Maritime Industry News

Verifavia Shipping, the independent accredited environmental verification and auditing body for maritime industry, has certified Fueltrax, against the European Union’s (EU) Monitoring Reporting and Verification (MRV) regulation requirements and IMO Data Collection System (DCS).The EU MRV regulation requires ships of 5,000 gross tonnages or higher to collect data from previous years to monitor CO2 emissions, fuel consumption, and other parameters, such as distance traveled, time at sea, and cargo carried on a per voyage basis.

INSIGHTS: Thomas C. Escher, Chairman, Red and White FleetIn 1960, Tom Escher, the grandson of the founder and now the current owner, started working as a sweeper and a mechanics helper on the Red and White vessels. In 1997, Escher purchased the Red and White Fleet, becoming the third generation of the family to own and operate the business. In September 2018, Red and White Fleet welcomed Enhydra, the newest and largest addition to the fleet. Enhydra is the first 600-passenger hybrid-drive vessel operating in the United States.

Merchant ships traditionally operate in the open sea at or near full speed. This is hard on the engine, hard on the ship and hard on the crew. Slowing down reduces wear on the engine, improves fuel efficiency, reduces harmful air emissions and improves safety by providing the bridge personnel additional time to evaluate developing situations. Some marine engines, though, are designed to operate at near full load. Thus, for these engines, slow steaming creates its own set of problems – not insurmountable…

Global Marine Travel, a Florida-based travel management company to the maritime industry, has partnered with the Greek travel firm Argo Travel Group to enhance its travel offering, particularly in terms of service delivery and driving growth in the Greek and international markets."In Argo, Global Marine Travel, gains a marine partner with an experienced team and a strong reputation for service delivery, that will drive the growth of the business in Greece and other international locations…

Northern European growth equity investor  Verdane Capital has taken a majority stake in the Denmark-based maritime hardware and software company Danelec Marine.Under the agreement, which was signed December 31, 2019, Verdane assumes a majority shareholder position in the privately held corporation. Danelec’s existing shareholders will continue to own shares in the company, and the management team, including CEO Hans Ottosen and COO Casper Jensen, will continue in their positions.Headquartered in Birkeroed…

A tanker captain has been convicted and fined for failing to immediately alert Australian authorities of a main engine breakdown in 2019.On January 31, 2019, the tanker Asphalt Spirit suffered a main engine breakdown and began drifting 30 kilometers northeast of Point Lookout on North Stradbroke Island while carrying 14,000 tonnes of asphalt from from Korea to Australia.The ship’s master reported the incident via email to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) just after 10 p.m.

Maersk's towage operator arm Svitzer announced on Thursday it has appointed Arjen Van Dijk as its new Regional Managing Director (MD) for the Americas region, effective February 1, 2020.Van Dijk is taking over from Marc Niederer, who has decided to step down due to personal reasons and is currently considering various options for his future role, the company said.Van Dijk joined Svitzer in July 2019 as regional CCO and is now advancing to Regional MD. With more than 15 years in global shipping and transportation…

Dutch shipbuilder Damen Shipyards Group and Australian-based Gentium Solutions have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Industry of Bangladesh, seeking to establish and develop shipbuilding and ship repair industry in Bangladesh."The aim is to build ships in Bangladesh, for Bangladesh, with a long-term view of serving export markets. The partners in the MoU will undertake a number of tasks in this direction," said a press release from the Netherlands…

The end of 2019 promises to be a busy, and potentially discordant, legislative and regulatory period for the United States maritime industry as both Congress and the Executive Branch look to take decisive action, with both positive and negative potential impacts depending on your perspective. With appropriation and authorization bills still pending, and various open regulatory actions, there are significant opportunities for maritime stakeholders to influence policy outcomes.Funding Fights Continue in CongressOn October 31…

Maritime industry partners striving to advance shipping's decarbonization efforts are working to develop an ammonia-fueled tanker, classification society Lloyd's Register (LR) announced.The joint development project (JDP) involving LR and shipping line MISC Berhad, builder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) and engine maker MAN Energy Solutions aims to develop commercially viable deep-sea zero-emissions vessels (ZEVs) that would be operational by 2030, ahead of the International Maritime Organization’s 2050 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions target.Nick Brown…

Iridium Communication signed on to provide Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) service.On December 19, 2019 a Letter of Compliance was signed by the International Mobile Satellite Organization (IMSO), stating it has positively verified the operational and technical requirements as requested by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for Iridium to provide Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) service. Iridium’s GMDSS service is bringing many capabilities to the maritime industry…

ShipServ has appointed Henrik Hyldahn as its new CEO, effective January 1, 2020. Hyldahn was previously ShipServ’s Chief Solutions Officer. He replaces CEO Kim Skaarup, who will join the company's board as Vice ChairmanAs new CEO, Hyldahn will prioritize driving further collaboration with customers and partners, as well as seizing the opportunity to capitalize on the significant advancements in digitalization within the maritime industry. A key component of this will involve leading…

