National Port Administration News

The Alabama State Port Authority has announced a new memorandum of understanding with the National Port Administration of Cuba, potentially laying the groundwork for future trade deals. The five-year, cooperative agreement  was signed at the Tampa Marriott Waterside Hotel in Tampa, Florida. Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Port of Mobile and the Cuban ports marks the first ports agreement signed on U.S. soil since 1959. James K. Lyons, chief executive officer of the Alabama State Port Authority and Rene Rolando Fernandez de Lara Cabezas, director of Inland Waterway and Sea Transport, of the Republic of Cuba Ministry of Transportation…

Port of New Orleans Chief Operating Officer Brandy Christian joined Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards in signing a memorandum of understanding with Cuba on Oct. 4 pledging to expand trade and commerce opportunities between Louisiana and the Caribbean nation. The agreement also calls for joint marketing and information sharing efforts to meet those objectives. “The proximity and historical relationship between Cuba and the Port of New Orleans has us well-positioned should the trade embargo be lifted, and we are prepared to play an important role in trade when the time comes,” said Christian, who signed the MOU with Gov. Edwards and Director General Manuel Fernandez Perez Guerra of the National Port Administration of Cuba.

The Naval Academy of the Uruguay Navy has successfully completed the acquisition and installation of a simulator complex by Transas including navigation and maneuvering simulator NTPRO 5000, GMDSS Communications simulator TGS 5000 and Engine Room simulator ERS 5000 SOLO. The project acquired through international bidding, with the participation of five world leading manufacturers culminated in the award of the contract to Transas USA and its local representative Arnaldo C. Castro SA. The new simulators replace the previous Transas simulators installed in 2000.