Ocean Sea News

Every day, nearly 60 fully loaded very large crude-oil carriers sail between the Persian Gulf and Chinese ports, carrying about half of the oil that powers the world's second-largest economy.As the vessels enter the South China Sea, they ply waters increasingly controlled by China's growing military, from the missile batteries and airfields at its bases on disputed islands to its stealthy Type 055 destroyers.But when crossing the Indian Ocean, joined by others headed to China from Africa and Brazil…

Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) has honored Thomas B. Crowley, Jr., CEO and Chairman of the Crowley Corporation, as Person of the Year.The Academy has an established tradition of honoring a civilian or military leader with a distinguished career of excellence, innovation, and service to the maritime industries and other related industries with the Emery Rice Medal, named for an 1897 Academy graduate and WWI hero. Captain Rice was twice recognized by President Theodore Roosevelt for his maritime skill and bravery.Crowley has been at the helm of the privately-held…

Weathernews Inc. Global Ice Center announced its review of Arctic Ocean sea ice conditions during 2021. Due to the cool summer temperatures in July 2021, sea ice did not see much melt and the minimum sea ice area for the year was the largest in the past seven years at 4.61 million km2.Weathernews Inc. Global Ice Center said Monday that both the Northeast (Russian side) and the Northwest (Canadian side) Passages of the Northern Sea Route remained closed. This is the first time in 12 years since 2009 that the Northeast Passage did not open.

Australia’s newly completed icebreaker, RSV Nuyina, has left the Netherlands port of Vlissingen to commence trials in the North Sea.The start of the month-long sea trials, which had been pushed back due to delays stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, will be followed by additional weeks of deepwater trials involving the Australian Antarctic Division, ship managers Serco and shipbuilder Damen. Testing of the ship’s speed, noise, propulsion systems, steering, advanced electrical…

The technology group Wärtsilä will upgrade its Vessel Traffic Management System (VTMS) installed in the Indian port of Cochin, bringing additional benefits such as improved traffic monitoring and control.The system was originally delivered in 2008, and the order with Wärtsilä to upgrade the system was placed in February 2020 by the Cochin Port Trust (CoPT). The upgrading project is scheduled for completion by the end of July 2020.According to Wärtsilä, the upgraded VTMS will enable…

Crowley Maritime Corp. announced today that Ray Fitzgerald, who began his career with Crowley and most recently served as president and chief operating officer of Wallenius Wilhelmsen Solutions, and chairman of American Roll-on Roll-off Carrier (ARC), will rejoin the company March 1 as chief operating officer reporting to Tom Crowley, company chairman and CEO. He will be based at the company’s headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla.Fitzgerald will lead the team of Crowley’s four senior vice presidents and general managers: Rocky Smith…

The United Seamen’s Service  announced that U.S. Secretary of Transportation, The Honorable Elaine L. Chao, will receive the 2019 Admiral of the Ocean Sea Award based on her career-long commitment to the maritime industry. The other, previously announced recipients are James Given, President of the Seafarers International Union of Canada; Anil Mathur, President and CEO of Alaska Tanker Corp.; and Joseph Pyne, Chairman of the Board of the Kirby Corporation.The award will be presented at the 50th annual AOTOS gala at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on November 1, 2019.

The global Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) as a bunker fuel market was valued around US$ 550 million in 2017, and is expected to register a CAGR of over 8.5%. The bunker fuel market revenue value is exprected to reach US$ 1,263.2 million in 2026.According to a market research report, based on the region the market is segmented into US, Europe, China, India, Japan, and Southeast Asia. Europe market is expected to dominate the global LNG as a bunker fuel market, and it accounts for largest market revenue over US$ 260 mn in 2017 as compared to that of markets in other regions.Dominance by Europe market is expected to continue over the forecast period with comparatively higher CAGR than that of other regions…

TOTE Inc. president and CEO Anthony Chiarello will retire this summer after eight years at the helm and nearly four decades in the maritime industry. “As I look ahead to my 63rd birthday later this year, it is time for me to spend more time with my family and loved ones,” Chiarello said. TOTE said its parent company Saltchuk will make an announcement regarding Chiarello’s successor in due course. Chiarello began his career in stevedoring at ITO, now part of Ports America, in the…

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono has visited the port of Colombo in Sri Lanka. Kono was briefed by Sri Lankan government officials about a project under consideration to expand the port. The Japanese Foreign Minister  also visited the newly built control tower and the Colombo Port Expansion Project currently known as the Colombo south Port. Colombo is the largest port in Sri Lanka, which is a strategically important point in Indian Ocean sea lanes. Taro Kono was briefed by the Chairman of Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake about the project, the consideration to expand the facility and the ‘Three Year Plan’ that has currently been initiated to develop the Port of Colombo. The Japanese government has been involved in building port facilities there for many years.

Project, breakbulk and heavylift cargo transport company Intermarine, LLC announced that its President & CEO, Andre Grikitis, will be awarded with the Admiral of the Ocean Sea by the United Seaman’s Service (USS) at the organization’s 48th annual gala at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on October 13, 2017. The Admiral of The Ocean Sea Award (AOTOS) has been presented annually by United Seamen's Service for the past 47 years. The AOTOS Award is given in…

Officers and crewmembers of the Crowley Maritime Corp.-managed cargo ship M/V Ocean Glory were recently honored with a 2016 Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Mariners’ Plaque for demonstrating heroism at sea during the United Seamen’s Service’s (USS) annual AOTOS awards ceremony in New York. The mariners were recognized for their August 2016 rescue of an Indonesian fisherman in the vicinity of the Bali Strait while en route to Banyuwangi, Indonesia. Accepting the award on behalf of the ship's officers and crew was Capt. Christopher Hill, master on the M/V Ocean Glory.

