Marine Link
Thursday, March 28, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

South Atlantic Ocean News

04 Dec 2023

New Wave Data Underpins Ship Structural Integrity

Sofar Ocean’s hundreds of Spotter buoys continuously contribute masses of accurate wave data. Image courtesy of Sofar Ocean

The loss of the Stellar Daisy in 2017 was a tragic reminder of the importance of wave data to ship design and operation. The vessel sank in the South Atlantic Ocean, with 22 of 24 crewmembers lost. The structural failure of the vessel was attributed to several factors including material fatigue and the forces imposed on the hull as a result of the weather conditions.Survey requirements for some vessel types have since been tightened, but even before this tragedy, work was underway to evaluate the wave data used to determine ship structural integrity requirements.

30 Mar 2021

Atria Retrofits Its Paraná Push Boat Fleet with Thordon Bearings

A Thordon SXL rudder bearing replaces a rubber bearing on an Atria Logistics UABL vessel (Photo: Thordon)

One of South America’s leading push boat operators is on its way to completing a fleet-wide retrofit to Thordon’s water lubricated tailshaft and rudder bearings.In 2014, Argentinian owner Atria Logistics UABL, which operates a fleet of workboats on the Paraná River, installed Thordon’s RiverTough tailshaft bearings to its first push boat, the 135-foot-long Concepcion. In 2020, six more vessels in the company’s 26-strong fleet were converted.Egnard Bernal, Thordon Bearing’s Business Development Manager…

21 Aug 2020

Argentinian Shipyard to Build First Domestically Produced Dredger

(Image: Damen)

SPI Servicios Portuarios Integrados for Mar del Plata port in Argentina has acquired a DOP Dredger component package from Damen Shipyards Group. The Argentinian shipyard will build major components and assemble the dredger. The DOP Dredger 250 will be used to dredge underneath a floating dock, which the shipyards wants to keep operational full-time. The trick is that the dock will remain in place during the dredging activities.The Argentinian ship builder SPI has an extensive yard in the bay of Mar del Plata, located on the South Atlantic Ocean.

22 Apr 2019

KR Responds to RMI Report on Stellar Daisy Casualty

Korean Register (KR), its Chairman, management and entire staff offers sincere sympathies to the families and loved ones of the seafarers who tragically lost their lives due to the sinking of Stellar Daisy. KR reaffirms its commitment to investigating the causes of the sinking, sharing its knowledge and implementing any changes necessary to avoid a similar loss in the future. The factsStellar Daisy was a 266,141 dwt Very Large Ore Carrier (VLOC) owned by Polaris Shipping and flagged with the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI). On 31 March 2017 whilst en route from Ilha Guaiba, Brazil to Qingdao and laden with iron ore fines, the ship sank in the South Atlantic Ocean around 1700 nautical miles from Uruguay and 1800 nautical miles from South Africa.

17 Feb 2019

Sunken Stellar Daisy Located

The Stellar Daisy, a massive South Korean tanker that sank in March 2017, was spotted on the floor of the South Atlantic Ocean nearly two years later.Exploration company Ocean Infinity said that it has located the wreck of the lost South Korean tanker, Stellar Daisy, at a depth of 3,461 meters in the South Atlantic Ocean, approximately 1,800 nautical miles due west of Cape Town.Stellar Daisy sank on 31 March 2017, transporting iron ore from Brazil to China. Tragically, 22 of the 24 crew were lost.Working from Seabed Constructor, the search operation involved the deployment of four Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), which, over 72 search hours, explored approximately 1,300 km2 of seabed.

11 Feb 2019

Ocean Infinity Searches for Lost S.Korean Ship

The seabed survey and ocean exploration company Ocean Infinity announced that its vessel, Seabed Constructor, sets sail from Cape Town to begin the search for the lost South Korean ship, Stellar Daisy.Stellar Daisy sank on 31 March 2017, with the tragic loss of 22 of its 24 crew. The ship, which was transporting iron ore from Brazil to China, is believed to have gone down in the South Atlantic Ocean approximately 1800 nautical miles due west of Cape Town.The Ocean Infinity team is expected to be on site and commencing search operations by mid-February 2019. Ocean Infinity will use its proven approach of deploying a fleet of Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) simultaneously to search for Stellar Daisy.

31 Dec 2018

Ocean Infinity Joins Search for Lost Bulker

(Photo: Ocean Infinity)

U.S. based Ocean Infinity said it has been awarded a contract from the Government of South Korea to search for the wreckage of lost bulk carrier Stellar Daisy, which sank on on March 31, 2017, with 24 people on board.The Stellar Daisy was transporting iron ore from Brazil to China when it was lost in the South Atlantic Ocean, approximately 2,500 nautical miles due east of Uruguay.Ocean Infinity said it expects to commence search operations in January 2019 using its high-tech fleet of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs).

