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Columbia University News

28 Feb 2024

Qatar's Bigger LNG Expansion to Squeeze US, Other Rivals

(File photo: QatarEnergy)

Qatar's planned expansion of liquefied natural gas (LNG) production could see it control nearly 25% share of the global market by 2030 and squeeze out rival projects including in the United States where President Biden paused new export approvals, market experts say.Qatar, one of the world's top LNG exporters, plans an 85% expansion in LNG output from its North Field's current 77 million metric tons per year (mtpa) to 142 mtpa by 2030, from previously expected 126 mtpa.Some market experts said that the move will have an impact on global projects in the United States…

12 Jul 2023

Shell, BP Pursue Arbitration Claims Against Venture Global LNG

© Björn Wylezich / Adobe Stock

Top LNG traders Shell and BP have separately filed for arbitration against U.S. exporter Venture Global LNG for failing to supply contracted cargoes, even as it sold to non-contract customers as prices soared, four people familiar with the matter said.A Venture Global LNG spokesperson did not comment on the Shell and BP claims. Last month, the company said it was in full compliance with terms of its long-term contracts and cited a need for extensive commissioning of its modular…

12 Apr 2023

LNG Imports Test EU Resolve to Quit Russian Fossil Fuel

© KKF / Adobe Stock

Political pressure is building within the European Union to tackle the daunting challenge of closing a loophole in its efforts to stop using Russian fossil fuels: liquefied natural gas (LNG).In the year since Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the EU has placed sanctions on seaborne oil and coal imports from Russia.It has drastically cut reliance on Russian pipeline gas, despite not imposing sanctions on the fuel. But at the same time, EU countries have increased their overall purchases of Russian LNG…

22 Dec 2022

Has Green Hydrogen Sprung a Leak?

©Andreas Prott/AdobeStock

The green hydrogen express is gathering pace, but it may have a worrying problem with leaks.As governments and energy companies line up big bets on the much-touted fuel of the future, some scientists say the lack of data on leaks and the potential harm they could cause is a blind spot for the nascent industry.At least four studies published this year say hydrogen loses its environmental edge when it seeps into the atmosphere. Two scientists told Reuters that if 10% leaks during its production…

16 Dec 2022

Silversea Cruises Names Barbara Muckermann President & CEO

Barbara Muckermann (Photo: Silversea Cruises)

Barbara Muckermann, currently chief commercial officer at Silversea Cruises, will become the company’s next president and CEO, and will join parent company Royal Caribbean Group’s executive committee, effective January 1.Muckermann will succeed Roberto Martinoli, who will assume the role of senior advisor to Royal Caribbean Group president and CEO Jason Liberty.She becomes the second woman to lead one of Royal Caribbean Group’s three wholly-owned brands, and joins Celebrity Cruises president and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, and Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley.

15 Feb 2022

From the Science Lab: Clean Energy Projects that Could Impact Maritime

Copyright Li Ding/AdobeStock

As part of a $175M grant for 68 novel clean energy technology projects from the U.S. Department of Energy, these four offer promise in helping the maritime industry meet its decarbonization goals.Makai Ocean Engineering – Waimanalo, HIRemotely Installed Anchorages for Floating Offshore Wind and Other Offshore Renewables Cost Reduction -$849,951The Makai Ocean Engineering (Makai) team will develop novel mooring and anchoring methods to reduce the costs of offshore renewable energy.

09 Nov 2020

Biden Expected to Roll Back Trump's Offshore Energy Rollbacks

© Lukasz Z / Adobe Stock

Joe Biden could erase much of President Donald Trump’s four-year legacy of energy and climate deregulation with the stroke of his pen, according to regulatory experts, but replacing it with something new and durable may prove trickier.Trump’s rollbacks are on shaky ground because most were done not through Congressional lawmaking but via presidential executive orders that can be easily torn up by a new administration. That means signature measures ranging from the withdrawal of…

28 Oct 2020

In Beirut Port, All of Lebanon’s Ills Are Laid Bare

© Stphanie / Adobe Stock

The first of many warnings about a deadly cargo in Beirut’s port came in February 2014, about three months after its arrival. It was made by Colonel Joseph Skaf, described by his family as a diligent customs official.Skaf, then the head of the anti-narcotics and money laundering division, informed the customs authority that the shipment of ammonium nitrate was “extremely dangerous” and posed a risk to the public.In his handwritten letter, reviewed by Reuters and authenticated by a source familiar with the case…

