Astute News

Venezuela's loss of a key U.S. license that allowed it to freely export and increase investment in its oil sector will hit the volume and quality of its crude and fuel sales while prompting a flurry of requests for individual U.S deal authorizations.U.S. officials had warned that absent progress by President Nicolas Maduro on implementing an electoral roadmap agreed last year, the U.S. would not renew license 44, which since October had eased oil sanctions in place for the last five years.On Wednesday…

Senator Wesley Livsey Jones gave his name to the famous “Jones Act” governing U.S. domestic maritime trade. But what do really know about him? It turns out that he was much more than a leading merchant marine policy maker. (i)Jones had a long career in the U.S. House of Representatives before he was a Senator, was an effective legislator, an astute politician, one of the hardest working legislators of his era, and always viewed as honest and forthright. His many maritime legislative successes included the Merchant Marine Act…

Babcock has been awarded two further contracts for work on the UK’s new Dreadnought Class submarine worth a combined £121 million.The contracts include a 4.5-year £66 million contract with the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to provide input into the development of the support solution for the UK’s new Dreadnought Class submarines. The new Class of submarine will replace the Vanguard Class in the early 2030s to maintain a Continuous At Sea Deterrent.Babcock will also provide the MOD with technical and management support…

The UK Ministry of Defense has awarded £3.95 billion (currently ~$4,81 billion) of funding to BAE Systems for the next phase of the UK's next-generation nuclear-powered attack submarine program, known as SSN-AUKUS.According to BAE Systems, SSN-AUKUS will be the largest, most powerful, and most advanced attack submarine the Royal Navy has ever operated and will eventually replace the Astute class, which BAE Systems builds at its site in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria.The funding follows the AUKUS announcement in March by the leaders of Australia, the UK and the United States.

Canadian safety officials on Friday opened an investigation into the undersea implosion of a tourist submersible that killed all five people aboard while diving to the century-old wreck of the Titanic, raising questions about the unregulated nature of such expeditions.A debris field from the submersible Titan was found at the bottom of the North Atlantic on Thursday by a robotic diving vehicle deployed from a Canadian search vessel, ending an intense five-day international rescue effort.Fragments of Titan…

HMS Anson, the fifth Astute class submarine, which BAE Systems has designed and built for the Royal Navy, has departed the company's shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, and headed out to open sea for the first time.After being guided through the shipyard's dock system and rounding the tip of Walney Island, HMS Anson began her maiden journey to His Majesty's Naval Base Clyde, home of the UK's Submarine Service. She will undertake sea trials before joining HMS Astute, HMS Ambush…

The UK Royal Navy has awarded a £15.4 million (currently around $18,8 million) contract for a crewless submarine to the Plymouth-based company MSubs. The submarine is expected to be delivered to the Navy in two years. The Navy expects the submarine to further advance the UK’s ability to protect our critical national infrastructure and monitor sub-sea activity."Project Cetus – named after a mythological sea monster – enhances the Royal Navy’s experimentation with autonomous underwater systems.

Following the Worldwide Ferry Safety Association’s (WFSA) Professional Program (held virtually on May 18, 2022), Awards were presented to finalist teams in the WFSA’s Ferry Design Competition, now in its ninth year.Dr. Roberta Weisbrod, WFSA’s Executive Director, said the specifications for the design ferry were crafted to be ever more challenging from year to year, but that this year’s objective creating a safe and affordable ferry for transiting India’s Brahmaputra River, “that…

iXblue said it has been selected by Naval Group to supply navigation systems for two Gowind corvettes intended for the international market. These two future combat corvettes will be fitted with Marins navigation systems and Netans data distribution and processing units.Based on fiber-optic gyroscope (FOG) technology, iXblue navigation solutions already equip more than 650 surface ships and underwater platforms in 40 navies and coast guards, including major programs such as the French Navy's future FDI…

U.S.-based marine services contractor Phoenix International Holdings, Inc. announced that Matthew Long has been promoted to Corporate Vice President. Long will retain his current duties as General Manager of Phoenix’s Largo, Md. operations, and in his additional role as Corporate VP will assume responsibilities for company-wide financial forecasting, reporting and budgeting.A retired U.S. Navy Engineering Duty Officer and diver, Long has decades of experience managing technically challenging marine engineering projects worldwide.

The floating production systems market worldwide is projected to grow by US$85.1 Billion, driven by a compounded growth of 19.5%.Floating production storage offloading (FPSO), one of the segments analyzed and sized in this study, displays the potential to grow at over 19.9%, said a report by ResearchAndMarkets.The shifting dynamics supporting this growth makes it critical for businesses in this space to keep abreast of the changing pulse of the market.Poised to reach over US$77 Billion by the year 2025, Floating Production Storage offloading (FPSO) will bring in healthy gains adding significant momentum to global growth.Representing the developed world, the United States will maintain a 21% growth momentum.

A shipyard in northern England that builds Britain's new generation of nuclear submarines was evacuated on Wednesday after what a local news website said was a bomb warning.Ambulances and police were on the scene in Barrow-in-Furness in northwestern England. The defense ministry declined to comment."As a precaution, the Devonshire Dock Complex has been closed," a spokeswoman for BAE Systems said.

