Japan And Nippon News

The Nippon Foundation, Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, and Shin Nihonkai Ferry Co., Ltd. have informed they've completed a demonstration test of what the companies say is the world’s first fully autonomous ship navigation systems on a large car ferry, conducted on the Iyonada Sea from Shinmoji, Kitakyushu City, on January 17.The demonstration was part of MEGURI 2040, a project promoting the development of fully autonomous vessels supported by The Nippon Foundation. "This test demonstrated the world’s first fully autonomous navigation system…

Plans to map the entire ocean floor by 2030 are going ahead despite the challenges of the coronavirus crisis, officials leading the project said, with almost a fifth covered so far.Scientists say the topography of the ocean floor is less well known than the surfaces of Mars, Mercury or Venus and that charting the depth and shape of the seabed will help understand the impact oceans have on the earth’s climate.As the world’s ocean economy grows in coming years, data will also be vital to boost knowledge of marine ecosystems and marine life as well as future food supply patterns.Seabed 2030…

Using data collected from underwater drones, merchant ships, fishing boats and even explorers, a new scientific project aims to map the ocean floor by 2030 and solve one of the world’s enduring mysteries.With 190 million square km (73 million square miles) of water - or about 93 percent of the world's oceans with a depth of over 200 meters (650 feet) - yet to be charted, the initiative is ambitious.Satinder Bindra, director of the Seabed 2030 project, said the work can be completed within the period and will shed light on everything from tsunami wave patterns to pollution…

Malaysia’s Yinson Energy Sdn Bhd plans to take over the Layang floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) project from TH Heavy Engineering Bhd (THHE)  Edge Markets reported. THEE, which has the Layang FPSO contract with Japan’s JX Nippon. has applied to Kuala Lumpur High Court, Malaysia to allow it novate the contract and deliver the vessel to Yinson. Yinson has confirmed this in the Bursa Malaysia filing on Wednesday, saying it has no objection to the THHE application. The charter contract — which is for EPCIC and leasing of a floating production storage and offloading facility to be deployed at the Layang field in Block SK10, offshore Miri, Sarawak — was initially made between JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration (Malaysia) Ltd and THHE.

Ecopetrol reports it has established an Alliance with Japan’s JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration through its affiliate in Brazil, Ecopetrol Óleo e Gás to explore the FZA-M-320 block, located in shallow waters of the Foz Amazonas basin on the equatorial margin of the Brazilian Amazon region. Ecopetrol has held the exclusive rights for this block since May 2013, which was awarded during the 11th Round carried out by the ANP, the National Petroleum Natural Gas and Biofuels Agency in Brazil. The commercial agreement announced today, yet to be approved by the ANP, establishes that JX Nippon will undertake exploration of this block with a 30% share, for both exploration investments and potential resources that may be discovered. Ecopetrol will maintain its 70% share and will continue as Operator.

An employee of Japan-based Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) pleaded guilty today and was sentenced to 15 months in a U.S. prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to fix prices, allocate customers and rig bids of international ocean shipping services for roll-on, roll-off cargo, such as cars and trucks, to and from the United States and elsewhere, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. According to the one-count felony charge filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland in Baltimore on Jan.

Sumitomo Marine & Fire Insurance and Mitsui Marine & Fire Insurance have agreed to merge by April 1, 2002, in a move that would create Japan's largest non-life insurer. With combined assets of $51.7 billion, the merged company would outstrip current industry leader Tokio Marine & Fire Insurance, whose assets stand at $48.5 billion. Mitsui Marine is Japan's third largest non-life insurer, and Sumitomo Marine the fourth biggest. Analysts say the merger is set to accelerate consolidation in the sector, where competition is intensifying due mainly to the deregulation of insurance premiums in July 1998. Sumitomo Marine and Mitsui Marine said they will unveil a detailed merger plan in March. Both companies had said two weeks ago that they were in talks on forming an alliance.