Lawrence News

The state of Great Lakes port infrastructure is one of the biggest issues facing the U.S. and Canadian maritime industries. According to the America Great Lakes Ports Association, “Due to years of inadequate funding, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been unable to maintain Great Lakes navigation infrastructure. Over the next five years Great Lakes navigation channels will require $540 million of dredging to maintain authorized channel dimensions. Breakwaters and other federal…

The first "saltie" of the 2024 Great Lakes shipping season entered the Port of Duluth-Superior on Monday,Oceangoing vessels that visit the Great Lakes are called "salties".This year, the first to call the Port of Duluth-Superior is the Portuguese-flagged Barbro G, a 623-foot bulk carrier operated by Sweden’s Brochart KB, which completed the season’s first full transit of the St. Lawrence Seaway en route to the Great Lakes’ westernmost port.By tradition, this first full transit from the Atlantic Ocean marks the annual opening of the Duluth-Superior Harbor…

The Canadian government has awarded a contract to shipbuilder Chantier Davie Canada Inc. of Lévis, Quebec, for initial work related to the construction of new Program Icebreakers. Under this $19.6-million contract including taxes, Davie will begin work to develop the initial design.A series of six new Program Icebreakers is planned to replace the Canadian Coast Guard’s (CCG) medium icebreakers that operate in Atlantic Canada and the St. Lawrence waterways during the winter, and in the Arctic during the summer.This contract enables the shipyard to initiate project planning phases…

Maritime Partners,a Louisiana-based provider of maritime financing solutions primarily focused on Jones Act vessels, announced the addition of Stephen J. Bordes and Greg Chase to its executive leadership team.Bordes joins Maritime Partners as its chief financial officer, and Chase as as the firm’s chief legal officer.Bordes brings to the company more than 20 years of experience in the fields of finance and fund management. Prior to joining Maritime Partners, he served as the CFO for New York-based American Industrial Partners…

The St. Lawrence Seaway opened its 66th season of operation today with an official ceremony in Niagara Region.Terence Bowles, President and CEO of the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) was joined by U.S. Great Lakes St. Lawrence Development Corporation Administrator Adam Tindall-Schlicht in welcoming the many who came out for the event, including M.P. Vance Badawey, Parliamentary Secretary to the Canadian Minister of Transport.“We are thrilled to have a renewed Management Operations and Maintenance Agreement with the Government of Canada.

As a part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) published a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $500 million in Federal Fiscal Year 2024 funding through MARAD’s Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP).Investments made under the PIDP focus on modernizing the Nation’s coastal and inland waterway ports as well as strengthening its supply chains and economic security for generations to come.

The Singapore government has recounted the achievements of Maritime Singapore to date to highlight the nation’s successes as a maritime hub in 2023:Total business spending by key maritime companies overseen by MPA exceeded S$4.8 billion, up from S$4.3 billion in 2022. Twenty-five maritime companies established or expanded their operations in Singapore last year. These included maritime services companies and companies setting up sustainability desks in Singapore as part of their…

Canada's Minister of Public Services and Procurement, Jean-Yves Duclos, on behalf of the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, Diane Lebouthillier, announced a contract award following a competitive process, valued at approximately $44 million (including taxes) to Ocean Industries Inc. for the vessel life extension of the CCGS Griffon.Scheduled to take place from June 2025 to October 2026, the vessel life extension work entails refurbishing and repairing the main propulsion motors…

Dorian LPG, International Seaways Ship Management LLC, Poten & Partners, d’Amico and TEN Ltd. all confirmed for the CMA Shipping 2024 Commodores’ Debate rounding off three days of thought-leading content from March 12-14 in Connecticut.A highlight of the Stamford-based show, the Commodores’ Debate brings past and present CMA Commodores together to discuss the key issues and opportunities facing shipowners today and in the future.Moderated by Marine Money’s Jim Lawrence, the debate will focus on the meaning of business excellence during a time of disruption and market volatility.

Mouawad Consulting, Boll & Kirch, bestUV, KraftPowercon and Lower Lakes Towing, have received CAD 5 million from Transport Canada towards a project aimed at addressing technical challenges surrounding the installation, operation, and maintenance of ballast water management systems (BWMS) on vessels operating within the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River (GLSLR) region."The significance of this grant cannot be overstated. Through our partnership with Mouawad Consulting, Boll & Kirch…

The Royal Canadian Navy’s fifth Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ship (AOPS), the future HMCS Frédérick Rolette, was launched December 9, 2023, at Irving Shipbuilding's Halifax Shipyard.A full two months ahead of schedule, the 103-metre future HMCS Frédérick Rolette transitioned from Halifax Shipyard’s land level facility to a submersible barge on December 8 and launched in the Bedford Basin. The ship is now pier side at Halifax Shipyard where work continues in preparation for sea trials…

The Great Lakes Towing Company (GLT) announced it has acquired a 62-year-old fireboat from the city of Cleveland, Ohio.The vessel, Anthony J. Celebrezze, was constructed in 1961 by Paach Marine in Erie, Pa. and was used by the Cleveland Fire Department until it was replaced with a new vessel, Garret A. Morgan, in June 2023 and put up for auction.Auction data shows the vessel was sold on November 14 for just over $41,000, including a 12.5% buyer's premium.GLT said its Great Lakes Shipyard division is very familiar with the Anthony J.

