Spiegel News

Germany's BKA federal police assumes explosions in the Nord Stream pipelines last week were "a targeted act of sabotage" and said it is probable that state actors were involved, the Spiegel weekly reported, citing a letter to industry representatives. The BKA said in the letter that it did not yet have any findings about who was behind the sabotage but "against the background of the high complexity of the execution of the act and corresponding preparation, the action of state actors seems probable", Spiegel reported.The BKA was not immediately available for comment.

Germany has agreed to take in about a dozen of the 41 migrants who arrived in Italy last month on board German charity rescue ship Sea-Watch, an Italian government source said on Tuesday.The compromise to diffuse tensions with the Italian government, which had ordered the ship not to enter Italian waters, also includes France, Portugal, Finland, and Luxemburg, which have agreed to share the burden of hosting the migrants.There was no immediate official reaction from Germany or Italy about the accord which was first reported by Spiegel magazine.The German captain of the ship, Carola Rackete, appeared before a court in Sicily on Monday…

Germany is hopeful in bagging multi-billion-dollar Indian submarine project for building six conventional submarines, says a PTI report. German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner said the P-75(I) project was under discussion and that the matter also came up during German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen's visit here last month. He said that the talk did not specify the modalities of the deal on whether this should be Business-to-Business or Government-to -Government. According to Michael his minister said that it was a clear sign that there is potential for cooperation in this field (defence) and also in the field of submarines. German defence major TKMS is offering India its HDW Class 214 vessel and is in talks with leading shipyards in the country for a tie-up.

The German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen is visiting India lobbying for the purchase of German Stealth Submarines and European military hardware, say local media. Sources said that Ursula  talked of Eurofighter and [HDW] submarines in her discussions with Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. India reportedly asked Germany what all it could offer if a direct deal was struck between the two countries on next-generation submarines. The move comes after India recently announced to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets from France. ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems of Germany, which owns the submarine arm HDW, is among the few international companies…

Germany's Economy Ministry is investigating whether to block the sale of RWE's oil and gas unit DEA to a group of investors led by Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman, a spokeswoman said. The German government has never previously made use of a clause in its foreign trade law, under which it could stop the deal announced earlier this year if there were concrete signs it threatened "public safety and order". "An investigation has been started. It is an open-ended investigation (to find out) whether there are conditions for prohibiting the deal under the foreign trade accord," a spokeswoman for the Economy Ministry told Reuters. Spiegel magazine on Sunday reported the ministry had started to look into the deal following fresh information but did not give further details.

Germany's economy minister has joined Angela Merkel in rejecting talk that utilities might hand over responsibility for decommissioning Germany's nuclear power plants to a new public entity, as the projected costs of decommissioning rise. "It should not be tax payers who pay for the clean-up of atomic waste but rather those who made money for decades through running nuclear power stations,"Sigmar Gabriel told the newspaper Bild am Sonntag in an interview published on Sunday. Two sources told Reuters last weekend that utilities were in talks with the government about setting up a "bad bank" for nuclear plants, in response to Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to close them all by 2022 after the Fukushima disaster.

German utilities are in talks with the government about handing over responsibility for decommissioning the country's nuclear power plants to a public foundation, two sources familiar with the proposals said on Sunday. This so-called 'bad bank' for nuclear energy would take over Germany's nuclear plants, which the government decided should be all closed by 2022 following the Fukushima disaster in Japan three years ago. "Talks are being held with the German government," a person familiar with the plans told Reuters, adding the talks were at a very early stage. "Nothing has been decided yet," the source said, following a report in German magazine Der Spiegel earlier on Sunday.

Grant from the MTU Environmental Foundation to promote the environmental protection of Lake Constance; Environmental protection a major corporate mission of the Tognum Group. For the fourth time, the MTU Environmental Foundation is inviting tenders for a grant of 20,000 euros for environmental protection projects on Lake Constance. The invitation to tender issued by Tognum subsidiary MTU Friedrichshafen is addressed to those engaged in specific teaching or training projects or in schemes for renaturation or species conservation to be enacted in the period 2014-15.

