Germany News

The 186-meter Visentini RoPax vessel Stena Livia will initially join sister vessel Stena Flavia on the Nynäshamn-Ventspils route from mid-April, Stena Line announced. Later this year the pair will replace the existing tonnage on the ferry route between Travemünde and Liepaja, adding 40% freight capacity and shorten the crossing time substantially.During 2021 Stena Line is expanding its Baltic Sea operations with modern and large RoPax vessels being added to the two ferry routes from Latvia to Sweden and Germany.

Acta Marine has this week completed its three-year maintenance campaign for Ocean Breeze on the Bard Offshore 1 wind farm, the first commercial offshore wind farm in Germany.Acta Marine's Acta Auriga walk-to-work support vessel - which offers comfortable accommodation and workspace to 120 passengers - started the O&M works on the Bard Offshore 1 wind farm in April 2018 just weeks after vessel delivery from Ulsteinvik in Norway.The offshore wind farm is located approximately 100…

In just over a week Hydrex diver/technicians traveled to Finland, Germany, the Netherlands and France to assist shipowners with damaged propeller blades. On two bulkers the blades were cropped while on a third bulker and a general cargo vessel the bent blades could be straightened.In all cases the best solution was offered to the customer to restore the propeller’s efficiency as close to the original condition as possible.One of the propeller blades of a 180-meter bulker was severely bent. A fast, on-site solution to restore the propeller’s balance and efficiency was needed.

Germany will next week present a multi-billion-dollar proposal to Lebanese authorities to rebuild the Port of Beirut as part of efforts to entice the country’s politicians to form a government capable of warding off financial collapse, two sources said.A chemical explosion at the port last August killed 200 people, injured thousands and destroyed entire neighborhoods in Lebanon’s capital, plunging the country deeper into its worst political and economic crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.According to two diplomatic sources with knowledge of the plans…

The consortium behind the construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline warned on Thursday about security risks to the project from warships and planes, as the link is nearing completion.The pipeline, aimed at bypassing Ukraine and doubling the capacity of the current Nord Stream undersea gas link from Russia to Germany, has been the focus of tensions between Moscow and Washington, which imposed sanctions against the project.Andrey Minin, a senior official at the Nord Stream 2 AG consortium…

Germany's coordinator for transatlantic relations called on Wednesday for a moratorium on the construction of the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Europe, breaking ranks with many in Chancellor Angela Merkel's government.The United States is opposed to the project, saying it increases Europe's reliance on Russian energy and U.S. President Joe Biden is dangling the threat of sanctions."The project is a serious obstacle for a new start in transatlantic relations…

Royal Caribbean Group on Wednesday took delivery of its newest cruise ship Odyssey of the Seas, built at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany.The 169,000 GT, 347.1-meter vessel is the last of five Quantum Ultra class cruise ships started in January 2013 with the launch of Quantum of the Seas."Royal Caribbean Group commissioned us in 2011 to build the first two units of the Quantum class, which have been very popular with passengers since day one. We have continuously improved and developed these ships…

A new cruise ship order placed at Meyer Werft this week marks the first since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the German shipbuilder said.The 229-meter, 51,950 GT cruise ship is scheduled for delivery in 2025 to Asuka Cruise, a joint venture between Japanese firms NYK Group and Anchor Ship Partners. It will be fueled by liquefied natural gas (LNG).The order is significant for the cruise industry and specifically for the Meyer Group, whose three shipyards in Papenburg and Rostock…

Energy trader Gunvor Group aims to cut its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 40% in absolute terms by 2025, the company said on Tuesday, and has set up a new subsidiary to invest in non-hydrocarbon projects.The Geneva-based firm, which is among the top five global oil traders, aims to cut emissions it produces directly, and those from the electricity it uses, against its 2019 total of 1.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent.Its new unit will invest in biofuel, renewable power projects such as solar and biomass…

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an interview broadcast on Sunday that it was ultimately up to those building the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline whether to complete it despite opposition from Washington.On Wednesday, Blinken said he had told his German counterpart that U.S. sanctions against the pipeline from Russia to Germany were a real possibility and there was "no ambiguity" in American opposition to its construction.Because the pipeline would run from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea…

A containership blocking the Suez Canal like a "beached whale" may take weeks to free, the salvage company said, as officials stopped all ships entering the channel on Thursday in a new setback for global trade.The 400-meter Ever Given, almost as long as the Empire State Building is high, is blocking transit in both directions through one of the world's busiest shipping channels for oil and grain and other trade linking Asia and Europe.The Suez Canal Authority (SCA) said eight tugs were working to move the vessel…

Norway has agreed to order four submarines from Germany's Thyssenkrupp for 45 billion crowns ($5.3 billion), with Germany agreeing to order another two, the Norwegian defense ministry said on Tuesday.Norway and Germany, both NATO members, are jointly procuring identical submarines from Thyssenkrupp's shipbuilding division.The Norwegian defense ministry said Germany had agreed to order two submarines from Thyssenkrupp, pending approval from the German parliament.The signing of the contract is due this summer…

