Goodwill News

Carnival Corporation has released its 14th annual sustainability report detailing how it achieved several 2030 environmental goals well in advance.The company is producing 10+% less absolute GHG emissions today than in 2011, its peak historical year, despite increasing capacity by roughly 30% since that time. Tracking toward its 2030 goal four years ahead of schedule, the company formally committed to reducing its GHG intensity by at least 20% by 2026 (versus 2019 levels; measured on a lower berth capacity basis).

China's coast guard said on Sunday it will strengthen its law enforcement activities and carry out regular patrols around a small group of Taiwanese-controlled islands off the Chinese coast as tensions rise over the deaths of two Chinese nationals.Taiwan on Thursday defended the actions of its coast guard after two people on a Chinese speedboat, which got too close to a frontline Taiwanese island, died when their boat overturned while trying to flee a coast guard ship.

Israel on Thursday criticised Brazil's decision to grant berth to two Iranian warships in the face of U.S. pressure, and urged President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government to send them away.The vessels docked in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. Reuters reported that Brazil had declined to admit them in January, in a goodwill gesture from Lula as he flew to Washington to meet U.S. President Joe Biden.Israel and Iran have been locked in a Cold War-style conflict for decades, which has included mutual accusations of maritime sabotage…

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that an "important and substantive step" was made towards a comprehensive deal to resume Black Sea exports of Ukraine grain after talks between Russia, Ukraine, Turkey and U.N. officials on Wednesday."Next week, hopefully, we'll be able to have a final agreement. But, as I said, we still need a lot of goodwill and commitments by all parties," he told reporters in New York.He said that although Ukraine and Russia had engaged, "for peace we still have a long way to go."(Reporting by Michelle Nichols; Editing by Chris Gallagher)

A containership that lost power and went adrift off Canada's East Coast has been towed to Sydney, Nova Scotia, the Canadian Coast Guard said.The Panamanian-flagged MSC Kim departed Halifax on March 3 en route to Montreal, but went adrift on March 9 after it suffered engine problems off Port au Port, Newfoundland and Labrador. No injuries or pollution have been reported.The offshore tug Atlantic Kingfisher secured a towline with MSC Kim on Thursday morning and towed the vessel…

Iran, which has the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves, could quickly export millions of barrels of crude and help drive down red-hot oil prices if it reaches a deal in ongoing talks with the United States on its nuclear program.The U.S. government lifted some sanctions on the Iranian nuclear program as a goodwill gesture on Friday to speed up the talks. Washington expects negotiations to reach a conclusion in coming weeks. The talks in Vienna will resume on Tuesday.Here are the latest estimates on Iran's oil production, exports and inventories.ExportsThe imposition of U.S.

China will not use its strength to "bully" its smaller neighbors including the Philippines, its foreign minister said on Monday, as he highlighted the importance of settling disputes in the South China Sea peacefully."Stressing only one side's claims and imposing one's own will on the other is not a proper way for neighbors to treat each other and it goes against the oriental philosophy of how people should get along with each other," Wang Yi, the Chinese government's top diplomat…

The U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday commissioned three new Fast Response Cutters at a ceremony presided over by Adm. Karl Schultz, the Coast Guard’s commandant.The Coast Guard Cutters Myrtle Hazard (WPC 1139), Oliver Henry (WPC 1140)  and Frederick Hatch (WPC 1143) were commissioned during what the USCG said was a rare triple-commissioning ceremony at the new homeport at Coast Guard Forces Micronesia Sector Guam. Guam is an unincorporated territory of the United States in the North Pacific Ocean.Named after Coast Guard enlisted heroes…

An impressive recovery in Chinese dry bulk imports has protected the industry from the effects of falling demand in the rest of the world. High deliveries and low contracting have left the orderbook at multi-year lows, but – with the poor outlook – the current influx of new dry bulk ships orders is not what is needed.Demand drivers and freight ratesThe biggest story in the dry bulk industry in recent months has been the strength of the recovery in major Chinese imports. These are up across the board…

