First International News

As the offshore oil and gas industry transitions to more sustainable practices, drilling rig operators are faced with demands to implement greenhouse gas (GHG) abatement measures as part of their workload. Being the owner of the first ever drillship that secured DNV’s Abate(P) notation, Scotland-based offshore drilling contractor Stena Drilling discusses everything the company is doing to make its drill-ships ‘greener’.The first step to reducing its carbon footprint for Stena…

The Northwest Seaport Alliance’s Terminal 5 has welcomed MSC Brunella as the first vessel to plug in to the terminal’s new shore power infrastructure.Terminal 5 is the first international container terminal in the Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) gateway with shore power capability, and the nearly 9,000 TEU vessel successfully used clean energy from the City of Seattle’s electrical grid while at berth on April 10.Shore power installation is a key part of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy…

On October 31, 2022, global maritime leaders of tomorrow graduated from the World Maritime University (WMU). The Class of 2022 has received the education required to contribute to maritime and ocean matters in their home countries and more broadly to the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). Overall, the graduating class includes 276 graduates from 70 countries, and sets a record of 94 women graduates.WMU President Dr. Cleopatra Doumbia…

The U.S. Navy needs more ships. And that means the Navy has to build more ships than it is decommissioning.The sea service has a stated a goal of 355 ships, and as many as 500 and more when unmanned platforms are counted. There are 298 ships in the fleet today. For surface ships, this number includes a high-low mix of highly capable large surface combatants, and smaller ships such as littoral combat ships LCS).The Navy’s smallest combatants are the 330-ton, 197-foot coastal patrol boats (PCs). Up until recently, ten of them have been serving in the Middle East with the U.S.

“We're not tinkering. We're building enhanced maritime domain awareness.”The U.S. Navy’s Task Force 59, based in Bahrain as part of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) and U.S. Fifth Fleet, is advancing the operational employment and integration of unmanned systems and artificial intelligence in fleet operations.According to Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, the fleet commander, unmanned systems and artificial intelligence are helping to accelerate innovation, especially in such a vast area of responsibility (AOR)“It's 5…

Dutch shipbuilding group Damen has signed its first contact with ballast water treatment systems (BWTS) manufacturer ERMA FIRST. The Greek manufacturer ERMA FIRST will supply its oneTANK, which is the world’s smallest BWTS, using chemical injection methods to clean ships’ ballast water.Damen Green Solutions has a broad selection of BWTS in its range, offering shipowners various capacities and techniques in treating their ballast water. With the addition of the ERMA FIRST oneTANK, Damen can provide clients with a solution that is not only small, but also modular.

The Australian Maritime College (AMC), part of the University of Tasmania (UTAS), and the International Association of Maritime and Port Executives (IAMPE) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreeing to work together on professional development for the maritime and port industry. Under the MOU, AMC and the IAMPE will acknowledge and endorse each other’s programs related to port and terminal education and training. The IAMPE will look to provide a professional certification as Marine Terminal Operator (MTO) to AMC undergraduate students for successfully completing the maritime undergraduate program. In addition, AMC is reviewing IAMPE programs for the granting of academic credit to graduate students in their new Maritime Business Administration in Maritime Management program.

The MSC Grandiosa cruise ship is set to dock at the cruise pier of the Port of Valencia marking the MSC's resumption of activity at the port. The ship will dock at the Cap i Casal, an operation that will take place every Friday with a full day stopover until November 5, when the summer and autumn season comes to an end. This was explained this morning at a press conference by the, who was accompanied by the president of the Port Authority of Valencia (PAV), Aurelio Martínez, and the CEO of MSC Spain, Francisco Lorente.Vice-president of MSC Cruises, Gianluca Suprani said it was important that the sector was slowly but surely returning to normality…

Genting Cruise Lines said it will be the first international cruise company to restart operations with the deployment of Dream Cruises’ Explorer Dream to Taiwan, where it will begin “Taiwan Island-Hopping” itineraries on July 26 2020.Upon the ship’s arrival in Keelung on June 40, 2020, Explorer Dream underwent a thorough deep cleaning in accordance with EU standard, in addition to her crew immediately beginning amandatory 14-day quarantine on land.Read a recent interview with Captain Havard Ramsoy…

One of the world's largest shipbuilding exhibitions, SMM, held bi-annually in Hamburg, Germany and scheduled to take place in September 8-11, 2020, has been postponed to 2-5 February 2021 in response to the Coronavirus pandemic and its global impact on major events and international travelling.“The continued highly dynamic development of COVID-19 and the resulting ban on major events have left us no other choice but to postpone SMM to next year. Finding a suitable new timeframe for SMM was not an easy task for us…

The first ocean-going vessel of 2020 arrived Monday at the Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor, thereby commencing this year's international shipping season at the Great Lakes port.Port officials welcomed the M/V Muntgracht, a 466-foot general cargo carrier, after her five-day voyage through the St. Lawrence Seaway to the deepwater port on Lake Michigan. Due to the current global pandemic precautions, the ceremonial Steel Stein, a long-running tradition at the port, was canceled this…

UK’s new polar research ship being built at Cammell Laird in Birkenhead RRS Sir David Attenborough has achieved another important milestone with the commissioning and testing of the ship’s lifeboats and lifeboat davits.The lifeboats, each capable of carrying 90 people, are now in position on both sides of the vessel, along with the operational davits that allow for the safe deployment and recovery of the boats.RRS Sir David Attenborough is the first International Maritime Organisation’s Polar Code-compliant ship to have been built in the UK. These regulations extend to the ship’s lifeboats and davits, all of which are capable of operating at the Polar Service Temperature of -35ᵒC.British Antarctic Survey and Norsafe worked closely to develop the equipment…

