Ribbon Cutting News

The United States’ vast network of navigable inland rivers is vital to the nation’s economy, serving as an aquatic superhighway for the efficient shipment of critical commodities like agricultural goods, energy products, building materials and industrial chemicals to destinations within the U.S. and to deepwater ports for export. The Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI), which advocates for a modern, efficient and well-maintained inland waterways, often describes the network as “the…

Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) on Monday held a naming ceremony for its new ultra large containership MSC Nicola Mastro in Intaly's Port of Trieste.The 400-meter-long 24,116 TEU newbuild was built by China State Shipbuilding Corporation's Jiangnan Shipyard as part of MSC's new record-breaking Celestino Maresca class, among the world's largest containerships. "At MSC, we continue to modernize our fleet and are investing in the most fuel-efficient vessels by design. The MSC Nicola Mastro is one of those vessels…

In a ceremony held in Trinidad and Tobago on November 23, 2022, Proman Stena Bulk Ltd formally named its first newbuild IMOIIMeMAX methanol-fueled 49,900 DWT vessel, Stena Pro Patria.Stena Pro Patria is the first of three methanol-fueled vessels delivered in 2022 to the joint venture between tanker company Stena Bulk and the methanol producer Proman, with a further three newbuilds due for  delivery between now and 2024.The naming ceremony was the first for a methanol-fueled newbuild in Trinidad and Tobago, and was attended by Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime  Minister, Dr.

EJE Dredging Service, as part of a public/private partnership with Dare County, has taken delivery of a new shallow-draft hopper dredge on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.The newbuild Miss Katie departed from Conrad Shipyard in in Morgan City, La. on August 13, and arrived at its new home port in Wanchese on August 19.The dredge is the result of a yearslong collaboration between Dare County officials and Greenville, N.C.-based EJE Dredging Service, a private partner that owns and operates the 156-foot-long dredge.“With the arrival of the Miss Katie…

Italian cruise line Costa Cruises on Thursday held a christening ceremony for its new flagship, the Costa Toscana, in the port of Barcelona, Spain.The LNG-powered, Italian-flagged ship sailed away from Civitavecchia, Italy on Monday, making a stop in Naples on Thursday, before arriving in Barcelona on Thursday for the christening ceremony. The 337-meter ship is one of the largest ocean liners and can accommodate 6,554 passengers. Chanel, a Cuban-Spanish singer, dancer, and actress…

The project to deepen 11 miles of the federal shipping channel from the sea buoy to JAXPORT’s Blount Island Marine Terminal to a depth of 47 feet from its previous depth of 40 feet has been completed. Federal, state, and local leaders joined JAXPORT and the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Jacksonville District to celebrate the project's completion.The 47-foot harbor provides the channel depth needed for larger ships to call Blount Island to and from destinations worldwide and allows existing ships calling Jacksonville to carry more cargo on board.

SUNY Maritime College on Monday announced three major construction projects totaling $24.8 million that will enhance and build on the campus’s state-of-the-art facilities for students pursuing the global marine transportation industry. Ground-breaking and ribbon-cutting ceremonies today with state and local leaders celebrated Maritime College’s new Student Learning Center and its fully renovated Marine Engineering Systems Laboratory, made possible through significant New York…

When he served as the commander of NWSC Carderock, Mark Vandroff woke every morning knowing that his counterpart in China had just gone to bed and had spent that day trying to make China’s Navy superior. His job, he figured, was to “get cracking and work to make our Navy even better.” Now the CEO at Fincantieri Marinette Marine (FMM), Vandroff brings that passion for navy shipbuilding – and delivering on the new USN Constellation-class frigates contract – to work every day.Introducing a new class of warship usually comes with a heaping helping of pain, from cost overruns to technical glitches.

Norwegian energy firm Equinor on Tuesday announced the opening of the New York offshore wind project office, located in Sunset Park’s Industry City neighborhood near the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal.The project office will serve as the hub for Equinor and BP's large-scale offshore wind operations in the region, including Empire Wind and Beacon Wind. "Together, Empire Wind 1 and 2 and Beacon Wind 1 are poised to provide 3.3 gigawatts of renewable power to New York, enough to power approximately 2 million homes.

The docking of the Europa passenger liner in Cape Town on Tuesday was meant to be a ribbon-cutting celebration marking the official start of the cruise ship season in South Africa’s top tourist hub, the first since the COVID-19 pandemic hit.But international travel curbs on southern Africa, where the new Omicron coronavirus here variant was first identified, have blown expectations of a bumper tourist season out of the water.The multi-story luxury liner is the first to dock at…

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) has opened a new outfitting and repair yard in Port St. Joe, Fla.The new facility, dedicated to final outfitting and testing of commercial new construction vessels as well as topside repairs, adds to the company’s operational capabilities a 40-acre site that encompasses 1,000 feet of deepwater bulkhead with unrestricted access to the Gulf of Mexico test and trials grounds. “We are proud to commission our third facility with the strong support from the local community and our dedicated workforce…

The official grand opening of the Port Canaveral vehicle processing facility was marked with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and the arrival of 730 new vehicles aboard the 653-foot-long vessel Wisteria Ace, the first vehicle carrier to call at the Port’s facility. The new automobiles were discharged at the Port’s 16-acre auto processing facility located alongside South Cargo Pier 4. Another carrier is scheduled to arrive next week with more than 850 new autos aboard.“A port-operated…

America’s largest military shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) said that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday for its new Shipbuilder Academy site in Gulfport.Shipbuilder Academy was established in 2016 at Ingalls’ Maritime Training Academy with a mission to provide enrolled students with a strong foundation in the maritime industry and fill the current industry skills gap.Through a partnership with the Gulfport School District, Ingalls is expanding the program to a new site inside the repurposed Gaston Point Elementary School.“Ingalls has been a cornerstone of the Gulf Coast for more than 80 years, and we want to provide paths for hiring local talent,” said Brian Cuccias, president of Ingalls Shipbuilding.

