Port Of Authority News

Fincantieri announced on Monday it has reached a deal that will allow it to expand its shipbuilding footprint in the port of Ancona.The Italian shipbuilding company said it has signed a program agreement with the Port System Authority of the Central Adriatic Sea (ADSP) to develop the port’s current infrastructure, including construction piers, dry dock, technological and lifting facilities, for the construction of ships of greater size and tonnage, both in the cruise and merchant sector.The value of the investment is €80 million…

A Turkish-flagged general cargo ship that was sailing on Thursday in the Black Sea en route to Ukraine's Izmail port did not sustain damage from an explosion, Turkey's maritime authority and the ship's captain told Reuters on Friday."An explosion occurred 15-20 meters behind the Kafkametler ship en route to Izmail port from Batumi port while it was cruising off the coast of Romania/Sulina (port)," the authority said.The ship continued sailing to its destination to deliver its cargo following checks, and there was no evidence that the explosion was caused by a mine, it added.Maritime sources told Reuters on Thursday that the vessel had hit a sea mine and sustained minor damage…

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.

The fifth in a series of 12 hybrid ro-ro ships for the Grimaldi Group has been christened in the port of Catania.Built by the Chinese Jinling shipyard in Nanjing, Eco Catania and its sister vessels already in service in the Mediterranean are part of the GG5G (Grimaldi Green 5th Generation) class, which rank among the largest and most eco-friendly ro-ro ships in the world.With a transport capacity of more than 500 trailers, these green giants are able to halve CO2 emissions compared to the previous generation of ro-ro ships operated by the Grimaldi Group…

Turkey's Sanmar Shipyards said it has won contracts worth $33.46 million to supply four new tugs and two new pilot boats for the Port Qasim Authority (PQA) in Pakistan. The tugs are scheduled to be delivered in 12 months and the pilot boats in 10.The contracts were awarded following an international tendering process during which Sanmar championed its new Kocacay range of escort and harbor tugs, based on the exclusive-to-Sanmar RAstar 3200SX design from Canada-based naval architects Robert Allan Ltd.

Industry stakeholders at PortPIC stressed the importance of more innovation, collaboration and aligned initiatives to shape sustainable solutions for in-water cleaning.This was the main message from the inaugural In-Port Inspection & Cleaning Conference (PortPIC) held last week, organized by Jotun and DNV GL.In his opening address, Geir Axel Oftedahl, business development director, Jotun Marine Coatings raised the issue of biofouling and emphasized, “There’s an increasing focus…

Turkey's Yilport Holding signed a concession agreement with Port Network Authority of the Ionian Sea (PNAIS), the managing institution of the Port of Taranto in Italy for the multipurpose terminal.The deal was signed on 30 July 2019, at Castello Aragonese in Taranto, Italy by Robert Yuksel Yildirim, Yilport Holding Chairman, and Sergio Prete, the President of Taranto Port Authority.The agreement appoints Yilport to undertake all operations at the multipurpose terminal of Taranto Port for 49 years.This is the 22nd marine port in Yilport Holding’s portfolio, and its first terminal in Italy. The company, ranked 12th among international container terminal operators by Drewry…

Passage planning. Two words sure to elicit a groan from any navigator anywhere in the world. The vital, yet incredibly frustrating, process of developing a complete description of a vessel's voyage from start to finish, berth to berth, is an administrative burden.On average, each vessel, for each journey, uses 3.5 hours of officer time to collate a plan – manually adding elements such as ENC cells, journey waypoints and UKC calculations to a report for inspection by port state authorities and other relevant organizations.It’s a laborious task and…

Eamonn O’Reilly was unanimously re-elected as Chairman following a vote of European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO)'s General Assembly in Brussels. E. O’Reilly has been chairing the organisation during the last two years.The General Assembly also re-elected Annaleena Mäkilä and elected Zeno d’Agostino as Vice-Chairs. Ms Mäkilä is currently Managing Director of the Finnish ports Association and has been Vice Chair since 2014.d’Agostino is President of Assoporti, the Italian Association of Ports and President of the Port Network Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea. Z. d’Agostino replaces Bernard Mazuel (UPF-France) who has been Vice Chair for the last four years.Upon his election…

Port Klang Authority (PKA) announced that the 2nd phase of the increase in Port Klang’s container tariff which was due to be implemented on 1st September 2018, will be deferred to 1st March 2019.The tariff review was approved in 2015 whereby an increase of 30% was to be carried out in two phases. The increase was gazetted via PKA Scales of Rates, Dues and Charges Bylaws 2015 and was notified to all port users and industry players through Port Klang Authority General Manager’s circular in August 2015.The first phase of 15% increase was implemented on 1st November 2015 while the 2nd phase of another 15% tariff increase was scheduled to take effect on 1st September 2018.

Bob Kunkel needs no introduction to Marine News readers. Kunkel, President of Alternative Marine Technologies, previously served as the Federal Chairman of the Short Sea Shipping Cooperative Program under the Maritime Administration and Department of Transportation from 2003 until 2008. A past Vice President of the Connecticut Maritime Association, he is a contributing writer for Maritime Logistics Professional magazine and of course, Marine News. A graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy…

Wilhelmsen is exploring concrete ways of leveraging their data on DNV GL’s Veracity industry platform. In one of the first data sharing pilot projects on the new open platform, Wilhelmsen is testing a system to share ship compliance and condition data with port state authorities to reduce paper work and physical inspections when entering ports. “As ships and their systems become more sophisticated, we have more equipment with sensors onboard that are generating and sharing data.

Former Louisiana state official Scott A. Angelle will head-up the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). Angelle, who most recently served as Vice Chairman of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, will assume his new position May 23. “Scott Angelle brings a wealth of experience to BSEE, having spent many years working for the safe and efficient energy production of both Louisiana’s and our country’s offshore resources,” Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke said.

