Med News

SCHOTTEL is to equip six new ASD tugs of the Turkish Med Marine Group with the SCHOTTEL RudderPropeller (SRP). The new vessels will be built by Med Marine’s Ereğli Shipyard and will be available in 2025 to meet the constantly growing demand for Med Marine tugs. A total of 12 SCHOTTEL RudderPropellers in the SRP 360, SRP 430 and SRP 490 series will be built for the new vessels by the German manufacturer of marine propulsion systems. The new tugs will cater for a range of different bollard pull requirements in the 50-…

In January 2024, Boluda Towage commenced towage operations in the Egyptian Abu Qir’s container terminal with three tugs.Vicente Boluda Fos, President of Boluda Corporación Marítima, said, “Abu Qir is a port in full motion, and the port developments perfectly fit with the ambitions of the Boluda Towage Division. The presence in Egypt and the Middle East is a further step towards strengthening and expanding our global activities. We are proud to be part of the developments and that…

DFDS has completed its acquisition of FRS Iberia/Maroc, a short-sea ferry company connecting Spain and Morocco via the Strait of Gibraltar.“We are excited to start the integration of FRS Iberia/Maroc and look forward to applying our joint capabilities to grow the business while continuing to provide reliable, efficient ferry services to both passengers and freight customers,” said Torben Carlsen, CEO of DFDS.Reporting preliminary revenue of DKK 1.0bn for 2023, FRS Iberia/Maroc has three routes operated by a total of 850 staff of which just over 400 are own employees.

Danish maritime safety solutions company Viking Life-Saving Equipment has acquired rights to manufacture and supply Undertun marine evacuation systems (MES).The Viking acquisition has been agreed with Sverre Undertun, whose Norway-based company offers solutions which include its well-known Undertun ship gangways.The solution is suitable for the small ferry market due to its easy installation and use.Catering for up to 150 persons, Undertun MES are especially convenient when installation heights and crew numbers are low…

Saab and GMV are collaborating in ASGARD, an EU-funded project that aims to improve maritime security when using GNSS and OSNMA. The project addresses the growing threat of GNSS spoofing and other cyberattacks on navigation systems used in the maritime industry.The ASGARD project, run by Saab and GMV, is an ambitious European Union (EU) initiative that aims to develop advanced technologies to improve Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Open Service Navigation Message Authentication (OSNMA) security in maritime environments.

The European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) has reiterated its support for an emissions trading scheme (ETS) as instrument for greening the shipping sector, but expresses its serious concern about first signs of carbon and business leakage due to the limited scope of the current legislation.For ESPO, the principle to consider calls to some transhipment ports neighbouring the EU as a “port of call” in the counting of the ETS charges is only a partial solution to the problem. ESPO agrees with the identification of Tanger Med and East Port Said as major neighbouring transhipments ports.

Safehaven Marine, an Irish builder of pilot, patrol and survey vessels, this week launched a new pilot boat for Svitzer’s operations at Tanger Med 2 in Morocco.The newly built Svitzer Oued Laou is powered by a pair of 500-horsepower Volvo Penta D13 engines. The 48-foot launch has an operational speed of 24.5 knots carrying seven pilots and crew. The vessel is self-righting and capable of operating in all weather conditions, the builder said.Safehaven Marine said the vessel is the fourth Interceptor 48 pilot boat supplied to Svitzer.

Flag and port state control authorities will need new tools to monitor compliance within the next wave of Emissions Control Areas (ECAs) if compliance is to meet minimum standards, according to emissions management start-up SeaARCTOS.“There is a risk that as the industry focuses on carbon, that sulfur emissions fall into the background, but they continue to present a serious public health risk and a compliance challenge,” says Michael Kougellis, SeaARCTOS CEO. “Growth in the ECA network means that demand for emissions monitoring and compliance management will continue to increase…

The IMO’s MEPC 80 session adopted the 2023 IMO Strategy on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships and advanced other environmental initiatives.The revised IMO GHG Strategy includes an enhanced common ambition to reach net-zero GHG emissions from international shipping close to 2050, a commitment to ensure an uptake of alternative zero and near-zero GHG fuels by 2030, as well as indicative check-points for 2030 and 2040:1. to reduce the total annual GHG emissions from international shipping by at least 20%, striving for 30%, by 2030, compared to 2008; and2.

The IMO’s Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) - 80th session will meet at IMO Headquarters in London from July 3-7, and amongst key agenda items, the MEPC 80 session is expected to adopt an upgraded IMO greenhouse gas strategy.The revised IMO GHG Strategy will contain concrete greenhouse gas reduction targets for the sector and is expected to outline a range of technical and economic measures. Negotiations have been ongoing and will continue during the Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships (ISWG-GHG 15)…

Cyprus wants to establish itself as a gateway from east Mediterranean gas resources to Europe via a shipping corridor of LNG carriers, its president said on Monday. Cyprus's new centrist government, which came to power in February, has cooled to the idea championed by its predecessors of an "EastMed" pipeline transferring gas to Europe.Instead, authorities now want to transport, via pipeline, natural gas from fields in the eastern Mediterranean to the island for use in domestic conventional power generation…

