Provence News

Sweden-based shipowner Concordia Maritime announced it has sold three product tankers to a European buyer for above-market prices.The company said Friday that it has entered into an agreement for the sale of the 65,200 dwt vessels Stena Primorsk, Stena Performance and Stena Provence, all built in 2006 at Croatia's Brodosplit Shipyard. The ships are expected to be delivered to their new owner during the fourth quarter of 2022."The agreed price is significantly above the market valuations made mid 2022…

Sweden-based shipowner Concordia Maritime has agreed to sell three product tankers, Stena Primorsk, Stena Performance and Stena Provence, all built in 2006 and of 65,200 dwt, to an unnamed European buyer.Concordia Maritime said Friday that the delivery is expected to take place during the fourth quarter of 2022."The sale is expected to have a positive liquidity effect of approximately USD 30 million. The surplus will be used for repayment of loans," the company said.According to Concordia Maritime…

Port of Toulon, which handles over 1.6 million ferry and cruise passengers annually, has committed to ABB Shore Connection technology at a key stage in its sustainability drive.With around 1,300 yearly calls from ferries and cruise vessels right in the heart of the city, the port of Toulon plays an important role in developing the attractiveness of the region for business and tourists. The port is also central to the “Zero-smoke stopovers” plan by the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (Région Sud PACA)…

French marine services group Bourbon Corporation, which has been in a court restructuring process after its business was hit by volatile energy markets, said its assets would be taken over by its creditor banks.Bourbon said the Marseille commercial court had ruled that Bourbon's assets would be transferred to Société Phocéenne de Participations (SPP) from Jan. 2, 2020.SPP is owned by BNP Paribas, Caisse Régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel Alpes Provence, Caisse Régionale de Crédit Agricole Mutuel de Paris et d'Ile de France…

On the occasion of his visit to Marseille for the National Industry Council, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe came to inaugurate the new global headquarters of CEVA Logistics, a subsidiary of the CMA CGM Group, with Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the CMA CGM Group.The Prime Minister was accompanied by Elisabeth Borne, Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, the President of the South Region, Renaud Muselier, and Nicolas Sartini, Chief Executive Officer of CEVA Logistics.With the acquisition of CEVA Logistics in May 2019…

Italian cable manufacture Prysmian Group has secured a contract with turbine manufacturer Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE).The scope covers low voltage cables and assemblies for nacelles and low voltage cables for towers, Prysmian said. The deal also includes fully-terminated medium voltage assemblies for towers, it added.The supply includes products and services from Prysmian Group’s wind portfolio of low voltage cables and assemblies for nacelle platforms, low voltage cables for towers and fully terminated medium voltage assemblies for towers, well renowned to be specifically designed and optimized to work with high torsion,…

Naval Group has launched the seventh multi-mission FREMM frigate for the French Navy from a specialist facility in Lorient.Known as Alsace, the vessel is the first of the two air defence frigates under the FREMM programme  – Multi-Mission European Frigates – for the French Navy and the ninth multi-missions FREMM frigate.Thirteen months after the keel laying of the first block, the FREMM DA Alsace is released from the construction form of the Naval Group site of Lorient. Ninth multi-missions FREMM frigate, it is also the seventh one for the French Navy, ordered by the OCCAr on behalf of the DGA..In order to answer the operational requirements…

French multinational integrated oil and gas company Total S.A. has signed an agreement with Ecoslops S.A. that gives the oil major a 25% interest in its affiliate Ecoslops Provence.Ecoslops Provence is building a unit to regenerate oil residues at Total’s La Mède complex. The new facility is scheduled to come on stream in late 2019.Total is providing Ecoslops Provence with access to existing infrastructure and the services and utilities the unit needs to operate.“Thanks to our partnership with Total, we’ve been able to maximize the synergies between our activities and make our move into the Marseille region much simpler and less expensive…

More than 2,500 AK-47 automatic rifles were seized from a stateless skiff in the international waters of the Gulf of Aden at the end of August.U.S. Navy sailors aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) discovered the illicit weapons shipment during counter-trafficking mission on August 28.The Navy said 2,521 guns were confiscated from the skiff, which was determined to be stateless following a flag verification boarding conducted in accordance with international law.

