Record Books News

Classification society Lloyd’s Register (LR) said it has awarded statement of compliance (SOC) certification to German marine engineering specialists MARSIG for its searecs electronic record book. The platform offers an electronic alternative to hardcopy logbooks and unifies the extensive collection of documents used on board a vessel into one logbook including bridge, engine, ballast water, oil and cargo records.The move toward electronic logbooks has been embraced by regulators as a much more effective way of monitoring this crucial information.

January proved to be a dramatic month for long-term ocean freight rates, with the latest data from the Xeneta Shipping Index (XSI) showing the largest ever month-on-month declines. According to the XSI, average long-term contracted rates dropped by 13.3% in January,  the fifth month in a row of falling prices on the index. Xeneta warns there is little sign of change ahead in what looks set to be a challenging year for carriers.“Global demand has fallen away, congestion has eased…

In an era of ever-smarter shipping, one key area of vessel and fleet administration appears stuck in the dark ages. Pierre Dominé explainswhy Stolt Tankers is rapidly transitioning to digital logbooks, unlocking a broad range of big data benefits.Although the switch from paper to digital logbooks is yet to be mandated, Pierre Dominé, Quality Assurance & Investigation Specialist, Stolt Tankers, sees no need to wait. “There’s so much data across a single vessel’s portfolio of record books…

Vessel operating company New Trade Ship Management S.A. and chief engineer Dennis Plasabas pleaded guilty in San Diego for maintaining false and incomplete records relating to the discharge of oily bilge water from the bulk carrier vessel Longshore.New Trade and Plasabas admitted that oily bilge water was illegally dumped from the Longshore directly into the ocean without being properly processed through required pollution prevention equipment. Oily bilge water typically contains oil contamination from the operation and cleaning of machinery on the vessel. The defendants also admitted that these illegal discharges were not recorded in the vessel’s oil record book as required by law.

Navtor has inked a deal to acquire Ingenium Marine, a transaction subject to execution of definitive agreements. Once completed, Ingenium will become a fully integrated Navtor company and continue to operate from Mumbai, India, and Navtor will integrate digital logbooks into its e-Navigation and performance product portfolio. According to Navtor CEO Tor Svanes, this latest move will “transform the way the industry views traditional log-keeping,” unlocking a spectrum of benefits…

Raytheon Anschütz, a business of Raytheon Technologies, has launched an electronic logbook for ships. Dubbed eLog, it is designed to provide secure, quality logbook data and is positioned by the company as a step toward paperless shipping and improved efficiency of onboard processes.Featuring automatic data entry from navigation systems such as the automatic identification system (AIS) or the integrated navigation system (INS), at defined intervals, eLog also enables data input by crews via laptop or mobile devices…

This will be my last monthly article for Maritime Reporter & Engineering News. I started writing these articles in early 2002, just over 19 years ago and during that time I have written over 228 articles, missing only one month when my grandson was hospitalized. (I have also written about 6,200 of my (almost) daily newsletters.) Early articles were focused on maritime security, which was still in evolution following the horrific terrorist incidents in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington, DC.

The IMO’s MARPOL Annex IV is being revised to confirm the lifetime performance of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs). This may finally bring about grey water regulation – a necessity that is long overdue.Black Water and Grey WaterA ship’s sewage (black water) is collected from toilets, urinals and hospitals. The IMO’s MARPOL Annex IV prohibits its discharge, except when treated by an STP or discharged at > 12nm from the nearest land. A ship’s grey water, collected from showers, wash basins…

Maritime compliance and navigation services firm OneOcean announced the launch of LogCentral, a secure, easy-to-apply digital tool that aims to make collecting and sharing vessel data quick and simple.“LogCentral is a genuine breakthrough, not just for optimizing the usage of electronic logbooks but also for driving fleet-wide efficiencies,” says Martin Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of OneOcean. “Data goes through comprehensive validation at point of entry to massively improve accuracy.

United States Department of Justice’s steadfast protection of U.S. waters equates to criminal charges and massive finesThe United States has a long history of holding companies and individuals accountable for violating environmental laws and regulations, including the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). With the 40th anniversary of the passage of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), which implements MARPOL, United States government agencies continue to prioritize the protection of oceans and waterways from pollution.

The Cyprus Shipping Deputy Ministry (SDM) formally announced it has adopted a new process to facilitate crew changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Crew changes for vessels are possible in Cyprus provided certain conditions are met. The relevant decrees issued by the Ministry of Health also permit the long-term stay in anchorage of vessels, including cruise ships (warm lay-up).Cyprus is actively supporting and implementing such measures, in support of recommendations from the International Maritime Organization (IMO)…

In addition to fuel, modern ships also run on paper or their electronic equivalent. Vessels are required to keep written or electronic records of many things – and the list is growing.There is the traditional Ship’s Log, which records the vessel’s position, course, speed, weather, and unusual events to name a few. The Oil Record Book (ORB) has been around for a long time and tracks all movement of oil throughout the vessel, including its loading, consumption, and discharge (generally via the oily water separator and overboard discharge piping).