Arthur E. Imperatore, Founder and President of New York Waterways; Captain Donald Marcus, International President of the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots; and Christopher Wiernicki, Chairman, President and CEO of the American Bureau of Shipping, were recipients of the maritime industry's most prestigious Admiral of the Ocean Sea awards presented at the 47th annual United Seamen's Service gala industry dinner and dance October 28, 2016. The event was held at the at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City. Recognition was also given to American seafarers for specific acts of bravery and heroism while at sea. (See separate news release).

Expedition cruise ship Hanseatic has navigated the Northeast Passage for the second time, completing its journey through the Arctic Ocean sea route in the early hours of September 7, 2016. After sailing a total of 5,542 nautical miles, the ship will arrive in Nome on September 10 and officially end its cruise. In 2014, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises’ Hanseatic became the first non-Russian cruise ship to navigate the Northeast Passage, which runs along the north coasts of Asia and Europe, from the Bering Strait to the White Sea.

The United Seamen's Service (USS) 2016 Admiral of the Ocean Sea Awards (AOTOS) will be presented to Arthur E. Imperatore, Founder and President of New York Waterways; Donald Marcus, President of the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots; and Christopher Wiernicki, Chairman and CEO of American Bureau of Shipping. The maritime industry's most prestigious awards will be presented at the 47th annual gala industry dinner and dance at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on October 28, 2016. Recognition will also be given to American seafarers for specific acts of bravery and heroism while at sea. General Kenneth Wykle…

The United Seamen's Service (USS) honored Anthony Chiarello, President and CEO of TOTE Inc.; Matthew J. Cox, President and CEO of Matson; and James C. McKenna, President and CEO of Pacific Maritime Association with the 2015 Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Award. The maritime industry's most prestigious award was presented at the 46th annual gala held at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on November 13, 2015. At this gala, the recipients shared the evening with a group of American seafarers who were recognized by the USS for specific acts of bravery at sea. All three recipients shared a history of early family ties to the maritime industry. Mr. McKenna spoke of his father-in-law introducing him to the waterfront nearly 45 years ago. Mr.

As part of growing strategic relationship to counter China's increased activity in the Indian Ocean,  India and Australia will focus on anti-submarine warfare in their first ever joint naval exercises,  reports SMH. The Indian Navy and Royal Australian Navy are gearing up for the first-ever joint maritime exercise, AUSINDEX. The war games starting Sept. 11 off India's Visakhapatnam port in the Bay of Bengal will include exercises to protect a tanker from a hostile attack submarine. The joint maritime exercise between the two natio-ns assumes significance in the backdrop of China trying to gain access to the Bay of Bengal, by cultivating naval cooperation with Ba-ngladesh…

Anthony Chiarello, Matthew J. Cox and James C. The United Seamen's Service (USS) 2015 Admiral of the Ocean Sea Awards (AOTOS) will be presented to Anthony Chiarello, President and CEO of TOTE; Matthew J. Cox, President/CEO of Matson Inc.; and James C. McKenna, President and CEO of Pacific Maritime Association. The maritime industry awards are to be presented at the 46th annual gala industry dinner and dance in New York on November 13, 2015. Recognition will also be given to American seafarers for specific acts of bravery and heroism while at sea.

The U.S. How did an urgent requirement to build a road to Alaska end up helping to design submarines and to recover oil spills in the Arctic ice? The Army Corps of Engineers was faced with a monumental challenge of building a highway to connect the “lower 48” to Alaska during World War II to keep America’s northernmost territory secure from invasion. The road crossed hundreds of miles of wilderness, and much of the roadbed sat up permafrost, presenting challenges to America’s roadbuilders.

The United Seamen's Service (USS) 2014 Admiral of the Ocean Sea Awards (AOTOS) were presented to Stephen Cotton, General Secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF); Joseph J. Cox, President/CEO, Chamber of Shipping of America; and Frederick J. Harris, President of General Dynamics NASSCO and Bath Iron Works, an American shipbuilder. The maritime industry's most prestigious awards were presented at a gala industry dinner and dance held at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on November 7, 2014.

The MV Cape Ray, a Keystone-managed Ready Reserve Force containership that worked in the Mediterranean Sea for the U.S. Government neutralizing chemical material from Syria, will receive a special recognition on November 7 at the United Seamen's Service Admiral of the Ocean Sea (USS AOTOS) event. Military and civilian specialists spent some 10 months completing the mission of neutralizing more than 600 tons or 80 percent of Syria's stockpile. The effluents were then dropped off at Finland and Germany for final disposal.

The United Seamen's Service (USS) informs that 2014 Admiral of the Ocean Sea Awards (AOTOS) will be presented to Stephen Cotton, General Secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF); Joseph J. Cox, President/CEO, Chamber of Shipping of America; and Frederick J. Harris, President of  American shipbuilder General Dynamics NASSCO. The awards will be presented at a gala industry dinner and dance to be held at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel, New York City, on November 7, 2014. Recognition will also be given to American Seafarers for specific acts of bravery and heroism while at sea. In announcing the recipients…

Michael G. Chalos has joined the New York office of global law firm K&L Gates LLP as a partner in the maritime practice. Previously the senior partner at the firm of Chalos O’Connor, LLP, Chalos is accompanied in his move by associates Luke Reid and George Kontakis in the firm’s Boston and New York offices, respectively. With a focus on traditional maritime and criminal environmental law, Chalos represents clients involved in high-profile civil and criminal environmental litigation. This has included the successful defense of the masters of the Exxon Valdez oil tanker and Selendang Ayu cargo ship, as well as numerous United States- and foreign-based corporations, ship owners, managers, operators, and crew who were the targets of criminal investigations by the U.S. government.