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Thursday, March 28, 2024
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Vessel Traffic News

12 Mar 2024

Wärtsilä Delivers Simulator to Sharjah Maritime Academy

Source: Wärtsilä

Wärtsilä has supplied its latest simulator technology to the prestigious Sharjah Maritime Academy located in Khorfakkan, United Arab Emirates.The comprehensive suite of navigation, engineering, communications and Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) simulators includes full mission, part task and classroom trainers for all levels of training and research, as well as modelling and content creation tools to enable the highly skilled maritime faculty team to offer a complete range of services…

21 Feb 2024

EMSA Taps Spire to Continue SAT-AIS Data Services

© owr / Adobe Stock

Spire Global, Inc., a provider of space-based data, analytics and space services, reports it has been awarded two framework contracts by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) with a maximum overall budget of €8.4 million. Concurrent with the framework award, Spire received two specific awards that total multi-million euros under the framework contracts. Under the contracts, Spire will provide space-based automatic identification system (SAT-AIS) data services for ship tracking over a four-year period, including real-time, standard and high-density backup SAT-AIS.

20 Feb 2024

Parana River Reopens to Vessel Traffic with Draft Restrictions

© Alex Ruhl / Adobe Stock

Argentina's Parana River, a global grains thoroughfare, reopened to shipping traffic on Tuesday after a grounded ship was freed, though vessels were told to load less grain while the damage to the channel was assessed.Shipping traffic had been snarled after the ship Clara Insignia, loaded with wheat, ran aground near the waterway's main channel and was stuck for several days, blocking the channel down river from the Rosario grains port hub.The bulk carrier was freed late on Monday…

29 Jan 2024

New Marine Radar Training Software Launched

(Image: Cambridge Pixel)

U.K.-based Cambridge Pixel has unveiled a new software package to aid in the instruction and learning of the proper usage of maritime radars.SPx Radar Trainer is designed to make it easier for students to familiarize themselves with radar controls by providing a modern simulation of a typical radar display, supported by chart and 3D environment views. It includes custom scenario creation for instructors and runs in a browser window for ease-of-use.Developed by Cambridge Pixel…

22 Jan 2024

Red Sea Shipping Disruptions Could be Avoided by Using the Arctic, But Challenges Exist

© Andrei Stepanov / Adobe Stock

Attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels on merchant ships in the Red Sea have hit world trade. Between November and December 2023, the number of containers travelling through the Red Sea each day fell by 60% as ships moving goods between Asia and Europe diverted their routes around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.This route results in at least ten days more sailing time, so has caused freight prices to surge and has triggered costly delays to production. The region has become a bottleneck for the global economy before.

19 Dec 2023

NTSB Recommends Pipeline Operators Implement Safety Management Systems

Six segments of damaged pipeline that were removed for replacement. The leak site, circled in red, was observed on the segment shown wrapped in a tarp. (Photo: NTSB)

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is recommending new notification alarms and procedures for potential incursions on pipelines and a change to an anchorage off the California coast following a crude oil release in 2021 caused by ship anchors damaging an underwater pipeline.NTSB investigators determined that the oil leak, which began on October 1, 2021, in San Pedro Bay, resulted from an anchor strike on the pipeline that occurred eight months earlier, when anchors…

08 Dec 2023

US LNG Exports Through Panama Canal Shrink, Asia-Europe Spreads Widen

© Mariusz / Adobe Stock

The number of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessels transiting the Panama Canal to Asia halved in November compared with a year ago as Asia prices for the gas this week traded at their steepest premium to European prices in nearly two years.A severe drought has cut vessel traffic through the canal, increasing costs for shippers that take alternative routes or pay extra fees for auctioned slots in Panama. Further restrictions on canal transits likely will put more cargoes on lengthier routes…

06 Dec 2023

Singapore, Los Angeles and Long Beach Develop Plans for Green Corridor

Photo courtesy of the Port of Los Angeles.

