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Local Government News

05 Mar 2024

Singapore and Australia Formalize Corridor Collaboration

© ake1150 / Adobe Stock

Singapore and Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formally collaborate on establishing the Singapore-Australia green and digital shipping corridor.The MoU was signed by Chee Hong Tat, Singapore’s Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance, and Catherine King, Australian Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government.Both countries will work with interested partners to explore opportunities to develop zero or near-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emission fuel supply chains for the maritime industry…

09 Nov 2023

Australian Government Supportive of Strategic Fleet Development Proposals

© Philip Schubert / Adobe Stock

The Australian Government has released the report of the Independent Taskforce on the Strategic Fleet, along with its official response to the report, confirming a commitment to delivering a Strategic Fleet of up to 12 vessels that will help Australia build resilience to freight disruptions while supporting our maritime workforce and sovereign capability.Australia’s maritime sector has long been neglected with a shortage of Australian flagged ships and a skilled workforce, says Federal Minister for Infrastructure…

31 Oct 2023

Grounded Cargo Ship Refloated in the Caribbean

(Photo: U.S. Coast Guard)

A cargo ship that ran aground off St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands earlier this month has been refloated and towed to a safe mooring location at the Crown Bay Sandfill dock, the U.S. Coast Guard said.Vessel owners and salvors will now coordinate further operations to remove the damaged cargo, remaining oil and conduct further salvage or repair operations for the Bonnie G.The Vanuatu-flagged vessel began taking on water and ran aground on October 4, leading the 12 people on board to be rescued after abandoning ship. No injuries were reported.To refloat the Bonnie G, DonJon-SMIT, Inc.

25 Sep 2023

U.S. BOEM Completes Environmental Review of Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind Project

Credit: Alex/AdobeStock

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) said Monday it had completed its environmental review of the proposed Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) commercial project.“The completion of our environmental review marks another step towards a clean energy future—one that benefits communities and co-exists with other ocean users,” said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. “The best available science and knowledge shared by Tribes, other government agencies, local communities, ocean users…

15 Aug 2023

Shanghai Plans 5G Roll-Out for Marine Economy

Source: Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding

Shanghai’s local government plans to provide oceanic coverage of 5G networks by 2024.China Daily reports that Shanghai will build an integrated network connecting all land, sea, air and space internet infrastructure platforms. The development of navigation, wind power and offshore engineering will be coordinated so that they are connected.5G technology will be used for marine supervision, science and technology, marine economy and intelligent shipping.Qualcomm describes 5G as…

31 Jul 2023

Greening the U.S. Federal Fleet

(Credit: U.S. Navy)

The international shipping industry as a whole is responsible for 2% to 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and if nothing changes, those will increase by 250% by 2050, according to the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Sobering numbers like these have made reducing emissions across the sector a focus for governments, shipbuilders, environmentalists, vessel owners and technology suppliers alike.The United States federal ship fleet, excluding combat ships, consists of various types of vessels utilized for civilian purposes. This fleet of vessels makes the U.S.

27 Jun 2023

Titan Announces Public Affairs Team Changes

Frank Collins

Ship repair services provider Titan has announced that Frank Collins will join the company as Senior Vice President, Government and Public Affairs.Collins will replace long-time Vigor Senior Vice President of Public Affairs, Jill Mackie, who has announced her retirement effective the end of June. Additionally, Benton Strong was recently named Director of Public Affairs, responsible for all communications, as well as state and local government affairs across all Titan companies including of Vigor…

12 Jun 2023

Indigenous Protesters in Peru's Amazon Release Captured Oil Tankers

© Omar / Adobe Stock

Indigenous protesters in the Peruvian Amazon have released two oil tankers and their crew members being held since last week in protest over changes to a development fund, a source at the company operating the vessels, PetroTal, said on Monday.The firm's marine shipments in the area also resumed earlier on Monday, the source added.The two ships were hijacked on Tuesday, one with 40,000 barrels of crude aboard. The release occurred on Saturday after a meeting between the Indigenous group's leaders and local authorities…

30 May 2023

BOEM Completes Environmental Review of Gulf of Mexico Wind Lease Areas

© Thomas / Adobe Stock

The United States' Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) on Tuesday issued a final environmental assessment (EA) on potential impacts from offshore wind leasing on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico, marking another step toward the potential first-ever offshore wind lease sale in the Gulf.The assessment, completed with the help of the Gulf of Mexico Intergovernmental Renewable Energy Task Force—a collaboration between Tribal, Federal, state, and local government agencies—found "no significant impacts to environmental resources"…

