Fiat News

Fincantieri Marine Systems North America (FMSNA) has entered into a teaming agreement with Motor-Services Hugo Stamp (MSHS). MSHS distributes a wide range of products for the maritime and stationary power industries. FMSNA provides integrated propulsion systems, engineering, and sustainment services to government and commercial markets.The strategic alliance between the two will add in-demand engine lines and components to the distributor’s product offering, and also will expand the reach and service network for FMSNA integrated marine systems and components. The expanded service capability, located in key fleet concentration areas,…

France and Italy forged a military shipbuilding alliance on Friday, as state-controlled Naval Group and Fincantieri signed off on a 50-50 joint venture that will bid for Franco-Italian warship projects and sell to the world market.The alliance reflects the two countries' desire to fend off competition in naval shipbuilding from the likes of China, the United States and Russia.It is targeting orders worth up to 5 billion euros ($5.63 billion) over the next decade. Naval Group said the joint venture aims to build 10-15 warships in that period…

The automaker wants the Federal Maritime Commission to order payments from Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics AS and its sister company EUKOR Car Carriers Inc, Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd, Compania Sud Americana de Vapores, Hoegh Autoliners AS and affiliated companies. Fiat Chrysler filed its complaint on Oct. 17. All but one of the shippers sued by Fiat Chrysler pleaded guilty and admitted to price fixing as part of a Justice Department investigation. The remaining firm, Hoegh, agreed last month to plead guilty and pay a $21 million criminal fine.

Propulsion specialist REINTJES said it has opened a new branch office in the south of England to service markets in the U.K. and the Republic of Ireland. Opening of the REINTJES Britain & Ireland branch office follows on the cessation of trading by the former distributor European Marine and Machinery Agency in the middle of the year 2016. The business is guided by subsidiary REINTJES Benelux BVBA based in Antwerp, Belgium. In charge of the office management is Philip Martin who comes to the role with a large experience in the engine and propulsion sector…

San Jacinto College and the Seamen’s Church Institute will host e-Navigation Underway (North America) 2016, the third in the annual North American series of conferences focusing upon the development and application of e-navigation. The event will be held at the San Jacinto College Maritime Technology and Training Center, La Porte, Texas, a new facility that opened in Spring of this year. e-Navigation is an initiative of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the goal of which is to provide a decision support environment for the maritime community.

Regulators cracking down on national schemes which benefit some; more legal battles ahead with Luxembourg, Dutch tax appeals. EU state aid regulators are looking to Europe's top court to back their decision against a Spanish tax lease scheme for shipbuilders, one of several cases included in a crackdown on national tax programmes which benefit only certain companies. The decision by the European Commission on Monday to appeal to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union came after a lower court threw out the EU executive's finding in December last year. Judges said the Spanish scheme which involved financing ship construction through a structure with two intermediaries…

Court says scheme does not give firms selective advantage; EU regulators cracking down on unfair tax systems. Europe's second-highest court gave clearance on Thursday to a Spanish tax lease scheme in the shipbuilding industry, annulling a decision by EU regulators two years ago that this gave a selective advantage to companies and so was illegal state aid. The ruling by the Luxembourg-based General Court underlines the hurdles facing the European Commission in its crackdown on corporate tax avoidance and national programmes that benefit only certain groups. The Spanish scheme involved financing ship construction through a structure with two intermediaries, and allowing shipping companies to get a rebate of 20 to 30 percent on the price of vessels built by Spanish shipyards.

The automotive industry developed during the 20th century in Barcelona, Spain's principal industrial city and the center of one of Europe's four key development driving regions. The Port of Barcelona claims a leading role in the development of this sector throughout its history, and today it is one of its main factors of competitiveness, both for finished vehicles and containerized part traffic. When the industry began to develop in Catalonia, with manufacturers like Hispano Suiza and Elizalde…

After signing an order for the construction of five new ships two weeks ago, the Italian shipowner  Grimaldi Group has signed another contract for the construction of three new PCTC-type ships (Pure Car and Truck Carriers) at the Chinese Jinling shipyard, for a total investment of $165 million. These PCTCs are estimated to be delivered to the shipping company during 2017. The contract also calls for an option for the construction of an additional unit. The three latest PCTC orders are planned to be employed on the Group's regular service connecting the Mediterranean with North America to transport mainly brand new vehicles that are manufactured by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles to meet US and Canadian market needs.