At COP28, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach unveiled a strategy for a green and digital shipping corridor across the Pacific Ocean.The strategy follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding by MPA, Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach during Singapore Maritime Week in April 2023. The signing formalized the partnership, which is supported by C40 Cities, with the aim of establishing a green and digital shipping…

30 Nov 2023

FINLAND: ‘A Birthplace for Icebreakers’

Captain Pasi Järvelin on the bridge of Arctia icebreaker Polaris. Järvelin has more than 40 years’ experience in the maritime industry, including 36 years on icebreakers, and was part of the concept team that developed the vessel. (Photo: Eric Haun)

Finnish companies have designed about 80 percent of the world’s icebreakers, and about 60 percent of them have been built by Finnish shipyards.Finland is home to a strong and vibrant maritime cluster, with a mix of large, medium and small shipyards, as well as a deep pool of marine engineering expertise and a broad network of vessel equipment suppliers.As one of the world’s northernmost countries, Finland is also home to a fleet of icebreakers that keep imports and exports flowing through its harbors, even during the coldest winter months.

23 Nov 2023

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Shuts in Around 3% of Daily Output

Credit: US Coast Guard

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…

10 Nov 2023

Ukraine: Alternative Black Sea Export Corridor is Working Despite Attack

Credit: glebzter/AdobeStock

Ukraine's alternative Black Sea export corridor is working despite a recent Russian attack on a civilian vessel, Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Thursday.Ukrainian officials said on Wednesday a Russian missile damaged a Liberia-flagged civilian ship entering a Black Sea port in the Odesa region, killing one person and injuring four others. The vessel was supposed to transport iron ore to China."#Ukrainian_Corridor: vessel traffic continues both to and from the ports of Big Odesa (region)…

07 Nov 2023

WSC Releases Global Whale Chart

© Jeremy Francis / Adobe Stock

Accidental collisions between ships and whales are a global concern, and can occur wherever there is an overlap between whale activity and vessel traffic. To help seafarers plan their voyages to minimize the risk of collisions, the World Shipping Council (WSC) has launch the WSC Whale Chart.This navigational aid is the first global mapping of all mandatory and voluntary governmental measures to reduce harm to whales from ships. The WSC Whale Chart is available for free to all…

01 Nov 2023

Ukraine Says Russia Dropped Explosives in Black Sea Shipping Lanes

© SerPhoto / Adobe Stock

Ukraine said on Wednesday Russian warplanes had dropped "explosive objects" into the likely paths of civilian vessels in the Black Sea three times in the last 24 hours, but that its fledgling shipping corridor was still operating.Ukraine is trying to build up a new shipping lane without Russian approval to revive its vital seaborne exports. Russia said it would consider any vessel a potential military target after it quit a U.N.-brokered deal in July that allowed some food exports…

27 Oct 2023

Cargo Ships Moving via Ukraine's Black Sea Corridor after 3-day Pause -STC

Credit: Denis Rozhnovsky/AdobeStock

Four vessels left Ukrainian Black Sea ports in the Odesa region on Friday as shipping via a new export corridor resumed after a three-day pause, independent transport sector consultancy STC said."On October 27, vessel traffic in the temporary Black Sea corridor announced by Ukraine resumed," STC said in a report. It said the Propus, Iasos, Gloria G and Manassa Queen had sailed from Odesa ports while the tanker Mavka, bulk carrier Golden Arrow, and general cargo vessel Maranta were currently heading to Ukrainian ports.

26 Oct 2023

Ukraine Suspends New Black Sea Grain Corridor Due to Threat from Russian Warplanes

Credit: glebzter/AdobeStock

Ukraine has suspended the use of its new Black Sea grain corridor due to what it sees as a threat from Russian warplanes, the Kyiv-based Barva Invest consultancy said on Thursday."We would like to inform you of a temporary suspension of vessel traffic to and from (the ports). The current ban is in force on October 26, but it is possible that it will be extended," the consultancy said on the Telegram messaging app.Ukrainian officials were not immediately available for comment.The consultancy said a de facto suspension had already been in place for two days at the behest of the military…