19 Nov 2018

Argentine Submarine Found After Yearlong Search

(Photo: Ocean Infinity)

The Argentine Navy submarine that went missing a year ago off the country's Atlantic Coast was found by a private company involved in what had been a massive search for the vessel and its 44-member crew, the defense ministry said in a news conference on Saturday.The ARA San Juan submarine was discovered by marine tracking contractor Ocean Infinity, 907 meters (2,975 feet) below the ocean surface. The vessel was found in an underwater canyon with its tail partially "imploded," Argentina's Defense Minister Carlos Aguad said.Given the poor visibility at the site…

08 Mar 2015

Taiwan Ship Carrying 49 Crew Missing in South Atlantic

A Taiwanese ship carrying 49 crew, including Filipinos and Indonesians, has vanished in the remote South Atlantic Ocean without any sign of a mayday call but shortly after its skipper reported it was taking on water. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said that it has been helping with efforts to search for the ship. The Hsiang Fu Chun, a 700-tonne squid fishing vessel, lost contact with its owners "soon" after reporting that water was leaking on to the deck at around 3:00 am on February 26, officials said. The boat sailed off from Kaohsiung in January to the sea area 1,700 sea miles east of the Falkland Islands for fishing and was due to return in May.

11 Jul 2013

Fairmount Glacier Delivers Rig in Pointe-Noire

Photo credit: Photo Fairmount Marine/Gerrit de Vos.

Super tug Fairmount Glacier has delivered rig Falcon 100 safely offshore Pointe-Noire, Congo. The rig was towed from Rio de Janeiro via the South Atlantic Ocean over a distance of more than 3,400 miles. The Falcon 100 is a 1974 build semi submersible drilling rig, owned by U.S.-based Transocean and capable to drill to a depth of 7.620 meters. For this job the Fairmount Glacier was mobilized from Trinidad. First the tug towed the Falcon 100 from her drilling location offshore Macae, Brazil, to offshore Rio de Janeiro.

14 Feb 2013

Higher Throughput & Improved Coverage

Imtech Marine upgrades & extends Global Ku-band VSAT Network. Imtech Marine has upgraded and extended the coverage of its Global VSAT Network. In addition to its already extensive network, Imtech Marine can now offer VSAT coverage in the South Atlantic Ocean, between South America and Africa, an important area for the international maritime industry. Imtech Marine offers a reliable, cost effective and always-on broadband communication solution that utilises the proven iDirect Evolution platform. This global solution covers all major shipping routes and provides guaranteed quality of service, Service Level Agreements, 24/7 support and worldwide VSAT coverage, including automatic beam switching.

31 Mar 2010

Secretary Salazar Offshore Strategy

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced that, as part of a comprehensive strategy for strengthening the nation’s energy security and reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil, the Obama Administration will expand oil and gas development and exploration on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf, while protecting fisheries, tourism and places off U.S. coasts that are not appropriate for development. “By responsibly expanding conventional energy development and exploration here at home we can strengthen our energy security, create jobs, and help rebuild our economy,” said Salazar, who joined President Obama at Andrews Air Force Base to make the announcement.

14 Jun 2004

HSV 2 Swift Completes Sea Trials

In a world first for a commercial based High Speed Craft (HSC), certified and operated in accordance with the HSC Code by American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), USN HSV 2 Swift has completed very comprehensive heavy weather sea trials in the North Atlantic Ocean. HSV 2 Swift is a 98 metre Incat SeaFrame configured to US Navy specifications and is designed by Revolution Design in Tasmania, Australia, and built by Incat Tasmania, also in Tasmania, Australia. HSV 2 Swift is contracted to the US Navy, through Military Sealift Command by Bollinger Incat USA.

23 Feb 2007

Titan Refloats and Scuttles a Semi-Submersible Platform

Atlantic Ocean. to Singapore for rebuilding. Titan did a preliminary survey at the end of October, and determined that the platform could be repaired and refloated. A tender for removal was issued in November and Titan was selected as wreck removal contractor. In December a "No-Cure, No-Pay" contract was agreed to with the owner and underwriters of the A Turtle. Titan's salvage team arrived at the site of the casualty Dec. 22, after a 1,743-mile-trip on the chartered vessel Kelso. The remainder of the 20 person Titan salvage team arrived 7 days later on the chartered tug De Hong. grounding and subsequent extreme weather. December. during the first week of February. topside of the rig and discarding them at an approved disposal site. away. at Trypot Bay. the A Turtle from the reef on Feb.

06 Jan 2003

BP Awards Plutonio FPSO Class to Bureau Veritas

services for its giant Plutonio FPSO to Paris-based Bureau Veritas. The Plutonio FPSO will have a 2 million barrel storage capacity and is intended to handle 220 mbd per day over a 25-year life span. It will service five fields in Block 18 offshore Angola, operating in very deep water. Following Sonangol's approval , BP will be putting the building contract for the Plutonio FPSO out to tender. fields it will serve. fatigue.

06 May 2003

Update: Richard du Moulin Fatigued, But GAII is Still Ahead

With INTERTANKO's North American Chairman, Richard du Moulin at the helm, Great American II (GAII), at last contact, was in the South Atlantic Ocean, 1,600 n.m. west of Angola. The total distance traveled is more than 10,380 n.m. This past week has been a trying one du Moulin. However, GAII is in the lead and approximately one day ahead of Sea Witch, but in order to maintain this lead, the sailors pushed themselves to the limits of exhaustion. With GAII in the trade winds south of the equator, the prevailing winds come from the southeast. This means that the wind is coming from behind, or astern, of the boat. As a result, the crew has put up the spinnaker, the largest sail on the boat, designed to catch more wind and push Great American II along faster in lighter winds.