Npr News

In November 2020 I wrote a column in MREN that discussed the right of people to engage in crazy marine ventures. The example I used in that column was an attempt to row from South America to Antarctica. In it I also made note of the inherent unseaworthiness of single-handed ocean racing and noted that such foolishness often resulted in the public spending lots of money providing rescue services.The Ocean Gate Expedition Titan venture has now managed to set an entirely new standard…

The U.S. Department of the Interior said Monday that President Biden would take action to designate about 2.8 million acres in the Arctic Ocean nearshore the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) as indefinitely off-limits for future oil and gas leasing. This action will complete protections for the entire Beaufort Sea Planning Area, building upon President Obama’s 2016 withdrawal under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act to protect the Chukchi Sea Planning Area and the majority of the Beaufort Sea…

U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Wednesday the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Russia and Germany will not move forward if Russia invades Ukraine."I want to be very clear: if Russia invades Ukraine one way or another, Nord Stream 2 will not move forward," Price told NPR. "I'm not going to get into the specifics. We will work with Germany to ensure it does not move forward."Europe's most divisive energy project, Nord Stream 2 is designed to double the amount of gas flowing from Russia straight to Germany…

A luxury cruise ship has skipped its call to Miami and diverted to the Bahamas after a U.S. judge ordered its seizure as part of a lawsuit over unpaid fuel bills.The Crystal Symphony, operated by Genting Hong Kong's Crystal Cruises, was scheduled to conclude a Caribbean voyage in Miami on Saturday, but the ship sailed to the Bahamian island of Bimini instead after a federal judge in Miami granted an order to arrest the 781-foot, Bahamas-flagged vessel over unpaid fuel bills.Bunker supplier Peninsula Petroleum Far East sued the ship and Crystal Cruises…

Marine News and Maritime Logistics Professional editor Joseph Keefe last week spent 10 minutes with Oregon Public Broadcasting to discuss the fate and the future of Oregon's only deep water port. Listen in to find out more. As ICTSI Oregon, Inc. and the Port of Portland mutually agreed to terminate a 25-year lease agreement to operate the container facility at the Port’s Terminal 6, the agreement allows ICTSI Oregon to be relieved of its long-term lease obligations effective March 31, 2017, pending approval by the Port Commission.

MarineNews and Maritime Logistics Professional Editor Joseph Keefe on Thursday spent ten minutes with Oregon Public Broadcasting to discuss the fate and the future of Oregon's only deep water port. Listen in to find out more. As ICTSI Oregon, Inc. and the Port of Portland mutually agreed to terminate a 25-year lease agreement to operate the container facility at the Port’s Terminal 6, the agreement allows ICTSI Oregon to be relieved of its long-term lease obligations effective March 31, 2017, pending approval by the Port Commission.

The floating out  of the world’s largest nuclear-powered icebreaker Arktika in Russia’s St. Petersburg shows Russia's ambitions to control the top of the world in the 21st century. The Arktika launched early on June 16, ahead of its original 2017 schedule. Powered by two nuclear reactors, the 568 foot leviathan displaces over 33,000 metric tons of water and can break through ice 10 feet thick and 13 feet deep, according to Sputnik News. With a crew of 75 people, the Arktika will operate in the Western and Eastern Arctic seasonally. Russia is the only country in the world to use nuclear-powered icebreakers. Federation Council speaker Valentina Matvienko said: "It's hard to overestimate what has been done by our scientists, designers and shipbuilders.

A shipwreck thought to date to the nineteenth century has been discovered in the Indian Ocean by the team searching for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. The search for the plane, over an area of 46,000 square miles, is being directed by Australia’s Joint Agency Coordination Center (JACC). CNN reported on Jan 13 that in December a search boat glimpsed a shipwreck that may be 200 years old. “An anomalous sonar contact was identified in the course of the underwater search, with analysis suggesting the object was likely to be man-made, probably a shipwreck,” the Joint Agency Coordination Centre, an Australian agency directing the search for MH370.

Shipping containers are ready for their close up. Long the invisible building blocks of the global economy, shipping containers are having their moment. Entrepreneurs and developers are utilizing them on land, in full view of the public that depended on them for delivering, well, everything since they were widely adopted by shipping carriers in the late 60's. The containers are being used to build housing, shopping centers, medical facilities and even farms. NPR reported yesterday on a Boston-based company called "Freight Farms…

State officials in Hawaii consider there's little they can do to clean up a 223,000-gallon molasses spill that has killed thousands of fish, as swimmers, surfers and snorkelers were being warned that the massive die-off could attract sharks. A cracked pipe on a loading jetty caused the spill, according to NPR. The request for federal assistance allows the Coast Guard to support the lead agency with a wide variety of resources to include specialized response personnel, boats and equipment from the Coast Guard and other Federal Agencies. The captain of the port requested support from the Coast Guard’s National Strike Force for water sampling and monitoring and is currently coordinating with technical specialists from the EPA to help assess additional response mitigation strategies.