The Kiel Canal, one of Europe's most vital shipping waterways, shut down after two neglected locks finally gave up the ghost. It's the world's most heavily trafficked man-made shipping lane, but since Wednesday few ships have been seen on the 100-kilometer (62-mile) long Kiel Canal, which cuts through the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein to form a roughly 450-kilometer shortcut between the North and Baltic Seas, reports Spiegel Online International. Although the canal is under the jurisdiction of the federal government…

The economic storm signals are all around us: the wild swings in stock markets globally, the contraction of credit availability worldwide and the frequent use of the dreaded “R” word. Is the United States headed for a deep recession? Is a recession already under way? Will the slowing U.S. economy drag the rest of the world’s countries into recession as well? It’s enough to make those of us either in or aligned with the maritime industry wonder what the future holds. Should we batten down the hatches, yet proceed full speed ahead to ride out what may be a temporary squall? Or should we be looking for the shelter of a safe harbor until the worst of the storm passes? In the insurance industry, we have confidence about what lies ahead for the shipping industry.

It was supposed to be a simple operation - a 510-ft. (155.4 m) retired Navy ship - Spiegel Grove - was to be sunk to create one of the world's largest artificial reefs. On May 17, the former Dock Landing Ship (LSD) had plans of its own when it sunk prematurely off the coast of Key Largo - in 130 ft. of water. The vessel, which as of this morning was in the process of being salvaged, flipped over - leaving its bow protruding ever so slightly out of the ocean. With the assistance of Resolve Marine Group, the Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based company that was hired to roll the ship, as well as a pair of tugboats providing more than 110 tons of pull…

Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based Resolve Marine Group concluded its salvage work on the 510-ft. retired Navy vessel that prematurely sunk off the coast of Key Largo, Fla., on May 17 before crews could scuttle it to create the world's largest artificial reef. The Resolve team sank the ship on June 10 at 6:35 p.m. (EST) on its starboard side, according to Rob Bleser, project director for the Key Largo Chamber of Commerce Artificial Reef Committee. The vessel, which is currently lying on its side at the bottom of 130 ft. of water, was sunk with the assistance of two tugboats providing 110 tons of pull and a series of 70 inflatable lift bags, attached to certain areas of the vessel's port side to provide approximately 500 tons of buoyancy.

It was supposed to be the world's largest artificial coral reef for scuba diving, located off the coast of Key Largo. More than eight years ago, a group of divers from the area devised a plan to sink a 510-ft. (155.4-m) retired Dock Landing Ship (LSD) to the bottom of 130 ft (39.6 m). of water. For the next several years, Spiegel Grove became Key Largo Chamber of Commerce's pet project. With various local dive shops, businesses and dedicated individuals participating in this venture, the vessel, which had been decommissioned in 1989, was towed last June from the James River Reserve Fleet, to a shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., so that workers could ready the vessel for its intentional sinking.

It has been a troop carrier, a missile-tracking ship, and a starred in a Hollywood movie. Now the General Hoyt S. Vandenberg will become an artificial reef off Key West, Fla. Maritime Administrator Sean T. Connaughton approved the transfer of the Vandenberg to the state of Florida, which plans to turn the 63-year old vessel into an artificial reef later this year. “Reefing is an excellent way to dispose of our obsolete ships,” said Connaughton. "It is good for the economy, good for the environment, and a great deal for U.S. The approval clears the way for the ship to be cleaned and sunk for a reef. The Vandenberg will join other ships of the Maritime Administration’s National Defense Reserve Fleet being used in the Maritime Administration's Artificial Reefing Program: the Texas Clipper I…

Austal announced the appointment of Dan Spiegel to the position of Chief Operating Officer for Austal’s Mobile, Ala., shipyard. Spiegel, his wife and their three children have relocated to the Mobile area from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Spiegel holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Michigan and an MBA from Indiana University. He brings to Austal a successful career background that includes over 20 years of management experience in the manufacturing industry. Current activity at the Mobile yard includes two 353-ft, (107-m) high-speed cargo/passenger ferries for Hawaii Superferry and one 127-m Littoral Combat Ship under construction for the U.S. Navy. Austal’s operation in the US currently employs over 700 shipyard workers.

Austal announced the appointment of Dan Spiegel to the position of Chief Operating Officer for Austal’s Mobile, Ala., shipyard. Spiegel, his wife and their three children have relocated to the Mobile area from Grand Rapids, Michigan. Spiegel holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from The University of Michigan and an MBA from Indiana University. He brings to Austal a successful career background that includes over 20 years of management experience in the manufacturing industry. Current activity at the Mobile yard includes two 353-ft, (107-m) high-speed cargo/passenger ferries for Hawaii Superferry and one 127-m Littoral Combat Ship under construction for the U.S. Navy. Austal’s operation in the US currently employs over 700 shipyard workers.