A face-off between economists on the cost of West Coast port slowdown on U.S. economy. Vital shipping ports on the West Coast are closing amid a labor dispute between shipping companies and longshoremen. Will the shutdown lead to major losses for businesses and the U.S. economy as a whole? A section of economists and trade experts say that a shutdown of 29 West Coast ports closures would have very little effect on the broader U.S. economy as the trade of goods through U.S. ports represents only a fraction of the nation's total economic output. The situation promises to create headaches for scores of U.S. companies, including McDonald’s Corp., Macy’s Inc., ConAgra Foods Inc. and Levi Strauss & Co. West Coast ports account for almost half of U.S.

Building patrol boats is big business, especially for foreign defense needs. U.S. yards compete on a global stage in the all-important maritime security workboat arena. Patrol boats have continued to enhance bottom lines at many U.S. vessel builders this year through sales that are usually government directed or assisted. Budget cuts are a concern, but the sector’s federal funding remains high. Patrol boats are sold to other nations under the U.S. Foreign Military Sales or FMS program, authorized by the Arms Export Control Act to provide defense items.

A group of investors sued the Colombian government for preventing American salvage group Sea Search Armada from recovering San Jose, a ship that sank in 1708, often referred to as the “Holy Grail of Shipwrecks.” With numerous court rulings throughout the years, the battle has lasted since 1979. In a case filed March 29 with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), a group of American investors claimed the government of Colombia violated their human rights by preventing them from salvaging their jointly owned property, a Spanish galleon sunk in 800 feet of water near Cartagena, Colombia. The investment group, named Sea Search Armada (SSA), brought the suit after more than 20 years of various legal efforts to affirm SSA’s initial agreement with Colombia.

As the evolution and integration of robotics in maritime vehicles continues to reshape missions and capabilities inland, near-shore and at sea, Maritime Reporter & Engineering News last month was on hand in Abu Dhabi for the unveiling of a new Unmanned Surface Vessel family. If it delivers as designed, it will revolutionize marine robotic vehicle applications for both military and commercial purposes. Robert J. Murphy is certainly no stranger to the world of autonomous robotic marine vehicles, having worked in the field for more than a quarter of a century, dating to the mid-1980s.

Today Al Seer Marine and 5G International announced the introduction of a new family of unmanned surface vessels, a family ranging from the 3m Sea Serpent to the 11m monohull Eclipse. The USV family is designed to rapidly penetrate a vibrant Middle East defense market and to offer affordable, dependable USV options for commercial operations. Eclipse, the top-of-class 11-m monohull. While USV technology is surely not in its infancy, in relative terms, particularly when considering dramatic strides made in aerial and ground robotics, it is still pre-puberty.

The monohull, built in 1991 in less than a year by Fincantieri, sailed 3,106 nautical miles without refueling, from Ambrose Light, New York to Bishop Rock lightship on the Scilly  Isles, England, in 58 hours at an average speed of  53 knots (reaching  peaks of  70), and won once more the Blue Riband which in 1933 had been awarded to the legendary transatlantic liner, the Rex. Built at the shipyards of  Muggiano and Riva Trigoso, the Destriero was the largest ship in light alloy ever to be constructed and one of the vessels with the highest  concentration of  efficiency…

Costa Cruises has received the ABB Energy Efficiency Award 2009 in recognition of its efforts and progress in improving energy efficiency in its motor and drive systems. The prize was presented as part of “Energy Efficiency Award 2009. Designing and achieving energy efficiency: new conversations”, an event promoted and arranged by Abb Sace, a division of ABB Spa, and hosted by Mario Tozzi, an outstanding Italian science divulger. In addition to Costa Cruises’ project, the initiatives implemented by the other two prize-winning Italian enterprises – Fiat Auto and Fiorucci, leaders in the vehicle manufacturing and food industries, respectively – were also illustrated at the ceremony.

