Offer Services News

Serco has signed on a team assembled by Vard Marine Inc. to replace the Royal Canadian Navy’s (RCN) Kingston Class Maritime Coastal Defense Vessels (MCDV) under Pillar Two of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy.Vard Marine, a Fincantieri company, launched VIGILANCE in 2023 to "provide the RCN with a state-of-the-art, capable, operationally flexible, and globally deployable multi-mission naval vessel" that is designed, built and equipped in Canada.Other Team Vigilance partner companies include Ontario Shipyards…

Commissioning Service Operation Vessel (CSOV) REM Power was named at a ceremony in Aalesund, Norway on Friday.The Rem Power, owned by Rem Purus, designed to offer services and maintenance operations at offshore wind farms, was named in the center of Ålesund in front of shipbuilder VARD’s headquarters.This is the first of two CSOVs VARD is delivering to Rem Purus.The REM Power is a CSOV of the VARD 4 19 design, developed by Vard Design. The vessel is equipped to provide services during both construction…

Damen Shipyards Group and Caterpillar have signed a global value agreement enabling Damen to provide bow-to-stern services and extend the scope of services offered to Damen Shipyard customers, including but not limited to fleet management and monitoring systems. Damen views the agreement as a milestone in their strategy to streamline services for their customers. The shipyards group’s philosophy of standardization is further improved with a comprehensive service program for Cat…

ScaffFloat, a patented plastic float that allows pontoons, barges and workboats to be built from standard scaffold components, has just launched its first pontoon in Australia through one of its local partners, AEG Group.Perth-based Access Engineering Group is the first scaffold firm in Australia to become an approved partner of the system, and last week launched an 8m x 4m ScaffFloat pontoon with a submerged access shelf cantilevered of the end to give bespoke access to their…

The Great Lakes Towing Company said it is expanding its harbor towing and ice breaking services to Sturgeon Bay, Wis.The Towing Company has undertaken a fleet renewal program that began with the laying of 10 keels in August 2016. Since that time, the company has added five new Damen Stan 1907 ICE design tugs to its fleet, with the sixth new tug being delivered next month, and the seventh in Spring 2022.There will now be two Towing Company tugs stationed in Sturgeon Bay full-time, including a former Navy YTB.

Abu Dhabi Ports’ maritime arm SAFEEN has signed an agreement with offshore vessel owner Allianz Marine & Logistics Services (AMLS), to launch a new international provider of integrated maritime logistic services."Operating under the title of Offshore Support and Logistics Services Company (OFCO – Offshore International), headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the new joint venture will be one of the largest, most capable, and cost-efficient providers of onshore and offshore integrated logistics solutions and subsea services in the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Counci] Gulf Cooperation Council region and beyond," Abu Dhabi Ports said in a statement.According to the statement released Thursday…

Everett Ship Repair (ESR) is a relatively new name in the U.S. ship repair business. Established in October 2019, the Pacific Northwest shipyard is owned by Ice Cap Holdings, LLC, which is also the parent company to another shipyard not too far away: Nichols Brothers Boat Builders (NBBB).Both ESR and NBBB are headed up by CEO Gavin Higgins, who is responsible for the development of new business opportunities and cultivation of new business relationships, including working with industry groups…

Norwegian oil and gas rig operator Dolphin Drilling filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday, leading creditors to seize its key assets in a restructuring that will see the company maintain operations.Formerly known as Fred. Olsen Energy, Dolphin Drilling ASA had debt of just over $1 billion at the end of 2018 and a net loss for the year of almost $300 million, its annual report shows.Once a dominant supplier of drilling rigs to oil and gas firms exploring the North Sea, Dolphin was…

Inmarsat and NAPA have signed an agreement to enable ship owners and ship managers to access and analyze real-time onboard data more efficiently through a dedicated application hosted on Inmarsat’s new Fleet Data IoT service.Developed by Inmarsat and Danelec Marine, and made commercially available earlier this year, Fleet Data collects data from onboard sensors, pre-processes that data, and uploads it to a central cloud-based database equipped with a dashboard and an Application Process Interface (API).NAPA will then use this data to offer services for vessel performance monitoring…