Concordia Maritime said it has signed a contract to charter out the P-MAX tanker Stena Provence for another year from September 2018.The contractual partner is one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, who has used the vessel since 2014 for niche transportation of refined petroleum products, mainly in the Asia Pacific region.“This customer has a specific transport need, for which the large load capacity of our P-MAX vessels are well suited,” said says Kim Ullman, CEO of Concordia Maritime. “For our part, the contract is fully in line with our efforts to concentrate employment on niche trades where the P-MAX vessels’ unique properties are most beneficial.”This is Concordia Maritime’s second contract extension in the recent period.

ACO Marine has taken a substantial number of orders from European river cruise operators for the supply and retrofit installation of the company’s advanced wastewater treatment systems.The company, the water treatment division of Germany’s ACO Group, will supply wastewater management solutions based around its Maripur NF advanced sewage treatment plant to 10 river cruise vessels scheduled to drydock this winter.In addition to the Maripur NF units, the turnkey package includes grease separation systems…

French shipbuilder Naval Group said it floated the FREMM multi-mission frigate Normandie on February 1, roughly one year after the start of hull assembly in the building dock on the Lorient site. The eighth FREMM frigate to be built in Lorient and the sixth in a series ordered by OCCAR (Organization for Joint Armament Cooperation) on behalf of the DGA (French Defense Procurement Agency - Direction Générale de l’Armement) for the French Navy, the FREMM Normandie was taken out of…

French container shipping giant CMA CGM has set up a new global startup incubator to drive its digital strategy. Based in Marseilles, France, the incubator Ze Box is set to house a dozen of startups from around the world, starting in June this year. Located in Le Castel building, it will cover a surface of 800m² and will house, starting June 2018, a dozen of startups coming from all around the world to develop their potential. A call for applications will be launched shortly. The creation of Ze Box is part of CMA CGM’s strategy to make digitalization one of the pillars of its development. This innovation will accelerate, complete and strengthen the initiatives that have already been launched by the Group within the past months.

The members of the SMART PORT steering committee adopted a first series of projects designed to take advantage of the digital transition with a view to affirming and consolidating the importance of the Aix-Marseille Provence Metropolis as a seaport. The steering committee also supported the creation of a program focusing on research and innovation: the Brain Port Community. This partnership will be based on a multi-party agreement between Aix-Marseille Université, the Port of Marseille Fos, the CCIMP, Métropole Aix-Marseille, and the PACA region. The aim of the Brain Port Community project is to create a partnership between the academic community…

The members of the Smart Port  steering committee collectively approved a first series of projects that will take advantage of the digital transition to affirm and consolidate the port-based vocation of the Aix-Marseille-Provence urban area. With this dynamic, Marseille Fos, the French Smart Port in Med is being built! During a steering committee meeting including representatives of the government, Région Provence-AlpesCôte d'Azur, the Conseil Départmental des Bouches-du-Rhône, Métropole Aix-Marseille-Provence, Ville de Marseille, Etablissement Public Euroméditerranée, Caisse des Dépôts, Agence Régionale pour l’Innovation et l’Internationalisation des Entreprises…

Concordia Maritime signed a contract to charter out the P-MAX tanker Stena Provence. The contract is for one year, with an option for a further year, and runs from mid-September 2017. The contractual partner is one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies. The vessel has previously been used by the same customer for consecutive transportation of refined petroleum products, mainly in the Asia Pacific region. This is the second time charter contract for Concordia Maritime in recent months. A similar contract was signed with the same customer in June for the P-MAX vessel Stena Paris. “It’s always pleasing to be given a renewal of confidence. Long-standing customer relationships are one of the cornerstones of our strategy.

