France News

The international container terminal operating company APM Terminals (APMT) said it has opened a new container terminal in Vado Ligure, on the Italian Riviera, which will be capable of handling 900,000 TEUs of containerized cargo.APMT has a 50.1% share in the “Vado Gateway,” while Cosco Shipping Ports has a 40% share and Qingdao Port International has a 9.9% share. APMT said the project is part of the “New Silk Road.” Chinese firms have invested in more than a dozen European ports…

Wison Offshore & Marine (WOM), the upstream oil and gas division of Chinese conglomerate Wison Group Holding, announced the fabrication of Arctic LNG 2 Project (ALNG2 Project) commenced in Zhoushan Yard.The module fabrication contract was awarded by Technip France S.A., a wholly-owned subsidiary of TechnipFMC.Novatek, client of ALNG2 project, is the largest independent natural gas producer in Russia. ALNG2 project comprises three LNG trains at 6.6 million tons per annum each.

Norwegian energy company Equinor has contracted Italian cable manufacturer Prysmian to supply the submarine inter-array cable system for the 816-MW Empire Wind project off the coast of New York.Prysmian will provide the 66kV insulated array cables and ancillaries that will transmit power from the wind turbines which will have a capacity in the range of 10-15MW.The cable system will undergo continuous fabrication at Prysmian’s centres of excellence in Montereau (France) and Nordenham…

Global logistics software group, WiseTech Global has announced the acquisition of Ready Korea, a customs, bonded warehouse and trade compliance solutions provider in South Korea.Headquartered in Seoul, Ready Korea offers a cross-border compliance solution, which facilitates the lodgement of electronic transactions to the Korean Customs Service, including customs brokerage and refunds and Free Trade Agreement verification, along with bonded warehouse management.Ready Korea also…

Total Marine Fuels Global Solutions (TMFGS) and , Ltd. (MOL) have signed a long-term charter contract for a second large LNG bunker vessel, to be delivered in 2021. She will be positioned in the Marseille-Fos area in France.This bunker vessel will be built by Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in China. She will have a capacity of 18,600 m³ for a length of about 135 meters and will be fitted with the Mark III membrane containment system provided by French company GTT.This vessel has been specifically designed to supply LNG bunker in the Mediterranean area to a wide range of vessels…

American/British-owned German cruise line AIDA Cruises announced that model and TV host Franziska Knuppe christened  AIDAmira in Palma de Mallorca.AIDAmira is the fourth ship in the AIDA Selection program, sailing longer itineraries to exotic locales, similar to her function for Costa.After a debut cruise in the Mediterranean until December 4, 2019,  the cruise line will take the new Selection ship to Sète in the south of France, the Catalan metropolis of Barcelona, and back to…

The infrastructure fund manager DIF Capital Partners has signed final documentation alongside ship-owner Geogas Maritime and Access Capital Partners for the acquisition of a 50% stake in a French incorporated company that will own and operate a fleet of five to-be-built LNG carriers.The remaining 50% will be held by Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), a leading Japanese shipping and logistics company.The five 174,000 cbm vessels will be built by leading South Korean shipyards and equipped with state-of-the-art LNG fuelled propulsion technology…

DHL Global Forwarding, the ocean freight specialist of Deutsche Post DHL Group, is introducing the fastest rail freight connection between China and Germany in response to growing demand for rail freight services between Europe and Asia.The new rail service, operating between Xi’an in China and Hamburg and Neuss in Germany, has been set up in cooperation with Xi’an International Inland Port Investment & Development Group Co. Ltd. and is cutting transit time from 17 days to between…

Naval Group launched an R&D center in Singapore for strategic naval defense research topics.This international collaborative platform of exchanges located in Singapore will respond to a triple objective: boost innovation in new strategic domains such as Big Data and Artificial Intelligence, create a supply of innovative technologies for the regional market as well as supporting the joint effort led by both Singapore and France regarding R&D investments.With this center, Naval…

French player in the cable and optical fiber industry Nexans S.A. said that it has secured a 5-year contract extension with the compatriot shipbuilding giant Chantiers de l’Atlantique to supply cables and services for use in some of the world’s largest passenger vessels.The contract builds on a 45-year partnership between Nexans and Chantiers de l’Atlantique, an alliance which has facilitated the evolution of specialized ship cable technology and logistics.Throughout this partnership period…

Condor Ferries, an operator of passenger and freight ferry services between UK and France, has been sold to a consortium including the French shipping company Brittany Ferries.Brittany Ferries, in consortium with the Columbia Threadneedle European Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (ESIF), has reached an agreement to acquire 100 percent of Condor Ferries from Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA).Contracts have been signed and the deal is expected to be executed following scrutiny by relevant regulatory authorities.