Florida-headquartered international cruise line Carnival Cruise Line announced that the debut of its newest ship, Mardi Gras, will be pushed back until Nov. 14, 2020 after the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland informed the cruise line “that the delivery will be delayed.”With this new schedule, Carnival will now take delivery of the ship in late October and its first revenue sailing will depart from Port Canaveral on Nov. 14, 2020. Consequently, the first eight sailings that were scheduled starting Aug. 31 have been cancelled, including European, transatlantic and New York-based itineraries and four Port Canaveral itineraries.Carnival said that the guest notification process began promptly after the notice by Meyer Turku so that impacted guests could begin to make alternative vacation plans.

The trade war has brought increased attention to the soya bean trade between the US and China with 2019 offering conflicting narratives. On one hand, soya bean exports to China in the first six months of 2019 are up 10.9% compared with the first half of 2018, while on the other, exports to China in the 2018/2019 marketing year are down 68.7%.With the 2019/2020 marketing year now just round the corner, this trade is unlikely to return to pre-trade war levels. The combined effects of a worsening relationship between the nations as well as a smaller US soya bean crop…

U.S. soybean exporters are facing what may be their busiest and most logistically challenging summer due to an unprecedented backlog of soybeans purchased by China that still needs to be shipped and widespread floods in the U.S. Midwest.While there is little hope for a prompt U.S.-China trade deal, some 7 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans bought before talks broke down last month will need to be delivered to Beijing in coming months, U.S. exporters and industry analysts said.China would face steep penalties if it tried to cancel the orders and…

Manila-head quartered port and terminal operator International Container Terminal Services (ICTSI) has released solid results for 2018. ICTSI’s box volumes were higher, revenues increased and the group generated higher profit.The port operator said in a stock exchange annoucement that its consolidated volume higher by six percent to 9,736,621 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) (FY2017: 9,153,458 TEUs) and revenue from port operations increased 11 percent to US$1.4 billion (FY2017: US$1.2 billion).Its net income attributable to equity holders up strongly by 22 percent to US$221.5 million (FY2017: US$182.1 million).Enrique Razon, Chairman of ICTSI said: “I am pleased to report strong full year operating results for 2018.

Portuguese renewables company EDP Renewables (EDPR) has inaugurated the Muxía Wind Farm in the homonymous municipality, in the Autonomous Spanish Region of Galicia.A press release from the wind energy producer said that its CEO Jõao Manso Neto and the Managing Director of EDPR Spain were joined at the grand opening by Galician Regional Premier Alberto Núñez Feijóo and the Mayor of Muxía Félix Porto, as well as representatives from the local and regional authorities.The Muxía facility is equipped with thirty-four 2 MW wind turbines, offering a total installed capacity of 68 MW.Including this new wind farm, EDP Renewables now has a total installed capacity in the region of 281 MW…

SBM Offshore, the Netherlands-based maker of floating oil and gas production facilities, on Thursday said it expected $45 million in impairments in Brazil and the United States.In Brazil, SBM Offshore has decided to temporarily close the Brasa construction yard for "at least the coming two years" resulting in a net book value of zero and an impairment charge of around $20 million, it said in a trading update.Due to slowed activity in the floating production market, SBM Offshore said goodwill related to the acquisition of Houston-based subsidiaries has been impaired in full…

The RB Eden vessel carrying 70,000 tonnes of U.S. sorghum turned around just before reaching the Spanish port of Cartagena and is now heading to Singapore, Thomson Reuters Eikon ship-tracking data showed.This marks the second U-turn for the ship amid a trade tussle between the United States and China. Anti-dumping measures announced by Beijing in mid-April led exporters to divert hundreds of thousands of tonnes of U.S. sorghum. But China dropped its sorghum probe on Friday in what was seen as a goodwill gesture.The RB Eden initially loaded at grain merchant ADM's elevator in Corpus Christi, Texas, on March 18, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

