galveston Bay refinery dock, a Texas City official said. "Divers are en route to do a body recovery," Derek Duckett, director of emergency management for Texas City, said on Monday. Part of the scaffolding fell at about 11:30 a.m. CDT (1630 GMT) Monday and the worker has not been seen since, Duckett said. "I heard part of the scaffolding fell and he was tied to it," Duckett said. An investigation will be needed to determine what happened, he said. The Texas City Fire Department and the U.S. Coast Guard searched for the man before the divers were called out, Duckett said.

18 Aug 2016

Hundreds Rescued from Ferry Ablaze off Puerto Rico

U.S. Coast Guard photo courtesy of Station San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Hundreds of people were rescued from a smoldering passenger ferry ship that caught fire off Puerto Rico on Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said. The Coast Guard and local police brought ashore all 512 passengers and crew from the American Cruise Ferries vessel that was burning about two miles (3.2 km) off of San Juan, Puerto Rico's capital, the Coast Guard said in a statement. Rescue crews worked for hours to remove passengers and ferry employees, the last of whom disembarked just after 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT), the Coast Guard said. They were transported to San Juan.

09 Jun 2016

US Navy Admiral to Plead Guilty in Bribery Case

Robert Gilbeau (Photo: U.S. Navy)

A U.S. Navy rear admiral will plead guilty on Thursday to lying to federal investigators, making him the highest-ranking officer to be convicted in the expanding "Fat Leonard" bribery case, the Washington Post reported, citing his attorney. Robert Gilbeau, a special assistant to the chief of the Navy Supply Corps, was scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in San Diego late Thursday afternoon, the Post reported, citing court records. This would bring to 14 the number of people charged in the Singapore-based case…

21 Jan 2016

US Coast Guard Moves Forward on New Icebreakers

USCG photo by Rob Rothway

The U.S. Coast Guard released a proposed acquisition timeline and requirements for two new heavy U.S. icebreakers that could cost $1 billion each and said it would meet with interested companies during an industry day in March. Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Paul Zukunft told an event hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies that notice was intended to get information from companies about their ability to build and develop icebreakers that would be in use for 40 years and to explore options such as leasing.

30 Nov 2015

Panama Canal Wait Times Back to Normal

Photo: Panama Canal Authority

Waiting times for ships at the Panama Canal have returned to normal after poor weather and a spike in traffic caused delays for several weeks, the waterway's operator said on Monday. "Today ... the line is 45 ships, which represents a maximum waiting time of two days," the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) said in a statement, noting that better weather and extra funding aimed at freeing up the traffic had reduced the bottleneck. The ACP said the problems caused delays of more than 10 days in October and though they were easing by-mid November…

31 Aug 2015

Hurricane Fred Strengthens in Eastern Atlantic

Image: NOAA

Hurricane Fred strengthened early Monday in the eastern Atlantic as it approached the Cape Verde Islands, while the remnants of Tropical Storm Erika brought flooding to parts of South Carolina, according to U.S. forecasters. The center of Fred is expected to pass near or over the northwestern Cape Verde Islands, an archipelago off the west coast of Africa with a population of 525,000. Fred had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (137 kph), but was expected to gradually dissipate after passing the Cape Verde Islands, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

29 Jul 2015

General Dynamics Tops Q2 Estimates

General Dynamics' NASSCO Shipyard (Photo: NASSCO/Ken Wright)

General Dynamics Corp, a maker of ships, tanks and business jets, reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenues on Wednesday, and sharply raised its outlook for full-year profit. Net profit increased 16.4 percent to $752 million for the second quarter from $646 million a year earlier. Earnings per share jumped over 20 percent to $2.27 a share from $1.88 a year earlier, while revenues rose 5.5 percent to $7.88 billion from $7.47 billion. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S estimated second-quarter earnings of $678.65 million…

27 Jun 2015

Refinery Workers Approve 6-year Labor Pact

Union workers at Exxon Mobil Corp's Beaumont, Texas, refinery agreed to an unusually long six-year contract on Thursday night, which sources say the company pushed to assure no work stoppages during a contemplated multibillion-dollar expansion. Members of United Steelworkers union (USW) Local 13-243 voted by secret ballot on the contract offer, which is two years longer than the national agreement reached by the USW and U.S. refinery owners in March. The 800 Exxon employees represented by Local 13-243 have been working on a rolling 24-hour extension of the contract that expired on Jan. 31. "The members did an outstanding job of standing strong with the leadership," Darrell Kyle, president of Local 13-243, said. An Exxon spokesman praised the agreement.

16 Jan 2015

Obama, Cameron Reject Calls for More Iran Sanctions Now

U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday pushed back against calls for further sanctions on Iran now over its nuclear program, saying such action could harm ongoing negotiations.   In a joint news conference, Obama and Cameron urged U.S. lawmakers to exercise patience and hold off on any legislation calling for further sanctions.   "There is no good argument for us to try to undercut, undermine the negotiations until they've played themselves out," Obama told reporters. "Congress needs to show patience," he added.   (Reporting by Jeff Mason, Roberta Rampton; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

05 Feb 2015

Ecuador to Lift 21% Duty on Colombian Imports

Ecuador will cancel a 21-percent tariff on imports from Colombia by the end of the month, the Colombian trade ministry said late on Wednesday, reversing an effort to shield its economy from an influx of cheap goods. Ecuador, which has been hit by the steep drop in the price of oil, its biggest export, imposed tariffs on imports from Colombia and Peru in January as a result of depreciating currencies in those two nations that made their products cheaper. "In accordance with the commitment made by the Ecuadorian government, the measure will cease to be valid on February 27 at the latest," the Colombian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism said in a statement. Ecuador, the smallest member of OPEC, had also levied a 7 percent duty on imports from Peru. Ecuador, which uses the U.S.