Steam News

Founded as the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) and renamed Military Sealift Command in 1970, MSC today not only support the Navy, but we are the Department of Defense's provider of all sealift. Maritime Reporter & Engineering News recently interviewed Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, U.S. Navy, for insights on the service today and it’s needs to grow in the future.What makes MSC so vital to the Navy’s fleet and our military forces around the world?When we  look at the history of contested logistics in World War II…

Since our last market update in the subsea space about a year ago both our current market view and forecasts have strengthened significantly.While the demand picture is looking solid and arguing for a strong multi-year upcycle, the supply side has also started to wake from its slumber albeit ever so slightly at the time of writing. Moreover, we register an interesting dynamic on the shipowner side, where everyone is trying to position themselves for the impeding market boom.Please note that vessel definitions and abbreviations in this part of our industry can vary…

HII announced today that its Newport News Shipbuilding division (NNS) recently began topside testing of the electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) on aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN 79).EMALS, first integrated into USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), replaces the existing steam catapults currently in use on the U.S. Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carriers.Following successful “no-load” testing on catapults one and two, known as the ‘bow cats,’ the NNS team, alongside the John F. Kennedy crew, has now started “dead-load” testing.

While Greg Trauthwein never assigns me column subjects, each time the Great Ships issue comes around I go with the theme. However, I try to take a view askew on that subject and have found that these are the rare columns where I am criticized for my views. Greg must enjoy that, and this year he asked me to write a column on the worst ship designs. That was the entire assignment, and it was unclear if he asked me to discuss the worst ship designs for 2023, or in the history of ship design.

When talk turns to autonomous ships, a first question always centers on how routine and emergency repair and maintenance will be conducted. Trey Taylor, Director of Digital Innovation, Fairbanks Morse Defense (FMD), discusses FMD’s research and development on next-gen engine room robotics.The FMD team that Trey Taylor leads is relatively new, kicking off in 2019 with a baseline product that was looking at monitoring equipment, “being able to provide that information back to our…

NYK Line, Namura Shipbuilding and Sasebo Heavy Industries are collaborating to replace the main propulsion on steam turbine driven Moss-type LNG carriers to dual-fuel diesel engines and have now completed the basic design step.In October 2023, NYK was granted Approval in Principle (AiP) from ClassNK for the concept, and the three companies will now proceed with a detailed design.The aim is to improve environmental performance, make efficient use of existing vessels and contribute…

The AST Group recently delivered its advanced remote performance monitoring solution to ScanTech Offshore.ScanTech approached AST with a mission-critical need to access live engine data for its air compressors remotely. Previously, the company had no system in place to collect this information and relied entirely on onsite technicians for reporting and adjustments.ScanTech Offshore will now use iRAMS GenSet – AST's enhanced monitoring solution, in its fleet of rig-safe and Zone…

The Xeneta Summit has heard the ocean freight shipping industry will find new ways of working together in the face of a volatile market.Stanley Smulders, Director of Marketing & Commercial at Ocean Network Express (ONE), took part in a keynote Q&A with Xeneta CEO Patrik Berglund during the Summit in Amsterdam this week to discuss the major challenges facing the industry.While there are rough seas ahead, Smulders maintains growth is still on the horizon.He said: “The current market is at best volatile…

Norway/Uruguay-based Pesquera Azul’s has successfully trialed an innovative catch protection cage in whale-rich waters in the southern Indian Ocean. The company says it is a potential game-changer for the longline fishing industry as it grapples with the challenge of whale depredation.The steady increase in the whale population in sub-Antarctic fishing grounds is hampering the longline fishing industry, especially for fatty fish species. Whales have learned to snatch, for example…

The quest to build a series of five National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMVs), which will serve as training ships for five U.S. maritime academies, has drawn a broad cadre of suppliers. The powerplant was a main focus, helping to evolve the schools from steam power plants to a modern propulsion package.NSMVs being built for the maritime academies is widely lauded as a ‘win’ for U.S. shipbuilding, an example of commercial shipbuilding practices applied to a government shipbuilding project.

Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, on Thursday named the world’s first-ever container vessel sailing on green methanol.At a ceremony in Copenhagen on September 14, where the Maersk-owned vessel arrived from Ulsan in South Korea, Von Der Leyen acted as the ship's godmother and named the vessel 'Laura Maersk'.The Danish-flagged 172-meter-long vessel has been described as a key milestone for A.P. Moller-Maersk’s plans to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in 2040 across the entire business.To meet its 2040 target of net zero greenhouse gas emissions in time…

Laser systems quickly remove corrosion and scale from metal surfaces with less preparation and mess than traditional techniques.In the maritime industry, corrosion and scale (where rust penetrates a metal surface) can quickly become an issue in an outdoor, salt sea spray laden environment. When sea spray evaporates, it leaves salt behind, leading to saltwater staining and accelerated corrosion.So, most shipbuilders as well as those responsible for maintenance and repair understand the value of treating metal surfaces to remove corrosion…

The IMO’s latest crunch meeting in early July may not have aligned global shipping with mid-century targets established in the 2015 Paris Agreement. However, its 2023 Strategy indicates a clear direction of travel. Energy supplies by sea are essential for many countries and therefore ships have a key role in supporting the world’s energy transition – not only on their own account, but at a global level.As world shipping accounts for about 3% of greenhouse gas emissions, its environmental importance attracts wide attention. And plenty of criticism.