An ailing worker was airlifted from a platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico on Monday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.The Coast Guard said its District Eight watchstanders received a call at approximately 7 a.m. from the aircrew of the Acadian Air Med requesting assistance to medevac a 37-year-old platform crewmember reportedly having difficulty breathing.Sector New Orleans watchstanders coordinated the launch of a Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew to assist.The aircrew arrived on scene approximately 40 miles south of Port Fourchon…

Kongsberg Maritime said it has signed a contract with Turkish tugboat builder Med Marine to deliver heavy duty, Escort Series towing winches for nine escort tugs equipped with azimuth stern drives (ASD).The order follows on from a contract signed earlier this year to supply winches for seven tugs.The new agreement brings the total number of Kongsberg’s winch supply contracts for Med Marine to 16 shipsets.

Thunderbird 3 named as latest vessel in growing fleet as remote operating control center in Delft begins operations.As hull biofouling and its role in invasive species transfer and carbon emissions due to increased fuel use continue to attract the attention of the IMO and national regulators, Netherlands-based Fleet Cleaner has added to its armory with the introduction of a third specialist hull cleaning vessel. In addition, the company has unveiled a new remotely controlled operation service for its growing fleet of vessels and ROV cleaning craft.Thunderbird 3…

Dozens of ships carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) are circling off the coasts of Spain and other European countries unable to secure slots to unload because plants that convert the seaborne fuel back to gas are full.Europe is facing an energy supply squeeze as Russia has progressively cut gas flows after the West imposed sanctions in response to the Ukraine war.The region has had to find alternative supplies, including LNG, but the arrival of multiple cargoes of the superchilled…

Steerprop signed a contract with Turkish Med Marine shipyard to deliver the propulsion units for two RAscal 2100 harbour tugs designed by Robert Allan. The contract is the first for the new Steerprop T product line.The growth of global trade and marine transport has brought about larger vessels and a need of more powerful and manoeuvrable tugs, with increased bollard pull for ship assistance and harbor operations. Steerprop developed the Steerprop T azimuth propulsion product line as a robust and hydrodynamically efficient propulsors…

Sperry Marine has unveiled NAVIPILOT 4500N, a networked, self-tuning, fully adaptive heading control system. The first in a new series of autopilot systems, NAVIPILOT 4500N is designed to deliver improved course-keeping with reduced fuel consumption and a lower workload on the bridge, the company said.NAVIPILOT 4500N delivers the heading control performance that users expect from Sperry Marine, minimizing unwanted rudder motion and lowering drag, thereby saving fuel and contributing to greater efficiency.

Survival technology company Survitec has unveiled a new Marine Evacuation System (MES) designed for small to medium size passenger vessels. Targeted at vessels with passenger capacities ranging from 300 to 1,500 persons, such as ferries and expedition cruise ships, the new MES solution will be officially introduced to ship operators during the SMM Trade Fair before being rolled out for full market availability from early 2023.The product is being launched with an extended service MES option of up to 30 months…

Kongsberg Maritime’s US Series thrusters will be installed on 16 new ASD tugboats to be built in Turkey by Med Marine ShipyardKongsberg Maritime (KM) reports that it has signed "a sizeable contract" with Med Marine in Turkey to deliver 32 US series thrusters for installation on new Azimuth Stern Drive (ASD) tugboats.KM’s US series thrusters now offer project-specific Computation Fluid Dynamics (CFD) modelling capabilities, while the range of achievable propeller and nozzle combinations ensures the highest possible standards of operational efficiency.

A Greek-registered supertanker recently came to the rescue of a group of Syrian refugees stranded without water, food and fuel in the Mediterranean Sea.Late in the evening on May 27, 2022, Samaris Konstantinos from Brittania forwarded an email that the club’s emergency line received from the NGO ‘Watch the Med’ in regard to a rescue request nearby the Euronav very large crude carrier (VLCC) Antigone. Eight Syrian refugees, including seven men and one female, were sailing a small craft and were without water…

Korean Register (KR) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ship management company KLCSM and shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) to jointly research and approve the application of autonomous navigation systems for mid- to large-sized vessels.The agreement, which was signed on June 23 at this year’s Korea Ocean Expo in Incheon, Korea, aims to accelerate the commercialization and international competitiveness of domestic autonomous ship equipment and technology…

Earlier this year Med Marine signed a contract with the Port Qasim Authority of Pakistan (PQA) for the delivery of a Conventional Twin Screw Buoy Tender Vessel, MED-B4500, for buoy-laying in the port located in the city of Karachi. MED-B4500 is a 45 x 11.8 meter vessel built to facilitate a crew of 16.

Wärtsilä Voyage acquired PortLink Global, a global port solutions company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. The move is intended to speed Wärtsilä Voyage along its path towards creating an end-to-end connected maritime ecosystem.The transaction was signed and closed in June 2022.PortLink and Wärtsilä Voyage have partnered in the past – collaborating on projects including the co-development of a Port Management Information System (PMIS) for the largest Mediterranean and African port…