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) has announced that it has signed a long-term charter contract to operate Asia's largest (12,000m3-class) LNG bunkering vessel in Singapore, the world's largest fuel supply port, with Pavilion Gas, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pavilion Energy.Demand for LNG as bunker fuel is expected to grow on a global scale as stricter SOx regulations take effect in January 2020. Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) is focusing considerable effort on development of an LNG fuel supply infrastructure and implementing policies aimed at creating the world's largest LNG fuel supply port.The Japanese government also concluded a "Memorandum of understanding in relation to the cooperation on the development of LNG as a marine fuel" with seven other countries…

Danish Maritime Authority (DMA) and the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) signed a common agreement on safety standards for the carriage of passengers in the Flensborg Fjord. This agreement clearly defines the scope of safety standards to be met by passenger vessels and ferries. For instance, vessels must be equipped with lifejackets, life rafts and the necessary fire safety. If these requirements are met, Germany inland water way vessels will be allowed to carry passengers, use Danish ports and offer services on both the Danish and German part of the Flensborg Fjord. Brian Mikkelsen, Minister for Industry…

On 29 May at the presentation ceremony for the International Maritime Awards, held at the two-day Shiptek 2016 conference in Dubai, Damen Shipyards Sharjah (DSSh) received the prize for Best New Building Yard. The trophy was accepted at the ceremony by DSSh managing director Lars Seistrup. DSSh is a joint venture between the Damen Shipyards Group and Albwardy Investment, bringing Damen quality and skills to the UAE. The new yard has the facilities to repair and construct all type of vessels, and has recently delivered tugs, workboats, support vessels, dredgers, landing craft, floating docks, barges and pontoons, to operators in and around the Arabian Gulf.

The PALFINGER Group has signed today the acquisition of 100 per cent of the shares in Herkules Harding Holding AS and thus, the globally operating Harding Group. The seller is the Norwegian private equity fund Herkules. Harding is one of the leading suppliers of lifesaving equipment and lifecycle services for maritime installations and ships. Through this acquisition, PALFINGER will add new products and an international service network to its marine business. The final closing of this acquisition of Harding by PALFINGER is contingent on the approval of the authorities. Both parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. Styrk Bekkenes, CEO of Harding, is very enthusiastic about the acquisition. “PALFINGER is a perfect match for Harding.

NileDutch, West Africa specialist container line based in the Netherlands, will take over the final portion of Safmarine MPV, which sails a mixture of containers and project cargo to and from West Africa. Safmarine MPV is owned by Denmark’s Maersk Line. The operations of Safmarine MPVs Europe to West Africa services will continue as NileDutch MPV with the first sailing commencing in April. The acquisition marks the start of NileDutch’s venture into the multipurpose vessel business, enabling it to offer services to customers of containerized, oil and gas, project and conventional cargo to carry a mix of cargo on the same vessel under a single bill of lading.

Wärtsilä, the leading global supplier of flexible and efficient power plant solutions and services, has signed a maintenance agreement with Ensco, a global provider of offshore drilling services to the petroleum industry. The agreement, signed in September 2015, will create both short- and long-term savings by optimising Ensco's assets and improving predictability through extensive condition monitoring services and parts supply management for Ensco's four drillships equipped with six Wärtsilä 32 engines. In the offshore markets, Wärtsilä's customers are continuously seeking increased reliability, maximum uptime and optimal operational efficiency as well as ensuring safe and sustainable environmental performance in harsh environments.

