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Meridian News

24 Oct 2022

Spain Moves Yacht Linked to Russian Oligarch After Payments Stop

Spanish authorities moved a luxury yacht linked to the sanctioned head of Russian defence group Rostec after the shipyard where it was berthed stopped receiving payments for its repairs, a transport ministry source said.The multi-million-dollar Valerie was transferred to a marina last month, the source and other officials said, highlighting the logistical challenges authorities have faced managing vessels being held across Europe because of sanctions imposed over Russia's military actions in Ukraine.Spain ordered the ship "frozen" - meaning the vessel can not be used or sold - in March, saying it was acting on European Union sanctions.

21 Jun 2022

Tankers Divert to Trinidad, Maryland After Freeport LNG Blast

At least six tankers set to load liquefied natural gas (LNG) at Freeport LNG this month have been diverted following the June 8 blast that shut the Texas facility, Refinitiv Eikon vessel tracking data showed.A partial restart of the Quintana, Texas, plant is not expected until at least September, the company said last week, leaving about 40 cargoes to be canceled or re-scheduled. The loss has European LNG buyers and some U.S. shale producers reeling, while rivals Cheniere Energy and Sempra LNG rush to produce more LNG to offset the losses.Freeport accounts for roughly 20% of U.S. LNG processing capacity, drawing 2.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) of natural gas, primarily from U.S. shale fields.

28 May 2021

Kevin Short Named CEO of Mintra

Kevin Short (Photo: Mintra)

Norwegian maritime and offshore training software firm Mintra said it has appointed Kevin Short as CEO. Short, who has been chief commercial officer since 2018, takes over the leadership role from Scott Kerr following his decision to join the firm’s board of directors.“In these post-Covid times and as we slowly return to a world that can be considered more normal, there are tremendous prospects for both digital learning and human capital management software. We know that how things worked before – people constantly travelling to training facilities – will not be the same going forward.

05 Aug 2020

Alaska Marine Lines Upgrading Its Rail Barges

(Photo: Alaska Marine Lines)

Alaska Marine Lines says four of its rail barges will receive new piping and ballast systems designed by Glosten with installation by Meridian Marine Industries."The rail barges are hitting 20 years of service and were in need of some upgrades," explains John Maketa, T-115 Port Engineer in Seattle. "These barges are the backbone of our rail operations and Central Alaska service. The updates will prepare them for another 20 years of service."Two barges, the Anchorage Provider and Whittier Provider, already have the new piping systems installed.

09 Feb 2020

Hyundai to Build 2 LNG carriers for Knutsen

Norwegian shipping company Knutsen said that  Shell signed separate agreements for four LNG carriers with affiliates of Knutsen liquefied natural gas (LNG), two LNG carriers with Korea Line Corporation and two LNG Carriers with Global Meridian Holdings Limited.The LNG carrier owner and ship management  company informed that the 174,000 cbm LNG carriers will be built by Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries.The new vessels will all be equipped with efficient dual-fuel X-DF engines, boil-off management plants, air lubrication systems and shaft generators for auxiliary power. They will be integrated into Shell’s time-chartered trading fleet.Dr Grahaeme Henderson…

21 Jan 2020

Harvey Gulf Hires Dunn as Subsea VP

(Photo: Harvey Gulf International Marine)

Harvey Gulf International Marine announced it has hired John Dunn as Vice President of Subsea Vessel Operations, as the US-based services firm looks to grow its subsea business.Dunn, formerly of Oceaneering, has been hired as a member of Harvey Gulf's executive management team to assemble and manage Harvey Gulf’s subsea vessels, team and operations.Prior to Oceaneering, Dunn was the director of operations at Meridian Ocean Services, a subsea service provider acquired by Oceaneering in 2016.

17 Jun 2019

Vessel Training Simulation at Tema Port

The first vessel has successfully docked at Tema Port’s new MPS Terminal 3, Ghana, said a statement from APM Terminals.The container vessel will be used for training purposes over the coming weeks, to ensure that the terminal runs smoothly from day one, when operations begin later this month on June 28.Chartering the test vessel will cost around 250,000 Dollars. Over the coming weeks it will be used to run a full-scale test of the port and for final staff training.“When it comes to training, the benefits significantly outweigh the cost involved,” explained Chief Executive Officer of Meridian Port Services Ltd, Mohamed Samara.“The MPS Operations Team are shifting gear…

22 Mar 2019

Svitzer Christens Latest Tug Meridian

The global towage operator Svitzer held a ceremony on the River Thames  to officially christened Svitzer Meridian as the latest - and tenth - vessel in its Port of London fleet.During a naming ceremony held on the River Thames with guests representing a variety of customers and partners – including vessel builder Sanmar – the 70 tonnes bollard pull Azimuth Tractor Drive (ATD) Svitzer Meridian was officially christened by representatives from multinational electricity and gas utility company National Grid Grain LNG, who are godparenting the vessel.Meridian, whose name was chosen to reflect Maritime Greenwich’s Prime Meridian longitude line – and Svitzer’s longstanding links with the local area – has been in operation at the Port of London since November 2018…

