DFDS Gets 20-Year Ferry Services Contract in Channel Islands
DFDS and the government of Jersey have signed a contract under which DFDS will provide freight and passenger services connecting Jersey of the Channel Islands to the UK and France for 20 years.Beginning 28 March 2025, the new service will include routes from Jersey to Poole and Portsmouth in the U.K., and Saint-Malo in France.DFDS committed to increase the frequency of ferries to address high demand in peak periods…
'Pirates' Display Debuts @ National Maritime Museum
In March 2025 the major exhibition Pirates will open at the National Maritime Museum (NMM), tracing the changing depictions of pirates throughout the ages and revealing the brutal history often obscured by fiction. While sometimes portrayed as tricksters or scoundrels, pirates are primarily swashbuckling adventurers associated with lush islands, flamboyant dress and buried treasure. Pirates will deconstruct these myths and illuminate the realities of pirate life…
Equinor Reaches Financial Close for Empire Wind 1 Offshore Wind Project
Equinor’s Empire Wind 1 project in the United States has now secured a project financing package of over $3 billion, reaching a financial close at the end of December 2024.The expected total capital investments, including fees for the use of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (SBMT), are approximately $5 billion including the effect of expected future tax credits (ITCs).The Empire Wind lease was awarded to Equinor in 2017.
Crew Member Missing from Rio Tinto’s Bulk Carrier Heading to Australia
Mining company Rio Tinto has reported that a deck fitter on board its bulk carrier RTM Zheng He, travelling from China to Western Australia, went missing.A deck fitter, named Gel Aguaviva, was reported missing on December 26, 2024.Rio Tinto said an extensive and ongoing search and rescue operation has been conducted over the past seven days, with the company working in collaboration with RTM Zheng He ship and crew manager…
BP’s Greater Tortue Ahmeyim Produces First Gas in West Africa
BP has started gas flow from Greater Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) Phase 1 deepwater project, offshore Mauritania and Senegal.The gas from wells at the GTA Phase1 liquefied natural gas (LNG) project now flows to the floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel for the next stage of commissioning. The GTA FPSO, located approximately 40 kilometers offshore, arrived to Mauritania and Senegal in the second quarter of 2024.
End of Tumultuous Year for Ship Recyclers
As a year of economic turmoil winds down on a quiet note, the world anticipates a 2025 that is bearing all the signs of a comparatively busier period across all sectors, says cash buyer GMS.The supply of tonnage has seen a year of record low recycling volumes, and yards are certainly yearning for busier days ahead, as freight markets increasingly start to divert more candidates for recycling, after…
Single Point of Failure Led to Grounding
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has issued several safety recommendations after an electrical short circuit led to the grounding of a bulk carrier in the channel off Port Hedland, in Western Australia’s Pilbara region.On April 9, 2022, the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Hagen Oldendorff departed its berth with a harbor pilot on board and four tugs assisting for an outbound passage of Port Hedland’s 40km dredged channel.During the transit…
WSC Elects New Chair
The World Shipping Council (WSC) Board of Directors has elected Soren Toft, CEO of MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company, as the new Chair of the World Shipping Council Board.“It is an honor to step into the role of Chair for the World Shipping Council and to represent the global liner shipping industry alongside our members. WSC is today a respected voice of liner shipping, engaging with governments and organizations globally…
Russia’s Domination of European Energy Ends
Russian gas exports via Soviet-era pipelines running through Ukraine came to a halt on New Year's Day, marking the end of decades of Moscow's dominance over Europe's energy markets.The gas had kept flowing despite nearly three years of war, but Russia's gas firm Gazprom said it had stopped at 0500 GMT after Ukraine refused to renew a transit agreement.The widely expected stoppage will not impact prices for consumers in the European Union - unlike in 2022…
Irish Coast Guard responded to 2,554 incidents in 2024
2024 was another busy and eventful year for the Irish Coast Guard. The year in figures:The 44 Coast Guard Units were mobilised on 1,154 separate occasions this year…
FMC Announces Export Strategies Deadline
Deadline Announced for Required Filing of Annual Export Strategies at FMC December 31, 2024 Ocean common carriers must file documented export strategies with the…
Remembering the service, sacrifice of the Merchant Marine
It was my pleasure on Nov. 10 to participate in the dedication of the U.S. Merchant Marine emblem alongside the emblems of the Armed Services of the United States at Veterans Memorial Plaza in Anacortes.I can’t think of a more auspicious time to have made this dedication than on Veteran’s Day weekend.We are a maritime nation.For those of you who don’t know, the U.S. Maritime Administration – MARAD for short -- is an agency within the U.S. Department of Transportation.
A tribute to our nation’s Fourth Arm of Defense
On Nov. 10, the day before Veterans Day, I had the honor of participating in a celebration of another group of veterans whose contributions as the nation’s Fourth Arm of Defense is not widely known: The Merchant Marine.The U.S. Merchant Marine emblem was added to Veterans Memorial Plaza in Anacortes in a brief ceremony attended by Xochitl Castaneda, Pacific Northwest and Alaska Gateway director of the U.S.
Japanese and Singaporean Bulk Carriers Collide in China
Two bulk carriers collided in China's Yangtze river, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Tuesday, adding that no injuries to the crew were reported.Vega Dream…
Ukraine Claims First: Navy Drone Downs Russian Helicopter
Ukrainian military intelligence said one of its naval drones had destroyed a Russian helicopter and damaged another one in the Black Sea.In a battle near Cape Tarkhankut on Crimea's west coast on Tuesday, a Magura V5 maritime drone equipped with missiles hit a Russian Mi-8 helicopter, Ukraine's GUR spy agency said on Telegram.GUR said it was the first time a Ukrainian naval drone had downed an air target.
Fascinated by Shipwrecks Podcast, Episode 4: Combing the Deep off the BC Coast
Podcast: Fascinated by Shipwrecks Episode 4: Combing the Deep off the BC CoastGuest: Jacques MarcHost: Kathy A. Smith“The thrill of new discoveries, unraveling mysteries, and telling stories about shipwrecks kind of got in my blood, if you will.” Jacques MarcWhat’s it like to challenge the identity of a documented wreck? Jacques Marc did just that on one of his first wreck dives on British Columbia’s south coast.
Obituary: Lieutenant James Earl Carter Jr., USN - 39th American President
President James Earl "Jimmy" Carter passed away on December 29, 2024, at the age of 100.President Carter graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946 with distinction, after which he was assigned to USS Wyoming (E-AG 17) as an ensign. After completing two years of surface ship duty, Carter applied for submarine duty. He served as executive officer, engineering officer, and electronics repair officer on the submarine SSK-1. When Admiral Hyman G.
Vessel Owner Presses Finland to Release Tanker
In the case of the oil tanker suspected of purposefully dragging its anchor to break a subsea power line and telecom cables, the plot thickens.The owner of an oil tanker seized by Finland on suspicion of breaking the power line and four telecoms cables in the Baltic Sea last week is seeking the release of the ship, a lawyer representing the company said on Monday. Finnish police and coast guard officials…
Crowley Awards Scholarships to USMMA Students
Four students from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) – Draygan Colonese, Elizabeth Kay, Charles Lausten and Gianna Russo – have been awarded Thomas B. Crowley Sr. Memorial Scholarships in recognition of their success and commitment to careers in the maritime industry.They were selected based on their academic achievements and performance during the cadet training periods aboard Crowley-operated or -managed vessels.Colonese…
India inks 19.9 bln rupees deal with Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders
India's defence ministry said on Monday it had signed a 19.9 billion rupees ($233 million) contract with Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders MAZG.NS for technology that allows…
