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Kansas News

28 Aug 2023

Offshore Wind: US Shipbuilders Answering the Call

From left to right: Lasse Petterson, CEO of Great Lakes Dredge and Dock; Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa.; President Joe Biden; and Steinar Nerbovik, CEO of Philadelphia Shipyard (Photo: Philly Shipyard)

It’s a big deal when a U.S. president visits an American shipyard, and these trips always send a message. When President Obama spoke at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding in 2013, he warned of the consequences of sequestration. President Trump’s 2020 speech at Fincantieri Marinette Marine touted a $5.5 billion naval contract that gave a welcome boost to the Wisconsin shipyard and its supply chain partners. Most recently, President Biden traveled to Philadelphia’s Philly Shipyard…

20 Jul 2023

Biden Attends Steel Cutting for Great Lakes' Subsea Rock Installation Vessel

From left to right: Lasse Petterson, CEO of Great Lakes Dredge and Dock; Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa.; President Joe Biden; and Steinar Nerbovik, CEO of Philadelphia Shipyard (Photo: Philly Shipyard)

President Joe Biden traveled to Philadelphia on Thursday to attend a steel cutting ceremony for Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation's new offshore wind rock placement vessel, touting his administration’s clean energy agenda and job creation efforts as the U.S. builds up its offshore wind industry. "The clean energy future we’re building all across America will be transformational,” Biden said during the ceremony at Philly Shipyard. “Thousands of families will rely on good jobs these projects create…

25 May 2023

First US-Built Offshore Wind Substation Sets Sail

©Orsted

Offshore wind developers Ørsted and Eversource marked the sailaway of the first U.S.-built offshore wind substation, which departed a Texas fabrication facility Wednesday. The substation is transiting across the Gulf of Mexico and then up the East Coast for installation at the South Fork Wind project site in a few weeks.Kiewit Offshore Services, Ltd. (Kiewit), the largest offshore fabricator in the U.S., designed and built the substation, which will be deployed at Ørsted and Eversource’s South Fork Wind project serving Long Island…

11 Nov 2022

US Inland Waterways: Looking for Rainmakers

(Photo: Ingram Barge Company)

As 2022 moves into its final months, low water levels and drought form the basis of the news impacting inland waterways operators and barge companies. In the first week of October, numerous barges were reported grounded in the Mississippi River, particularly south of Baton Rouge. This has consequences: barge rates jumped 218% in St. Louis, compared to 2021.Low water was so severe that on October 7 Ingram Barge CEO John Roberts issued a force majeure notice (force majeure - unforeseeable…

31 Oct 2022

DOT Announces $703M in Port Funding; 41 Projects in 22 States

Copyright bannafarsai/AdobeStock

U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced more than $703 million to fund 41 projects in 22 states and one territory that designed to help improve port facilities through the Maritime Administration’s Port Infrastructure Development Program. Following is the full list of FY 2022 Port Infrastructure Development Grant Awards:ALASKANorth Extension Stabilization Step 1 Project ($68,700,000), Anchorage, AlaskaThe Project will reconfigure and realign the shoreline within the “North Extension” (the area north of the existing general cargo terminals) at the Port of Alaska in Anchorage, Alaska.

24 Oct 2022

Inland Waterways in Focus: Balancing Maintenance and Operational Requirements

Aerial view of locks and dam on Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois, USA. Copyright Kent/AdobeStock

The integrity of the marine transportation system as a key plank in a country's economic prosperity is in heightened focus today, with logistics snarls contributing to fast rising inflation. Maintaining the integrity of the vast U.S. inland waterway system - with more than 12,000 miles of inland and intracoastal waterways including 218 lock chambers at 176 sites - is the focus of the Maritime Risk Symposium 2022, a 2.5-day conference scheduled for November 15-17, hostd by Argonne National Laboraty's TCS Conference Center.On Wednesday, November 16, 2022, James P.

20 Oct 2022

Dry Winter Forecast Spells More Trouble for Shallow Mississippi River

© William A. Morgan / Adobe Stock

Low water levels on the Mississippi River are likely to persist this winter as drier-than-normal weather is expected across the southern United States and Gulf Coast, U.S. government forecasters said on Thursday.Drought, which currently spans 59% of the country, is expected to continue or worsen in the middle and lower Mississippi River valley as well as in much of the West and the Great Plains, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center said in its winter (December-February) outlook.Above-average precipitation…

25 Aug 2022

Keeping the Inland Waterways Open: Balancing Maintenance and Operational Requirements

Copyright Michael/AdobeStock

Inland waterways, sometimes called ‘nature’s superhighways’ provide a strategic advantage related to security, economics, and trade for any nation whose geography, topography, and climate enable this natural infrastructure. Economic benefits are realized in small rural areas through large urban communities that utilize the system for efficient transportation and improved markets. However, deliberate operational, resource, and policy efforts, along with broad stakeholder integration, are required to maintain and operate such a system.