The guided-missile destroyer USS James E. Williams (DDG 95) returned to its Naval Station Norfolk homeport Dec. 23, completing a seven-month deployment to the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operation. The ship departed May 23, to support anti-submarine exercises and operations in the North and Norwegian seas, as well as maritime security operations in the Arabian Gulf. The ship and crew of more than 300 Sailors, assigned to Destroyer Squadron 22, also conducted presence operations and goodwill activities with partner nations. "I am extremely proud of this crew," said Cmdr. Allen Siegrist, the ship's commanding officer. "These Sailors performed exceptionally well in a multitude of missions and across all theaters.

Task Force 70 Public Affairs (NNS) - The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group arrived in Busan for a port visit, Oct. 21. The aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) with embarked staff of Commander, Task Force (CTF) 70, Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15 staff and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, and the guided-missile destroyers USS Stethem (DDG 63) and USS Chafee (DDG 90) pulled into Busan after participating in Maritime Counter Special Operations Force Exercise (MCSOFEX) 2017. The focus of the bilateral training exercise was to increase the readiness of U.S. and Republic of Korea (ROK) forces and maintain stability on the Korean Peninsula. Shuttle tankers differ from “standard” crude oil tankers.

Plan B Energy Storage (PBES) has announced Sven Thy Christensen has joined the firm to develop marine and power markets in the Mediterranean region. Christensen brings decades of experience of green solutions for ship efficiency, emissions reduction, and power generation including diesel and gas generation, wind, and solar energy. Christensen comes from Odense Maritime Technology, where he held the position as Sales & Business Development Director. Prior to this he worked for MAN Diesel & Turbo in Spain.

China said on Thursday that it was coordinating with the U.S. navy in the search for a missing U.S. sailor in the South China Sea, a rare show of goodwill between the navies in the disputed waters. The U.S. 7th Fleet said on Tuesday that U.S. and Japanese ships were looking for an unnamed sailor from the USS Stethem destroyer who had gone missing during a routine operation in an unspecified section of the South China Sea. It said multiple searches were conducted inside the ship, but to no avail. China's Defence Ministry said in a statement that its Liuzhou guided-missile frigate was in nearby waters conducting war-readiness duties, and "on the basis of humanitarian spirit, and according to the code for unplanned encounters at sea, carried out operational coordination with the U.S. side".

Senior representatives from Bahri recently joined members of a Saudi Arabia delegation for board meetings of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which took place at the agency’s headquarters in London. The meetings come as part of the Kingdom’s preparations to submit its candidacy for the membership of the IMO Council under Category (C). Senior Bahri officials who participated in the discussions included Wael Al-Sarhan, Senior Vice President – Marketing, and Abdulaziz Sabri, Vice President, Bahri Ship Management. As part of its efforts to showcase the progress made by Saudi Arabia in improving maritime safety and infrastructure…

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (container, tanker, dry-bulk and car carrier divisions) and KOTUG SMIT TOWAGE (KotugSmit) signed long term towage agreements, effective early 2017. The two have agreed upon a long term towage contract for the ports of Rotterdam, Antwerp, Ghent, Terneuzen, Flushing, Bremerhaven, Hamburg, London and Southampton. With this strategic partnership, both organizations aim to boost operational performances by benefiting from smart collaboration and sharing operational knowledge and valuable information.

Admiral Sunil Lanba, PVSM, AVSM, ADC, Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) and Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS), Indian Navy is on a goodwill visit to Malaysia from 11 to 15 April 2017. The visit is intended to consolidate and enhance bilateral maritime relations between India and Malaysia and is expected to provide a major boost to defence relations between India and Malaysia. During his visit, the Admiral will hold discussions with the Deputy Minister of Defence, Chief of Royal Malaysian Defence Forces along with the Chiefs of Army, Navy and Air Force of Malaysia. The Indian and the Royal Malaysian Navies cooperate with each other in terms of training, operational interactions as well as interacting at various multilateral forums like Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, MILAN and ADMM Plus.