16 Jul 2019

IEA: U.S., China to the LNG Lead by 2024

© Mike Mareen/Adobe Stock

The United States and China will become the world's biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters and importers, respectively, in five years, according to projections by the International Energy Agency (IEA).U.S. LNG exports are expected to rocket to over 100 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2024, dislodging current market leaders Australia and Qatar, Jean-Baptiste Dubreuil, senior natural gas analyst at IEA, said on Tuesday.He was speaking at a presentation sponsored by Columbia…

26 Apr 2018

Danish Man Gets Life for Murdering Journalist on His Submarine

UC3 Nautilus in 2008 (File photo: Frumperino)

Danish inventor Peter Madsen was sentenced to life in prison on Wednesday for murdering, sexually mutilating and dismembering a Swedish female journalist with premeditation aboard his home-made submarine in Copenhagen harbor in 2017.Madsen, dressed entirely in black, sat motionless as the Copenhagen City Court handed down its verdict in a grisly case straight from the pages of a dark Scandinavian psycho-thriller.Already well known in Denmark for his submarines and his plan to send a human into space in a home-made rocket…

20 Apr 2018

Trump Rails Against Oil Prices, OPEC Pushes Back

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

U.S. President Donald Trump accused OPEC on Friday of "artificially" boosting oil prices, drawing rebukes from some of the world's top energy exporters."Looks like OPEC is at it again. With record amounts of Oil all over the place, including the fully loaded ships at sea. Oil prices are artificially Very High! No good and will not be accepted!" Trump wrote on Twitter.It was unclear what triggered the tweet, Trump's first mention of OPEC on social media during his term.U.S. oil prices are near a three-year high…

09 Apr 2018

Naval Group Names Dupont Director, International Trade

François Dupont (Photo: Naval Group)

With effect on 2 April, François Dupont is appointed Director of the International Trade department at Naval Group. He will oversee all the areas in which Naval Group has prospective customers. He reports to Alain Guillou, Executive Vice President, Development. International development represents a major challenge for Naval Group, whose international sales should represent 50% of its revenues by 2020, compared to a third currently. François Dupont joined Naval Group at the age…

31 Jul 2017

Oil Markets Brace for Possible US Sanctions on Venezuela

© Federico Rostagno / Adobe Stock

U.S. oil markets were readying for fallout from potential U.S. sanctions on Venezuela's vital oil sector on Monday after Sunday's election in the struggling country was deemed a "sham" by Washington. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday celebrated the election of a new legislative superbody that will have the power to dissolve state institutions such as the opposition-run Congress. Countries around the world denounced the vote. U.S. crude futures jumped above $50 a barrel for the first time in two months early in the session before retreating, after U.S.

24 Jan 2017

Coast Guard Foundation Names NE Regional Director

Loralyn Cropper (Photo: Coast Guard Foundation)

The Coast Guard Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to the education and welfare of all Coast Guard members and their families, has announced  that Loralyn Cropper joined its staff as regional director for the Northeast. In her role, Cropper will work closely with Coast Guard units in the area to identify and fulfill education, morale and family support needs for Coast Guard members. She replaces Susan Ludwig in this position, who was recently named president of the Coast Guard Foundation.

23 Oct 2016

BOEM and Atlantic Sand Assessment Project

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) and the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO) will dedicate the Atlantic Sand Assessment Project (ASAP) core storage repository on Tuesday, October 25 at 11:00 a.m. The collection is a result of the BOEM-funded project to create a new inventory of potential offshore sediment resources in Federal waters in the Atlantic. The project involved collecting, analyzing and cataloging sediment cores from federal waters offshore 11 East Coast states from Miami, Florida, to Massachusetts beginning in 2015. The core analysis provides important information on thickness of sediment layers, composition of sediment layers, organic material content, and overall compatibility with beach sands.

13 Jun 2016

Thygesen Named CEO of Svitzer

Henriette Thygesen (Photo: Maersk Group)

Henriette H. Thygesen, currently Damco CEO for the Americas, has been appointed CEO of Svitzer with effect from September 1. Thygesen, who joined Maersk Group in 1994, has been with the group for 22 years, of which the last nine with Damco. She has previously worked for Maersk Tankers and Maersk Oil and prior to her current role, she was VP and CEO for Damco in North Asia, based in Hong Kong. She holds a Master of Science, a PhD in Applied Mathematics, and an Executive MBA from Columbia University, New York and London Business School. Svitzer’s current CEO, Robert M.