France's OFW Ships chose Marlink to provide a multi-band connectivity solution, combining high-throughput global VSAT with an L-band back-up for connectivity redundancy.OFW stands for ‘Ocean Fresh Water’, reflecting the company’s simple but profound purpose: to sustainably convert saltwater into drinks. To do this, OFW Ships vessel is equipped with a seawater selected filtration system and bottling plant will be able to produce 2,500,000 liters of premium drinks every week.Pure and mineral-rich saltwater is drawn from the high seas…

Russia on Monday handed back three naval ships it captured last year to Ukraine, something Kiev wanted to happen before a four-way peace summit on eastern Ukraine next month in Paris.The handover, confirmed by the two countries' foreign ministries, occurred in the Black Sea off the coast of Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.Russia seized the ships in the same area in November last year after opening fire on them and wounding several sailors. Moscow said the ships - two small Ukrainian armoured artillery vessels and a tug boat - had illegally entered its territorial waters. Kiev denied that.Russia returned the sailors…

The Netherlands will contribute a ship to a French-led naval mission in the Strait of Hormuz for a six-month period starting in January, Dutch news agency ANP said on Monday, citing government sources.On Saturday, the Dutch parliament said the initiative could start early next year and around 10 European and non-European governments would join, pending parliamentary approvals.France has pushed for a European security alternative in the Strait of Hormuz after ruling out joining a U.S.-led coalition protecting oil tankers and cargo ships from threats posed by Iran in the strategic waterway. (Reporting by Bart Meijer Editing by Mark Heinrich

The Port of Marseille Fos (Grand Port Maritime de Marseille; GPMM) has just completed a blockchain pilot scheme to enhanced efficiencies at France’s largest seaport.The focus of the project for freight transportation on the  Mediterranean-Rhone-Saone (MeRS) corridor is to run a trial to evaluate the security of the digital transport chain. It will involve applying blockchain technology to supply chain logistics and freight forwarding, particularly where goods are transported in…

Italy's bid to create a European industrial champion in the shipbuilding industry faces hurdles after EU antitrust regulators said Fincantieri's bid for Chantiers de l'Atlantique would significantly reduce competition.The European Commission said the deal between two global leaders in an already concentrated and capacity-constrained market could push up prices for cruise ships as it began an investigation on Wednesday.Italy is hoping the deal will help Fincantieri, Europe's biggest shipyard…

MSC Cruises, a global cruise line registered in Switzerland and based in Geneva, has held a steel-cutting ceremony for its first new-generation World-Class ship at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.The first of five liquefied natural gas (LNG) powered cruise ships on order, MSC Europa is the first LNG ship to be built in France.On the occasion of the cutting of the first steel ceremony held in Saint-Nazaire, MSC and Chantiers de l’Atlantique unveiled…

Generale de Manutention Portuaire (GMP), a joint venture between Dubai-based trade enabler DP World and French shipping line CMA CGM, has been awarded the service concession for the construction and operation of berths 11 and 12 at Port 2000 in Le Havre.According to a press release from the French port, the terminals of Port 2000 In Le Havre are trade-enabling gateways for cargo entering the French consumer markets. Recognizing the strategic importance of Port 2000, GMP has been…

French shipbuilders Naval Group and Italy's Fincantieri announced the name of the 50/50  joint venture NAVIRIS.The name was presented during the recent Steering Committee held in Genoa (it meets every quarter alternatively in France and Italy) and is a new step in the strong collaboration between Fincantieri and Naval Group.The Alliance between Fincantieri and Naval Group represents a great opportunity for both groups and their ecosystems to enhance their ability to better serve the French and Italian navies…

A consortium led by Boskalis Nederland and Bouygues Travaux Publics has won a contract from the Occitanie/Pyrenees-Mediterranee region of France for the expansion of Port-La-Nouvelle in the south west of the country that will lead to offshore wind development.The expansion will enable the port to accommodate the construction and assembly of pilot floating wind farms planned off the coast of Occitanie, Bouygues Travaux Publics said.The total value of the project amounts to EUR 199 million…

On the occasion of his visit to Marseille for the National Industry Council, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe came to inaugurate the new global headquarters of CEVA Logistics, a subsidiary of the CMA CGM Group, with Rodolphe Saadé, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the CMA CGM Group.The Prime Minister was accompanied by Elisabeth Borne, Minister for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition, the President of the South Region, Renaud Muselier, and Nicolas Sartini, Chief Executive Officer of CEVA Logistics.With the acquisition of CEVA Logistics in May 2019…

Thyssenkrupp plans to invest 250 million euros ($279 million) at its unit that builds submarines and warships, the German industrial conglomerate said on Monday.The investment at Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) will be made by 2023, the group said, pointing to good order intake at the moment. TKMS will also hire 500 new employees by the end of next year, it said."Our ambition is to be Europe's most modern naval company. By making major investments, we are preparing our operations for the future…

"Women bring intelligence and high skills to all fields of the shipping industry – let’s throw off the bowlines!”.This is the message from Port Captain Basak, one of the latest maritime women being featured by International Maritime Organization (IMO) under this year’s World Maritime theme: “Empowering women in the Maritime Community”.Women from across globe are giving an insight into their work, aspirations, how IMO’s Women in Maritime Program has supported them – and their top…