Mexico News

Chilean logistics company SAAM has struck a deal to buy Intertug Investment Holding, a towage services company with operations in Colombia, Mexico and Honduras.SAAM will spend $54.5 million for 70% of Intertug, based on an enterprise value of $98 million, and carry out the acquisition through a capital increase and a share purchase, it said in a stock market exchange announcement.Intertug's 25-vessel fleet logs more than 18,000 maneuvers a year, generating around US$44 million in towage service revenue annually.The partnership with Intertug allows us to enter Colombia…

U.S. refiners are scooping up cheap high-sulfur fuel oil for processing from Russia and the Baltic states as they take advantage of new shipping rules that have cut demand for the dirtier marine fuel, according to oil traders and shipping data.U.S. refiners Valero Corp, Chevron Corp and Phillips 66 have been buying HSFO, traders said, taking advantage of their complex operations to turn HSFO blended with crude oils into products like diesel, gasoil and gasoline.This month, 2.2 million tonnes of fuel oil…

From their base deep within a former World War II U-boat pen, Norwegian outfit, OceanTech, is developing a set of robot tools that cling to offshore structures in order to effect inspection, maintenance and repair, or IMR. Old submarine anchorages are now subsea testing and training sites, but the North Sea is still the target. Hundreds of aging platforms and subsea structures require IMR that’s too costly, complex or hazardous for divers or remotely operated vehicles, or ROVs.As he walks us through Dora II…

Venezuela has changed the formulas for calculating royalties energy companies pay the government to remove references to fuel oil and some crude grades, driven by stricter rules governing marine fuel emissions, according to a document seen by Reuters.A ban by the United Nations shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), on the use of fuels with a sulfur content above 0.5%, aimed at reducing pollution, has roiled oil markets and caused price volatility for…

Hornbeck Offshore Services announced its common stock has been delisted from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on December 20, 2019, and that the company began trading on the OTC Pink marketplace effective December 23, 2019.The NYSE announced that Hornbeck stock was was suspended from trading because the company did not maintain an average global market capitalization of at least $15 million over a consecutive 30-trading-day period, as required by NYSE continued listing standards.Hornbeck…

ARM Reformador project shows economic impact of local shipbuilding.Working in close cooperation, Damen Shipyards Group, the Mexican Navy, subcontractors and suppliers have completed successful sea trials of the Mexican Navy’s POLA-class ARM Reformador. The programme of sea trials was comprehensive, including testing of platform and combat systems in addition to training of Mexican Navy crews. The completion of these sea trials indicate how the project as a whole is progressing…

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…

Latest move to Enter El Salvador with Energía del Pacífico will Reinforce SAAM Towage's Presence in Central America.The Managing Director of SAAM Towage, Felipe Rioja, celebrated the company’s upcoming launch in the new market: El Salvador. “We will provide services for the Energía del Pacífico (EDP) project at the Port of Acajutla, which reinforces our presence in Central America and our commitment to the region,” he commented.The long-term agreement with EDP calls for allocating three tugs, two of which are new, to power plant operations.

Canadian naval architecture and marine engineering services company Robert Allan Ltd (RAL) has been awarded design contracts of two vessel types for Seabulk Towing (a subsidiary of Seacor), to be built at Alabama-based Master Boat Builders, Inc.The newbuild program consists of 2 upgraded ART 90-98US tugs and 2 new RApport 3000 tugs, said the designer of commercial working vessels of all types.Two of the newbuilds will add to Seacor’s existing Rotortug fleet, with some feature updates to the Rotortug design…

India’s import and export container trade in Q3 2019 (July-September) remained flat as compared to global growth of 1.5%. The slowdown is aligned closely with the weaker domestic demand, as well as a reflection of the broad-based cyclical weakening of the economic environment in all the main global economies. The negative effects from escalating trade restrictions also weighed on trade growth in the quarter. The trade restrictions have reduced bilateral trade between the United States of America and China…

Shane Guidry, CEO of Harvey Gulf International Marine, has announced he has purchased Harvey’s 30 percent ownership in Quality Liquefied Natural Gas Transport (QLNG). The CEO previously owned 70 percent of QLNG with Harvey and now controls 100 percent.In connection with the announcement, Mr. Guidry commented: “QLNG didn’t quite fit into Harvey’s core business and future. At Harvey, we are focused on growing globally, which we’ve done over the last 12 months. Today, we have vessels working in Mexico, Trinidad, Peru, Guyana, Suriname, USA and Nigeria.

Total S.A announced the final investment decision (FID) to develop the Anchor oil field located in the deepwater U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GoM), off the coast of Louisiana.Additionally, front-end engineering and design (FEED) has begun for the North Platte discovery in the deepwater GoM.Total holds a working interest of 37.14% in Anchor, alongside operator Chevron (62.86%).The Anchor field will be developed with seven subsea wells connected to a semi-submersible floating production unit (FPU) with a capacity of 75,000 barrels of crude oil and 28 million cubic feet of gas per day.

