Maritime Industry News

The National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) has posted revenues‏ ‏of SAR‏3.14 billion ($840million) for the first half of 2019, despite regional difficulties.The Riyadh-based ransportation and logistics company reported revenue growth of six percent for the first half and income growth of three percent, to SAR 581.47 million.Net income reached SAR 224.9 million ‎during the first six months of 2019 in comparison to SAR 308.54 million‎ of the same period last year. Earnings…

According to a new study conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) on behalf of Transportation Institute (TI), the Jones Act continues to fuel a strong maritime industry throughout the Great Lakes region, where the PwC report shows 123,670 Jones Act-related jobs – or 20% of the national total – are based.Between 2011 and 2016, maritime employment in the region increased by 25,400 jobs. Overall, the industry generates $30 billion of economic activity and $8.45 billion in worker income in the eight Great Lakes states.“With our Great Lakes and rich maritime history…

Transport Canada has issued a $6,000 fine to a vessel that allegedly breached mandatory speed limits introduced by the federal government in parts of the Gulf of St. Lawrence to protect endangered North Atlantic right whales, Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced.Endangered whales such as the majestic North Atlantic right whale deserve to swim danger-free in Canadian waters. That is why the Government of Canada has introduced several measures to address risks they face by…

TecnoVeritas, a marine engineering consultancy company, announced that its UOPV (Unmanned Oceanic Patrol Vessel) project was approved by the Fundo Azul, run by the Directorate-General for Sea Policy of the Ministry of the Sea, Portugal.According to the provider of the energy management services and products for the maritime industry, the project itself is focused on maritime safety.UOPV is wave propelled and performs equally well on all headings including directly into wind and waves.

Navis, the terminal operating systems (TOS) provider and part of Cargotec, has announced the appointment of maritime industry veteran Simon Doughty as the General Manager and Vice President for the APAC region.Doughty had previously served as the CEO of Hong Kong based Wallem Group and brings over 30 years’ experience in international business management, leading transportation organizations in Asia, the Americas, Middle East and Europe.Doughty has a proven track record of driving top and bottom line growth through efficient operations…

Imagine a power distribution network where excess renewable energy from hydropower, wind, solar, and nuclear energy is converted to hydrogen and used as transportation fuel in the maritime industry. With the allure of a zero emissions fuel, a number of ship owners are starting to seriously consider hydrogen for newly built vessels. As a bold first step, the country of Norway has provided a number of grants to leading maritime companies to conduct feasibility studies into various aspects of this emerging technology sector.

"Just-In-Time" (JIT) operations have the potential to cut the time ships spend idling outside ports and help reduce harmful emissions as well as save on fuel costs.According to International Maritime Organization (IMO), this can be achieved by communicating in advance the relevant information to the ship about the requested time of arrival - allowing the ship to adjust to optimum speed. A desktop trial in Just-In-Time ship operations has yielded positive results, showing emissions…

Europort 2019 has finalized the most extensive conference and events program in its history, adding a number of elements that will ensure that this year’s edition of the biennial maritime and offshore gathering in Rotterdam is more thought-provoking than ever before.The four-day conference and exhibition, to be staged between November 5-8th at the Rotterdam Ahoy Center, will take place against a backdrop of revival across the specialized shipping markets for which Europort is renowned.

For the sixth year running, Singapore has clinched the top spot among the world's maritime centers in the Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Centre Development Index.The island city-state in Southeast Asia beat 42 other cities such as Hong Kong, which ranked second, as well as London, which ranked third.Based on the evaluation scores, Singapore shows strength in ship management and shipbroking services, while Hong Kong is benefiting from China’s Belt and Road Initiative and economic opportunities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area.London’s first-class services in shipbroking…

For some years now, the maritime sector has experienced breaches of various computer and information technology (IT) systems. Primarily, these breaches have been collateral damage. The maritime sector has almost never been the intended target. That does not mean that the damage has been minor. In June 2017, A.P. Moller-Maersk suffered a major cyber-attack. The malware had been designed by Russian hackers to disrupt the Ukrainian power sector. Once released, though, it proved to be indiscriminate, infecting IT systems worldwide that had not been kept up to date. In the case of A.P.

Will your ship be honored as a “Great Ship of 2019” in the December 2019 edition of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News?Every year, Maritime Reporter & Engineering News profiles the most outstanding ships built in shipyards around the world, recognizing Ship Builders, Ship Owners and Ship Designers as leaders in their field. This edition — the much anticipated end-of-the-year Awards Edition — generates much excitement, as your work is profiled and delivered to the largest audited…

Whilst investigating a cyber incident onboard a ship the USCG found that the security risk presented by the shipboard network was well known among the crew before the incident.In its recent Marine Safety Alert 06-19, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) shares its findings from an investigation into a cyber incident onboard a commercial vessel:“In February 2019, a deep draft vessel on an international voyage bound for the Port of New York and New Jersey reported that they were experiencing a significant cyber incident impacting their shipboard network.