14 Jul 2015

Oil Analysts, Experts Weigh In On Iran Nuclear Deal

Iran, the United States and five other major powers reached an agreement to restrain the Iranian nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions. Q: Can you outline the timeline from here? "The P5+1 will now work on a UN resolution to endorse the deal; separately, domestic legislatures and other processes will review text, in the U.S, that includes a 60-day review period; 90 days from today the deal goes into implementation mode in which Iran does a number of nuke steps, and the P5+1 establish legal conditions for relief, but it doesn't get activated until the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) issues a report verifying Iran did what it said it would do, which Secretary (of State John) Kerry put at about 6 months, and which I think is about right, as noted before.

09 Jul 2015

US Crude Export Would Help Europe -Czech Republic

Lifting the U.S. ban on oil exports would bolster energy security in Europe by allowing countries to find alternative sources, the Czech Republic ambassador to the United States told lawmakers considering a bill to do away with the trade restriction. "The larger the number of stable democracies among the world's exporters, the more robust the energy security of the Czech Republic and the European Union will be," Petr Gandalovic, the ambassador told the panel the House subcommittee on Energy and Power on Thursday. The country has worked to reduce its dependence on oil and gas from Russia, the top energy supplier to many Eastern European countries. A recently built oil pipeline connects the Czech Republic to the Italian port of Trieste via Germany.

07 Jul 2015

Danish Ports Approve HullWiper

Photo: GAC EnvironHull

Authorities at the Danish ports of Copenhagen, Kalundborg and Fredricia have granted permission for GAC EnvironHull’s pioneering, diver-free, underwater HullWiper solution to be used within their ports and outside of holding areas. These approvals represent the latest expansion of the service into the Scandinavian region, following the approval of the Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) to clean hulls at Gothenburg, Sweden in 2014. “The granting of permission to use HullWiper in these three Danish ports represents the latest in our growing list of approvals around the world…

01 May 2015

USN Announces 2015 Young Investigators

It's a career-defining moment for 36 college and university faculty April 30, as the Department of the Navy announces the recipients of its 2015 Young Investigator Program, one of the oldest and most selective scientific research advancement programs in the country. Collectively, awardees will receive $18.8 million in grants to fund research across a range of naval-relevant science and technology areas. This is a banner year for the program, administered by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), which increased funding by 50 percent over last year. "These recipients demonstrate the type of visionary, multidisciplinary thought that helps the U.S. Navy anticipate and adapt to a dynamic battlespace," said Dr. Larry Schuette, ONR's director of research.

08 Sep 2014

Maritime Engineering Prof. Elected President of ASCE Organizations

Stevens Institute of Technology congratulates Thomas H. Wakeman III, research professor in the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering who will hold the position of 2015 President-Elect for two prestigious American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) organizations: the Coast, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute (COPRI) and the Academy of Coastal, Ocean, Port and Navigation Engineers (ACOPNE), which awards engineering certification in these specialty areas of civil engineering. In 2016, he will be the President of the two organizations and represent COPRI and ACOPNE at national and international events. A Life Member of ASCE, Dr. Wakeman has extensive experience in navigation engineering, port development, maritime security, and freight transportation planning.

02 Sep 2014

Shell CEO: US Should Export Oil, Embrace Global Markets

The head of energy company Royal Dutch Shell said on Tuesday that U.S. policymakers should lift the crude oil export ban because allowing the shipments would make global energy system more stable. "Policy makers here in the U.S. should embrace a truly liberalized diverse and global energy market," Shell CEO Ben van Beurden told a conference on energy at Columbia University. U.S. oil and natural gas exports "would reinforce the long term future of North American energy production," significantly improve the U.S. balance of trade, and "help to make the global energy system much more stable," he said. The United States has banned oil exports since the 1970s Arab oil embargo…

25 Jul 2014

Iraqi Kurdish Oil Nears US Port Despite Concern in Washington

A tanker carrying crude oil from Iraqi Kurdistan is just one day away from arriving at a U.S. port, according to ship tracking satellites, despite Washington's long-standing concern over independent oil sales from the autonomous region. The United Kalavrvta tanker, which left the Turkish port of Ceyhan in June carrying oil delivered via a new Kurdish pipeline, is due to dock in Galveston, Texas on Saturday, Reuters AIS Live ship tracking shows. A sale of Kurdish crude oil to a U.S. refinery would infuriate Baghdad, which sees such deals as smuggling, and raises questions about Washington's commitment to preventing oil sales from the autonomous region.