Upi News

A new era of dominance in a polar region opening up. The size and scale of Russia's military activities in the Arctic are producing negative perceptions and growing suspicion in the West. UPI reports that  Russia, long seen as an aggressive and unpredictable bear in international politics, has stepped up its military activities in the region – including large-scale exercises, an extensive modernization program and the reconstruction of infrastructure. Observers, mainstream media in particular, have adopted the Cold War narratives of the Russian bear vying for military superiority, border delineations and dominance over natural resources in the High North. This is something that's raising fears that the Arctic could become the next crisis zone between Russia and the West.

Norway's Defence Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide of the Conservative Party made it clear that there would be no submarine deal with Sweden, according to the Norwegian newspaper Verdens Gang. Instead, Norwegian defense officials have narrowed down their search to French and German maritime defense firms to replace Norway's Ula-class attack submarine fleet, says UPI report. French firm Direction des Constructions Navels Services, or DCNS, and German company ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems "are the strongest candidates if Norway decides to procure new submarines," Norway's Ministry of Defense said in a statement. Sweden's defense company Saab suffered a substantial setback in Norway, after a submarine tender was brushed off. Instead, the bid will go to one of Saab's French or German competitors.

Norway is seeking partner countries for future submarine project in order to reduce cost and secure a robust submarine capability for the future, reports UPI. The current Norwegian Ula-class submarines will gradually reach their end-of-life in the 2020s. The Ministry of Defence is currently leading the work looking at procurement of new submarines. Ministry of Defense says: "The project is in its definition phase. The replacement submarines will be based on an existing design to circumvent an extensive development process with all its attendant cost and technical uncertainties, and they will be built by an experienced shipyard. The MoD has not chosen a supplier for new submarines, and is at present in dialogue with several different shipyards.

According to German Ambassador Julius Georg Luy, one submarine was delivered to Egypt on December 10 while two others are awaiting delivery from Germany. The ship, the S41, is the first-of-class 209/1400 vessel and took to water earlier this month during a ceremony in Kiel attended by Vice Adm. Rainer Brinkmann, Deputy Chief of Staff of the German navy, the mayor of Kiel, and Egyptian officials. The submarines are being built in the northern coastal city of Kiel, which is famed for its ship-building and last week exported the fifth of six new ThyssenKrupp vessels bound for Israel. The first two of the four submarines are thought to have been ordered in 2011, though the deal only became public in August 2012 following statements by Egyptian Rear Admiral Osama Ahmed al-Jundi.

U.S. shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced today a number of changes across its leadership team. HII’s Board of Directors has elected Christopher D. Kastner to succeed Barbara A. Niland as the company’s chief financial officer and corporate vice president, business management, effective with Niland’s retirement on March 1, 2016. Furthermore Philip Luna, corporate vice president and president, UniversalPegasus International (UPI), a subsidiary of HII, has been promoted to the HII senior executive team, effective immediately.

A Virginia-class attack submarine named after former U.S. Sen. John Warner has successfully completed an initial round of sea trials,  reports UPI. The U.S. Navy has completed initial sea trials to demonstrate its systems and capabilities. All systems, components and compartments were tested. The submarine submerged for the first time and operated at high speeds under water and on the surface. Huntington Ingalls Industries, who's Newport News Shipbuilding is constructing the vessel, John Warner, in partnership with General Dynamics Electric Boat, said the initial sea trials were completed last Saturday. Huntington Ingalls says in a news release that its Newport News Shipbuilding division will deliver the submarine to the Navy following several more rounds of sea trials.

A report by the AP said that the Finnish military says it has dropped depth charges onto a suspected submarine in the sea outside Helsinki after twice detecting the presence of a foreign object in the area. The navy's maritime operations chief, Olavi Jantunen, says they could not identify the "underwater object" but had begun an investigation, which could take weeks. “We strongly suspect that there has been underwater activity that does not belong there. Of course it is always serious if our territorial waters have been violated,” Defense minister Carl Haglund told Finnish news agency STT. A UPI reports quotes Navy chief of staff Admiral Juha Vauhkonen saying that it’s not yet possible to say whether or not the underwater object detected in waters near Helsinki was a submarine.

The US government is expected this week to give the go-ahead to a controversial plan by Shell Oil Company, one of the largest oil companies in the world to restart drilling for oil in the Arctic. The UPI reports that the decision rests on the U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, who is expected to announce the decision on Wednesday. The green light from Sally Jewell, the interior secretary, will spark protests from environmentalists who have campaigned against proposed exploration by Shell. Environmentalists are concerned with the issue, since technology has not been prepared to deal with an oil spill in that region. The Environmental Impact Statement claims there is a 75 percent chance of a large spill occurring.

An international consortium of environmental scientists has expressed strong concern about the impact of a controversial Central American canal across Nicaragua. The leading researchers from 18 institutions in the United States and Central and South America -- have voiced their opposition to the Nicaragua Interoceanic Grand Canal and the haste with which the project has been initiated, reports UPI. The path of the Nicaragua Interoceanic Grand Canal to connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans will cut through Lake Cocibolca (aka Lake Nicaragua), Central America's main freshwater reservoir and the largest tropical freshwater lake of the Americas.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) subsidiary UniversalPegasus International (UPI) was awarded the engineering services contract for the Pleasant Valley Compressor Station Project in Virginia by Dominion Resources. The value of the transaction was not disclosed.   The Pleasant Valley Compressor Station Project is a modification of the existing compressor station to accommodate increasing customer demand. UPI will provide detailed engineering and construction support services for the project.