Laborde Products added National Maintenance and Repair as a service and sales dealer. It supports the river and rail industries with facilities in Hartford, Illinois; Paducah, Kentucky; and Harahan, Louisiana. National Maintenance and Repair will provide sales and support for Laborde Products' Mitsubishi marine propulsion engines in all three locations. It will also provide sales and service for Laborde's packaged product division, Diesel America. Offering a wide range of diesel-powered equipment, including pumps, generators, pressure washers, barge pumps and other special diesel equipment, the line is powered with FPT (Fiat Powertrain Technologies), Yanmar, Mitsubishi and other quality products distributed by Laborde.

Fiat Powertrain Technologies of North America, Inc., (FPT NA), announced an agreement with Costa Mesa-based Boatswain’s Locker for the distribution and service of FPT commercial diesel marine engines and parts in California, Hawaii, and Western Mexico. “We chose to carry the FPT commercial line of diesel marine engines with outputs from 57 to 1300 HP for several reasons,” said Dan Gribble, CEO Boatswain’s Locker. Founded in 1939 in Newport Beach, California, Boatswain’s Locker provides sales and service of marine engine products for both recreational and commercial vessels for over 69 years. Boatswain’s Locker is the distributor for FPT…

It was reported that Italy's Defense Ministry placed a $757 million order for an aircraft carrier with Fincantieri SpA. The order for the 235-meter long vessel, the biggest warship built in Italy since the second world war, brings the order book at money-losing Fincantieri to 6 trillion lire. Construction will begin next June at La Spezia, in the region of Liguria, and the ship is likely to enter into service in 2007. The ship will reportedly be powered by four gas turbines built by Fiat SpA and General Electric Co. Separately, it was reported that Fincantieri Chief Executive Pier Francesco Guarguaglini said the company will invest 100 billion lire in the next two years to create a third shipbuilding yard in Genoa.

Iveco, a leading Italian manufacturer of commercial vehicles and diesel engines, announced the opening of its U.S. engine operations, Iveco Motors of North America, in conjunction with the unveiling of their new brand name, Iveco Motors. Serving 79 countries with their acclaimed diesel engines, Iveco Motors opened North American operations in Carol Stream, IL to respond to the demands of the growing Canadian and the U.S. marketplace. The new U.S. operation will serve as an independent engine business that will focus on application development, sales, marketing and support of Iveco’s total line of engines. The new location will include a full service and parts department to assure OEM’s 100% customer satisfaction.

Smith Maritime was contracted by a Nigerian company to deliver a 200' lift boat for oil field maintenance. Smith Maritime selected the 5,000 hp tug Rhea and 400' barge Atlanta Bridge for the voyage. The barge was equipped with pumps to allow for controlled sinking and recovery in order to float the lift boat on and off. But they ran into a hitch. Shortly before departing, Smith Maritime discovered the African port was unable to furnish power for the pumps. Within hours Smith Maritime received delivery of a 60 kW Fiat Powertrain Technologies (FPT, formerly Iveco) diesel generator from Laborde.

Fiat Powertrain Technologies of North America, Inc., (FPT NA), has expanded Louisiana-based distributor Laborde Products Inc.’s distribution territory to include Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico in addition to their current territory, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee. Laborde Products supplies FPT marine, power generation and industrial engines. FPT industrial engines are fitted with mechanical and electronic injection systems, and meet current and some future emissions standards. Laborde Products distribute FPT NA, Mitsubishi, Yanmar and Hatz diesel engines and also package their own diesel powered equipment under Diesel America.  (www.labordeproducts.com)

Fiat Powertrain Technologies of North America, Inc., (FPT NA), has expanded Louisiana-based distributor Laborde Products Inc.’s distribution territory to include Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico in addition to their current territory, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee. Laborde Products supplies FPT marine, power generation and industrial engines. FPT industrial engines are fitted with mechanical and electronic injection systems, and meet current and some future emissions standards. Laborde Products distribute FPT NA, Mitsubishi, Yanmar and Hatz diesel engines and also package their own diesel powered equipment under Diesel America.  (www.labordeproducts.com)