Government Of Newfoundland And Labrador News

Marine shipping drives 90% of global trade, moving over 11 billion tonnes of containers, solid and liquid bulk cargo across the world’s seas annually. Almost all consumer products we buy — or the raw materials required to make them — arrive at Canadian ports via ship.Each year, Canadian port facilities handle about 340 million tonnes of goods, worth about $400 billion. Roughly 25% of Canadian exports and imports, by value, are transported by marine shipping.Despite their economic importance…

The Damen 80-meter ice class RoPax ferry MV Veteran handover to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador (GNL) took place in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada on October 23, 2015. Launched earlier this year by Damen Shipyards Galati in Romania on March 27, the vessel will start services from Fogo Island and Change Islands before the end of November. MV Veteran was delivered from the shipyard on time and within budget. MV Veteran is the first of a two-vessel contract, with a design stemming from a Canadian-Danish partnership between Fleetway and Knud E. Hansen.

A new vessel has been designed as a luxury expedition cruise vessel for worldwide operation including Arctic and Antarctic regions for itineraries up to 21 days with 300 passengers aboard. The vessel is designed for unrestricted ocean voyages and strengthened for Ice Class 1A service. According to designers KNUD E. HANSEN A/S, the vessel has been developed to meet and challenge the increasing interest from the market concerning smaller size vessels for specialized and customized cruising and expeditions.

The second of two 80-meter ice class Ro-Pax ferries - the MV Legionnaire - has been launched at Damen Shipyards Galati, Romania. The naming was performed by Lori Anne Companion, Deputy Minister at the Department of Transportation and Works of the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The MV Legionnaire is sister ship to the MV Veteran, launched earlier this year at the Romanian yard. Both vessels are part of a large vessel replacement program being undertaken by the Provincial Government. 81 meters in length and with a beam of 17 meters, she will carry up to 200 passengers and 60 cars (PAE) at a cruising speed of 14 knots. MV Legionnaire will operate on the short-haul route from Portugal Cove to Bell Island, the busiest route of the province.

A New York-based commodities merchant bank run by veteran energy traders, Neal Shear and Kaushik Amin, announced on Friday plans to buy the aging Come by Chance refinery in Newfoundland from South Korea's state-run oil company. Korea National Oil Corp said it will sell the 115,000-barrel-per-day refinery to SilverRange Financial Partners LLC for an undisclosed price following a months-long search to find a buyer. The deal also includes 53 gas stations and convenience stores. SilverRange is a New York-based merchant bank focused on energy and natural resources owned by SilverPeak Partners, a real estate fund with over $12 billion in assets under management, according to its website.

Korea National Oil Corp said on Friday that it would sell its 115,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Come by Chance, Newfoundland, to SilverRange Financial Partners LLC for an undisclosed price following a months-long search to find a buyer. KNOC's Harvest Operations Corp unit is selling the aging refinery, as well as 53 gas stations and convenience stores, to SilverRange. The New York-based merchant bank has entered into a multiyear refining deal with an unspecified global oil company, Harvest Operations and SilverRange said in a release. "(The refinery) is strategically located along Atlantic crude oil shipping routes and provides access to petroleum markets in Europe and the U.S. Eastern seaboard," SilverRange official Harsh Rameshwar said in the release.

Improving and updating Arctic design standards for material, equipment, and offshore structures for the petroleum, petrochemical and natural gas industries. Seventy representatives from seven countries met for two days in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador in early October to further the creation of standards for resource development in the Arctic. The countries represented included Canada, UK, France, Italy, Norway, Netherlands, and Russian Federation. It was the third annual…

This second order, placed by the Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Government, is for an identical vessel to one ordered from Damen a few weeks ago, but this ferry will be deployed between Bell Island and Portugal Cove-St. Philip's. Scheduled for delivery in February 2016, the 14-knot Ro-Ro ferry will be able to carry up to 200 passengers and 60 vehicles. According to the shipbuilders, the investment in the new ferry is part of the Government’s vessel renewal programme and will expand capacity on the route by replacing the MV Beaumont Hamel.

The Newfoundland and Labrador Provincial Government has awarded Damen Shipyards Group an order for a state-of-the-art, 80 m Ice Class ferry, which will operate on the Fogo Island-Change Islands service. Scheduled for delivery in September 2015, the 14-knot ro-ro ferry will be able to carry up to 200 passengers and 60 vehicles. The investment in the new ferry is part of the Government’s vessel renewal program. She will replace the aging MV Captain Earl Winsor. Fifteen proposals were received in response to the Government's request for proposals for the construction of new ferry vessels.

According to a report in the Chronicle Herald, the Newfoundland government is not bowing to pressures from big oil to reduce its royalty rates from the proposed $5-billion Hebron heavy oil project in the North Atlantic. In April, it was announced that the Hebron project was being suspended after its partners were unable to reach a development agreement with the government of Newfoundland and Labrador. Hebron, located 350 km off the Newfoundland coast, is estimated to contain 731 million barrels of oil. Oil majors with a stake in the project include ExxonMobil, Chevron, Petro-Canada and Norsk Hydro Canada Oil and Gas Inc. (Source: http://thechronicleherald.ca)

Chevron Canada Ltd. says its partnership has decided to suspend negotiations with the government of Newfoundland and Labrador and demobilize the Hebron offshore project team after failing to reach a development agreement with the province. The joint-venture partners are ExxonMobil Canada, Petro-Canada and Norsk Hydro Canada Oil & Gas Inc., a subsidiary of Norway's Norske energy and industrial giant. Toronto Star reported that Hebron poses a number of challenges due to the high degree of technical complexity associated with recovering heavy oil in a harsh marine environment. While project activities have been suspended, the co-venturers remain positive that activities could proceed at a future date after a deal is reached with the provincial government.