Shoreline News

The industry consortium behind the Ocean Charger project, led by Vard, has completed the demonstration of the charging solution in a port as well the connection solution offshore, proving the technology designed to supply clean power to offshore wind vessels is ready for the market.By connecting vessels to the power grid in the wind farm and charging batteries regularly, the Ocean Charger solution is securing availability of emission-free vessel operations.The Ocean Charger has proved through the tests that it can power operations at the field without using any additional energy sources…

2024 marks another year for development of a biennial WRDA bill—Water Resources Development Act, critical legislation for the Nation’s waterways, ports and harbors. WRDA encompasses a range of issues, from environmental regs to energy use to agriculture and, of course, a focus on projects critical for economic growth.Because these are dynamic and timely issues, Congress and the maritime sector like to keep WRDA on a two-year reauthorization timeline. Indeed, the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, December and January, held three WRDA information hearings.

The U.S. Coast Guard said one of its buoy tenders accidentally discharged approximately 500 gallons of diesel fuel 30 miles offshore of Fort Bragg, Calif., Friday morning.The vessel, USCGC Alder (WLB-216), was enroute to Humboldt Bay when the incident occurred, the Coast Guard said.Members of Coast Guard Sector San Francisco Incident Management Division notified interagency stakeholders and are investigating the oil spill and cause. They are also evaluating potential impacts to sensitive sites.

The Unified Command concluded its response to an oil sheen observed offshore of Huntington Beach, California on Monday, but the source of the oil remains unclear.Over the weekend, cleanup crews recovered approximately 85 gallons of product from offshore recovery efforts and removed roughly 1,050 pounds of oily waste/sand and tar balls from the shoreline.The U.S. Coast Guard and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, Office of Spill Prevention and Response (CDFW-OSPR) collected samples from the offshore sheen and tar balls along the shoreline to help determine the source of the oil.

The U.S.

A dredging and sand replenishment project at Southern California's Solana Beach is about halfway complete, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said.The project, which reduces coastal storm damage and erosion along a 7,200-foot-long stretch of shoreline, includes construction of a 150-foot-wide beach fill using 700,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment.Operations started Jan. 17 and are on schedule to wrap up in mid-March, according to Caleb Lodge, coastal engineer with the Corps' Los Angeles District.“They’re doing about seven or eight loads a day…

The U.S. government has awarded a major grant to the Humboldt Bay Harbor, Recreation, and Conservation District for the construction of a new marine terminal to be primarily used for floating offshore wind-related activities.The grant for the Humboldt Bay Offshore Wind MVP (Minimum Viable Port) project comes through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight & Highway Projects (INFRA) grant program, which received a substantial funding increase…

The unified command consisting of the Coast Guard, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Office of Emergency Management, and Monmouth County Department of Health, received oil sample lab results from the Coast Guard Marine Safety Laboratory Friday, linking together oil spill cleanup efforts in both New York and New Jersey.Vane Brothers Company, as represented by Gallagher Marine Systems, has been identified as the responsible party.

Around 61,165 barrels of daily oil output from at least six producers, making up about 3% of crude oil production in the Gulf of Mexico, has been shut in by Third Coast Infrastructure's underwater pipeline leak, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Wednesday.The oil producers whose facilities are impacted include W&T Energy, Occidental Petroleum, Walter Oil and Gas, Cantium, Arena Offshore and Talos Energy Ventures, the Coast Guard said, citing the U.S. Interior Department's Bureau of…

The U.S. Coast Guard on Monday said it was still looking for the source of a leak from an underwater pipeline off the Louisiana coast in the Gulf of Mexico that it estimated had released more than a million gallons of crude oil.The 67-mile long pipeline was closed by Main Pass Oil Gathering Co (MPOG) on Thursday morning, after crude oil was spotted around 19 miles offshore of the Mississippi River Delta, near Plaquemines Parish, southeast of New Orleans."Overflight teams observed visible oil Friday moving southwest away from the Louisiana shore…

A U.S.-registered bulk carrier that spilled diesel fuel into Lake Michigan earlier this month is believed to have spilled approximately 1,500 gallons, the U.S. Coast Guard said on Monday.The 630-foot-long self-unloading bulk carrier Manitowoc was approximately 1.5 nautical miles offshore of Manistee, Mich. on August 2 when it reported it was leaking diesel fuel due to a hull breach on its starboard diesel tank. The investigation into the cause of the spill is ongoing.Prior to departing the Port of Manistee, the  vessel conducted and recorded initial tank soundings.

