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The liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering infrastructure is expanding globally and there are increasing numbers of LNG-bunker vessels which are encouraging other operators to adopt LNG.According to SEA\LNG,  the multi-sector industry coalition aiming to accelerate the widespread adoption of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a marine fuel, from limited availability at select ports, LNG bunkering has grown to encompass 24 out of the world’s top 25 and all but one of the top ten bunker…

The global offshore wind energy market is poised to grow over USD 49.74 billion by 2023 at an estimated CAGR of around 11.12% during the period 2017 to 2023.The growth in this sector can be attributed to the increasing demand for clean and reliable energy in order to reduce the global carbon emissions and to maintain ecological balance by generating electricity through renewable resources, said a report by Market Research Future.However, high initiating capital cost of the projects with high maintenance cost and logistics issues, can hinder the offshore wind market.

The European Commission has agreed to the request submitted by France and Germany asking it to look at Fincantieri's proposed acquisition of Chantiers de l'Atlantique in the light of the EU Merger Regulation.The Commission considers that the transaction could harm competition at European and global level.The proposed acquisition of Chantiers de l'Atlantique by Fincantieri does not reach the turnover thresholds set by the EU Merger Regulation for transactions notifiable to the European Commission because of their European dimension. However, the plan was notified for authorisation in France and Germany.France submitted a referral request pursuant to Article 22(1) of the EU Merger Regulation.

The CMA CGM Group has announced it has taken delivery of the CMA CGM Fort de France, the first of an order for four container ships dedicated to the French West Indies.With a capacity of 3,500 TEUs (Twenty-foot equivalent units) and a length of 219 meters, the CMA CGM Fort de France stands out by its draft which is adapted to the West Indies ports. It is also equipped with a large number of plugs for refrigerated containers (“Reefers”) which allow the transport in optimal conditions of perishable goods such as bananas…

On Thursday, December 27, an InvaSave 300 Mobile Ballast Water Treatment System was transported from Damen Green Solution’s premises in Gorinchem, the Netherlands, to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to be used for a demonstration program as part of the “Atlantic Blue Port Services” project, made possible by the INTERREG Atlantic Area Program, funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).Upon arriving in the port of Las Palmas, the unit will be connected to a vessel’s ballast…

Malta will allow 49 migrants who have been stranded at sea for weeks to disembark in Valletta, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said on Wednesday, adding that they will then be re-distributed among eight European Union countries.The Sea-Watch 3, a vessel run by a German humanitarian group, plucked 32 people from an unsafe boat off the coast of Libya on Dec. 22. Another German charity, Sea-Eye, rescued 17 others on Dec. 29.They have both been sailing back in forth in Maltese waters for days after Italy, Malta and all other EU countries refused to offer them a port of safety."The migrants will be transferred from the ships to Maltese patrol boats and brought to Malta.

Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini attacked France and Germany on Tuesday over their role in a European Union investigation into a planned merger involving Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri."What has happened is extremely serious, France and Germany behaved wrongly.

The European Commission said on Tuesday that it would investigate Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri's planned acquisition of French counterpart Chantiers de l'Atlantique after France and Germany asked it to do so.The merged entity would not have a turnover high enough to require notification to EU regulators."However, the plan was notified for authorisation in France and Germany," the Commission said in a statement.It added that, on the basis of information provided by both countries…

Work began on Thursday to extend a small British port that could serve as a back-up if the UK leaves the European Union with no trade deal, providing the government some respite after days of criticism.Less than three months before Britain leaves the EU on March 29, the transport minister has been forced to defend awarding a 14 million pound ($18 million) contract for shipping goods to a new ferry company that has no ships.On Thursday the company, Seaborne Freight, came in for further criticism when its business terms and conditions showed references to placing "any meal/order"…

Britain's transport minister has defended awarding a 14 million-pound ($18 million) contract for shipping goods after Brexit to a new ferry company that owns no ships.The government last week awarded three contracts to charter extra ferries to ease congestion if the United Kingdom fails to secure a trade deal before leaving the European Union in March.The smallest contract was won by Seaborne Freight, a British business that has never previously operated a ferry route, raising concern about whether the new service would be ready."I make no apologies for supporting a new British business," Transport Minister Chris Grayling told BBC radio on Wednesday. "We have looked very carefully at this business.