German maritime waste specialist Jongen GmbH has taken delivery of a Damen InvaSave 300 mobile ballast water treatment system (BWTS), which will protect the Elbe from invasive Species.Jongen can now offer IMO-certified ballast water treatment services to ship operators needing to comply with the latest ballast water regulations that came into effect on 8 September 2019.Jongen GmbH delivers waste oil, waste water, and the waste removal services for maritime traffic in the Port of Hamburg. The company’s services include the cleaning of the ships’ storage tanks and machinery along with the management and cleaning of oil spills.The addition…

A global regime to create much-needed safety standards for fishing vessels has moved a significant step closer following the International Maritime Organization (IMO)-led international Ministerial Conference, organized in conjunction with Spain, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and The Pew Charitable Trusts.During the conference (21-23 October), nearly 50 States signed the Torremolinos Declaration, publicly indicating their determination to ensure that the 2012 Cape Town Agreement on fishing vessel safety will enter into force by the tenth anniversary of its adoption (11 October 2022).The Cape Town Agreement includes mandatory safety measures for fishing vessels of 24 m in length and over.

French oil and gas company Total has signed a deal with Chinese state-owned Zhejiang Energy Group (ZEG) to create a joint venture company to supply and delivery marine fuels in the Chinese region of Zhoushan.Total China Investment (TCI)  will hold a 49% share in the new company while Zhejiang Zheneng Petroleum New Energy (ZZPNE) will hold the remaining.Zhoushan region covers both Ningbo and Shanghai ports, the busiest shipping hub in the world in terms of cargo tonnage.By combining ZEG’s historical anchoring in the energy business in the region and Total’s longstanding expertise in the trading and marketing of international bunkers,…

Chinese power giant China Power International Holding (CPIH) and Norwegian energy firm Equinor have inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to cooperate on offshore wind projects off China and Europe.“China is rapidly increasing its use of renewables and natural gas. The country is set to become the world’s biggest offshore wind market by 2030. As an offshore wind major, Equinor is excited to collaborate with CPIH to develop offshore wind” says executive vice president New Energy Solutions, Pål Eitrheim.“CPIH, as a leading power generator in China, has been striving to develop its international strategy to become a pioneer of reliable energy provider worldwide.

Abu Dhabi Ports on Monday inaugurated the new Cosco Shipping Container Terminal at Khalifa with a capacity of 2.5 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units).The new CSP Abu Dhabi Terminal, which includes the largest container freight station in the Middle East, is expected to boost Abu Dhabi’s position as a global maritime hub and support China’s One Belt One Road initiative.CSP Abu Dhabi Terminal is the first international green-field subsidiary of Cosco Shipping Ports; water depth of the semi-automatic terminal is 16.5 metres which allow it to accommodate megavessels typically in excess of 20,000 TEU, said a stock exchange annoucement.With an annual design capacity of 2.5 million TEU…

The GEBCO NF- Alumni Team was announced as the $4 million grand prize winner of the Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE, a three-year global competition that challenged teams to advance deep sea technologies for autonomous and unmanned, fast and high-resolution ocean exploration. The team's winning concept includes the use of a unique unmanned surface vessel (USV) / autonomous underwater vessel (AUV) and associated combination of communications hardware and software to process and transmit data remotely.

Carnival Corporation announced it will launch four new cruise ships in 2019 across three of its leading global brands – Carnival Cruise Line, America's Cruise Line; Costa Cruises, the largest European cruise operator; and Princess Cruises,  international premium cruise line. The world will get a preview of one of these spectacular new vessels when Carnival Cruise Line debuts a floral replica of its new Carnival Panorama sailing down Colorado Boulevard in the Rose Parade on New Year’s Day…

"Koselig" is a Norwegian adjective used to describe situations that give a feeling of comfort, warmth, and relaxation. The NorShipping exhibition and conference, one of the largest in northern Europe, could definitely be described as koselig. Occurring in Oslo, Norway between June 4-7, 2019, the conference featured close to 1,000 exhibitors from around the world. With the prominently featured Blue Economy Hall, terms such as marine sustainability and environmental ocean awareness held the center stage at a number of the events. In true Norwegian fashion, most of the major press announcements were delivered in semi-intimate gathers with copious amounts coffee by maritime CEOs and VPs who enjoyed being called by their first names.

Uber has announced that its lesser-known service, Uber Freight, will be arriving in Europe helping independent trucking companies with logistics.Next month, Uber Freight will start operations in the Netherlands, marking the unit’s first international expansion, the company said.The newly spun out Uber business unit that helps truck drivers connect with shipping companies sad that Holland was selected as the launch country due to its “dense logistics hub connecting Europe.”"The inroads we have made in the U.S. are exciting, and we recognized from the start that freight logistics is a global industry and an integral part of the world economy.

Saudi Aramco and Total hasve signed a joint venture agreement to develop a network of fuel and retail services in Saudi Arabia.The 50:50 JV plans to invest around $1 billion over the next six years in the Saudi fuel retail market and start providing motorists with premium fuels and retail services in the Guf kingdom.“This is a major milestone which will help establish a quality retail fuel network in the Kingdom. We look forward to working together with our long-term partner Total and draw on their extensive experience in the retail fuel market,” said Abdulaziz Al-Judaimi, Saudi Aramco’s Senior Vice President of Downstream and Chairman of the JV Board.He added: “With this new business…

Fishing is one of the world's most dangerous professions. But many people rely on the fishing industry for their livelihoods, especially women who often face difficult conditions.According to a press note from  International Maritime Organization (IMO), women are present in all the activities of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.During the first International Conference of Women in Fisheries, held in Santiago de Compostela, Spain (5 - 7 November), IMO delivered a presentation on its Women in Maritime gender programme.IMO highlighted how, over the last 30 years, the organization has facilitated access to high-level technical training for women in the maritime sector.