Classification News

ABS signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Korea Marine Equipment Research Institute (KOMERI) to create a new facility dedicated to improving the safety of LNG as fuel.ABS and KOMERI will collaborate on research at the shoreside facility, which will allow shipowners to safely test fuel gas and bunkering systems, under actual loading conditions, prior to installation onboard.“ABS is proud to partner with KOMERI on this important facility, which will help ensure safe and effective testing of new equipment and ultimately advance adoption of LNG…

Leading classification society Nippon Kaiji Kyokai, also known by the brand name 'ClassNK', has opened a new exclusive survey office in Reggio Calabria, Italy with operations beginning 5 December, 2018.Reggio Calabria, located in Southwest Italy, faces the Strait of Messina which crosses through the Italian Peninsula and Sicily. In recent years, the number of surveys and audits required in the southern part of Italy and Malta has been increasing.Through the opening of its latest office…

Port of Rotterdam to grant nine  licenced liquified natural gas (LNG) bunkering licences by 2020, a port official has said.Six of the licenses are already for regular use in port LNG bunker operations to refuel LNG-powered cruise, cargo, tanker and container vessels, said Cees Boon, Senior Policy Advisor at the Harbourmaster Policy Department of the Port of Rotterdam. Three licenses will be for bunker vessels that will operate on the spot market.“By using best practice guidelines in the IAPH audit tool developed by ports for port authorities…

France's Gaztransport & Technigaz (GTT) announced that it has received a new order from a Korean shipyard, Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI), for the design of the tanks of a new LNG tanker with a capacity of 174,000 m3 , on behalf of the Greek shipowner Minerva.The specialist in cryogenic containment systems said in a press release that the tanks of this unit, used for the LNG transportation, will be fitted with the Mark III Flex+ membrane containment system developed by GTT, offering a guaranteed boil-off rate of 0.07% of tank volume/day.

Swedish shipping company Sirius Shipping Sirius Shipping has taken delivery of its first 7999-dwt LNG-ready oil/chemical tanker Saturnus from the Avic  Dingheng Shipyard  in China.The Backman family- founded company said in a press release that the work to develop the Evolution concept started six years ago with the purpose to develop a vessel design where the entire underwater body, hull, rudder and propeller would be designed and chosen to obtain the best possible hydrodynamic…

The Classification Society Korean Register (KR) and Swiss Climate EcoCare GmbH has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to provide enhanced International Maritime Organization (IMO) Data Collection System (DCS) services to the maritime industry.According to a release, the MoU was signed in Hamburg, Germany on 22nd Nov 2018 in presence of Philipp Ahrenkiel, Managing Director at Swiss Climate EcoCare GmbH and Michael Suhr, Technical & Commercial Director at Korean Register, Germany.

Rolls-Royce received Approval in Principle (AIP) from classification organization ABS for its novel hybrid propulsion system for tractor tugs.The AIP was granted following an evaluation of the world’s first hybrid tug, a unique vessel designed by Jensen Maritime and which Nichols Brothers Boat Builders will deliver to Baydelta Maritime LLC in February 2019. The vessel will be the first tug boat installed with the Rolls-Royce hybrid propulsion system.ABS considers the Rolls-Royce hybrid system is…

Technological innovation and the global introduction of alternative fuels and/or energy sources for international shipping will be integral to achieving the overall ambition in the Initial International Maritime Organization (IMO)  Strategy on reduction of GHG emissions from ships.A press note from the UN agency said that a meeting of the IMO Global Industry Alliance to Support Low Carbon Shipping (GIA) Task Force at IMO Headquarters in London (27 November) held a lively debate…

The world’s first intelligent very large ore carrier (iVLOC), the DNV GL-classed Pacific Vision, was delivered by Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipyard to China Merchants Energy Shipping Company.Norway-headquartered international accredited registrar and classification society said in a statement that the vessel is the world’s first VLOC to implement DNV GL’s SmartShip descriptive notation.To qualify for the notation, Pacific Vision has been outfitted with an integration platform, a smart navigation decision support system…

At an exhibition in New Orleans Wärtsilä debuted its first Wärtsilä-branded high-speed engine.The Wärtsilä 14 is a high-speed, compact engine designed to fit requirements for limited space and weight, lower capital expense, to meet current and future global emissions regulations, and to provide customers with improved efficiency, safety, and environmental sustainability.The Wärtsilä 14 serves both as main propulsion and auxiliary genset and is ideal for hybrid installations. This small but mighty high-speed engine is available in 12- and 16-cylinder configurations…

Shipping’s digital transformation is all around us, impacting the smallest vendor to the largest owner, across flag, class and shipyards, right up to the primary regulator.In these early days, there are many competing visions of the digital future. But the central question for ship owners and operators should not be whether their partners are delivering the required solutions; it should be whether they themselves are undergoing the digital transformation of their operating models…

Optimarin signed a contract to supply seven of its USCG-approved Optimarin Ballast Systems (OBS) to Fednav, Canada's largest ocean-going dry-bulk shipowning and chartering group. Five of the units will be fitted on existing vessels within the 63-strong Fednav fleet, with two deliveries set for newbuilds. The order comes on top of agreements for five units made last year, signaling a growing relationship between the two market leaders.With recent orders for multiple systems from Höegh Autoliners…

The classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has issued an Approval in Principle (AIP) to Dutch-based SBM Offshore for its proprietary wind floater design.The global provider of floating production and mooring systems (FPSO) said that the wind floater is a TLP concept and has been designed for the full life cycle, including in-place conditions, as well as wet tow with the wind turbine installed, and mooring hook-up phase.The AIP demonstrates the successful design of the floater…

The near-shore and inland workboat fleet is at the leading edge for autonomous vessel developmentWhile the advent of autonomous workboats are not exactly mainstream, you better believe that in the not-too-distant future they will be a reality on waterways in and around the U.S. Today there remain more questions than answers, particularly on the legal, logistics and insurance side of the coin. But the technology is evolving at record pace, providing many in the industry with mixed emotions. Excitement. Controversy. Curiosity. Skepticism.

The International Maritime Organization (IMO)-led GloMEEP project has delivered a training course in China last week to help maritime administrations and classification societies play their part in an ambitious scheme to collect fuel consumption data from ships.The data collected will provide vital information to support IMO’s global efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping. From 1 January 2019 ships of 5,000 gross tonnage and above will have to collect consumption data for each type of fuel oil they use.

PaxOcean’s Zhoushan Shipyard has delivered a 26,000m3 floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) Karunia Dewata to Indonesia-based Jaya Samudra Karunia (JSK). The FSRU is the largest to be built in China and will be capable of regasifying around 50 million standard cubic feet per day.The project marks a milestone for China's growing gas shipping industry and will help increase the development of Indonesia’s gas supply chain, where the unit will be based. The unit is also the first FSRU that PaxOcean has built.

Classification society ABS and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) collaborated to develop cyber security requirements for the ABS Cyber Security-Ready (CS-Ready) Notation for marine assets.A release from ABS said that it issued HHI the first-of-its-kind CS-Ready Notation to a large-scale commercial vessel—a VLCC—delivered in November. “As a global leader in marine cyber security, ABS is pleased to work with HHI to ensure the next generation of vessels is better equipped to address increasing levels of cyber risk,” said John Jorgensen, ABS Chief Scientist, Cyber Security.

As part of its strategy to make further inroads into the Japanese shipping market the Bahamas Maritime Authority (BMA) is opening its new office in the heart of Tokyo's Minato district.BMA’s new office at Nishi-Shinbashi was inaugurated by the Deputy Prime Minister of the Bahamas, the Honorable Peter Turnquest.The office will provide direct service to the Japanese maritime market, the world’s second largest in terms of vessel tonnage.Turnquest said: “Japan is a great maritime nation, and The Bahamas Ship Registry is one of the world’s top registries.

Lloyd’s Register has granted an approval in principle to STX Offshore & Shipbuilding for a 50,000 dwt MR tanker design capable of using LNG as a fuel. This development is the result of close collaboration between STX and LR.STX incorporated an LNG-fuelled propulsion system into their existing conventional MR tanker design with technical assistance and support from LR, ensuring that the design is in compliance with the new IGF code as well as LR’s Gas Fuelled Rules, covering other…

Congressional and Agency Actions to Implement Changes to U.S.-Flag Vessel Safety Requirements Three Years after the M/V El Faro IncidentOctober 1, 2018 marked three years since the tragic sinking of the M/V El Faro – ranking as one of the worst maritime disasters in U.S. history and resulting in the highest death toll for a U.S. commercial vessel sinking in almost 40 years. Following this incident, both the  National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and U.S. Coast Guard spent considerable  effort to investigate this incident.

The Beloe More recently joined its sister vessel Severnaya Dvina in the Port of Sabetta, northern Russia. The 2,000 m3 hopper dredger was delivered from stock to FSUE ROSMORPORT. The customized hopper dredger will perform maintenance duties and execute capital dredging in the newly created harbor.The Beloe More - meaning ‘White Sea’ in Russian - is not the first vessel Damen has delivered to ROSMORPORT. As Vadim Akimov, Damen Sales Director, explains : “ROSMORPORT is the Russian enterprise responsible for the accessibility of all major Russian sea ports.

Nordic marine technology company Kongsberg Maritime has selected Swiss battery maker  Leclanché, one of the world’s leading storage solutions companies, as its battery partner and supplier of customised marine energy storage solutions.The partnership contributes to Kongsberg's new generation of hybrid power solutions, which are set to deliver game-changing efficiencies and reduce the environmental impact of transportation with cutting-edge autonomous and crewed vessel newbuilds.Leclanché’s batteries will be an integral part of Kongsberg’s hybrid solutions.

Three one-day workshops - Southampton, U.K. - April 2-4, 2019NEXT GEN 2019 is a series of specialist one-day workshops run back-to-back on April 2-4, 2019. The program combines hot topics and international maritime experts with dynamic panel discussions. The Grand Harbor is a conference venue overlooking the historic port of Southampton, U.K. Workshop Lead John Haynes said, "In recent years less people are expected to do more work and time is becoming scarce for everyone in the marine industry.