Maritime Business News

Tugboat and towboat owners across the nation eye fuel efficiency and emission reduction technologies and techniques in advance of increasingly stringent regulations.he first half of 2025 has seen a great deal of attention on emissions from vessels, with an eye towards their continued reductions in the coming years. Mid-April saw the International Maritime Organization (IMO)’s much anticipated Maritime Environment Protection Committee’s MEPC 83 meeting participants lay out plans for reduced greenhouse gas emissions in the coming years…

Vard, the Norwegian subsidiary of the Fincantieri Group and one of the major global designers and shipbuilders of specialized vessels, has delivered two of the world's first vessels featuring cyber notation.The ships are the two Commissioning Service Operation Vessels (CSOVs) Grampian Kestrel and Purus Chinook, built respectively for North Star and Purus.In compliance with the new regulations in force from July 1, 2024, the two units feature state-of-the-art solutions that enhance their operational capabilities…

SANMAR signed a contract with PORT FLOT – BURGAS, one of Bulgaria’s leading towage companies, to build a multi-purpose tug to join its fleet, providing services in the Bay of Burgas.The new tugboat will be one of the Turkish tug-builder and operator’s Boğaçay Series and to be known as BOĞAÇAY LXXXI while under construction. It will be based on the exclusive-to-SANMAR RAmparts 2400SX-MKII design from Canadian naval architect Robert Allan Ltd.PORT FLOT - BURGAS has more than 35 years of tradition in the maritime business at Burgas Port…

Patrick Murphy has been President of Blue & Gold Fleet, L.P., the San Francisco Bay Area’s largest and premier provider of Bay Cruises and ferry service, since 2016. Murphy grew up in the Maritime business. His father, Roger Murphy, founded Blue & Gold Fleet in 1979. Patrick Murphy began his career in 1982, working part-time in the Box Office and as a Deckhand before receiving his United States Coast Guard’s license in 1995 and was promoted to Captain in 1996. In 2005, Murphy advanced to Blue & Gold Fleet Operations Manager, and then to Director of Operations in 2009.

Kongsberg has unveiled plans to integrate the maritime-focused business Kongsberg Digital into Kongsberg Maritime to further align its portfolio with future customer needs and technological advancements in the maritime industry.The integration of Konsberg’s business units will take place in the first quarter of 2025.The business to be transferred represented revenues of approximately $53 million in 2023. The transfer involves around 500 employees located in 14 countries. These…

[ to deep, dark & confined spaces ]DLS Marine received approval from ABS for remote inspection, and it is leveraging advanced drone + software tech to make the process of tank inspection more efficient and less dangerous.DLS Marine is a long-tenured name in the U.S. maritime survey market, founded by Bob Stickney as Stickney Marine Surveying in New Orleans in 1968, with a pivotal moment coming in 1977 when Stickney hired Norman Dufour, future DLS Marine Partner, as an apprentice marine surveyor.

Maritime air lubrication company Silverstream Technologies has opened its new Global Operations Center in Southampton, U.K., in an effort to enhance its operational capabilities and support the existing fleet. The new hub, which accommodates more than 40 employees, is also equipped for further R&D on Silverstream’s Control and Monitoring System (CMS) solutions.Founded in 2010, Silverstream completed its first installation in 2014 and today has 80 systems installed on board ships.

A historically unique ship arrived at the Strela Shiprepair Yard in Stralsund on Monday, July 8, 2024. The former refrigeration and transport ship (KTS) "Stubnitz", which was part of the GDR deep-sea fishing fleet until October 1990, is docked at the shipyard. It is undergoing extensive overhaul and maintenance this month. Once the work has been completed, the ship will receive its 12th classification, which authorizes it to sail for a further five years. The ship, which is operated by the sponsoring organization Denkmal- und Kulturschiff Stubnitz e.V.…

Provider of measurement and control solutions for the marine industry, Hoppe Marine, has opened an office for its new subsidiary, Hoppe America Inc.The new company is based in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, and is led by Ivo Beu as president. Beu is a naval architect with a unique blend of substantial maritime business background and project management skills.Starting his career as a naval architect at Flender Shipyard and MTG Marinetechnik, Beu later transitioned to the sales side.

Digitalizing processes makes shipping more flexible, efficient and eco-friendly. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing role of growing importance in these efforts. At the leading international maritime trade fair in Hamburg, the topic will be covered in depth at the AI CENTER, where innovative start-ups will showcase their solutions.Under the heading of “Driving the Maritime Transition”, SMM 2024 will not only focus on the maritime energy transition but also on digital transformation.

