Media Release News

The USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62), which suffered heavy damage and nearly sank off the coast of Japan after a fatal collision with a containership in 2017, departed Huntington Ingalls Industries' Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula, Miss. Saturday following two years of extensive repairs and upgrades. Seven U.S. Navy sailors died when the guided-missile destroyer collided with the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal on June 17, 2017. USS Fitzgerald was damaged on her starboard side above and below the waterline during the collision…

Two ships in the Singapore Strait were attacked by pirates within the span of an hour in the wee hours of Sunday (Feb 9) mornings, aid the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Center in a media release.Some engine spares were stolen in one incident, while the perpetrators left empty handed in the other, it said.According to the release, at about 0220 hrs the bulk carrier New Spirit was boarded by six perpetrators while underway at about 5.1 nautical miles from Nongsa Point, Indonesia. They were armed with knives when seen in the engine room but ran onto the deck when they saw the crew.

Qatargas Operating Company Limited delivered the first cargo of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) on a Q-Max vessel to Zeebrugge LNG Terminal in Belgium, marking the first discharge of a Q-Max LNG vessel at this terminal.The world's largest liquefied natural gas company announced in a media release that the cargo, which was loaded at the Ras Laffan terminal in Qatar on 22nd June 2019, arrived on board the Q-Max vessel, 'Al Dafna' on 22nd July 2019.The delivery also celebrates yet another multi-terminal delivery for Qatargas bringing the total number of multi-port deliveries undertaken by the Company in 2019 to eight deliveries, it said."This operation saw the first LNG parcel discharged in Zeebrugge and a second parcel at the South Hook LNG terminal in the United Kingdom…

The dry bulk shipping company  DryShips has appointed financial and legal advisors to help its board members consider George Economou’s non-binding takeover proposal.The Greek ship owner and operator said in media release that its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, George Economou, has retained Evercore as its financial advisor and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP as its legal advisor.It also have appointed a special committee which is comprised of the independent and disinterested directors: George Kokkodis (Chair), Andreas Argyropoulos and George Demathas.The special committee is considering and evaluating the Proposal, and no decisions have been made with respect to the special committee’s response to the proposal.

Port of Newcastle issued a media release announcing that Infrastructure NSW, an Australian government entity,  had withdrawn A$12.7 million funding for the project.“Infrastructure NSW has advised that the AUD12.7 million funding for the cruise terminal project is no longer available,” the Port of Newcastle said in a statement.Port of Newcastle has been working on this project on behalf of the NSW Government on the basis of providing a facility that meets the cruise industry's needs while remaining within the funding provided."While disappointed construction of the terminal facility cannot proceed at this time, we respect that funding is no longer available.

NAPA, the maritime software, services and data analysis provider announced that its industry-benchmark electronic logbook, NAPA Logbook, is now available as a monthly service solution.According to media release, this reduced barrier to entry will bring the connectivity and job automation benefits of digital logbooks to more of the maritime market. NAPA Logbook will also be one of the first integrations with NAPA Mobile, enabling support for smartphone logbook entries wherever the crew are onboard.As the world’s leading provider of electronic logbooks, NAPA Logbook has more than a decade’s service on board vessels serving more than 8,000 users and is approved by more than 20 major flag states, including the Bahamas, Marshall Islands, Panama, Malta and Singapore.

The International Safety@Sea Conference was officially opened yesterday by Mr Niam Chiang Meng, Chairman of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA). Organised by MPA as part of Safety@Sea Week, over 250 international maritime professionals convened to share best safety at sea practices. This year’s Safety@Sea week will also see the inaugural ‘Community of Practice’ (CoP) Forum which will be held on 23 August 2017. The CoP Forum is a collaborative platform for maritime administrations, Classification Societies, and non-government organisations to share knowledge and best practices on general maritime safety as well as collaborate on promoting safety at sea. For the inaugural forum, 40 participants will be discussing the topic of ferry safety.

Commanders of U.S. warship removed after cargo ship collision; seven sailors killed in June collision. The U.S. Navy has removed the two senior officers and the senior enlisted sailor on a U.S. warship that almost sank off the coast of Japan in June after it was struck by a Philippine container ship, the Navy said on Friday. Multiple investigations have yet to apportion blame for the accident that killed seven U.S. sailors aboard the guided missile destroyer the USS Fitzgerald. However, the punishments are the first public admission by the U.S. Navy that mistakes by the crew contributed to the deadliest incident on a U.S. warship since Islamist extremists bombed the USS Cole in Yemen's Aden harbour in 2000. "The collision was avoidable and both ships demonstrated poor seamanship.

Ex-HMAS Sydney has left Sydney Harbour to be towed to Western Australia for recycling, says Minister for Defence Personnel Media Release. Minister for Defence Personnel Dan Tehan said the frigate will be recycled by Australian company Birdon Pty Ltd. “Ex-HMAS Sydney had an illustrious career during her 32 years in service with the Royal Australian Navy,” Mr Tehan said. “The Adelaide class frigate was involved in operations spanning the Middle East, East Timor, Fiji and the Solomon Islands and earned a Meritorious Unit Citation during the First Gulf War in 1991. “She was built at the Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle, Washington, USA, and commissioned there on 29 January 1983.