Britain is recalling two patrol boats from overseas deployments to help deal with an increase in the number of migrants trying to reach the country from France, interior minister Sajid Javid said on Monday.Javid said there had been an increase in the number of migrants crossing the English Channel from France and last week he declared the situation a "major incident".On Monday, following a meeting of officials in London, he said two the additional ships would join three other vessels already working in the channel.He said 230 migrants had attempted to cross one of the world's busiest shipping lanes in December, although almost half were prevented from leaving France.The number is a tiny fraction of those regularly attempting to reach European Union territory by crossing the Mediterranean f

Marine propulsion manufacturers are not just responding to but are anticipating tighter performance demands from the U.S. EPA  and the IMO by introducing both new and upgraded systems based on state-of-the-art propulsion technologies. Tom Mulligan reviews the latest engine product launches.AIP for MAN cryo Liquid Hydrogen Fuel-Gas systemMAN Cryo, a subsidiary of MAN Energy Solutions, has developed a marine fuel-gas system for liquefied hydrogen in cooperation with Fjord1 and Multi Maritime 0f Norway.

British interior minister Sajid Javid has said the fast-growing number of would-be immigrants crossing the English Channel from France in dinghies is a "major incident."Nearly 70 people have been intercepted in the past three days as they try to reach England by crossing one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.Javid is also seeking an urgent call with his French counterpart over the weekend, his ministry said."He has insisted the Home Office treat the situation as a major incident and has ...

British ferry and shipping freight operator P&O is reviewing its UK-registered fleet and is already re-flagging two vessels to keep European Union tax arrangements ahead of Britain's departure from the bloc, the company said.A P&O spokesman said two of its UK ships operating on the English Channel route to France would be re-flagged to Cyprus."The change is being made to preserve the tonnage tax financing arrangements, under which the ships should remain flagged in an EU member state," a statement said.The spokesman added that P&O was reviewing the flag status of its four other ships operating

The independent power producer EDF Renewables North America and  Shell New Energies US,  offshore wind company in the U.S,  have formed a 50/50 joint venture, Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind to develop a lease area within the New Jersey Wind Energy Area (WEA).The area, spread over 183,353 acres and located off the coast of Atlantic City  on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), has the potential to produce about 2,500 megawatts of offshore wind energy - enough to power close to one million homes…

British ferry and shipping freight operator P&O is reviewing its UK-registered fleet and is already re-flagging two vessels to keep European Union tax arrangements ahead of Britain's departure from the bloc, the company said.A P&O spokesman said two of its UK ships operating on the English Channel route to France would be re-flagged to Cyprus."The change is being made to preserve the tonnage tax financing arrangements, under which the ships should remain flagged in an EU member state," a statement said.The spokesman added that P&O was reviewing the flag status of its four other ships operating on the Channel route, although no final…

The Regional Marine Pollution Emergency Response Centre for the Mediterranean Sea (REMPEC), the International Maritime Organization (IMO) -administered centre in the Mediterranean, conducted a regional workshop to identify and address ship-source air pollution in the Mediterranean  last week."Political, legal and technical obstacles can sometimes challenge ratification and subsequently the effective implementation of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) Annex VI air pollution and energy efficiency regulations…

Irish Ferries’ flagship craft, the WB Yeats, is finally due to set sail after months of delays that disrupted much of the company’s schedule this year.The maritime transport company that operates passenger and freight services on routes between Ireland, Britain said in a press note that this vessel will provide passengers with a unique and memorable cruise-style travel experience. Offering up to four sailings a week directly from Dublin to France, this flagship cruise ferry will travel 125…

The Arctic LNG carrier Christophe de Margerie, owned and operated by Sovcomflot, loaded the first batch of liquefied natural gas (LNG) produced at the third train of Yamal LNG plant, at the Port of Sabetta on the Yamal Peninsula.Dmitry Medvedev, the Russian Prime Minister, initiated the start of cargo operations via a video conference with the vessel’s Master Sergey Zybko.Dmitry Medvedev congratulated Yamal LNG on reaching full production capacity and noted:“This is a significant milestone for the entire Russian gas industry and…

The Yamal liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Arctic Russia officially commissioned the third and last production line Tuesday.Russia's independent natural gas producer PAO Novatek announced that its joint venture Yamal LNG has reached full capacity at the plant’s three LNG trains.The Yamal LNG project was implemented in record time and on budget with the launches of the second and third trains made ahead of schedule by six months and more than a year, respectively. Russian…

Dunkerque LNG SAS, which constructs and operates liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, provided an overview of their port infrastructure to meet up to 13 BCM (billion cubic metres) of LNG import demand into France and Belgium as well as providing full LNG ship bunkering operations.Whilst most of the world’s 118 LNG-powered vessels currently operate in the Baltic Sea, Dunkerque LNG’s director of business development Cécile Grégoire-David predicted that the majority of the world’s…

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.

Japan's largest trading company  Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) announced the divestment of shares in Diamond Green Limited, with 30% to be transferred to The Kansai Electric Power Co., Inc (KEPCO) and 20% to Mitsubishi UFJ Lease & Finance Company Limited (MUL).Diamond Green is an intermediate holding company wholly owned by Diamond Generating Europe, which itself is a wholly owned subsidiary of MC based in the UK. DGE has been MC’s executing arm for the Moray East Offshore Windfarm Project located in the North Sea…