The Port of Seattle has commenced the renovation of the historic Ship Supply Building at Fishermen’s Terminal, aiming to transform it into a modern Maritime Innovation Center (MInC). This new facility will support the maritime industry by bringing together students, businesses, public agencies, and community stakeholders. The port is partnering with Miller Hull for the construction.“Today’s groundbreaking is a celebration of the Port’s substantial commitment to support innovation as a way to foster the maritime industry’s ability to sustain our region’s blue economy…

ClassNK is one of the world’s leading maritime classification societies with more than 9,200 ships totaling more than 273 million gross tons under class at the end of 2023, and a global service network of more than 120 survey offices. Last month while in Tokyo we had the opportunity to sit with Hiroaki Sakashita, President & CEO, ClassNK, a marine industry veteran for his insights on the trends driving ship classification today and in the future.Hiroaki Sakashita took the helm at ClassNK at one of the most historically significant times in history…

The CEO of U.S. shipping and logistics company TOTE Group emphasized the importance of the Jones Act in supporting the American maritime industry and economy.Speaking on the American Maritime Podcast, TOTE's CEO, Tim Nolan, said the Jones Act provides the organization with confidence and stability to invest in its fleet and the markets it serves.TOTE's maritime business in 2015 launched the world's first containerships powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), for service between Jacksonville, Fla. and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

For Cheryl “Cherrie” Felder, the path to the maritime industry was both untraditional and seemingly meant to be. After studying African art, she began her career working in a museum in New Orleans before landing a role directing professional rodeo in the Big Easy.“It was a lot of fun, and I learned a whole lot,” Felder said. “But as you may imagine, New Orleans is not a rodeo town. After the third year, the board of directors decided, okay, that's it. No more rodeo.”And that’s when Felder’s doorway to the maritime industry swung open…

Matt Hart, Manager & Platform Leader, Marine & Stationary Power Systems, Wabtec, offers insights on how the megatrends of decarbonization, energy transition and autonomy all inspire and impact the marine power solutions from Wabtec.Matt, to start us off, can you provide insight on the journey to your present position?I graduated from the University of Notre Dame with an undergraduate in Mechanical Engineering and started with General Electric in the Edison Engineering Development rotational program at the Erie…

Angela Chao, chair and CEO of the Foremost Group, has died in a car accident, the New York-headquartered dry bulk shipping company announced on Monday.Angela Chao was an experienced and well-respected shipping executive, having worked her way up through several leadership positions at the company founder by her father, Dr. James S.C. Chao, with her mother, the late Ruth Mulan Chu Chao, in 1964.Before joining Foremost Group in 1996, Angela Chao worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of Smith Barney…

Attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels on merchant ships in the Red Sea have hit world trade. Between November and December 2023, the number of containers travelling through the Red Sea each day fell by 60% as ships moving goods between Asia and Europe diverted their routes around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.This route results in at least ten days more sailing time, so has caused freight prices to surge and has triggered costly delays to production. The region has become a bottleneck for the global economy before.

Ammonia is one of several renewable fuels seen as an option to help the maritime industry decarbonize.One of the companies working to unlock the fuel’s potential is Brooklyn, N.Y. based Amogy, developer of an onboard system that feeds liquid ammonia through a cracking process to create hydrogen on demand for power generation via fuel cell—without carbon emissions.Having already demonstrated its technology on an aerial drone, tractor and semi-truck, Amogy is currently working to…

For the 10th year in a row, Singapore ranks first in the Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Center Development Index (ISCDI) Report.Published jointly by the Chinese state news agency, Xinhua and global maritime data provider Baltic Exchange, the report lists Singapore as the global leading maritime center, followed by London and Shanghai.The island nation scored 95.32 out of a possible 100 points, while London scored 83.35 points and Shanghai took third place with 81.58 points.Singapore has held the top position since the index began a decade ago.

Any commentator on the maritime business decarbonization voyage will offer something along the lines of "There will be multiple fuels…" With the International Maritime Organization (IMO) meetings of its Maritime Environmental Protection Committee (MEPC) set for early July, it is likely that targets for emissions will be tightened. Whatever mileposts that the IMO actually establishes, there will be no prescriptions handed down on how to get there. By mid-2023, nearly two years after the late 2021 alternative fuels crescendo in the aftermath of the COP26 meetings in Glasgow…

With a number of evolving maritime business opportunities intermixed with geo-political headwinds, VSM, which represents the interests of the German maritime industry as a whole, launched a campaign aimed at the federal government and the EU to understand and support the tremendous growth potential for all things maritime in Germany.According to a press notice from VSM, the tasks are enormous: economical and clean merchant ships, plants and ships for offshore renewable energy…

Anschütz, a brand with more than a century history (since 1905), has a new owner and is part of DMB Dr. Dieter Murmann Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, meaning that Raytheon Anschütz GmbH is to be renamed Anschütz GmbH once the entry in the commercial register has been made.DMB takes over the entire Anschütz Group with its headquarters in Kiel and international subsidiaries in Panama City, Portsmouth (United Kingdom), Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai and Singapore. Anschütz returns to a…

BIO-UV Group reported a 31% increase in revenues from its maritime business segment, contributing to full-year consolidated revenues of $56m for the 2022 financial year, confirming the sale of more than 200 BIO-SEA ballast water treatment systems throughout the course of the year."2022 was another year of very strong growth for BIO-UV Group, for both the Land and Marine divisions," said Benoît Gillmann, Founder, Chairman and CEO of BIO-UV Group.“Ultimately, targets were exceeded with $1.6 million more in sales than the $54 million we had anticipated.