24 Aug 2022

$27 Million Contract Awarded to Repair Missouri River Navigation Structures

A group of Kansas City District workers associated with navigation repairs to the Missouri River join David Best, team lead and contracting officer for the civil contracting branch, and Col. Travis Rayfield, commander, to discuss the signing of the Multiple Award Task Order Contract, accounting for $27 million in repairs to river training structures on the river, Aug. 16, 2022. (Photo: Jennie Wilson / USACE)

Midwest Construction Company, of Nebraska City, Nebraska, was awarded a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to make repairs to river training structures on the Missouri River.The $27 million for the repair work comes from the BIL – Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation – and is expected to be the first of several separate contracts awarded in the next 12 months to support navigation on the Missouri River. The repairs from this contract will be between river miles 140 to 260 - approximately from Jefferson City, Mo.

25 May 2022

Continued Investment Strengthens Key US Midwest Ports

(Photo: America’s Central Port)

More than a half a billion dollars in recent, current or expected improvements at three Midwestern ports will strengthen these facilities and reinforce their important roles in the global freight network. The significant investments at Port KC, America’s Central Port, and Kaskaskia Regional Port District, along with new infrastructure funding recently secured, will spur an increase in barge services and deliver cost efficiencies that drive profitability for the industry. Port KC is located on the Missouri River.

23 Mar 2022

'Significant Funds' Awarded for Missouri River Repairs

(Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Kansas City District said it received significant funds to make repairs to river training structures on the Missouri River damaged over the years culminating in the floods of 2019."I’m pleased to share that there is positive movement on Missouri River repairs to training structures. The District anticipates receiving over $270 million within the District footprint alone,” said Col. Travis Rayfield, the Kansas City District commander.The funds will allow USACE to repair structures of the Bank Stabilization and Navigation Project (BSNP)…

08 Feb 2022

US Navy Commissions USS Savannah (LCS 28)

(Photo: U.S. Navy)

The U.S. Navy commissioned its newest Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ship USS Savannah (LCS 28) Feb. 5, 2022, in Brunswick, Ga.Built by Austal USA in Mobile, Ala., The 418-foot-long LCS 28 is the 14th Independence-variant LCS and 28th in its class. The LCS is a fast, agile, mission-focused platform designed to operate in near-shore environments while capable of open-ocean tasking. The LCS can support forward presence, maritime security, sea control and deterrence.Construction on LCS 28 began in July 2018 and a keel laying ceremony was held for the vessel in September 2019.

26 Jan 2022

Infrastructure Funds a Boost for the Missouri River

Barge on the Missouri River delivers rock to stabilization areas along the river. (Photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District is set to receive approximately $278 million under the Infrastructure and Investment Jobs Act (IIJA). Almost $249 million of that is to repair damages caused by the 2019 flood to the Bank Stabilization and Navigation Project along the Missouri River (within the district boundary) from Rulo, Neb. to St. Louis, Mo.In addition to Missouri River repairs, several lakes in the Heartland area will benefit from the IIJA.Tuttle Creek Lake in Manhattan, Kan.

22 Dec 2021

Christmas Supply Chain Crisis Averted, Biden Says

© aerial-drone / Adobe Stock

President Joe Biden said U.S. actions to eliminate supply-chain snarls have staved off a pre-Christmas crisis, ahead of a meeting with U.S. officials and private-sector companies, including FedEx, on Wednesday.Biden created a task force in June to address high prices and shortages of consumer goods and crucial components, thanks to pandemic-related labor and demand issues.After pushing for round-the-clock port operations, new transport rules and enlisting the help of big retailers including Walmart Inc.

17 Dec 2021

St. Louis Container on Barge Project Moves Forward

(Image: APCT)

Key stakeholders behind the efforts to launch innovative container-on-vessel (COV) service to the Midwest on Firday announced that Hawtex Development Corporation is signing on as the lead developer for a new COV port facility in Jefferson County, Mo. to be developed in collaboration with Fred Weber/Riverview Commerce Park LLC and integrating a 300+ acre adjacent parcel owned by The Doe Run Company. The new port will be a critical link on the new, all-water, north-south trade lane connecting the Midwest and the St. Louis region to the lower Mississippi River and on to worldwide destinations.