22 May 2023

BOEM Completes Environmental Analysis of New Jersey Offshore Wind Project

©BOEM

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) said Monday it had completed its environmental analysis of the proposed Ocean Wind 1 wind project offshore New Jersey, which could power up to a half million households.As part of the Ocean Wind 1 project, Orsted's Ocean Wind LLC proposes to build up to 98 wind turbine generators (WTGs) and up to three offshore substations within its lease area. At its closest point, the Ocean Wind 1 project will be at least 13 nautical miles southeast of Atlantic City, New Jersey.

09 Feb 2023

Crowley Names Heil VP, Government Relations

Clay Heil (Photo: Crowley)

Crowley has appointed Clay Heil as vice president of global government relations, where he will lead the company’s full spectrum of government advocacy across all of the company’s business interests and activities.Based in Washington, D.C., Heil will spearhead Crowley’s engagement with federal, state and local government partners and elected officials on policy and regulatory matters that support the company’s strategic growth. Heil joins Crowley with more than 25 years of legislative and legal experience. In Congress, he worked in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S.

30 Sep 2022

At Least 12 Sailors Die of Suspected Food Poisoning on Ship off Vietnam

At least 12 sailors on a Chinese-flagged cargo ship have died of suspected food poisoning off Vietnam's southern coast, a government official said on Friday.After receiving distress calls from the ship's captain, authorities in the island district of Con Dao deployed helicopters to bring the victims and nine other sailors to a hospital onshore, according to Huynh Trung Son, a local government official."The survivors are in critical condition and our medical staff are trying to save them," Son said via telephone."We haven't been able to identify the nationality of the sailors, but they are likely Chinese," he added.The Wu Zhou 8 ship was en route from Thailand to China, he said, adding that it was not immediately clear what the ship was transporting.The ship was built in 2013 with a carryin

03 May 2022

Kick-off Ceremony Held for Realization of Alexandroupolis FSRU in Greece

Founding Shareholder and Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Gastrade, Ms. Elmina Copelouzou, US Ambassador, Geoffrey Pyatt & the Representatives of Gastrade's Shareholders - Credit: Gastrade

The kick-off ceremony for the realization of Gastrade SA's LNG FSRU facility in Alexandroupolis, Greece, was held on Tuesday, May 3, 2022, in the old Storage House of the Alexandroupolis Port Customs.Once delivered, the FSRU, with a capacity of 153,500 c.m. of LNG, will be moored in the offshore area 17.6 km southwest of the port of Alexandroupolis. It will be connected to the National Natural Gas Transmission System (NNGΤS) of Greece with a 28 km long pipeline, through which the gasified LNG will be transmitted to the markets of Greece…

27 Apr 2022

First China-built Dual-fuel Methanol Powered Tanker Starts Sea Trials

Credit: Guangzhou Shipyard International

Guangzhou Shipyard International  (GSI) has started sea trials of the Stena Pro Patria, the first methanol-powered dual-fuel tanker constructed in China in what has been described as a 'watershed moment' in the development of methanol as an alternative fuel for medium-range tankers.GSI signed the deal to build three 49,990 dual-fuel DWT tankers with Proman Stena Bulk, a joint venture between Sweden-based Stena Bulk AB and Switzerland headquartered Proman in 2019. Stena Pro Marine and Stena Prosperous…

05 Nov 2021

DEME Offshore, Prysmian Win Largest Ever U.S. Offshore Wind Installation Deal

A DEME Offshore installation vessel - Credit: DEME Offshore

Offshore installation contractor DEME Offshore has said it has secured a +$1.1 billion Balance of Plant (BoP) contract for the construction of the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project in a consortium with Prysmian. The contract, with a total value amounting to +$1.9 Billion, has been awarded by Dominion Energy Virginia, a subsidiary of Dominion Energy Inc., to a consortium, made up of DEME Group and Prysmian.According to DEME Offshore, the agreement is the largest offshore wind installation contract ever awarded in the U.S.