The Dredging Contractors of America (DCA), a trade association representing the U.S. dredging and marine construction industry, said it strongly supports the development of a robust offshore wind industry.“As the industry grows in the United States and along the U.S. East Coast, the DCA and its companies are working with state and federal regulators on matters related to dredging operations,” said William P. Doyle, CEO of the Dredging Contractors of America.The U.S offshore wind…

A towing vessel sank Tuesday night approximately 3 miles off North Myrtle Beach, S.C.Horry County Fire Rescue personnel rescued the three crew members aboard the vessel, identified as the 59-foot-long Jacqueline A—a U.S.-registered pusher tug built in 1981. No injuries have been reported.The vessel is currently in 30 feet of water, and has approximately 5,000 gallons of diesel fuel on board, the U.S. Coast Guard said. There are no reports of shoreline impacts, and the vessel’s owner…

Washington Island Ferry Line (WIFL) has been the essential link between the residents, business and visitors of Washington Island and Wisconsin's Door Peninsula for more than eight decades.Picturesque and peaceful Door County isn't named for some intrepid settlers named Door. The name has a more ominous meaning. It's derived from the treacherous passage between the peninsula and Washington Island that mariners called Porte des Mortes, or Death's Door.A unique combination of environmental…

An offshore oil spill near Ecuador's coast reached a popular beach on Wednesday, authorities said, while also showing up in nearby waters as one local official blamed "human error" following a preliminary investigation into the incident. State oil company Petroecuador, which runs the Balao maritime terminal where the spill originated, said in a statement it had mobilized workers to contain it but did not disclose how much crude was unleashed into the ocean. The company added it had launched clean up efforts.

The Biden administration on Wednesday approved construction of an offshore windfarm that will generate 1,100 megawatts of power from up to 98 turbines off the coast of Atlantic City, New Jersey, becoming the third such project in the United States.Approval of Orsted's Ocean Wind by the Interior Department is the administration's latest move toward meeting its goal of developing 30 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind in the U.S.

ABB announced it has secured a contract with Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku to supply an integrated power and propulsion package comprising two Azipod propulsion units and the Onboard DC Grid power system for two new, advanced multi-purpose patrol vessels of the Finnish Border Guard.Due for delivery in 2025 and 2026, the 98-meter ships will replace the outgoing Tursas and Uisko patrol vessels. Alongside the existing Turva, they will guard Finland’s borders, performing maritime rescue operations and helping mitigate environmental impacts.

Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation, the largest provider of dredging services in the United States, announced the receipt of several major dredging awards totaling $138.8 million.The awarded work includes Trujillo Alto Design and Build for the Lago Loiza (Carraízo) Dredging Project (Maintenance, Puerto Rico, $93.1 million); Townsends Inlet to Cape May Inlet Project (Coastal Protection, New Jersey, $28.8 million); Palm Beach Harbor Maintenance Dredging Project (Maintenance, Florida…

Climate change, rising sea levels, land reclamation and offshore energy are all factors underpinning business models at Europe’s dredge and marine engineering majors. They are adopting strong sustainability credentials as their operations come under closer environmental, social, governance (ESG) scrutiny and new opportunities open up in the US offshore wind sectorThe relatively small number of global marine engineering and dredge firms face more observation of their business models than ever before.

A project aimed developing a solution to charge offshore vessels' batteries in the offshore wind farms was officially launched at a kick-off ceremony in Ålesund, Norway on Thursday.The project, called the Ocean Charger will be lead by Vard, with its sister companies Seaonics and Vard Electro, and partners Rem Offshore, Solstad Offshore, SINTEF Energi, SINTEF Ocean, DigiCat, Sustainable Energy, Equinor, Source Galileo Norge, Corvus Energy, Plug, Shoreline, Sustainable Energy, University of Bergen…

Austal USA celebrated the opening of its new San Diego waterfront ship repair facility.The shipyard, located adjacent to Naval Base San Diego, will provide full-service repair, maintenance and modernization services for small surface combatants, unmanned and autonomous vessels, and auxiliary ships.Since finalizing an agreement for the property over a year ago, Austal USA has invested more than $100 million in facility upgrades and a new floating dry dock to transform the facility. The 15-acre site now provides 678 ft. of improved San Diego Bay shoreline, 80,000 sq. ft.

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, together with the state's Department of Transportation (WisDOT), announced grants totaling $5.3 million for seven harbor maintenance and improvement projects to promote waterborne freight and economic development.“From the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River, Wisconsin’s unique geography provides our state opportunities to grow our economy and help our businesses reach markets worldwide,” said Gov. Evers. “These grants will help maintain our harbors and ensure our ports are secure and reliable…

WindServe Marine, a U.S. offshore wind support services company, has secured a loan from The Washington Trust Company, for the construction of three new 88-foot crew transfer vessels (CTV), recently commissioned by Ørsted, the largest offshore wind developer in the world. "Washington Trust was founded on the southwestern shoreline of Rhode Island and as a good corporate citizen, we are committed to protecting and preserving the local environment. Providing financing for alternative sources of energy that benefit this community aligns both with our business and sustainability benchmarks…