17 Nov 2021

Missouri River Shipping Channel Dredged

In the control tower of the Dredge Goetz, Maj. John Chambers views the data screen showing the different features of the dredging controls November 3, 2021. Ship masters from the Goetz instructed him on the basic operations of the dredging crane and agitator. (Photo: James F. Lowe / USACE)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Kansas City District, collaborated with the St. Paul District, of the Mississippi Valley Division, to bring the Dredge Goetz onto the Missouri River from late October through early November 2021 to participate in a pilot project to dredge sediment that had created shallow areas in the shipping channel.The Goetz has provided critical assistance to the Kansas City District through this pilot program, said Maj. John Chambers, deputy commander of the Kansas City District.Chambers noted that as a learning organization…

09 Nov 2021

USDA Raises Corn Harvest View, Cuts Soy Production Outlook

© Jon / Adobe Stock

Smaller-than-expected soybean harvests in the major production states of Indiana, Iowa, Kansas and Ohio sparked a surprise cut to the U.S. harvest outlook, the government said on Tuesday.But U.S. corn production will be bigger than previously projected as farmers recorded their biggest yield ever, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department's monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report. Expectations for rising production estimates had put pressure on soy and corn prices heading into the report.

07 Sep 2021

Port of New Orleans Resumes Containership Operations After Hurricane Ida

(Photo: Port of New Orleans)

Container vessel operations resumed at the Port of New Orleans on Tuesday, nine days after Hurricane Ida made landfall in southeast Louisiana as a category 4 storm.The first two ships worked at the Napoleon Avenue Container Terminal were the MSC Charleston at New Orleans Terminal and the Hapag Lloyd CSL Manhattan at Ports America. Seacor’s container on barge service will be worked tonight by Ports America.“Our wharves are busy today, handling both container and breakbulk cargo vessels, and trains are moving,” said Brandy D.

27 Aug 2021

First US-built Offshore Wind Substation to be Constructed in Texas

Credit: South Fork Wind

Offshore wind developer Ørsted and its partner Eversource have selected Kiewit to construct an offshore wind substation, which will be deployed at their South Fork Wind project serving New York’s Long Island. This will be the first US-built offshore wind substation.Offshore wind substations are critical components of utility-scale offshore wind farms. Substations collect the power produced by wind turbines and connect the clean energy to the grid. The offshore substation will consist of a topside resting on a monopile foundation.Kiewit will not only build but also design the substation…

27 May 2021

Headwinds: Offshore Wind will Take Years to Carry Factory Jobs to U.S.

Illustration - Credit:  Powerofflowers/AdobeStock

When U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration approved the country’s first major offshore wind farm this month, it billed the move as the start of a new clean energy industry that by the end of the decade will create over 75,000 U.S. jobs.Industry executives and analysts do not contest that claim, but they make a clarification: For the first several years at least, most of the manufacturing jobs stemming from the U.S. offshore wind industry will be in Europe.Offshore wind project developers plan to ship massive blades, towers, and other components for at least the initial wave of U.S.

12 May 2021

VIDEO: Up Close and Personal with Ocean Explorer Robert Ballard

In 2019, Nautilus plied the Pacific waters off the island of Nikumaroro, searching for any sign of Amelia Earhart's lost plane. In the cool, dark control room, we kept a 24-hour vigil. (Gabriel Scarlett/National Geographic Image Collection)

Ocean explorer and scientist Dr. Robert D. Ballard opens up on his personal life and his world-famous ocean discoveries like never before in his new book, “Into the Deep.” Best known as ‘the man who found the Titanic,’ Marine Technology Reporter had the opportunity to interview Ballard on the contents of the book, a book released yesterday with a follow-up National Geographic television special scheduled for June 14, 2021, taking a deep dive into his dyslexia, the importance of his family throughout his career…

15 Oct 2020

MARAD Awards $220 Mln in Port Infrastructure Grants

© Stuart Westmorland, Danita Delimont / Adobe Stock

More than $220 million in discretionary grant funding has been awarded to improve U.S. port facilities in 16 states and territories through the Maritime Administration’s (MARAD) Port Infrastructure Development Program, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao announced Thursday.“This $220 million in federal grants will improve America’s ports with nearly half the projects are located in Opportunity Zones, which were established to revitalize economically distressed communities,” said U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L.

03 Sep 2020

Austal USA Delivers USNS Newport (EPF 12)

USNS Newport (EPF 12) (Photo: Austal)

Austal Limited announced Thursday that USNS Newport (EPF 12) has been delivered to the United States Navy from Austal USA's shipyard in Mobile, Ala.USNS Newport is the 12th Spearhead-class Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) ship to be delivered to the U.S. Navy – and brings the total number of ships delivered to the Navy by Austal USA to 24 in 10 years, including three this year. USS Oakland (LCS 24) was delivered in June, following the future USS Kansas City (LCS 22) handed over in .Austal Chief Executive Officer David Singleton said…