04 Oct 2023

Close Call: US Coast Guard Rescues 12 as Bonnie G Ro-Ro Ship Runs Aground

Credit: USCG

A U.S. Coast Guard boat crew rescued 12 people, Wednesday morning, after they were forced to abandon the Bonnie G vessel that was taking on water and ran aground just south of the airport in St. Thomas.All 12 people aboard the Bonnie G, a 195-foot Vanuatu-flagged “ro-ro” cargo vessel, are safe, and no injuries have been reported to the Coast Guard. Coast Guard watchstanders in Sector San Juan received VHF marine radio communication from the Bonnie G at 3:41 a.m., Wednesday, reporting…

22 Sep 2023

U.S. Judge Orders Expansion of Gulf of Mexico Oil Lease Auction

Credit: Mike Mareen/AdobeStock

A federal judge in Louisiana has ordered an expansion of next week's sale of oil leases in the Gulf of Mexico, saying the Biden administration must include additional acreage, according to a court ruling issued late on Thursday.The oil and gas industry, which had sued the administration,  welcomed the decision to restore 6 million acres to the auction after the Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management earlier reduced the area available for lease in an effort to protect an endangered whale.U.S.

07 Sep 2023

Wrong Approach to Protect the Right Whale

© norrie39 / Adobe Stock

Pilot groups and port authorities have worked together to grow East Coast ports in a safe and environmentally responsible way. This growth has happened under strict safety and environmental regulations, including seasonal vessel speed regulations imposed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to protect North Atlantic right whales (NARW). Last year, however, without sufficient scientific or economic impact data, NOAA proposed radical changes to these regulations.

25 Jul 2023

Russia's Danube Attacks Tighten Noose on Ukraine's Grain Sector

© Ivanoff / Adobe Stock

Russian air strikes on Ukrainian grain facilities on the Danube this week threaten a vital river route for Kyiv's exports, as Moscow seeks to tighten the noose around a key sector of the economy days after abandoning the Black Sea shipping deal.Last week, air strikes caused tens of millions of dollars of damage to the grain sector in Odesa region, and Monday's strikes on infrastructure along the Danube brought back memories of the export gridlock that followed Russia's February 2022 invasion."Without the Danube, the export (situation) becomes critical.

10 Jul 2023

Ship Traffic Halted After Power Outage Hits Welland Canal

© skyf / Adobe Stock

Vessel traffic through Ontario's Welland Canal has ceased after a power outage damaged equipment in two of its locks, the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation (SLSMC) said.The not-for-profit corporation, which manages and operates the Canadian assets of the St. Lawrence Seaway, said the outage occurred at 5:50 p.m. on Sunday, damaging hands-free mooring equipment in Locks 1 and 7. "SLSMC took immediate steps to ensure the safety of the public, personnel, vessels, infrastructure and the environment…

07 Jul 2023

Tidalis Deploys New VTS at Port of Tyne

Image courtesy Tidalis/Port of Tyne

On July 1 the Port of Tyne launched a 'next-generation' Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system to enhance VTS operator situational awareness and supports decision making.The system adheres to the standards set by the International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities (IALA), covers the waters of the Port of Tyne in the UK, extending from six nautical miles out at sea to three nautical miles inland. It uses the Automatic Identification System (AIS)…

05 Jul 2023

NASH Maritime Hires Clark as Governance Lead

James Clark (Photo: NASH Maritime)

U.K.-based shipping, navigation, and maritime risk consultancy NASH Maritime announced it has appointed James Clark as governance lead, responsible for the development of the company’s port and maritime compliance business.Clark brings to the role two decades of both maritime risk and mariner experience. He started his career at sea, before joining Bristol Port Company as Assistant Harbor Master and later becoming responsible for VTS and shipping operations. Other roles have included Vessel Traffic Management and Ports Liaison with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

23 Jun 2023

Voyage Planning Tool Errors Contributed to Grounding

Source: ATSB

The use of a draft voyage planning tool which included waypoint data errors plus an ongoing technical fault with the vessel monitoring and surveillance system for the Great Barrier Reef contributed to a cargo ship’s grounding on a shoal, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has concluded.The 81-meter general cargo ship Trinity Bay grounded on Harrington Shoal, a charted feature with a depth of 0.9 metres north-west of Harrington Reef, on the morning of January 19, 2021 while conducting a regular weekly passage from Thursday Island to Cairns.