Seabulk Towing Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of SEACOR Holdings Inc., announced Wednesday it has contracted with Alabama-based Master Boat Builders, Inc. for the construction of four 80 metric ton bollard pull harbor tugs with an expected delivery beginning in the second half of 2021 through early 2022.Two of the newbuilds will augment the company’s existing Rotortug fleet and feature updates to the Rotortug design, Seabulk said.The other two Azimuth Stern Drive newbuilds will be equipped with diesel mechanical and electric motor propulsion systems. These vessels represent Seabulk’s initial investment in hybrid power towing assets and will operate alongside the company’s existing harbor fleet in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and the U.S. East Coast.

The mission to locate two people missing from a helicopter that crashed in the Gulf of Mexico has been called off, the US Coast Guard said on Monday evening.Air and boat crews were unable to find the downed aircraft and passengers after scouring more than 4,117 square-nautical miles over the course of approximately 68 hours, the Coast Guard said“We searched diligently with our pilots, boat crews and cutter crews but were unable to find the two men aboard the helicopter,” said Lt. Cmdr.

Canadian and U.S. government representatives will arrive in Mexico on Tuesday to sign the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said.The three countries have come to an agreement over labor, steel and aluminum, he said at his regular daily news conference. (Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon and Abraham Gonzalez, Editing by Frank Jack Daniel)

Enbridge Inc and Enterprise Products Partners LP on Monday signed an agreement to jointly develop a deepwater offshore crude oil export terminal in the Gulf of Mexico capable of loading Very Large Crude Carriers.Both pipeline operators will work to finalize an equity participation agreement that would provide Enbridge an option to purchase ownership interest in Enterprise's Sea Port Oil Terminal (SPOT), subject to SPOT receiving a deep-water port license, Enbridge said in a statement.The companies would first jointly develop the SPOT project…

The U.S. Coast Guard said it is searching by air and sea for two people aboard an overdue helicopter believed to have crashed in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.The Coast Guard said its watchstanders received a report at 10:37 a.m. on Saturday from the helicopter's owner, Panther Marine, that the aircraft crew did not reach their destination when transiting from one offshore platform to another.Panther Marine said it lost communications when the helicopter was 10 minutes from landing.

The environment in oil patches onshore and offshore alike has been challenging throughout 2019; worries about an economic slowdown – whether cyclical or induced by a trade war – have weighed heavily on oil prices, even in the face of reduced production by the big producers. Though storm clouds persist, there appears a clearing on the horizon.The fate of Offshore Service Vessels (OSVs) is, naturally, closely tied to the price of oil. Seacor Marine’s John Gellert, in reviewing its Q2 results, said: “Activity levels in the U.S.

AXIS Pipeline Construction Group and ST Engineering Halter Marine and Offshore shipyard have partnered to service the subsea fabrication and installation market. This newly forged partnership, combined with more than 40 years of subsea fabrication and installation management experience, provides innovative capabilities currently unavailable to the subsea installation market, the companies said.Located in Pascagoula, Miss., ST Engineering Halter Marine and Offshore (STEHMO) is a provider of services for ships, drilling rigs and other marine vessels within the Gulf of Mexico and beyond. STEHMO provides dry docking, upgrades, repair, conversion…

British satellite telecommunications company Inmarsat plc will extend its service portfolio for customers with the launch of Fleet LTE, following an agreement with subsea fibre and offshore LTE network operator, Tampnet.The new service which is primarily aimed at offshore support vessel (OSV) operators, but could also be used by fishing and ferry operators operating in the area,  leverages low-latency, high data speed communications available via a dedicated Access Point Name…

Malaysian oil and gas company Petroliam Nasional Berhad (Petronas) would build a third floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG)unit if there’s a demand.Petronas is the only company to own and operate two FLNGs, namely PFLNG Satu and PFLNG Dua.Bernama reported, quoting the gas and new energy business executive vice-president and chief executive officer Adnan Zainal Abidin, that if there is a reservoir with a sizeable amount of reserves and with the right gas composition that it is economically viable…

The reasons for that are many and these realities cater to regulatory, commercial and regional needs.The U.S. dredging market is complex and relies on the diverse fleet of private dredging companies to get the job done. In addition to design and technical capabilities, environmental restrictions and regulations often dictate whether a trailing suction hopper dredge, cutter suction dredge, or mechanical dredge can respond to the coastal protection, wetland restoration, port deepening, and channel maintenance needs of the Nation.

Kalmar, part of Cargotec, has signed an agreement with Mexican ferry operator Baja Ferries to supply 20 terminal tractors for use in RoRo port operations.The order, which was agreed through Kalmar’s Mexican distributor Tracsa/Sitsa, was booked in Cargotec's 2019 Q3 order intake, with delivery scheduled to take place during Q1 2020.Baja Ferries is a leading provider of cargo and passenger ferry services in Mexico, offering integrated and multimodal logistics solutions. The company’s…