Port Klang Authority stated that Port Klang registered a positive growth of 10.8% in 2016 in container handling compared to 2015 with a total of 13,169,577 TEU’s, Northport handled 3,223,544 TEU’s while Westports handled 9,946,033 TEU’s. In terms of import container throughput, Port Klang handled 2,063,736 TEU’s,registering growth of 3.6 % compared to 2015’s performance - Northport handled 802,993 TEU’s while Westports handled 1,260,743 TEU’s in 2016. TEU’s compared to 2015; Northport handled 760,148 TEU’s and Westports handled 1,278,379 TEU’s. Port Klang handled 9,067,314 TEU’s in terms of Transshipment throughput in 2016, registering a growth of 14.3 % compared to 2015; Northport handled 1,660,403 TEU’s and Westports handled 7,406,911 TEU’s. state of the art cargo handling equipment.

Chief Executive of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), Andrew Tan, attended the second Port Authorities Roundtable (PAR) in Rotterdam. Hosted by the Port of Rotterdam Authority (PoR), the closed-door roundtable event brought together port authorities from major ports in Asia, Europe and US to network, exchange views and explore areas of collaboration. Participants included port authorities which attended the inaugural PAR in Singapore such as Ningbo Municipal Port Administration Bureau, Port Klang Authority, and Japan, Bureau of Port and Harbor, as well as new participants such as Port of Hamburg, Port of Los Angeles, Port of Long Beach and Port of Guangzhou.

A new ambient-temperature food examination facility has been formally opened at the Port of Felixstowe, the Port of Britain, by Transport Minister, Robert Goodwill MP. The £4 million investment included a major refurbishment and expansion of the examination facilities and the provision of new offices for Suffolk Coastal Port Health Authority. “This new state-of-the-art facility will ensure that vital imported products stay as fresh as possible. Some 40 per cent of the food on our supermarket shelves arrives by sea, so it must be checked efficiently in the most hygienic conditions. “The new inspection facilities are built to an incredibly high standard – safe, clean and hygienic – to maintain the integrity of the food chain to the highest requirements of upcoming legislation.

The rise of alliances among shipping carriers and industry moves toward post-Panamax and ultra large cargo ships are pressuring many U.S. ports to address access restrictions. The widening of the Panama Canal, slated to open in 2016, will further intensify the need to accommodate larger ships. Some regional ports that serve secondary markets and are unable to process larger vessels risk losing some services or being skipped completely, Fitch Ratings says. The combined impact of the shift to larger vessels and carrier alliances is giving shippers significant negotiating leverage over ports.

The port commissions of Seattle and Tacoma voted unanimously to form the Northwest Seaport Alliance, unifying the longtime rivals’ marine cargo divisions. The alliance aimed at helping the former rivals stave off growing competition, and regain market share. "The Seaport Alliance is an effort for the ports to keep their operations competitive," say local media. Facing increased competition from Port Metro Vancouver and Prince Rupert, the Northwest Seaport Alliance will allow Seattle and Tacoma to work together as the third-largest U.S. container gateway. While the ports remain separate organizations and retain ownership of their respective assets, they formed a port development authority to manage the container, breakbulk, auto and some bulk terminals in Seattle and Tacoma.

Upon competitive review and analysis of the Port of Seattle/Port of Tacoma Alliance Agreement, the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has voted unanimously to allow the Northwest Seaport Alliance to become effective as scheduled on July 23, 2015. FMC said its decision is based on a determination that the agreement is not likely at this time, by a reduction in competition, to produce an unreasonable increase in transportation cost or an unreasonable reduction in transportation service under section 6(g) of the Shipping Act.

Taking another step in forming The Northwest Seaport Alliance, commissioners from the ports of Tacoma and Seattle voted Friday to submit a final agreement to the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) for approval. The Northwest Seaport Alliance will unify the two ports’ marine cargo terminal investments, operations, planning and marketing to strengthen the Puget Sound gateway and attract more marine cargo for the region. “This agreement is the culmination of months of work to set aside decades of competition in creating a new business model for the greater good,” said Don Johnson, Port of Tacoma commission president. The agreement outlines The Northwest Seaport Alliance’s governance charter, management and financial structures, a transition plan and a business development strategy.

A draft of the final agreement between the ports of Tacoma and Seattle has been released, heralding a milestone in the formation of a Seaport Alliance that will unify the two ports’ marine cargo terminal investments, operations, planning and marketing. “We intend to make our organizations stronger and more sustainable to better serve our customers, grow our regional economy and address unprecedented competition facing the shipping industry,” said Don Johnson, Port of Tacoma commission president.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA)  and the Port of Rotterdam Authority have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to exchange information on marine services and jointly collaborate on research and development in the areas of service efficiency and optimisation, and new developments in the maritime and port sectors. Under the MoU the two parties will exchange information on marine services, including standards, and regulatory frameworks for bunkering and other marine services, as well as the application of information technology in providing those services. The Research and development side of the agreement covers service efficiency and optimisation, as well as new developments such as LNG bunkering and green technology.

The port of Antwerp handled a freight volume of 51,023,670 tonnes in the first three months of this year, 5.9% more than in the same period last year. The container volume experienced rapid expansion of 8.5%, while liquid bulk for its part continued to show solid growth (up 4.7%). The Port of Authority is naturally very satisfied with these figures, but nevertheless guards against over-optimism in view of the continuing turbulence and volatility in the market. The container volume expanded by 8.5% during the first quarter, to 28,216,101 tonnes. In terms of standard containers this represents 2,351,299 TEU, an increase of 9.5%. The ro/ro volume on the other hand contracted by 8.7% to 1,081,344 tonnes, with the number of cars handled falling by 6.9% to 291,900.