05 Mar 2019

APM Terminals to Open Port of Tema in June

All 7 ship-to-shore and 20 RTG ultra-modern gantry cranes have arrived for installation in the Port of Tema, Ghana, said APM Terminals, international container terminal operating company headquartered in The Hague.These are one of the final pieces of a $1.0bn investment by APM Terminals and its partners in Meridian Port Services (MPS), Bolloré Africa Logistics and Ghana Ports & Harbours Authority.With crane commissioning and operator training now taking place, the Port is on schedule to open on June 28 this year.The breakwater and access channel, able to accommodate the world's largest container ships, and the first 2 deep-water berths…

21 Feb 2019

Navios Sells Handymax

Navios Maritime Holdings, a global, vertically integrated seaborne shipping and logistics company, said that it has sold its 2002-built Ultra Handymax vessel Navios Meridian.The 50,316 dwt Navios Meridian was sold to an unnamed buyer recently for a total net sale price of USD 6.8 million.Navios Holdings controls a fleet of 65 vessels totaling 6.6 million dwt, of which 35 are owned and 30 are chartered-in under long-term charters (collectively, the "Core Fleet"). The fleet consists of 19 Capesize, 30 Panamax, 14 Ultra-Handymax and two Handysize vessels, with an average age of 7.9 years, basis fully delivered fleet.As of February 15, 2019, Navios Holdings has chartered-out 70.9% of available days of 2019, out of which 26.7% are chartered-out on fixed rate and 44.2% on index.

16 Nov 2018

TRAktor 2500-SX Design tug Commences Operations for Svitzer

The third tug built by Sanmar Shipyards to Robert Allan Ltd.’s new TRAktor 2500-SX design commenced operations on November 1st in London for Svitzer. The tug, named the Svitzer Meridian, is the second TRAktor 2500-SX in Svitzer’s fleet and is the third of this new class of tugs to be delivered by Sanmar to international clients in just over 4 months.Above the waterline, this class of tugs feature a raised half foc’sle to provide an enhanced standard of sea-keeping when working in exposed waters.

02 May 2018

Last-minute Tips for Subchapter M

Credit: Eric Norcross

Countdown to Subchapter M: Last-minute tips for choosing the USCG or TPO/TSMS option ...Subchapter M will finally be implemented in the tugboat and towing industry in only a few short months. It has taken over ten years to arrive, but the build-up and in some cases, hysteria, can only be compared to the Y2K scare at the end of 1999. During that period, the world said Y2K would cause computer crashes, commerce to end and daily life to come to a crashing halt.Now, fast forward almost twenty years and enter Subchapter M.

16 Apr 2018

First Cove Point LNG Lifting Departs Maryland

The first contractual liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargo from Dominion Energy Inc's newly constructed Cove Point LNG export plant in Maryland in the United States left the facility on Monday, Thomson Reuters Eikon ship tracking data showed. The cargo is expected to act as a drag on spot LNG prices <LNG-AS> as it coincides with the resumption of exports of the fuel from the Papua New Guinea LNG plant, which had been shut following a powerful earthquake. The 160,000-cubic metre LNG tanker Adam LNG left Cove Point on Monday with a draft of 91 percent, suggesting it was full, according to the data. Its destination was not immediately clear. The facility has exported two commissioning or test cargoes already, which were sold to Royal Dutch Shell.

07 Feb 2018

USCG Approves Meridian Global Consulting as TPO

© Ernest Prim / Adobe Stock

The Towing Vessel National Center of Expertise (TVNCOE) posted on its website February 2, 2018, that the U.S. Coast Guard has approved Meridian Global Consulting, LLC as a third-party organization (TPO) to carry out certain functions in accordance with Subchapter M. The current list of all Subchapter M approved TPOs is maintained on TVNCOE’s TPO webpage. In accordance with 46 CFR 139.110, classification societies that are recognized and/or authorized meet the requirements of a TPO.

17 Jul 2017

CMA CGM, SEATRADE Launch Joint Reefer Service

Photo: CMA CGM

Container shipping firm CMA CGM Group and reefer transport specialist SEATRADE Group will together create a new vessel sharing agreement incorporating the services known by CMA CGM as PAD and by Seatrade as MERIDIAN, linking Northern Europe, the East Coast of the U.S., Central America, the Pacific Islands, Australia, New Zealand, Peru and the Caribbean on a weekly basis. The new service, expected to launch in October 2017, will bring together CMA CGM, SEATRADE and shipping company MARFRET and improve their frequency and port coverage.

29 Jun 2017

Wicker’s SHIPS Act Included in Defense Bill

Ingalls Shipbuilding yard in Pascagoula, Miss. (File photo: HII)

U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Chairman of the Senate Seapower Subcommittee, announced that he successfully added his “SHIPS Act” proposal to help the Navy reach its requirement of a 355-ship fleet in this year’s “National Defense Authorization Act” (NDAA). The Senate Armed Services Committee unanimously approved the national defense bill, authorizing $640 billion in overall funding for America’s servicemembers, military installations and industrial base. It now awaits consideration by the full Senate.