Cyprus-based maritime technology & marine risk prevention firm Prevention at Sea Ltd has been awarded a contract from Oldenorff Carriers for switching from the traditional paper Oil Record Book to ε-ORB (electronic Oil Record Book).Oldendorff Carriers’ decision was based on recognition of the burdens arising from the use of the traditional paper version of MARPOL Oil Record Books as well as the complexity and accuracy of recording proper operational entries relating to discharges…

Qatargas, the world's largest liquefied natural gas company, has announced the safe delivery of the largest single cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the Marmara LNG Terminal in Turkey.The super-chilled LNG was delivered on board the Q-Flex vessel ‘Al Sheehaniya’, which enters the record books as the first ever Q-Flex vessel to call at the recently expanded Marmara LNG Terminal.A press release from the Qatar-based global energy operator quoted Khalid bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chief Executive Officer, Qatargas as sayig: “The recent expansion of Marmara LNG Terminal allows Qatargas to send the world's largest LNG vessels to yet another LNG terminal in Turkey.""With 14 LNG trains and a total annual production capacity of 77 million tonnes…

NAPA, the maritime software, services and data analysis provider announced that its industry-benchmark electronic logbook, NAPA Logbook, is now available as a monthly service solution.According to media release, this reduced barrier to entry will bring the connectivity and job automation benefits of digital logbooks to more of the maritime market. NAPA Logbook will also be one of the first integrations with NAPA Mobile, enabling support for smartphone logbook entries wherever the crew are onboard.As the world’s leading provider of electronic logbooks, NAPA Logbook has more than a decade’s service on board vessels serving more than 8,000 users and is approved by more than 20 major flag states, including the Bahamas, Marshall Islands, Panama, Malta and Singapore.

Biofouling was a backburner issue until 5 March 2017. On that day the Government of New Zealand ordered the bulk carrier DL MARIGOLD out of NZ waters after the vessel’s hull was determined to be excessively fouled with potentially invasive organisms including barnacles and tube worms. The bulker was not allowed back until it showed that the underwater surfaces had been thoroughly cleaned. This was the first known instance of a vessel expulsion due to biofouling. It was also significant…

Princess Cruise Lines Ltd. was sentenced to pay a $40 million penalty – the largest-ever for crimes involving deliberate vessel pollution – related to illegal dumping overboard of oil contaminated waste and falsification of official logs in order to conceal the discharges. The sentence was announced by Acting Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood for the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Acting U.S. Attorney Benjamin G. Greenberg for the Southern District of Florida in Miami. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Patricia A.

The Port of Virginia rewrote its record books once again, having handled 235,511 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in August, making it the single busiest month in the port’s history. In comparison with last August, TEU volumes are up 7 percent; rail units up 20 percent and truck volume up .4 percent; and volume at Richmond Marine Terminal (RMT) is up 33 percent. Moreover, October marks the seventh consecutive month of TEU volumes exceeding 210,000 units. The peak-season cargo is moving and those volumes are putting the port on pace to exceed last year’s total of 2.5 million TEUs, said John F. Reinhart, CEO and executive director of the Virginia Port Authority.

The Liberian Registry, in partnership with Prevention at Sea Ltd, a Cyprus-based maritime compliance technology company, has launched an innovative software product designed to replace traditional paper oil record books (ORBs) and to facilitate correct ORB entries into an efficient electronic format. Liberia’s Electronic Oil Record Book (ε-ORB) is the most recent in a long line of ground-breaking industry initiatives designed to make the Liberian-flag fleet the safest, greenest and most efficient afloat. It is intended to address a variety of issues, including oil record books being reported missing on board, failure to document entries in the ORB of internal transfer of oily mixture…

Since July 2001, all ships entering Australian ports or waters from overseas have been subject to Australia’s national ballast water management requirements. These are currently enforced under the Quarantine Act 1908, but from June 16, 2016, they will be enforced under the  Biosecurity Act 2015. This has been drafted to move Australian legislation towards consistency with the International Maritime Organization’s Ballast Water Management Convention (the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments 2004). At present, the Australian national requirements only list ballast water exchange as a valid ballast water management method and do not list ‘alternative ballast water management methods’ such as ballast water treatment systems.

The Norwegian shipping company DSD Shipping (DSD) was sentenced to pay a total corporate penalty of $2.5 million as a result of its convictions in Mobile, Alabama, for obstructing justice, violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS), tampering with witnesses and conspiring to commit these offenses. The company was ordered to pay $500,000 of the penalty to the Dauphin Island Sea Lab Foundation to fund marine research and enhance coastal habitats in the Gulf of Mexico and Mobile Bay. In addition, DSD was placed on a three year term of probation and was ordered to implement an environmental compliance plan to ensure the company’s vessels obeyed domestic and international environmental regulations in the future. The sentence was announced by Assistant Attorney General John C.

Johor, Malaysia – GAC Pindar skipper Ian Williams has today entered the record books as the first to win sailing’s World Match Racing Tour title six times. Williams previously won the title in 2007, 2008, 2011, 2012, and 2015. He beats his own record set last year when he won the title for the fifth time. Today’s victory will go down as Williams’s best yet, after being drawn into a thrilling three-way battle with Björn Hansen (Nautiska) and Taylor Canfield (US One). Williams went into the final event of the tour, the Monsoon Cup, knowing that the tour title would be his if he finished ahead of either of his two challengers, due to the 2 point lead accumulated over the season.

Noble Drilling (U.S.) LLC was charged with environmental and maritime crimes for operating the drill ship Noble Discoverer and the drilling unit Kulluk in violation of federal law in Alaska in 2012, the Department of Justice announced. Under the terms of a plea agreement filed in federal court today, Noble will plead guilty to eight felony offenses, pay $12.2 million dollars in fines and community service payments, implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan, and will be placed on probation for four years. In addition, Noble’s parent corporation, Noble Corporation plc, headquartered in London, England, will implement an Environmental…