Sahara News

The bodies of four migrants, who died on the Atlantic Ocean in an inflatable dinghy with 34 people on board, and a survivor were brought to Spain's Canary Islands, the local maritime rescue service and an NGO said on Sunday."The ship Miguel de Cervantes has recovered the bodies of the four dead people found yesterday 150 miles southwest of Gran Canaria in a dinghy, from which a survivor was also rescued," the maritime rescue service said on Twitter. The sole survivor was an "exhausted 27-year-old man" who was found by a cargo vessel on the dinghy alongside the bodies, according to tweets by Helena Maleno from Caminando Fronteras, a Spanish non-governmental organization that monitors migratory flows.The survivor…

One migrant died and 26 were missing after their dinghy capsized in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Spain's Canary Islands, the Spanish Coast Guard told Reuters on Tuesday.The coast guard rescued 34 people after the vessel capsized around 135 miles off the southern tip of Gran Canaria on Monday. Another two vessels carrying around 63 people, including two children, were found floating in the sea around 40 miles to the south. All those onboard were rescued, the coast guard said.Authorities were alerted on April 24 to a dinghy that had left Cabo Bojador in Western Sahara…

The U.S. Coast Guard rescued two mariners from their disabled sailing vessel, Rhapsody, approximately 288 miles east southeast of Corpus Christi, Texas, Thursday afternoon.Watchstanders at the Eighth Coast Guard District command center received an emergency position indicating radio beacon alert at 2:13 a.m. Watchstanders directed the launch of a Sector/Air Station Corpus Christi HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircrew and diverted the LPG tanker Sahara Gas to investigate the location.Once on scene…

Dozens of migrants trying to reach Europe drowned in the Mediterranean on Friday and 100 more were sent back to Libya, the United Nations said, while Italian authorities signalling opposition to more migration from Africa seized a rescue ship.The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said 65 people drowned when their boat capsized off Tunisia, and 101 others who had been picked up at sea were returned to Libya, despite repeated warnings that it is not a safe country to send people back to.It was one the deadliest shipwrecks involving migrants trying to reach Europe via north Africa this year.Tripoli, a hub for migrants and refugees hoping to sail to Europe after a perilous trek through the Sahara…

Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) has adopted a new agreement on the legal, environmental, economic and social governance of EU vessels’ fishing activities in Morocco and Western Sahara waters.The new Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Agreement (SFPA) includes the waters of Western Sahara and aims to take into account the conclusions reached by the EU Court of Justice on this matter.To this aim, the approved text stresses the results of the consultation process carried out by the European External Action Service and the Commission, in which most of those consulted were in favour of a new fisheries agreement, while it also points out that the Polisario Front did not wish to take part in the consultation…

As a member of the President’s Advisory Council – Doing Business in Africa (PAC-DBIA), Bob Wetta attended the September 26, 2018 Fact-Finding Trip Report meeting in Washington, D.C., with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross and 13 other U.S. Government officials. Their purpose was to deliberate and adopt the final report of the 2016-2018 term of the PAC-DBIA. Prepared by IBM’s Takreem El-Tohamy, but unfortunately unable to attend the meeting, Bob Wetta presented the Ghana information…

40 years ago, on September 13th, 1978, Jacques R. Saadé launched the first maritime line between Marseilles and Beirut, with only one ship and 4 employees. The day marked the beginning of an extraordinary humane and entrepreneurial adventure, said a press release.According to the statement, 40 years later, CMA CGM has become a recognized world leader, with 34,000 employees and a presence in more than 160 countries. History: It is amid the Lebanese war that Jacques R. Saadé decided to settle in Marseilles to protect his family. As a visionary man, he anticipated the evolutions of international trade and was convinced of the crucial role containerization was about to play.

Italy and Malta are refusing to allow charity ships in ports; governments say charity ships help people smugglers. Charities counter that policy will cause more deaths at sea. For the second time in a week, Malta on Monday detained a humanitarian vessel that normally rescues boat migrants off the coast of Libya, where two shipwrecks have claimed the lives of as many as 200 people in recent days. The Sea Watch 3 vessel, operated by a German charity, requested to leave port after undergoing maintenance and the port authority refused, a Sea Watch spokeswoman said. The port authorities said only that the vessel's status was under review.

