Roger Williams News

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge Clean Canaveral completed its first barge-to-ship bunkering of a cargo vessel at Port Canaveral’s South Cargo Berth 4. JAX LNG, along with Polaris New Energy, handled the LNG refueling of the Damia Desgagnés on the ship’s inaugural call to Port Canaveral. The asphalt/bitumen tanker Damia Desgagnés completed her discharge of cargo and then JAX LNG proceeded with Desgagnés’s first barge-to-ship bunkering of LNG. The seafarers safely transferred approximately 400 cubic meters of LNG from North America’s largest LNG bunker barge…

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg this week announced the appointment of 25 new members to the Maritime Transportation System National Advisory Committee (MTSNAC). The MTSNAC Charter will advise the Secretary, through the Maritime Administration (MARAD) Administrator, on ways to identify and address impediments hindering the effective use of short sea transportation. The MTSNAC’s counsel comes as the Biden-Harris Administration takes aim at tackling inflation and reducing the cost of goods in the country…

The Clean Canaveral, a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge operating along the coast of the southeastern United States, recently completed its inaugural bunkering in Jacksonville, Fla. The Clean Canaveral has a capacity of 5,500 cubic meters, making it the largest Jones Act LNG bunker barge. The vessel operates as an articulated tug barge unit (ATB) and is owned by Polaris New Energy LLC, a subsidiary of Seaside LNG Holdings.The operation marks the first barge-to-ship cool down performed in the United States.

JAX LNG, a small-scale LNG facility located along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Fla., recently completed the first fueling of a marine vessel in the United States with a blend of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable LNG (RLNG).JAX LNG loaded the RLNG/LNG blend into the Clean Jacksonville bunker barge to fuel the Isla Bella. The Isla Bella is the world’s first LNG-powered container ship and was put into service by TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico in 2015. Element Markets supplied the renewable natural gas (RNG) used to produce the RLNG via renewable thermal certificates (RTCs).

In another milestone in the development of its London Gateway Logistics Park, DP World has announced Buckingham Group has been awarded the contract to build the Common User Facility (CUF). Following a period of ground preparation and development of key infrastructure by DP World, Buckingham Group is now mobilising to start construction, with the new logistics centre planned for completion in Q1 2015. The 375,000 square foot multi-purpose specialist cargo handling centre will be built in two phases and will be fully integrated with the new deep-sea container port DP World London Gateway. DP World Chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said…

The Bristol Harbor Group, Inc. (BHGI) announced the continued expansion of its naval architecture and marine engineer practice. Over the past six months the company has welcomed four new additions to the team: Annie Fisher, Naval Architect; Nathan Seelig, Mechanical Engineer; Christopher Cluett, Naval Architect; and Rhea Levin, Administrative Assistant. Annie Fisher graduated in 2013 from the University of Michigan with a B.S.E in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering. She started at Michigan as an aerospace engineer…

Earlier this month, Dennis Nixon was named director of the Rhode Island Sea Grant, one of 32 programs that make up the National Sea Grant College Program, which is administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nixon spends much of his life near the ocean. As a longtime Jamestown resident, Nixon is never more than minutes away from Narragansett Bay. As associate dean of the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography, he is just as close to the waves when he’s in his office. Nixon has been teaching at the University of Rhode Island for 37 years.

Fundraiser, dedication ceremony and public visits to highlight ship’s visit over July 4 weekend. It’s not just Rhode Island but the whole of North America that is watching as the SSV Oliver Hazard Perry becomes a reality. The 196-foot, three-masted, square rigged tall ship, currently under construction and designated by the legislature and the Governor of Rhode Island as the state’s official “Sailing Education Vessel,” is well on its way to becoming the largest civilian sail training vessel in North America and the first oceangoing full-rigged ship to be built in the U.S. in over 100 years.

Representatives from U.S.-flag maritime labor and industry work the halls of Capitol Hill together to promote their cause. The delegation came to promote various issues affecting those who work, sail, build and operate American vessels as well as nation’s harbors, ports and waterways. National MTD officers – including President Michael Sacco and Secretary-Treasurer Daniel Duncan – and officers and members from nearly 10 port councils from around the country joined 150 others during the fourth annual “Sail-In” to meet with members of Congress and their staffs.

Roger Williams University & IYRS partner on program to offer IYRS graduates credits toward degree programs. As part of a strategy to offer students a direct pathway from experiential training programs focused on craftsmanship and technical skills to a comprehensive college education that results in an associate or bachelor’s degree, Roger Williams University and marine trades and technology school IYRS have joined forces on a partnership that will allow IYRS graduates to apply elective credits toward degree programs offered at the University’s School of Continuing Studies.

The protection of life, assets and production in high-risk petrochemical facilities, both onshore and offshore, was the focus of a webinar today sponsored by Sherwin-Williams Protective & Marine Coatings. The session, “Fire Protection of Steel,” provided an overview of the causes of fires in hydrocarbon facilities, the difference between active and passive fire protection (PFP), and the essential role intumescent coatings play in achieving the fire resistance ratings required for a sound PFP system. Intumescent coatings rapidly swell in reaction to a fire, forming a thick char barrier that protects a steel substrate by reducing heat transfer for several hours before structural failure could occur.

Harlan Doliner recently joined the Boston office of the law firm of Pepe & Hazard, LLP as a partner in the Corporate Financing and Transactions Department, practicing environmental, land use and maritime security law. Doliner brings over 30 years of experience in environmental and land use matters to Pepe & Hazard. Within the last five years he has extended his experience in environmental matters to a concentration in maritime security matters. Doliner has been a partner in several major Boston law firms, most recently Nixon Peabody, where he was the leader of the New England environmental practice group, and then Keegan Werlin. Doliner advises clients on the environmental aspects of transactions…

Late shipbuilder and philanthropist Luther Blount offered to donate a cruise ship from his American Canadian Caribbean Line to benefit Roger Williams University, Rhode Island College and Boston’s Wentworth Institute of Technology. Now that the 175-foot M/V Niagara Price has completed its last cruise, its ownership has officially been transferred. On Nov. 1, the three universities took possession of the Niagara Prince, valued at $6.5 million, which will remain docked at Promet Marine Services in Providence until it is sold. The colleges are to split the proceeds; broker Marcon International of Coupeville, Wash., is working to sell the ship on their behalf. Source: Providence Business Journal

The state Senate of Massachusetts could soon consider a bill that would effectively ban tanker ships carrying liquefied natural gas from moving along Narragansett Bay and the Sakonnet River. Lawmakers in the House passed the bill on May 10. If approved by the Senate and signed by Gov. Don Carcieri, the legislation could severely hinder the operations of a proposed LNG facility in Fall River, Mass. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved Weaver's Cove Energy's plan to build a $250m LNG terminal at a former Shell Oil site on the banks of the Taunton River. The terminal would be serviced by tankers that move through Narragansett Bay.

According to reports, three colleges will share a donation from philanthropist and shipbuilder Luther Blount -- a 175-ft. cruise ship. Blount announced he will give the ship, called the Niagara Prince, to Rhode Island College, Roger Williams University and Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston when it retires in the fall. Blount graduated from Wentworth in 1937 with a degree in machine construction and tool design. He received honorary doctorates from Rhode Island College and Roger Williams University. The Niagara Prince was built in Warren in 1994. It has a retractable pilothouse that allows it to pass through shallow waters and low-lying bridges. It can carry up to 90 passengers and crew.