Germany's Greens have enshrined in their election programme plans to abolish the contested Nord Stream 2 pipeline to ship Russian gas to Europe's biggest economy, creating a hurdle to a potential alliance with the conservatives.Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, who have backed the Nord Stream 2 pipeline opposed by the United States, are leading in polls ahead of September elections and are seen as most likely to seek a coalition with the ecologist Greens that are forecast to come second.Armin Laschet…

tmax Germany GmbH has been honored with the TOP 100 Seal for the first time in 2021. This award is bestowed on the most innovative companies in the German small firm sector each year. The prerequisite for the seal was the successful completion of a scientific selection process in which tmax was able to prove its innovative strength.On behalf of compamedia GmbH, which has been organizing the TOP 100 innovation competition since 1993, the innovation researcher Dr. Nikolaus Franke and his team investigated the innovative strength of tmax.

The U.S. State Department is tracking efforts to complete Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline and evaluating information on entities that appear to be involved, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday."Any entity involved in the Nord Stream 2 pipeline risks U.S. sanctions and should immediately abandon work on the pipeline," Blinken said in a statement, adding the Biden administration is committed to complying with 2019 and 2020 legislation with regards to the pipeline and sanctions.Shortly after Blinken's statement…

As the maritime industry embarks on 'the path to zero', it is widely acknowledged that there is currently not a 'silver bullet' solution, nor is it likely that a solution will emerge from a vaccum. Collaboration is the path forward, and efforts such as MethanQuest offer promise.The project MethanQuest was launched in September 2018 with 29 partners from research, industry and the energy sector to work on processes for producing hydrogen and methane from renewables and for using them to achieve climate-neutral mobility and power generation.

Three new multipurpose vessels ordered from the Abeking & Rasmussen ship and yacht shipyard (A&R) in Lemwerder by the German government for the Waterways and Shipping Administration (WSV) will be equipped with SCHOTTEL propulsion systems. Planning and design as well as tendering and continuous construction supervision are carried out by the Federal Waterways Engineering and Research Institute (BAW), Ship Technology division.Maneuverability, high bollard pull, increased availability combined with maximum propulsion efficiency are important for these vessels.

Germany is betting the U.S. administration will take a pragmatic approach to the Nord Stream 2 project to ship Russian gas to Europe and is pushing for the pipeline’s completion in defiance of U.S. opposition, officials and diplomats said.To try to block the $11 billion project, led by Russia’s Gazprom, successive U.S. administrations have imposed sanctions on some entities and warned other companies involved in the project about the sanctions risk.President Joe Biden thinks the pipeline under the Baltic Sea to Germany is “a bad idea for Europe…

A new company called Nicola Offshore specializing in marine survey campaigns and on-demand missions has started operations from its headquarters in Hamburg, Germany on Monday.According to the company's press statement, Nicola Offshore was established to service the more complex and specialist aspects of marine surveying, including underwater object detection, unexploded ordnance (UXO), and subsea cable investigations, as well as pre- and post-dredging reports. The company is a joint venture between Nicola Engineering GmbH…

Crane specialist Liebherr has informed that important components for a giant crane to be installed aboard OHT's Alfa Lift offshore wind foundation installation vessel, have departed from Germany and are now en route to China where the vessel is being built.The Alfa Lift, being built for Offshore Heavy Transports (OHT) at China Merchants Heavy Industry (CMHI) shipyard in Jiangsu, China, was on February 28, floated-out from its drydock. Once delivered, the semisubmersible heavy installation vessel…

Spanish shipbuilder Gondan said it received last week at its main facilities in Castropol, Asturias, the first two electric Voith Schneider Propellers (eVSP) ever manufactured. They will be soon installed in the new offshore wind service operation vessel (SOV), being built for Norwegian shipping company Østensjø Rederi A/S.The first eVSP passed the factory acceptance test (FAT) several weeks ago at Voith facilities in Germany. Gondan will be the first shipyard in the world to…

Republican Senator Ted Cruz put a hold late on Friday on President Joe Biden's pick to lead the Central Intelligence Agency to pressure the administration to put tough sanctions on Russia's Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline project.The Senate Intelligence Committee last week backed William Burns, a former ambassador to Russia, by a unanimous vote. Burns has been confirmed by the Senate for five previous jobs over 33 years and is expected to eventually be approved by the full…

Electric propulsion and hybrid drives manufacturer Torqeedo said it ha established direct distribution in Norway to address the growing market for its systems in the region.Norway has a long tradition of seafaring and is a world maritime center for shipping, shipyards and maritime infrastructure, commercial fishing, offshore oil/gas, ferries, pleasure boats and a rapidly growing offshore wind industry.“Norway is a world leader in the movement toward electrification of land and water transportation…