Huntington Ingalls Industries informs that it has acquired UniversalPegasus International Holdings (UPI), a leading provider of engineering and project management services to the domestic and international energy markets. The value of the transaction is not being disclosed. UPI was a privately held company headquartered in Houston. It also performs work in Oklahoma, Illinois and Louisiana, as well as Canada, the United Kingdom, and Trinidad and Tobago. Huntington explains that UPI has provided a broad range of engineering and project management services to the energy industry for over 50 years. Whether onshore or offshore, from the wellhead to processing facilities to delivery points…

UniversalPegasus International (UPI) is a company with a global reach in engineering, project management & construction management for the energy industry, headquartered in Texas. Brown has more than 30 years of experience in the engineering and construction sectors. He comes to UPI from Jacobs Engineering where he held the position of Global Vice President, Inside Sales and Marketing. He was responsible for downstream, upstream, chemicals and pharmaceuticals/biotechnology business unit sales, with regional focus on North America, India and the Middle East.

State Republican Reps. from districts in northern Michigan, introduced legislation banning research in or production of wind energy in the Great Lakes sharing a border with Michigan. The measure would prohibit the leasing for the placement, construction, operation or maintenance of any structure to research wind energy development, any wind turbine, or any equipment or structure related to a wind turbine, reports UPI. According to UI, Policy Director for the Michigan Environmental Council James Clift told Michigan Public Radio he considered it was too soon to limit offshore wind. UPI cite a 2010 report from the Michigan Great Lakes Wind Council that informed 35 percent of Michigan's Great Lakes are considered favorable for wind energy development. Source: UPI

Energy industry project & construction management firm Universal Pegasus International (UPI) appoint two senior vice-presidents. The company name Tom Davison as Senior Vice President of Onshore Operations and Martin Morrison as Senior Vice President of Offshore Operations. In his role, Davison is responsible for the overall management, performance and growth of business for Onshore Operations at Universal Pegasus International. Additionally, he will provide technical leadership in project development and execution including the development of best practices and improving project delivery.

Terry Mienie has been named Business Development Director UK & international by Houston headquartered UniversalPegasus International (UPI). Craig Pierrotti, Senior Vice President of Business Development announces the appointment of Terry Mienie, who joins UPI's Aberdeen, Scotland, office from Penspen where he served as Business Development and Manpower Manager Offshore. While with Penspen, he was responsible for creating new business opportunities across the group. Mienie will be responsible for the development of the company’s subsea market in the UK with a focus on the North Sea.

A British merchant vessel, listing in rough seas in the Baltic, was escorted to safety by a Swedish coast guard vessel. The crew of the Scot Isles sent out a distress call Christmas Eve close to the Swedish island of Gotland, reports UPI. A rescue helicopter was sent from Visby and remained on the scene until a Swedish Coast Guard ship arrived. The Scot Isles' captain decided to return to Latvia and turned down an offer to evacuate his vessel, being escorted into Latvian waters by the coast guard, where Latvian coast guard vessels took over.

NEW YORK -- Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. will see its advanced shipbuilding techniques paying off in an initial $2.1 million U.S. Navy contract. Alcoa said the processes give the company an edge over competitors and saves procurement costs. The company also said the contract will enable it to develop advanced welding techniques, which are seen likely to reduce costs of aluminum-intensive shipbuilding. Alcoa will adapt high-deposition gas metal arc welding technology to marine structures, enabling the Navy to reduce the cost of shipbuilding. Total projected savings for the Navy could be as much as $200 million under current shipbuilding plans, the company said.

According to a report on www.UPI.com, an oil tanker left the Libyan port of Mellitah and was headed to Cyprus without loading its cargo. With Libya now in the hands of a new government, oil companies are coming in with high expectations, as the country was a major oil-producing nation before the war. But NewLead Holdings Ltd. reportdly told Bloomberg News that one of its oil tankers had to leave a Libyan port without its cargo. A company spokeswoman confirmed the vessel has a carrying capacity of more than 73,000 tons but wouldn't specify the nature of the cargo, Bloomberg added. Transitional leaders have been quoted as saying they expected crude exports to move closer to normal by the end of September. (Source: www.UPI.com)

According to a report from UPI.com, the Canadian government is pressuring the nation's shipbuilding companies to waive their rights to consult lobbyists in pursuit of the $35b national shipbuilding procurement strategy.   Source: UPI.com

According to a report from UPI.com, Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding reports the keel has been laid for a new joint support ship for the Dutch navy. The JSS, designed to operate both in the lower and higher levels of the force spectrum, will measures 673 ft in length and 98 ft in breadth.   Source: UPI.com

According to a report from UPI.com, the chief engineer of the Capitola, owned by Cardiff Marine Inc., was sentenced in Maryland to six months in prison for obstructing a U.S. Coast Guard inspection of a Liberian-operated cargo ship in Baltimore.   Source: UPI.com

According to a report from UPI.com, Alexei Miller, the top executive at Russian gas company Gazprom, welcomed BP Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley to St. Petersburg to discuss prospects for liquefied natural gas for European and Asian consumers.Gazprom officials also met this week with officials from German engineering conglomerate Siemens to discuss similar efforts.   Source: UPI.com

According to a report from UPI.com, Israeli military forces were told on June 27 to be firm in blocking a Gaza-bound flotilla while exercising restraint to avoid injuries, Israeli leaders said. UPI.com said reports indicate 10 ships plan to set sail June 28 to breach Israel's blockade of Gaza. Israeli government and military officials said they hope the ships will stop voluntarily, avoiding the possibility that Israeli naval forces will have to board them.   Source: UPI.com