25 Oct 2021

Siemens Gamesa to Open Offshore Wind Turbine Blade Plant in Virginia

Credit: Siemens Gamesa

Offshore wind turbine maker Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy will open the first offshore wind turbine blade facility in the United States.The company on Monday held a launch ceremony with representatives from state and local government authorities and wind industry partners in Virginia."This is also the first commitment by a global offshore wind turbine manufacturer in a U.S.-based supply chain," Siemens Gamesa said.Siemens Gamesa plans to develop more than 80 acres/32 hectares at the Portsmouth Marine Terminal in Portsmouth…

15 Oct 2021

China Looks to Lock in US LNG as Energy Crunch Raises Concerns

© Anatoly Kolodey / Adobe Stock

Major Chinese energy companies are in advanced talks with U.S. exporters to secure long-term liquefied natural gas (LNG)supplies, as soaring gas prices and domestic power shortages heighten concerns about the country's fuel security, several sources said.At least five Chinese firms, including state major Sinopec Corp and China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC) and local government-backed energy distributors like Zhejiang Energy, are in discussions with U.S. exporters, mainly Cheniere Energy and Venture Global…

30 Aug 2021

Infrastructure Update: An Earmark By Any Other Name

Photo: Lee Roberts / U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

After years of much talk but little action, major infrastructure funding from Congress now looks like it might actually happen. This in turn has prompted a restoration of the availability of earmarks, which had been, until about a decade ago, part and parcel of the congressional funding process. Within our nation’s inland waterways industry, hopes have been high that the rejuvenation of our country’s transportation infrastructure will include our inland waterborne commerce, and that…

19 Apr 2021

ExxonMobil Floats $100 Billion Carbon Storage Project

© Patrick Jennings / Adobe Stock

ExxonMobil on Monday floated a proposal for a public-private carbon storage project that would collect planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions from U.S. petrochemical plants and bury them in reservoirs under the Gulf of Mexico.The plan would require “$100 billion or more” from companies and government agencies to store 50 million metric tons of CO2 by 2030 with capacity potentially doubling by 2040, Joe Blommaert, president of Exxon’s Low Carbon Solutions business said in an interview.Blommaert outlined the plan in a blog post on Monday, about two months after the largest U.S.

03 Jun 2021

Shipping Firms Warn Clients of Shenzen's Yantian Port Worsening Congestion

Yantian port - Credit: Weiming/AdobeStock

Major shipping companies have warned clients of worsening congestion at Shenzen's Yantian port in southern China following the discovery of several asymptomatic cases of COVID-19 in the city.Yantian International Container Terminal (YICT), one of China's busiest container ports with an annual handling volume of more than 13 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), has imposed stringent disinfection and quarantine measures since May 21 when the virus was discovered among port staff.More than 40 container ships were anchored in open water outside the terminal…

12 Aug 2021

Ingalls Names Norris Director of Government Affairs

Jack Norris (Photo: HII)

America’s largest military shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced on Thursday that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has named Jack Norris as director of state and local government affairs.Norris will lead all state and local government relations efforts in support of the Pascagoula, Miss. shipbuilder’s strategic goals and will collaborate with community and economic development partners, HII said.“Jack has a strong government relations background that includes 20 years of experience managing public policy and supporting economic recovery and growth…

30 Aug 2021

Bow Section of Broken Up Ship Crimson Polaris Towed to Shore

Credit: Japanese Coast Guard (Image published earlier in August)

The Crimson Polaris wood-chip carrier's bow section was towed into Japan's Hachinohe Port and moored there on August 27, according to the ship's charterer NYK. The Crimson Polaris split up after running aground near Hachinohe, Japan earlier this month."Due to the weather and sea conditions, the work to remove the oil from the bow of the vessel at sea was expected to take a long time, and in order to make the work smoother and safer, the shipowner and ship-management company towed and moored the vessel in Hachinohe Port with the understanding and cooperation of the local government…

03 May 2021

Ship Recycling Stymied by COVID Spread Through India

Image Courtesy GMS

All eyes remain on the situation that is currently unfolding in India as each day brings with it record, numbers of Covid-19 cases & deaths as many hospitals across the country are running desperately low on oxygen supplies and vacant hospital beds.More than 400,000 cases are being registered every day now with well over 3,000 deaths being recorded on a daily basis – the highest of any country at any point of the pandemic.Understandably, Alang recycling yards have been shut as supplies of oxygen are being diverted elsewhere and a real push now needs to be made to ramp up vaccine efforts…