Mauritius is an island nation in the southwestern Indian Ocean. The country has just 2,040 square kilometers of land on several islands but a huge exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of 2.3 million square kilometers. The major challenge of patrolling this vast area of the Indian Ocean became somewhat more manageable with the delivery of the final five of ten Fast Interceptor Boats designed and built by the Government of India owned Shipyard M/s Goa Shipyard Ltd. The Mauritius National Coast Guard will use the boats to enhance their abilities to provide effective surveillance for fisheries and customs, as well as search and rescue. The aluminum boats are 14.3-meters long with a beam of four meters and a molded depth of .9 meters.

The Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) of Singaporehas announced an additional 10 per cent concession on port dues for container vessels calling in Singapore, with port stays of up to five days, to help the shipping industry tide over the current economic downturn. MPA said that the additional concession will be in place for one year, and will be granted on top of existing port dues concessions such as the Green Port Programme incentives and the 20 per cent concession first introduced in 1996. The additional concession will be effective on Friday. In all, these concessions are expected to amount to more than S$17 million in annual savings for container lines, the MPA said in a media release.

Australia to spend A$65 bln on ships and subs over 20 years; PM pledges A$40 bln for domestic shipbuilders. Australia will spend A$89 billion ($65 billion) on ships and submarines for its navy over the next 20 years but pressure grew on Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Tuesday to spend more than half that total building a new submarine fleet domestically. Two naval shipbuilding programmes, the A$20 billion SEA5000 Future Frigate project and the SEA1180 Offshore Patrol Vessels, would be brought forward to guarantee the continuous domestic construction of surface warships, Abbott said. Despite that new component, Abbott is facing intense pressure from within his conservative Liberal Party…

Reuters - Ministers in 12-nation Trans-Pacific trade talks said on Tuesday they have made progress trying to finalize a deal during a four-day meeting in Singapore, but several issues remain, particularly questions over market access. "While some issues remain, we have charted a path forward to resolve them," said New Zealand Trade Minister Tim Groser, reading from a joint media release at the end of the meeting. "Market access" issues remain one of the main sticking points, the ministers said. Ministers involved in the talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which aims to break down trade barriers across a wide range of sectors, had signalled ahead of the meeting that they were close to reaching a deal.

The Sea Tantalus is the first of a series of Vard Group (STX) designed platform supply vessels being built at Cochin Shipyard Ltd. in India. The distinctive hull configuration is being built in countries around the world, and the Indian version is the first of four from Cochin. At 82.2 by 17-meters the Sea Tantalus has a 7.6-meter depth at the main deck. Built to Det Norske veritas (DNV) standards, including clean notation, the new vessel employs diesel-electric propulsion. Power is provided by four 1,635 HP (12,00 kW) Cummins KTA50-DM1-powered electrical generators.

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued a media release stating that it coordinated the rescue of 77 persons from waters north of Ashmore Island after their vessel broke up. The individuals are being transported to Christmas Island. “The Australian Maritime Safety Authority has coordinated the search and rescue of 77 people following after their vessel broke up 60 nautical miles north of Ashmore Island. At approximately 3 p.m. AEDT on Wednesday, a Customs and Border Protection Dash 8 aircraft was conducting routine patrol in the area when it sighted what appeared to be a broken up vessel with a number of people in the vicinity in the water.

Further to our previous media releases detailing a potential new trend in pirate tactics in an area of the Red Sea off Eritrea (see Figure 1), Neptune Maritime Security has had the opportunity to examine the available data through our Intelligence Bank, including material supplied by intelligence sources, and presents the following report to interested parties. In July, pirate activity off Eritrea was limited to small numbers of pirates mounting similarly small-scale attacks on shipping. while underway in position 13:27N-042:39E, approximately 27nm NW off Assab, Eritrea.

The New Zealand Maritime Safety Authority (MSA) issued a Media Release stating that its investigation into the accident that resulted in the death of a stevedore working on board the container vessel Pacific Quest revealed that the incident was the result of high and unexpected wind gusts that caused a container base to swing out of control. As a result of this incident, the maximum operating wind speed for container cranes at the Thorndon CentrePort have been decreased and additional wind speed indicators have been installed. (HK Law)

The New Zealand Maritime Safety Authority (MSA) issued a Media Release stating that the IMO approved a decision to ban ships greater than 45 meters in length from an area off the northeast coast of the North Island. This area extends five miles from land between Bream Head and Cape Brett. The ban will come into effect on 1 December 2004. Source: HK Law

The Singapore Government issued a media release stating that the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) Information Sharing Centre (ISC) has been officially launched in Singapore. Source: HK Law

The Australian Minister for Customs issued a Media Release stating that the Australian Customs Service’s Annual Report has been tabled in Parliament. Among other things, the report discusses the significant enhancement to maritime surveillance that the agency implemented during 2005. Source: HK Law