In early April DCNS delivered the FREMM multi-mission frigate Auvergne to the French Navy, the fourth of the series ordered by OCCAR1 on behalf of the DGA (French armament procurement agency). Delivery of the FREMM multi-mission frigate Auvergne is the result of a design and construction process managed by DCNS in close cooperation with the French Navy, DGA and OCCAR teams. “The delivery of the FREMM Auvergne represents an opportunity to applaud the industrial and technological prowess of DCNS and its subcontractors,"said Nicolas Gaspard, director of the FREMM program at DCNS.

The U.S. Navy released black-and-white video on Saturday it said was taken by an American helicopter showing an Iranian Revolutionary Guards vessel firing unguided rockets on Dec. 26 near warships including the aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran on Dec. The U.S. Navy said the infrared radar footage showed an Iranian "fast inshore attack craft" launching several rockets on Dec. 26 "in close proximity" to the Truman, the guided missile destroyer USS Bulkeley, the French naval frigate FS Provence and commercial ships in the busy waterway. The dispute underscored the ongoing tensions between the United States and Iran despite last year's international agreement to curb Iran's nuclear program. The video, taken by a Seahawk helicopter, runs about 30 seconds.

Sweden's Concordia Maritime says it has contracted out the 50,000 dwt P-MAX tankers Stena Provence and Stena Polari to a major oil and gas company for 6 months initially to run until the end of 2-14. "We are very proud to have concluded this deal and we are looking forward to continuing to develop this growing trade with refined petroleum products into the Asia Pacific with our business partner,” says Kim Ullman, CEO of Concordia Maritime. “Since January this year, we have adopted a more aggressive chartering strategy to maximize the vessels’ superior earnings capacity, which is also the case with this deal,” concludes Kim. Concordia adds that these P-MAX tankers are particularly well suited for this trade with their extremely shallow draft design.

Six partners led by the Marseilles Fos port authority have formed the Mourepiane combined transport terminal company (MTTC) to help finance and manage construction of the port’s long-planned intermodal upgrade development in the Marseilles harbor area. The €60.5 million project will create a high-performance base improving links and pre/post-dispatch handling between Mourepiane container terminal and the adjacent railhead. The new facility will also serve other Marseilles quays, with their current multimodal site at Canet being transferred to the Euromediterranee urban renewal scheme. Construction will start in summer 2015. The terminal is due on stream in mid-2017 and will be operated by a purpose-formed company of Marseilles and France-based multimodal specialists.

International tanker shipping company Concordia Maritime said it has renewed a contract with an international oil and gas company for 12 months for two vessels. The contract also includes an additional vessel for six months. The renewed contract relates to three P-MAX vessels: 2005-built Stena Paris and 2010-built Stena Provence and Stena Polaris. CEO of Concordia Maritime Kim Ullman said, "It's obviously very positive to achieve the renewed confidence of this customer, which has specific transport requirements that suits the high cargo capacity of our P-MAX vessels…

Concordia Maritime has renewed its contract with a major oil and gas company for a consecutive voyage charter arrangement for the P-MAX tankers Stena Provence and Stena Polaris. The agreement will run until the summer of 2015. “This is a testament to the fact that our P-MAX tankers make a major difference when properly utilized. We are very pleased to be able to extend this charter, which, alongside our business partner, we have long and successfully cultivated in this region of the world,” said Kim Ullman, CEO of Concordia Maritime.

Concordia Maritime has just renewed its contract with a major oil and gas company for a consecutive voyage charter arrangement for the P-MAX tankers Stena Provence and Stena Polaris. The agreement will run until the summer of 2015. “This is a testament to the fact that our P-MAX tankers make a major difference when properly utilized. We are very pleased to be able to extend this charter, which, alongside our business partner, we have long and successfully cultivated in this region of the world,” says Kim Ullman, CEO of Concordia Maritime. “We have been working hard throughout the year to implement a more assertive charter strategy to maximize the strong earnings capacity of the vessels, which is also the case within the framework of this agreement,” adds Kim Ullman.