PwC Greece has  introduced a new team of specialists focusing on sustainable business in the shipping sector, the Maritime Sustainability Center, led by the well-known shipping sustainability expert, Ms. Helena Athoussaki. Working within PwC’s Shipping Advisory Group, the Maritime Sustainability Center will offer services for shipping companies to enhance the performance monitoring of their fleet, and compliance with the new EU legal requirements on monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) of CO2 emissions from maritime activities. The new EU Regulation entered into force on 1 July 2015, aiming to establish an EU-wide system for monitoring…

Global Ports Holding has signed a binding deal to acquire a 30.79 percent stake in Valetta Cruise Port Plc (VCP), which has operational rights of the Malta cruise port and its retail areas. The stakes transfer's completion will depend on the finalization of required legal and administrative approvals as well as future decisions by other partners of VCP about acquiring any more stakes. VCP won the operational rights of the Valetta Cruise Port in Malta, along with its accompanying buildings and lands measuring over 48,000 square meters, in an international tender in 2002 for the next 65 years, according to the statement. The company has also undertaken retail sales through Travel Shopping Ltd, with some 90 percent of stakes owned by it.

Finnlines, a Ro-Ro and passenger vessel operator with services in the North and Baltic Seas, has contracted Wärtsilä to supply three vessels with exhaust cleaning scrubber systems. The deal marks a repeat order for Wärtsilä, following a similar contract from Finnlines in 2014 to have six of its ships fitted with exhaust gas cleaning systems. Part of the Grimaldi Group, Finnlines' passenger-freight vessels offer services from Germany to Finland and Sweden, as well as from Sweden via the Åland Islands to Finland. Tapani Voionmaa, Group General Counsel, Finnlines Plc., called the latest order an important step toward having Finnlines’ entire Baltic fleet equipped with scrubbers.

Ramco Systems has  announced that it has been awarded a five-year contract from the Asia division of Vopak, the world’s largest independent tank storage provider, to integrate a part of its regional Human Resource functions into a single platform. Ramco will offer its HRO (Human Resource Outsourcing) services on top of Ramco’s HCM (Human Capital Management) product which is being used by leading multinationals globally. Under the five-year contract, Ramco’s HCM Solution and HRO Services will be made available to more than 700 employees across eight Vopak entities in Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Australia and India. Ramco HCM on Cloud will integrate payroll…

Last Tuesday’s announcement of the formation of the “Ocean Three” alliance – actually a combination of vessel sharing, slot exchange and slot charter agreements – confirmed one of the worst kept industry secrets. But what will be its impact on the competition? Drewry Maritime Research consider in this excerpt from their latest 'Container Insight Weekly''. The coming together from late 2014 of CMA CGM with CSCL and UASC was widely anticipated after the decision in June of Maersk Line and MSC to jettison CMA CGM in their 10-year “2M” VSA that replaced the original P3 Network plan. Having been left out in the cold by its erstwhile P3 partners…

Regional Reporting Inc. (RRI) and Global Risk Evaluations (GREvL) inform of the creation of a joint venture aimed at expanding their marine services offerings. The new company Marine Reporting International Ltd. (MRI) will combine the marine division of GREvL and RRI's UK subsidiary. The new company Marine Reporting International Ltd. (MRI) will combine the marine division of GREvL and RRI's UK subsidiary. MRI will be headed by John Worrall and John Arber, supported by George Stobbs and Marek Domanski. They will be joined by Matthew Cook in the UK and Stephen Cook acting as liaison with RRI's Marine Division to provide services on behalf of MRI throughout the USA and Canada. The combined strengths of GREvL Marine and RRI will support and grow this strong North Atlantic Alliance.

Container shippers of the G6 Alliance announced four sailings within their Asia-Europe product have been cancelled in response to changes in market demand. Loop 6 service in week 40 (westbound ETA Kaohsiung, October 1, 2015). Kaohsiung will be added as a westbound call, while Jebel Ali will be inserted on the eastbound leg of Loop 7. The westbound Colombo and Xiamen calls will be added into Loop 4. Loop 7 service in week 41 (westbound ETA Qingdao October 5, 2015). Qingdao will be added to Loop 4 on the westbound leg in the corresponding week…

As Goltens celebrates 75 years serving the maritime industry, Roy Strand discusses the iconic company’s historic market strengths and its big push into the Ballast Water Treatment sector. Your company is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. For readers who may not be familiar with the details of the company, can you provide a brief on its founding? The company was founded by Sigurd Golten in 1940. Golten was born in Western Norway and sailed as a merchant engineer from the age of 14. While sailing, he saw first-hand the importance of top-quality machine shops and repair providers.