PSA International, one of the world's largest port operators, announced that  Peter Voser, currently Deputy Chairman, is taking on the role of Group Chairman of the PSA Board.Fock Siew Wah stepped down as Group Chairman on 1 April 2019, and will assume the role of Special Advisor to PSA until his retirement on 31 July 2019.As one of PSA’s longest serving Chairmen, Fock has steered PSA with visionary leadership and strategic foresight since August 2005. With his astute guidance, the PSA Group’s global footprint has grown to its current day span of over 50 coastal, inland and rail terminals in 17 countries, and volumes have doubled to…

Evergreen Group celebrated its 50th Anniversary at the Chang Yung-Fa Foundation, home of the charity set-up by Evergreen Group Founder and Chairman Dr. Y.F. Chang, said a press release from the company.In addition to senior executives and employees of the Group’s businesses, the event was also attended by public officials, customers and business agents from both the shipping and airline industries as well as representatives of supply chain partners from more than fifty countries.The celebration commenced with a performance by the choir of the Yihsing branch of Jiahsing Elementary School from Hsinchu County. The choir was a gold medal…

Britain on Monday awarded defence firm BAE Systems 2.4 billion pounds ($3.26 billion) to work on two submarine programmes, the company said in a statement.The Ministry of Defence gave BAE a 1.5 billion pound contract for delivery of the seventh Astute class submarine, and a further 900 million pounds for the next phase of the Dreadnought submarine program, the company said.($1 = 0.7364 pounds)(Reporting by Alistair Smout; editing by Kate Holton)

The U.K. Royal Navy’s fourth Astute class submarine, Audacious, has completed its first ever dive, marking a milestone on the path toward full sea trials later in 2018. The trim and basin dive took place over two days in early January in Devonshire Dock, at builder BAE Systems's site in Barrow-in-Furness. The operation, which saw Audacious submerge fully underwater for the first time, allowed a team from Royal Navy, Ministry of Defense and BAE Systems to test many of the sub’s onboard systems, and proved the safety and stability of the 7,400-metric-ton, 97-meter-long attack submarine.

The U.K.’s newest aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth was commissioned into the Royal Navy fleet this morning by Her Majesty The Queen. Serving as the ship's Lady Sponsor, The Queen addressed guests before the ship's Commanding Officer, Captain Jerry Kyd, and read the commissioning warrant at a ceremony in Portsmouth Naval Base. The ceremony, attended by Her Royal Highness Princess Anne, Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson and military chiefs, marked the first time the Queen has visited the new warship since the formal naming ceremony in Rosyth in July 2014.

A new partnership between Cammell Laird and BAE Systems aims to position the companies to build five Type 31e Frigates for the U.K. Royal Navy. The Teaming Agreement has been formed in response to the U.K. Ministry of Defense Request for Information and will now be part of a competitive tender process. Under the agreement, Cammell Laird will act as Prime Contractor to build the Type 31e Frigates with BAE Systems providing warship design, engineering capability and combat systems expertise.

Management software: vendors, consultants, class strive to provide turnkey service. Unless you’ve been lost at sea for the last few years, you know about Subchapter M. You know the June publication of the U.S. Coast Guard’s regulations for ensuring minimum safety standards on tows and tugs, which will extend inspection requirements to the majority of these vessels for the first time, moved the long-awaited, and in some cases, dreaded program from the haze of eventually out into the cold light of day.

Liverpool City Region (UK) shipyard Cammell Laird has announced it will be honoring its illustrious naval and military heritage next month by being headline sponsor of the UK’s Armed Forces Day (AFD). The AFD celebrations will take place in Liverpool this year on June 24, with more than 1,000 serving personnel, veterans, cadets and marching bands taking part in a parade followed by a full program of events near the city’s iconic waterfront. Cammell Laird CEO John Syvret, CBE,…

The U.S. maritime industry publicly recognized the merchant mariners responsible for safe ship operations at the Annual Safety Awards Luncheon held on June 7, 2017. In all, 211 people, representing 53 companies and their subsidiaries attended the annual industry-sponsored event where 1,582 vessels with 10,604 cumulative years of accident free operation were recognized. Since 1958, the Chamber of Shipping of America (CSA) has also sponsored the Safety Achievement Award program which recognizes outstanding feats of safety that contribute to saving a life, a ship or other property.

When Elisabeth Tørstad took the helm as CEO of DNV GL - Oil & Gas in late 2013, the price of a barrel of NYMEX (WTI) crude oil was more than $100. Today, that price has been halved, and the 40-month period between her ascension to the top post and our meeting with her in Houston in May 2017 has been arguably the most tumultuous in the oil industry’s history. Tørstad shares with Maritime Reporter & Engineering News her insights on the market going forward. With the energy slump entering its fourth year…

The Royal Navy’s new flagship HMS Queen Elizabeth berthed in her home port of Portsmouth early on Wednesday morning and was greeted Prime Minister Theresa May visited the aircraft carrier and hailed it as a symbol of the UK’s maritime might, said a press release from UK Chamber of Shipping. “Britain truly has the best sailors, marines and officers in the world and I believe that you deserve the very best equipment. That is what we have with HMS Queen Elizabeth. This ship is a symbol of the United Kingdom as a great global, maritime nation,” the prime minister said in an address. “Clearly, she is a stunning piece of twenty-first-century engineering and a true testament to British shipbuilding and design. Six shipyards from across the United Kingdom contributed sections of this vessel.