Without a radical new approach, BIMCO’s CII Operations Clause will remain a worthy but vain attempt to reconcile shipping’s environmental and commercial imperatives,Legal and contractual disputes lie ahead for shipping unless it finds a better compromise between owners and charterers to sustain the International Maritime Organization’s Carbon Intensity Index (CII).Entering into force on 1 January 2023, the CII relates primarily to the way in which ships are operated and the resulting CO2 emissions.

The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) - 80th session will meet at IMO Headquarters in London from July 3-7, and amongst key agenda items, the MEPC 80 session is expected to adopt an upgraded IMO greenhouse gas strategy.The revised IMO GHG Strategy will contain concrete greenhouse gas reduction targets for the sector and is expected to outline a range of technical and economic measures. Negotiations have been ongoing and will continue during the Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships (ISWG-GHG 15)…

Garry Noonan, Director, Innovation, Ardmore Shipping is candid in discussing emerging technologies and their impact on ship fuel and emissions reductions. With a fleet of product and chemical tankers under his guise, Noonan gives insights on technologies that he has seen work, as well as his thoughts on the fuel transition, which he believes won’t become mainstream until we’re well into the 2030s.While Cork, Ireland-based Ardmore Shipping, founded in 2010, is relatively new in shipping circles…

Alfa Laval has introduced a methanol-fired Aalborg boiler that accommodates a wide range of fuel types including LNG and methanol.It will be the first time a methanol boiler has been installed onboard a ship, and Alfa Laval has secured significant orders for the new boiler including for container ships, tankers and cruise ships. Deliveries of the methanol boilers are scheduled to commence in late 2023.Alfa Laval says its “ready boiler” concept provides a future-proof platform, allowing for easy adjustments to the existing burner and boiler pressure section as needed.

Ørsted broke ground on Europe’s largest e-methanol project, FlagshipONE, on May 24.FlagshipONE will start production in 2025 and will produce 50,000 tonnes of e-methanol annually. The maritime sector is a key target for the methanol. Currently, over 110 e-methanol vessels have been ordered or are in operation, up from 80 vessels at the end of 2022.Originally developed by the Swedish e-fuels company Liquid Wind, FlagshipONE will be located next to Övik Energi’s combined heat and power plant Hörneborgsverket in Örnsköldsvik…

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has demonstrated a 100kW class cryogenic organic Rankine cycle (ORC) power generation system using a nitrogen-based, oilless cryogenic turbine generator.ORC systems are able to harness lower-temperature heat than typical waste heat recovery systems, and MHI says the use of liquid nitrogen as the cryogenic energy source provides a stable refrigerant cycle and the specified regeneration output without freezing-induced clogging. It performs well even under…

Researchers from NOAA, the state of Michigan, and Ocean Exploration Trust discovered an intact shipwreck resting hundreds of feet below the surface of Lake Huron. Located within NOAA's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the shipwreck has been identified as the sailing ship Ironton. Well preserved by the cold freshwater of the Great Lakes for over a century, the 191-ft. Ironton rests upright with its three masts still standing."Using this cutting-edge technology, we have not only located a pristine shipwreck lost for over a century…

Chinese shipbuilder Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co., Ltd. has delivered a newly built shallow-draft liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier for Dapeng Princess LNG Transportation (Holdings) Co., Ltd.The 7,9600m3 Dapeng Princess, officially handed over during a ceremony on February 18, is the world’s largest shallow water channel fourth-generation medium-sized LNG carrier, which hangs the Singapore flag and was listed into the China Classification Society (CCS) classification.

U.S. producers of liquefied natural gas (LNG) exported at top capacity in April for a second consecutive month, with over two-thirds of shipments bound for Europe and rising volumes to Latin America, Refinitiv Eikon data showed on Monday.Following the full restart of a key Texas export facility in February, U.S. LNG producers are taking advantage of firm prices overseas and increasing demand in some markets.A total of 107 cargoes departed from U.S. ports last month carrying 7.78 million tonnes of LNG…

Each year on May 22 the US celebrates National Maritime Day. May 22 was declared National Maritime Day in 1933 to honor the SS Savannah’s departure from Georgia to England in 1819 to become the first successful steam-powered ship to successfully cross any ocean. The US Merchant Marine has been a pillar in the country’s foundation of prosperity and security. They power the world’s largest economy and strengthen ties with trading partners around the world, all while supporting our military forces by shipping troops and supplies wherever they need to go.During World War II more than 250…