Capacity Building News

Chee Hong Tat, Singapore’s Acting Minister for Transport, announced a record year in 2023 at a Singapore Maritime Foundation New Year Conversations event.The annual vessel arrival tonnage in the Port of Singapore crossed three billion gross tonnage (GT) for the first time, increasing by 9.4% over 2022 and setting a high of 3.09 billion GT in 2023. This reflects growth in all segments, including container ships, dry bulk carriers, liquid bulk and chemical tankers, ferries and specialised vessels…

Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the IMO, addressed the United Nations Security Council at its 9,525th meeting reiterating his condemnation of the attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea.“Attacks against international shipping in the Red Sea area are not acceptable,” he said. “Ships must be allowed to trade worldwide unhindered and in accordance with international law.”Since the beginning of November, a number of attacks have been launched against international vessels navigating in the Red Sea which hosts around 15% of international shipping trade.

An Iranian fishing vessel, Almeraj 1, was reportedly hijacked by Somali pirates in November 2023. According to media reports, the pirates demanded US$400,000 in ransom and threatened to use the Iranian ship for additional hijackings if the payment was not made.Two days later, other Somali pirates hijacked a tanker, Central Park, off the Yemeni coast. The tanker sent a distress signal during the attack. Forces from a nearby American warship captured the pirates as they tried to…

Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry are co-leading an international initiative to accelerate reduction of emissions from the shipping sector, and on December 1, during COP28, they chaired a new round of announcements under that initiative, the Green Shipping Challenge.Various countries and organizations proposed measures to reduce emissions from shipping. This year’s announcements include:• Amazon: Amazon and other…

The IMO and the Republic of Korea have signed a suite of agreements to formally establish and boost the IMO-Republic of Korea Sustainable Maritime Transport Cooperation (SMART-C) program.The goal of the KRW 25.5 billion (approximately $20 million) SMART-C program is to promote sustainable maritime transport systems and a sustainable marine environment by building knowledge and developing technical capacity in developing countries via long-term thematic projects.This Official Development Assistance (ODA) funding will ensure long-term programming of several technical cooperation projects.

Inmarsat Maritime, a Viasat business, won the 2023 International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF) Award for Innovation and Technology in Maritime Search and Rescue after a highly respected judging panel led by former IMRF Chair Michael Vlasto selected its entry from a shortlist of 10 individuals and organisations.Acknowledging “volunteer and professional search-and-rescue (SAR) personnel from around the world”, the prestigious award highlights “those who have shown excellence in their field…

On a windswept island 50 miles north of Seattle sits a U.S. Navy monitoring station. For years, it was kept busy tracking whale movements and measuring rising sea temperatures. Last October, the Navy gave the unit a new name that better reflects its current mission: Theater Undersea Surveillance Command.The renaming of the spy station at the Whidbey Island naval base is a nod to a much larger U.S. military project, according to three people with direct knowledge of the plans:…

In a first, Brazilian oil company Petrobras last week reportedly sold the P-32 FPSO for sustainable recycling in Brazil, paving the way for the development of the local ship recycling industry.The sale of the floating unit P-32 reportedly took place on July 7, 2023. In a collaboration supervised by Petrobras, the steel company Gerdau S.A. and shipyard Ecovix have been entrusted with the responsible and environmentally sound recycling of the FPSO."This decision marks the first time a commercial vessel at the end of its lifecycle will be dismantled in Brazil.

The Bahamas Maritime Cadet Corps (BMCC), which was first established by The Bahamas Ministry of Transport in 2004 to introduce high school students to employment opportunities in the maritime sector and build national capacity, said more graduates than ever this year have chosen to enter a career in shipping related industries.Many of this year’s 97 graduating students are opting to join the Royal Bahamas Defence Force or are considering further maritime education. A large number…

On 29 June, Professor Maximo Q. Mejia, Jr. assumed office as the eighth President of the World Maritime University (WMU). Appointed by the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), who also serves as Chancellor of the University, President Mejia assumes the role of Chief Executive Officer, overseeing and directing the academic programmes, operations and administration of the University. Professor Mejia is the first President from Asia and the first President who is a graduate of WMU.Regarding his appointment…

Draft revised Guidelines for the reduction of underwater noise from commercial shipping to address adverse impacts on marine life have been agreed by the IMO Sub-Committee on Ship Design and Construction (SDC 9), which met January 23-27, 2023.The draft guidelines recognize that commercial shipping is one of the main contributors to underwater radiated noise (URN) which has adverse effects on critical life functions for a wide range of marine life, including marine mammals, fish and invertebrate species…

The outgoing Director of the IMO International Maritime Law Institute (IMLI), Professor David Joseph Attard, has been selected by the IMO Council to be the recipient of the International Maritime Prize for 2021. Professor Attard was nominated for the award by the Republic of Malta. In the nomination, the impact that Professor Attard has had on the maritime world, particularly via his three-decade-long role at IMLI was highlighted. The Maltese national was responsible for proposing, in 1987, together with the late Dr.

