Freighter runs aground in Channel
According to the Guardian Unlimited, the coastguard was sent to the aid of a large container ship that ran aground in the Dover Strait. The crew of the 90,465-ton German container vessel LT Cortesia contacted the Dover coastguard at 5am after running aground on the Varne Bank. The coastguard has sent the emergency tug Anglian Monarch to help the stranded ship and assess the options for salvaging it. The vessel was traveling through the strait from Thames port on its way to the Suez when it ran aground nine miles south of Dover harbor, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said. None of the 27 people on board the stranded ship was injured, and its 42,785 tons of cargo is reported to be undamaged. The vessel is believed to be watertight. Source: Guardian Unlimited
UK Returns to Semi-Submersible Rig Building
Britain is to return to the world of semi-submersible rig building for the first time in two decades as prices soar and shipyards in South Korea run out of space. SeaDragon Offshore, a newly-formed company is to take over a former vessel construction facility on Teesside to build the first in a series of three drilling units worth up to $1.5b. As many as 600 jobs could be created at the Haverton Hill Shipyard by SeaDragon which plans to float on either the London or the Oslo stock exchange within 12 months. SeaDragon is backed by Lloyds TSB and has brought in some of the most credible names in the offshore world, including KCA Deutag, a part of the London-quoted Abbott Group, plus naval architects Moss Maritime.
