Merchant Marine Fund News

The total volume of cargo tranported by sea in Brazil from January to September 2017 was pegged at 800 million tons, according to a survey by the National Agency of Waterway Transportation (Antaq). A large number of oceangoing and cabotage ships are needed to move such a volme and many of these ships will need repairs of various kinds. Having identified a positive demand for international standard ship repair facilities in the South Atlantic basin, McQuilling Services, headquartered in New York, will be leading a project to invest nearly a billion in Lucena, on the coast of the northeast state of Paraíba, for the installation of the Brazil Basin Drydock Company (BBDC) repair yard projects.

NGOs and trade unions in Brazil have criticized the state-run Petrobras’ end-of-life fleet management by dumping toxic ships on South Asian beaches. The Brazilian Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores em Transportes Aquaviários e Aéreos, na Pesca e nos Portos (CONTTMAF) trade union federation and its member SINDMAR (Sindicato Nacional dos Oficiais da Marinha Mercante) have recently criticized the shipbreaking practices of Transpetro, the oil and gas transportation subsidiary of the Brazilian petroleum corporation Petrobras, majority-owned by the State. In the last five years, more than twenty vessels owned by the oil and gas giant have been dismantled on the beaches of India and Pakistan, where shipbreaking activities endanger both workers and the environment.

At the 33rd ordinary meeting on Thursday, 1 December, the Board of Directors of the Merchant Marine Fund (CDFMM), at the Ministry of Transport, Ports and Civil Aviation in Brasilia (DF), approved to finance basis 2.15 billion reais for the construction of a new ship repair facility in Brazil as part of a 9.15 billion reais program for new and existing projects. Company (BBDC). The yard will be located in the municipality of Lucena, in the northeastern Brazilian state of Paraíba. Banco da Amazônia. depending on a number of project parameters. relevant authorities in Brazil in July of this year and clears the way to support funding efforts for the project.

The development of a successful shipbuilding sector has been pivotal to the rapid and robust economic development in most countries in the world with long coastal boundaries. Shipbuilding industry has the potential to significantly contribute to national GDP. The sector has an immense direct and indirect positive impact on most other manufacturing and ancillary industries, besides its huge dependence on infrastructure and services sectors in an economy. The Study, which analyses the shipbuilding industry in select countries, noted that, in line with the trends in global trade, the global shipbuilding industry witnessed a continued contraction during the period 2008 to 2012…

If and when Brazil gets its maritime act together, oh what a shipbuilding market force it could be. The modern Brazilian shipbuilding industry was established in the 1960s, induced by a broad and effective governmental policy. The 1960s and 1970s saw the rise of the merchant marine and shipbuilding industry in Brazil. The creation of the “Merchant Marine Fund” and the “Tax for the Merchant Marine Renewal,” in 1958, together with other specific targets set by the government at that time, made investments available to the shipbuilding industry and for the development of the merchant marine in general. Counting on such incentives, new shipyards such as Ishibras and Verolme were built…

Danilo Souza Baptista, OSX’s Director of Naval Construction, sat with MR Contributing Editor Claudio Paschoa at EBX Group’s new HQ in downtown Rio de Janeiro, in a meeting room overlooking Guanabara Bay with Sugar Loaf Mountain as a backdrop, to discuss its ambitious yet realistic vision to create one of the largest, most efficient shipyards in the Americas, as well as its Integrated Service Solution to the meet offshore O&G needs. OSX is a relatively new company, founded by the EBX Group in 2009. The EBX Group, is a holding composed of several companies active in different industries such as mining, oil & gas, logistics, real estate, among others.

The Brazillian shipbuilding endeavor received a significant financial injection, as OSX Construção Naval entered into contracts with lending agents BNDES – National Development Bank and CEF - Caixa Econômica Federal for financing with resources from the FMM - Merchant Marine Fund, in the approximate amount of $700m  each, totaling approximately $1.3b. This $1.3b financing is dedicated to the implementation of the Açu Shipbuilding Unit, the largest shipyard in the Americas, which OSX has been building since July 2011 in the north of the State of Rio de Janeiro…

The date by which OSX will comply with the 25 percent minimum free float requirement of OSX shares, as set out in the Regulamento de Listagem do Novo Mercado (“Regulation”), was extended for one year, in accordance with the terms of the BM&FBOVESPA notice  067/2012-DP, dated March 30, 2012. OSX is a Brazilian publicly-held corporation which provides equipment and services for the offshore oil and gas industry, being dedicated to supply the Brazilian industry’s growing demand for integrated solutions in three different segments - shipbuilding, E&P unit chartering and O&M services. Compliance with the minimum percentage of outstanding free float shares shall occur in a period of up to one year…

OSX Brasil S.A., a Brazilian corporation engaged in the equipment and services sector for the offshore oil and gas industry, by means of integrated operations in shipbuilding, chartering of exploration and production (E&P) units, and operation and maintenance (O&M) services, announces to its shareholders and the market in general that: The Board of Directors of the Merchant Marine Fund (Fundo da Marinha Mercante - FMM) approved the prioritization of financial support for the Açu Shipbuilding Unit ("UCN Açu") project of OSX Construção Naval S.A., pursuant to the resolution published today in the Federal Official Gazette (Diário Oficial da União).

On July 9, 2010 Estaleiro Promar S.A. signed eight contracts to build LPG Carriers for Transpetro, the shipping arm of the Brazilian oil giant Petrobras. The contracts amounts $536m, comprising the construction of two different types of LPG Carriers: fully pressurized with cargo capacity of 7.000 m3 (4 units) and 4.000 m3 (2 units) and semi-refrigerated with cargo capacity of 12.000 m3 (2 units). These vessels are part of the PROMEF 2, the second phase of the ambitious Transpetro's Fleet Modernization and Expansion Program and are scheduled to be delivered within Q3 2013 to Q4 2015. STX Norway Offshore is developing the new shipyard in Brazil together with its Brazilian long-time partner PJMR Empreendimentos Ltda. STX Norway Offshore AS own 50.5% of Estaileiro Promar S.A.

The rise and fall of the Brazilian shipbuilding market is well-known, having plummeted from the top of the world list in the early 1980s to the bottom by 1999. Today, Brazil is storming back, an amazing revival of the nearly defunct shipbuilding industry driven by the sudden influx of orders from major offshore oil & gas players, namely Petrobras. Today the shipbuilding market in Brazil has in excess of 100 firm orders for ships in a variety of shapes and sizes, in addition to a large number of drill rigs and production unit orders. In addition, companies from around the globe are flocking to Brazil to set-up shop and engage in the industry’s renaissance.