The EPA permit that has long allowed the SS Badger to dump coal ash into the lake is now under review. On the shores of Lake Michigan, the tiny town of Ludington, Mich., is home port to the last coal-fired ferry in the U.S. The SS Badger has been making trips across the lake to Manitowoc, Wis., during the good-weather months since 1953. And as it runs, the 411-foot ferry discharges coal ash slurry directly into the lake, reports NPR. An Environmental Protection Agency permit allows the Badger to dump four tons of ash into the lake daily.

In this timely work, James Giermanski describes the advent and subsequent development of security operations in the global supply chain, outlining the respective contributions of governmental and nongovernmental stakeholders to this worldwide concern. Global Supply Chain Security explores the potential impact of port-related catastrophic events in the United States and their effects worldwide, concentrating, in particular, on the United States’ contribution to global container security. Offering insights on deficiencies in U.S.

An American cruise line has said it "deeply regrets" the deaths of two Panamanian fishermen amid claims that one of its cruise ships failed to help their stranded boat, according to a CNN report. Princess Cruises said passengers on the Star Princess apparently alerted a crew member to the disabled fishing boat in March, but initial indications are that the captain was never told. Later that month, the Ecuadorian navy rescued the only survivor of what was meant to be an overnight fishing trip, 18-year-old Adrian Vasquez, after 28 days adrift. Since then, pressure has grown on the cruise line from local and international media to explain why it failed to help.

According to a Dec. 14 report from NPR, Vietnam's beleaguered state-run shipbuilding company does not have enough money to make a $6  loan payment next week, and has asked foreign creditors for more time to pay, state-run media reported. (Source: NPR)

According to a report from NPR, a technician responsible for monitoring gas levels told federal investigators on Dec. 7 that he never considered using his authority to stop work on the Deepwater Horizon rig even though mud-moving activities in the hours before the blast made him uncomfortable. Joseph Keith, who works for a unit of Halliburton, told the joint U.S. Coast Guard-Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement panel that the BP wellsite leader and mud engineers onboard would have been in a better position to assess whether work should have stopped. (Source: NPR)

According to a June 7 report from NPR, many people — from work boat captains to offshore caterers — say shutting down the industry for that long could be a bigger economic blow to the region than the oil spill itself. There's no doubt that the oil and gas industry is the biggest player in Louisiana's economy. It accounts for about 16 percent of the state's GDP, according to the Tulane University Energy Institute. Fishing accounts for one percent, and tourism four percent. (Source: National Public Radio)

FMC considered the petitions of three Chinese controlled carriers for relief from the 30-day waiting requirement for reduction of tariff rates of the Controlled Carrier Act (Petition Nos. P3-99, P4-03 and P6-03). As part of its deliberations, the Commission considered letters from the U.S. Maritime Administrator and the Under Secretary of State for Business, Economics and Agricultural Affairs that discuss commitments made in the recently-concluded bilateral Maritime Agreement between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China. The Administrator and the Under Secretary urge the Commission to favorably consider the Petitions. The Administrator also indicates that he will encourage U.S. carriers and shippers to support them.

Sea Star Line, LLC (Sea Star) announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire the assets of Navieras/NPR, Inc. (NPR) and of certain related entities. The agreement covers the purchase of ships, equipment, assignment of terminal leases, trade names and other assets related to NPR's Puerto Rico service. The purchase agreement, subject to U.S. Bankruptcy Court approval, will become effective at the end of April 2002. Sea Star's expanded service will provide the premium intermodal transportation system between the continental United States and Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The operation will combine Sea Star's versatile RoRo/LoLo service with Navieras' market-leading container service.

Sea Star Line, LLC (Sea Star) announced that its bid to purchase certain assets of Navieras/NPR, Inc. and of certain related entities was approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The Court also approved the closing date of April 26, 2002. “With this important step we are now moving from the planning phase into the implementation phase,” announced Mike Shea, president, Sea Star.

Tidewater Inc. (NYSE:TDW) announced on March 28 that William C. O'Malley, the company's Chairman, President and CEO for most of the past eight years, has officially stepped down as Tidewater's CEO, handing over the reins of leadership to Dean E. Taylor. Taylor, 53, has served as President of Tidewater since October 2001 when O'Malley, 65, announced his impending retirement at the end of March 2002. Taylor's career with Tidewater started in 1978 where he served as an assistant manager in the company's Morgan City, La. office. With his Navy background and business savvy, Taylor gradually worked his way up through Tidewater's ranks to become an executive vice president in December of 2000.