20 Nov 2016

Tema Port To Be Expanded

Ghana President John Dramani Mahama has launched the start of major expansion works at the Tema Port, near Accra, according to local reports. This ambitious project involves an upgrade and significant expansion of Ghana’s main seaport. The project is a Public Private Partnership between the Ghana Ports and Harbours Authority (GPHA), representing the Ghana Government and Meridian Ports Services (MPS). The Port Of Tema Is the largest port in Ghana. Situated on the eastern coast of the country it stretches over a 3.9 million square metres of land area. The port receives an average of over 1650 vessel calls per year. These comprise container vessels, general cargo vessels, tankers, Ro-Ro and cruise vessels amongst many others.

14 Mar 2016

Maersk to Boost Investments in Ghana

Maersk Group says it is committed to a long-term partnership with Ghana, and will boost its investments in the country. Accroding to local media report, the Maersk Group Chief Executive Officer, Nils S. Andersen, revealed that Maersk is interested in playing an active role in Ghana’s growth through investments in trade, infrastructure and energy. “Together with our partners, we have committed $1.5billion to the expansion of the port in Tema which would create probably the largest and most modern terminal in sub Saharan Africa. This will enable Ghana’s trade for the coming decades, and support more efficient flows of exports as well as imports” Andersen said. Nils S.

24 Aug 2015

Survey Underway for Morecambe Bay LNG Project

Photo courtesy of Bibby HydroMap

Seabed survey company Bibby HydroMap have begun survey operations on the proposed LNG project off Morecambe Bay. The work program comprises geophysical, geotechnical and environmental surveying of the proposed pipeline route to shore and will be undertaken using a multi-vessel approach. Bibby HydroMap’s own vessels Chartwell and Eagle will perform the geophysical and environmental scope, acquiring multibeam bathymetry, side scan sonar data, sub-bottom profiler and magnetometer data, alongside benthic grab samples and visual inspection.

25 Aug 2015

Marine Claims & Casualty Investigation Conference

HINODE Maritime Events is conducting the "Conference on Handling Marine Claims and Investigating Marine Casualties". According to the organisers, the program which is scheduled to be held on Wednesday, September 2, 2015 at the Vivanta by Taj - President, Cuffe Parade, Mumbai has received an unusually very good response. There is exceptionally good interest being shown by Marine Claims practitioners, lawyers, insurers, surveyors. * "Cargo Claims and Defences available to Shipowners" by Capt Amol Deshmukh, Head - Marine Claims & Insurance, Celestial Meridian Shipping Pvt. *  Marine Casualty Investigation – Are shipowners ready? *  Mega Incidents from a P&I Club Perspective - Are the Clubs ready?

01 Sep 2016

This Day In Naval History: September 1

1800 - During the Quasi-War with France, the schooner, USS Experiment, commanded by Lt. Charles Stewart, captures the French privateer Deux Amix off Barbuda, West Indies. 1814 - The sloop-of-war, USS Wasp, commanded by Johnston Blakely, sinks the British brig sloop, HMS Avon, south of Ireland. 1925 - Cmdr. John Rodgers and a crew of four in a PN-9 aircraft run out of fuel on the first San Francisco to Hawaii flight. Landing at sea, they rig a sail and set sail for Hawaii. On Sept. 10, they are rescued by the submarine USS R-4, 10 miles from Kaui, then Territory of Hawaii. 1941 - The United States assumed responsibility for trans-Atlantic convoys from Argentia, Newfoundland, to the meridian of Iceland. 1942 - The United States Naval Air Force, Pacific Fleet is established. Vice Adm.

04 Nov 2015

MER, Meridian Announce Strategic Partnership

Moran Environmental Recovery, LLC (MER) and Meridian Ocean Services, LLC (Meridian) have entered into a strategic partnership agreement, the companies announced Monday. The agreement will see the companies cooperatively focus on the delivery of underwater inspection and imaging services, in an enhanced and integrated format, to a targeted base of infrastructure, marine, industrial and environmental clients throughout the U.S. “We see this agreement as an important component of the growth plans within both our commercial diving and environmental sectors,” said Brian House, President and CEO of MER. “By combining MER’s significant experience in the environmental remediation and infrastructure inspection spaces with Meridian’s extensive ROV and subsea imaging solutions…

08 Dec 2015

Bright future for Bunkering at Indian Ports

Hinode’s 5th Annual conference on the Outlook for bunkering and Marine Lubricants in India clearly acknowledged the fact that India was well on its way to becoming a Bunkering destination. Lack of infrastructure, duties, quality of bunkers, etc., were issues now in the process of getting resolved and the government was actively engaged in putting necessary infrastructure in place. With the evolving scenario speakers at the conference agreed that ample opportunities exists for players to make it big in the bunkering business. The conference drew record participation with a wide response not just from India but also from South East Asia, Middle East and Far East and other countries.