The Korean Register (KR) has appointed Hyung-chul Lee as its 24th Chairman & CEO. His term began on December 23, 2019 and runs for three years until December 22, 2022.Hyung-chul Lee joined KR in 1988 and has until now held the position of Executive Vice President of KR. He was elected as Chairman & CEO at KR’s General Assembly meeting held on December 23.Over his 30 years with KR, Hyung-chul Lee has held many senior roles, including head of Statutory Service and head of Overseas Business Development Team…

Stay in your lane. Ignoring such wisdom can result in catastrophe if you’re drag racing and lead to general unpleasantness on bowling league nights. This same guidance in other circumstances, for example, can be toxic. It can inhibit innovation and, at the worst possible moment, prevent the sensible use of available resources to improve a bad situation.In satisfying the demands of the offshore energy sector, the U.S. maritime industry has developed incredibly versatile tools.

The UK shipping industry brings in a remarkable GBP 19 billion (USD 25Bln) to our economy, an increase of 41% from 2010, and directly supports 181,000 jobs, UK Chamber of Shipping said quoting a new report from the Center for Economics and Business Research (Cebr). The Chamber, which represents nearly 200 members, and works with Government, parliament and international organisations to champion and protect the industry, welcomed the report.Chief Executive of the UK Chamber of Shipping…

Niels Aalund was elected President of the International Propeller Club at their 93rd International Convention and Conference. The prominent maritime industry stakeholder will serve a two-year term, commencing from October 17th. Aalund, a well-known maritime subject matter expert and executive, also serves as an Officer and as Senior Vice President of the West Gulf Maritime Association (WGMA). WGMA communicates and coordinates with various governmental entities throughout the West Gulf…

Hawaii Congressman Ed Case has introduced three bills in Congress to reform Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (commonly referred to as the Jones Act), which he states “artificially inflates the cost of shipping goods to Hawaii”.Case’s three measures and their proposed amendments to the Jones Act are:the Noncontiguous Shipping Relief Act, which exempts all noncontiguous U.S. locations, including Hawaii, from the Jones Act;the Noncontiguous Shipping Reasonable Rate Act, which benchmarks…

It is 70 years since the launch of the first radar under the Decca brand and today’s Sperry Marine is marking the anniversary by looking to a future that would have been hard to imagine in 1949 – or even as little as 10 years ago.Yet the changes of the last decade will be eclipsed by the transformation in the decades to come, which will accelerate as the shipping industry embraces greater digitalization and moves towards an era of smart and connected operations.In the course of 70 years…

Tug Training & Consultancy (TTC) and Abu Dhabi Maritime Academy (ADMA), signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a long term strategic partnership. The MoU encompasses exclusive training of hundreds of (tug) masters and captains in the Middle East Region by certified trainers of TTC at ADMA’s state of the art facilities.Facing the increasing demand for qualified maritime professionals, ADMA is seeking ways to safeguard its best-in-class training for which the organization is renowned.TTC fulfills this requirement…

MarineNews recently visited the Blount Boats facility in Warren, Rhode Island. While the year 2019 might be the ‘year of the woman’ in the eyes of the International Maritime Organization, the two women at the head of Blount Boats – Marcia & Julie Blount– have been a driving force in the U.S. boatbuilding market for decades. As Blount’s celebrates its 70th anniversary, read about the storied yard’s promising future.Founded in 1949, Blount Boats is a full-service with a customer base comprised of a variety of commercial and government entities including the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S.

Following DP World’s recent acquisition of Topaz Energy and Marine and its integration with P&O Maritime created a new brand P&O Maritime Logistics - a global provider of maritime solutions in offshore, port services and logistics.Through the synergies created by the merger of the two companies, under the DP World umbrella, the POML business is well positioned to grow and build further scale and value for customers and shareholders alike.Offering a distinctive value proposition to customers…

The Coast Guard launched its ice breaking season Monday, as winter’s cold temperatures are anticipated to impact every port, waterway, and harbor in the Northeast.Operation Reliable Energy for Northeast Winters (OpRENEW) is the Coast Guard's region-wide effort to ensure Northeast communities have the security, supplies, energy, and emergency resources they need throughout the winter.Of the heating oil used in the country, more than 85 percent is consumed in the Northeast, and…

The Norwegean global maritime industry group Wilh. Wilhelmsen Holding ASA and Denmark-based supply chain manager NorSea join forces to develop liquid hydrogen supply chain for maritime applications in Norway.The environmentally friendly liquid hydrogen can be offered to commercial shipping in large scale supply within first quarter 2024, claimed the companies.Together with major industry players such as Equinor, Viking Cruises, Air Liquide, and more, this is a huge and important step towards a sustainable future…