A South African court ruled on Thursday that a seized ship carrying a Moroccan cargo of phosphate from the disputed Western Sahara should remain in port until the case goes to trial or security is posted, a lawyer for the Polisario independence movement said. The Polisario Front alleges the 50,000 tonne shipment en route to New Zealand was illegally taken from Western Sahara territory and went to court to have the cargo seized. The case is a test of Polisario's new legal tactic in its long-running conflict with Morocco over Western Sahara, a disputed territory where the two sides fought a war until a 1991 ceasefire and where U.N. talks have failed to reach an accord.

Panama authorities have released a Moroccan phosphate shipment from the disputed Western Sahara territory after it was temporarily held by a legal challenge from the Polisario independence movement, officials said on Monday. The vessel was held on May 18 and is the second tanker carrying phosphate cargo from Moroccan exporter OCP stopped this month by a Polisario challenge. Polisario claims the cargo was transported illegally, a new tactic in its dispute with Morocco. Western Sahara has been disputed since 1975, when Morocco claimed it as part of the kingdom and the Polisario fought a guerrilla war for the Sahrawi people's independence. A 1991 ceasefire split the region in two between what Morocco calls its southern provinces and an area controlled by Polisario.

A Norwegian shipping firm on Thursday denied a tanker it manages had violated a European court ruling after Western Sahara's Polisario movement accused it of illegally transporting an oil cargo through disputed territory it claims. The Polisario independence movement this week called on the European Union and French authorities to seize a France-bound cargo being transported on the Gibraltar-flagged Key Bay because the tanker had made a port call to Moroccan-controlled Laayoune on Jan. The Polisario said the tanker's call to Laayoune had rendered its cargo illegal as it had violated a ruling by the European Court of Justice last month that two trade deals between the EU and Morocco did not cover Western Sahara.

From the price of oil to environmental regulation, 2015 was a year of turmoil and uncertainty for the marine sector. Despite this, there were some common global trends that will define 2016. In December 2015, world leaders met at the COP21 conference to discuss climate change. The event’s outcome marks a decisive move towards a low carbon future focused on achieving the agreed-upon world target of 1.5 degree climate change ceiling. Indeed, despite being the most carbon-efficient form of commercial transport[1]…

Around 20 African migrants are missing at sea after their boat sunk in the Atlantic Ocean around 20 miles off the coast of Western Sahara, Spanish sea rescue services said on Wednesday. Spanish lifeguards rescued 22 African men from the sea late on Tuesday in stormy conditions and recovered the corpse of one man. The search continues for the remaining migrants. Survivors say there were over 40 people travelling in the boat, including one woman, the sea rescue services spokesman said. Photographs showed the survivors being transferred from the rescue boat to Gran Canaria island where they were attended to by Red Cross workers in makeshift tents set up in the port.

Golar LNG Limited announced today that it has executed a firm contract to provide West African Gas Limited (WAGL) with floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) services to support their liquefied natural gas (LNG) import operations in Ghana. WAGL is jointly owned by subsidiaries of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) with 60 percent and Sahara Energy Resource Ltd with 40 percent. The joint venture is developing an LNG import project at the port of Tema on the coast of Ghana West Africa with a planned start up in the second quarter of 2016. The FSRU will be moored inside the port at a new jetty being built by WAGL. The contract will be for an initial period of five years with the option for WAGL to extend for a further five years.