A set of complicated lock-and-dam projects on the Illinois Waterway, from Chicago to the Mississippi, has yellow lights flashing throughout the Midwest freight industry. In effect, the entire Waterway will be shut down next summer as the Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island Division, starts some hefty replacement and maintenance projects, from LaGrange to Brandon Road locks and dams.Officials advise maritime, freight and agricultural businesses to look ahead now, to prepare a logistics scenario that will be ready by July 1, 2020.

In Washington state, Tidewater Transportation and Terminals inaugurated a $12.5 million ethanol unloading and storage site in Pasco to serve the Columbia and Snake River regions.On Tuesday, August 27, more than 60 area notables, members of the business community, and terminal personnel gathered mid-afternoon for a ribbon cutting ceremony and celebration of the company’s state-of-the-art, onsite ethanol unloading and storage facility in Pasco.The facility consists of a 24-hour ethanol unit train railcar unloading rack with 24 new unloading stations and associated rail spurs. In addition, two 65,000-barrel steel tanks were built in order to provide reliable operating storage when an ethanol unit train arrives.

The Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA)  has expanded its electric vehicle charging fleet with two energy-efficient trucks. The new trucks are part of an overall effort to reduce emissions at the multi-billion-dollar multimodal gateway for international trade."Port NOLA expanded their EV fleet with the help of the Clean Fuel Transition Fund for Public Fleets, managed by the Regional Planning Commission’s (RPC) Clean Fuel Partnership program," said a press release.The funding helped the Port offset the costs of two plug-in hybrid electric F-150s equipped with extended range technology, including a high voltage lithium battery pack and regenerative braking.The systems, developed by XL, enable an estimated 50% increase in miles per gallon and 33% decrease in emissions.

Military Sealift Command hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to signify the opening of its new Center for Excellence located on Joint Base Langley-Eustis, March 25.The Military Sealift Command Center for Excellence provides MSC-centric basic training for newly employed civil service mariners (CIVMAR).“Ultimately, the new Military Sealift Command Center for Excellence is replacing the MSC training center in Earl, New Jersey,” said Military Sealift Command Total Force Management Director Mike Morris, who co-officiated the ribbon cutting ceremony.

Coast Guard Sector Northern New England officially opened a new 24-hour command center Wednesday in South Portland, Maine.Sen. Susan Collins, Atlantic Area Commander Vice Adm. Scott Buschman, and First District Commander Rear Adm. Andrew Tiongson were all on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony. The command center is the hub for all Coast Guard operations across Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and parts of New York. Located at Coast Guard Base South Portland, the command center's exterior remained the same, but the interior is completely new.

Rolls-Royce completed a nearly $65m upgrade and refurbishment of its thruster manufacturing plant in Rauma, Finland, consolidating production over a single site.The plan to overhaul the site started in 2016, and after nearly three years the refurbished site was officially opened on January 22,  2019, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony performed by Finland’s Minister of Economic Affairs, Mr Mika Lintilä.“Our azimuth thrusters are one of our most important products, providing mission critical power and propulsion for some of the largest floating objects on the planet…

National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday to commission its new panel line, which expands steel production capabilities for the construction of commercial and government ships in San Diego.The American shipbuilding company with three shipyards located in San Diego, Norfolk, and Mayport said in a press release that the new panel line enables distortion-free welding of plates as thin as five millimeters to produce lighter, more energy efficient ships.The cutting-edge facility uses hybrid laser arc welding and numerically controlled robots to mill, seam and weld steel panels in a highly automated production line.

Classification society ABS on Tuesday held an official ribbon-cutting ceremony to formally open its new global headquarters in Spring, Texas.“This is a significant milestone in our 157-year history and reaffirms our commitment to provide industry-leading safety and practical technology solutions for marine and offshore industry challenges,” said ABS Chairman, President and CEO, Christopher J. Wiernicki.“A five-year journey that started as an idea has now culminated in a building reflecting our leadership position and our continued vision for growth.

Choosing the ‘top stories of 2018’ was, this year, a difficult task. Many compelling story threads played out, dramatically impacting the North American waterfront, and in particular, the workboat sector – each in their own unique way. Read on to find out how and why.Autonomous Vessels: Ready or Not, Here They ComeFuturistic, remote-controlled autonomous marine vehicles aren’t coming. They are here. As the pace of change quickens, autonomous vessels are already providing service and value on the water. Out ahead of the rulemaking process, autonomous technology providers already churn out not just prototypes and designs, but also countless workboats, many already in service.

The 400-MW Rampion offshore wind farm off the Sussex coast in the UK has been officially opened, said German energy company E.on SE. The offshore wind farm now generating enough green electricity for around 350,000 UK homes setting a new power record in the country.Three years of construction officially came to an end on Saturday (November 29) at a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Rampion offshore wind farm, the first wind farm off the UK's south coast.Named after the county flower of Sussex, the offshore wind farm, over the next 25 years, will make an important contribution to meeting the UK's climate targets.After a three-year construction schedule involving a workforce of around 750 at peak times, all 116 turbines were put into operation in spring.