Britain has recommended all British-flagged ships go to a heightened state of security in the Strait of Hormuz, Sky News reported on Thursday, citing unnamed maritime industry sources.A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: "The Department for Transport, as competent authority, regularly provides Security Advice to UK and Red Ensign Group Shipping on how they should operate in areas of high risk." (Reuters, Reporting by William James, editing by Elizabeth Piper)

The Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AGCS) Safety & Shipping Review 2019 provides a unique and in-depth look at the emerging risks facing international shipping stakeholders.Large shipping losses are now at their lowest level this century having declined by over 50% year-on-year, according to Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty SE’s (AGCS) Safety & Shipping Review 2019. The annual study analyzes reported shipping losses over 100 gross tons (GT). AGCS provides global marine and shipping insurance for all types of marine risk…

Now that the United States finally can envision steady winds blowing from the Atlantic Seaboard due to a pipeline of offshore wind farms on the horizon, the maritime industry can finally step up and earn some of the benefits. This includes shipbuilding, port construction, and worker training. This article reviews the key developments and forecasts the growth in maritime jobs.The federal and state governments share responsibility for developing offshore wind farms and bringing the wind into the power grid and…

Since the founding in 2016, cyber defence company Naval Dome has won awards for its Endpoint cyber defense system and achieved the highest level of security certification from classification society DNV GL, helping to protect merchant ships, cruise ships and yachts from cyber-attack.In 2019, Naval Dome optimized Endpoint with a “Dashboard” App, providing maritime users with  a clear picture of the cyber status of all critical systems on board the ship, designed to allow users…

Last month Maritime Reporter & Engineering News was invited to join Admiral Karl Schultz, the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard, on a trek to New Orleans for an underway tour on board a mid-stream transfer operation in the Mississippi River. As the U.S. inland waterway system has endured historic water levels for more than six months, the destination provided a perfect backdrop to discuss several key messages coming from USCG leadership: the maritime industry’s critical role in facilitating U.S.

The fiercely competitive domestic boatbuilding industry looks for any advantage in the day-to-day battle for bottom line efficiencies. ‘XR Technologies’ offer an edge to shipyards as they grow their workforce.In the shipyard, skills such as welding and coating are in high demand. The ability to lay down a proper bead, or perfect the mil build on a ship’s hull can make the difference between a successful project and a failed inspection. XR technologies are valuable compliments to traditional training programs (XR is an umbrella category for virtual reality [VR]…

NAPA, a maritime software, services, and data analysis provider, has announced the appointment of Tor E. Svensen, Vice President, Marine Technology at Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines to its board. Svensen has previously served as CEO of DNV GL Maritime, chairman of the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), and professor at the University of Strathclyde.As CEO of DNV GL Maritime, Svensen helped to outline a consistent vision of shipping's technology-enabled future, which achieved sustained, empirical improvements in safety, sustainability, and efficiency.

The Offshore Sector's Support of National Interests in Times of Crisis.Desperate Times Call for Diverse ResourcesIn 2017, North America was assaulted by significant weather events resulting in cascading humanitarian crises. Despite the substantial response from the U.S. maritime industry, a misconception arose that insufficient U.S. assets were available to support critical response activities in affected regions; in particular, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Public…

The UK maritime industry is taking a leading stand in the fight against the illegal use of Dangerously Weighted Heaving Lines (DWHLs) in UK ports and harbors, an issue spanning the shipping and ports sectors, said British Ports Association (BPA).To coincide with the Department for Transport’s important Maritime Safety Week 2019, #maritimesafetyweek, the British Ports Association, British Tugowners Association, Port Skills and Safety, UK Chamber of Shipping, UK Major Ports Group…

More women are joining the maritime ranks in a variety of professions within the industry, said International Maritime Organization (IMO).To encourage this trend, IMO supported a training course aimed at female officials from maritime and port authorities.According to the UN body, 25 women from 17 developing countries took part in the two-week "Women in Port Management" course, hosted in Le Havre, France (24 June - 5 July).The course covered lectures on port management, port security, marine environment, facilitation of maritime traffic, marketing, port logistics and other topics.

As part of the Sea Traffic Management STM Validation project Costa Crociere, part of Carnival Corporation, integrated Costa and Aida ships to exchange information with other actors, utilizing STM supported standardised formats and interfaces. After verifying operations with these initial ships, the rest of the Carnival Corporation fleet has now been added.Costa developed STM support as part of their Fleet Operation Center software Neptune. This new functionality in Neptune allows Carnival to interact with other STM services…