Nigeria's state oil company has cancelled its contract for the delivery of crude to the country's refineries in Warri, Port Harcourt and Kaduna, it said on Wednesday. Oil sales account for about 70 percent of government revenue in Nigeria, Africa's top crude producer, but the country imports most of the fuel used by its 170 million inhabitants because of its inefficient, ageing refineries. "The corporation has cancelled the current contract due to exorbitant cost and inappropriate process of engagement," a Nigerian National Petroleum Corp (NNPC) statement said, adding that the aim is to cut costs and improve efficiency. Overhauling the energy sector in Africa's biggest economy has been a priority of President Muhammadu Buhari…

A project consortium that includes RWE Dea has signed a major contract for the construction of a natural gas processing plant and infrastructure in the Algerian Sahara for the Reggane Nord project. The contract is valued at US$976 million and represents an important step forward for the project. Representatives of the Groupement Reggane of which RWE Dea is a partner signed the contract to construct the natural gas processing facilities and corresponding infrastructure including the gathering network and export pipeline on Thursday. The USDollar976 million contract was awarded to Petrofac International (UAE) LLC and stipulates completion of the facilities within 36 months. After completion the plant will be operated with a gas troughput capacity of around 283 million cubic feet per day.

International classification society RINA has launched a new voluntary notation to clearly identify new ship designs which meet eco-ship criteria. The Efficient Ship notation is granted to ships and new designs assessed by RINA to have  very high overall efficiency of engines, a lower fuel demand at owner defined speed, deadweight higher than the average for the particular type of ship and a system to monitor their performance during their life. Dino Cervetto, head of technical services…

Morocco has launched an operation to empty the Iranian-owned oil tanker 'Kharg 5' that ran aground during a storm near the southern port of Tan Tan with 5,000 tonnes of fuel on board, reports Arabiya News via AFP. The fuel was being pumped into trucks, with the operation expected to last between five and seven days depending on the weather reports Arabiya News citing official sources. The ship was on a voyage from the Canary Islands when it ran aground last week, with heavy waves dragging it towards a rocky area, sparking fears of an oil slick on Morocco's Atlantic coast, however no major oil leaks have been reported. The oil was for delivery to a power station in Tan Tan…

By John A. The western African states have said clearly they do not have the naval, coast guard or customs resources to deal with the piracy evident in the Gulf of Guinea. Further, they do not say, but it is clear, they do not have the money to do it. Piracy is now confined to one principal area. But piracy is similar to blood — a little spilled goes a long way. Piracy will spread elsewhere when and if strong emphasis is put on the Gulf of Guinea. Let us look at the hard facts in this hard business.

KND Naval Design of Cape Town, South Africa successfully completed its first in class 10M Advanced Life Support Ambulance and Rescue vessel for Africa. This vessel was designed and built entirely in Cape Town. This project used HydroComp propulsion software to analyze and examine sea trial performance. Naval architect Kobus Potgieter captured a USA styled 1960’s retro ambulance look-and-feel for the boat. He also used “Batmobile” oversized fenders and flowing lines which can be seen in the vessel’s coach and shape of the hull.

Leading global liner shipping company Hapag-Lloyd has signed an agreement with the GAC Group to handle their vessels calling at ports in Nigeria and Ghana. Under the deal, GAC will act as full liner agents for Hapag-Lloyd, actively selling its liner services in the region, as well as providing a range of shipping agency and complementary services for its fleet. The deal comes as part of Hapag-Lloyd’s strategy to develop and expand its presence in sub-Sahara Africa. Currently, the company operates a fleet of approximately 150 modern container vessels…

At a bilateral meeting on April 8 with Moroccan Foreign Minister Dr. Taieb Fassi Fihri, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton praised Morocco for its "extraordinary progress" and reaffirmed America's commitment to its longstanding relationship of friendship and cooperation with the North African nation. She emphasized the need for international cooperation on security issues, such as the recent act of Somali piracy that threatened 21 American crew members, and remarked that Morocco was the first ally of the United States to offer assistance in the protection of its merchant fleet more than 200 years ago. "Morocco was the very first country that recognized us, going back a long time," said Secretary Clinton.

As any maritime power supplier could surely attest, resting on one’s laurels is not an option in today’s market: a generally stagnate global industrial situation, mixed with environmental regulations and fuel prices that are simultaneously spiraling higher. In tandem, vessel owners of every genre make demands that inherently at odds with one another: competitive pricing and seamless performance; reduced emission and reduced fuel consumption; with the seamless delivery of advanced technologies and service, all geared to help vessel owners better manage fleets and their bottom lines better.