International Maritime Industries (IMI), which describes itself as the largest shipyard in the MENA region, and offshore construction firm Lamprell on Tuesday announced the successful completion of the load-out and float-off of the first jackup drilling unit being constructed for IMI.The jack-up rig will now undergo intensive mechanical completion and commissioning before being transferred to IMI’s yard in Ras Al Khair, Saudi Arabia, for final commissioning before going on a contract…

U.S. Commercial Service previews September 20-22 export forum  The growing demand for marine technologies is generating new export possibilities for U.S. companies. To help American businesses pursue these opportunities, the Department of Commerce is hosting Discover Global Markets: The Blue Economy, in Providence, R.I., Sept. 20-22, 2022. International Trade Specialist Maryanne Burke leads the Marine Technology Team of the International Trade Administration (ITA). Maryanne is part of ITA’s U.S.

It was 1914 when the English explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail on his Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition aboard a ship called Endurance. It was an ill-fated journey: the ship got trapped in the ice and eventually crushed by pack ice in 1915. It sank to the bottom of Antarctica’s Weddell Sea. (Shackleton and his entire crew survived the ordeal by escaping in smaller boats.)It was difficult to believe that the Endurance might ever be found. The icy Weddell Sea is inhospitable and the wreck lay in more than 3000 metres of water.

Shipping organization BIMCO is urging states in the Gulf of Guinea region to take responsibility and step-up prosecution efforts when pirates are apprehended by international navies, following the release of three suspected pirates held in custody on board Danish frigate Esbern Snare.“The presence of international navies is a very important step in the right direction to keep seafarers safe but establishing a sustainable security situation in the Gulf of Guinea cannot happen without full support of the region.

A newly signed initiative is set to provide pilot projects to demonstrate technical solutions for biofouling management in developing countries, address the transfer of invasive aquatic species and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions from ships.The TEST (Transfer of Environmentally Sound Technologies) Biofouling Project will run for four years (2022-2025), following an agreement signed on December 8 by International Maritime Organization (IMO) Secretary-General Kitack Lim and the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad).

Following the incident in the Gulf of Guinea on 24 November involving the Danish frigate Esben Snare and a suspected pirate vessel, BIMCO calls on all naval forces in the area to further increase the pressure on piracy groups and hopes a continued naval presence will act as a deterrent.According to the Danish Armed Forces, Danish frigate Esben Snare has been involved in an incident involving suspected pirates on 24 November in the waters south of Nigeria. The Danish navy further announced that the frigate was close enough to send a team to the suspected pirates with the aim to board…

IMO's Technical Cooperation Committee at its 71st session (TC 71) (20-24 September) has approved the establishment of an IMO Regional Presence Office (RPO) for the Pacific Islands region. If approved at the thirty-fourth extraordinary session of the Council (08 - 12 November 2021), this will see the Pacific Region become the sixth to feature an IMO RPO.The existing RPOs are: Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire for west and central Africa (Francophone); Accra, Ghana for west and central Africa (Anglophone)…

Is neo-colonialism in the Gulf of Guinea the answer to West Africa’s maritime crime crisis?In October 2020, China’s transport ministry established an ad hoc workgroup to lay down precautionary measures for ships and seafarers passing through high piracy risk West African waters.The move came as China told its vessels to up vigilance and implement a series of precautionary measures to ensure the security of ocea-going vessels and seafarers amid rising attacks and a surge in kidnaps in the Gulf of Guinea.Plans outlined by Wu Chungeng…

A new strategic partnership to strengthen cooperation between ships and ports to reduce greenhouse gas emissions has been signed (on 13 October) by the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) and the GreenVoyage2050 Project, which is executed by IMO.The partnership will result in collaboration to jointly deliver technical cooperation and capacity-building activities to support implementation of an IMO resolution (MEPC.323(74)) which encourages voluntary cooperation…

Enhanced cooperation and implementation of best practices are needed to avoid, deter and report attacks threatening ships and crew in the world's top piracy hotspot, says the United Nations' (UN) maritime agencyKitack Lim, Secretary-General of the UN's International Maritime Organization (IMO) expressed his deep concern about the escalation in the number and severity of attacks on ships and crew in the Gulf of Guinea region, and insisted on the need for a collaborative approach…

Core Group Resources is hosting a charity golf event in support of Mercy Ships' volunteer crew fund, on March 29, in Katy, Texas, west of the Houston Energy Corridor.The hosts are currently seeking additional teams, sponsors and donations to support the golf outing at the Falcon Point Golf Club, which will also include a barbecue, auction and raffles for golfers and non-golfers alike.Mercy Ships is an international charity operating the world's largest nongovernmental hospital…