The union representing St. Lawrence Seaway workers in eastern Canada said it reached a tentative labor agreement on Sunday, ending a week-long strike that shut down a key North American trade route linked to the Atlantic Ocean.The Unifor union, representing some 360 workers, said it agreed to a deal with the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp (Seaway) that would cover engineering, maintenance, and other worker groups in Ontario and Quebec provinces.Other details of the agreement, which would need to be ratified by the workers, were not shared.

A strike in Canada's St. Lawrence Seaway entered its second day on Monday after workers walked off over a wage dispute, shutting down an important maritime trade route linking the Great Lakes to Montreal port and impacting about 115 vessels.Some 361 workers represented by the Unifor union went on strike on Sunday after failing to negotiate a new labor contract with the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp (SLSMC), which along with a U.S. body operates the waterway linking the Great…

Shipbuilder Chantier Naval Forillon in Gaspé, Quebec has received an order to build a new Near-Shore Fishery Research Vessel (NSFRV) for the Canadian Coast Guard.Expected to join the Canadian Coast Guard fleet as early as 2027, the new vessel will be the agency's first-ever diesel-electric hybrid vessel with a battery energy storage system, designed to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels.Announced last week by Diane Lebouthillier, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard…

Idris, 22, was convinced he was going to die when the small boat he and dozens of other migrants were on began to sink in the Channel as he tried to reach England from France.It was only thinking of his parents back home, and the fact that he had embarked on this perilous journey to help his family, that gave him the strength to stay afloat, he told Reuters.Six people died when the boat sank on Saturday. More than 60 people, mostly Afghans, were saved by French and British rescue teams, including Idris and 15-year-old Fawad.

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has published a Proposed Rule in the Federal Register outlining U.S. Great Lakes pilotage rates for the 2024 shipping season.The new rates seek to generate revenue for each of the three U.S. Great Lakes pilot associations by implementing hourly charges for pilotage services according to geographic area. Pilotage rates are paid by vessel operators serving Great Lakes ports.The Coast Guard proposes to increase the overall cost of U.S. Great Lakes pilotage in 2024 compared to 2023 by $1.9 million or 5%.

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge Clean Canaveral completed its first barge-to-ship bunkering of a cargo vessel at Port Canaveral’s South Cargo Berth 4. JAX LNG, along with Polaris New Energy, handled the LNG refueling of the Damia Desgagnés on the ship’s inaugural call to Port Canaveral. The asphalt/bitumen tanker Damia Desgagnés completed her discharge of cargo and then JAX LNG proceeded with Desgagnés’s first barge-to-ship bunkering of LNG. The seafarers safely transferred approximately 400 cubic meters of LNG from North America’s largest LNG bunker barge…

Two-way marine traffic resumed Monday night on the Welland Canal in Ontario, Canada after a power outage on Sunday led to a temporary suspension of navigation.The St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC), which manages and operates the Canadian assets of the St. Lawrence Seaway, said its maintenance personnel and contractors were able to restore service to Lock 1 by Monday afternoon and reopen Lock 7 by 10:30 p.m. that night.No one was harmed at any point during the outage or repair operations…

Vessel traffic through Ontario's Welland Canal has ceased after a power outage damaged equipment in two of its locks, the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) said.The not-for-profit corporation, which manages and operates the Canadian assets of the St. Lawrence Seaway, said the outage occurred at 5:50 p.m. on Sunday, damaging hands-free mooring equipment in Locks 1 and 7. "SLSMC took immediate steps to ensure the safety of the public, personnel, vessels, infrastructure and the environment…

Rescuers searching for a missing submersible near the wreck of the Titanic on Wednesday concentrated their efforts on a remote area of the North Atlantic where a series of undersea noises have been detected, though officials cautioned the sounds may not have originated from the vessel.With estimates suggesting the air supply on board the submersible could run out by Thursday morning, an international coalition of rescue teams has swept a vast expanse of the ocean for signs of the Titan…

Rescuers were in a race against time to find a missing submersible on Tuesday, two days after it lost communication while taking wealthy tourists to see the wreckage of the Titanic in deep waters off Canada's coast.One pilot and four passengers were on board the submersible that disappeared on Sunday. The operating company said it had the capacity to stay underwater for up to 96 hours - giving those aboard until early on Thursday before air ran out.U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral…

Canadian shipyard Davie reports it has completed repair of the ferry MV Félix-Antoine-Savard for the Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ).The car and passenger ferry, originally built in 1997, operates between L’Isle-aux-Coudres and Saint-Joseph-de-la-Rive in the St. Lawrence River.Repairs on the vessel required over 30,000 hours of work, and the replacement of 28 tons of steel.Davie crews worked round-the-clock seven days a week to repair the MV Félix-Antoine-Savard so that it could be put back into service as quickly as possible.