Potential Energy News

Indonesia is looking to offer more oil and gas blocks in North Sumatra basin this year following a major discovery by Mubadala Energy in a bid to accelerate gas production, a senior energy ministry official said on Tuesday.The energy ministry is currently reviewing potential energy blocks for auction this year, director general for oil and gas Tutuka Ariadji told reporters."North Sumatra basin is one of the potential area for further exploration after a major discovery recently in Layaran-1 by Mubadala Energy," Tutuka said.United Arab Emirates' Mubadala said in December it had discovered a maj

NOV reports its Lifting & Handling group has sold what is said to be the industry’s first-ever electric subsea crane. The order was booked at the end of 2023 with an undisclosed client in Europe, NOV said.The first-of-its-kind crane offers enhanced efficiency compared to electro-hydraulic cranes, helping lead to reduced vessel emissions, the manufacturer said, adding that the design allows for the recovery of potential energy from loads lowered to the seabed, supporting onboard use or storage.In addition…

Hapag-Lloyd reports it has initiated a conceptual study for a 4,500 TEU ship featuring a wind-assisted propulsion system.The German shipping company, which aims to be carbon neutral by 2045, is exploring the use of wind-assisted propulsion systems among a number of options to make its shipping operations sustainableThe company said its recent wind-assisted propulsion research is supported by Boris Herrmann and TEAM MALIZIA from the professional sailing sector and have now outlined a potential containership design. The vessel's design includes eight sails totaling 3,000 square meters.

Odfjell announced it will install bound4blue's eSAIL wind-assisted propulsion technology system on a chemical tanker, making it the first tanker vessel in the world to harness this groundbreaking technology.bound4blue’s eSAIL system utilizes a wind-assisted propulsion system known as a suction sail to reduce fuel consumption and emissions."Since 2020, we have been studying sail technologies as a potential energy efficiency measure for our fleet, and we are excited to now take the next step by partnering with bound4blue to implement their pioneering eSAIL system on one of our chemical tankers…

Potential energy shortages in the U.S. northeast this winter have led to arguments that the U.S. Jones Act should be waived. These arguments rarely, however, grapple with what exactly it takes to waive the Jones Act. This is not blameworthy because the Jones Act waiver standard has been a mess. For decades the standard for granting a waiver was interpreted in way as to make it all but meaningless, and now the standard is so strict that waivers are all but forbidden.Section 27 of the Merchant Marine Act, 1920, the so called “Jones Act,” is a “if this, then that” kind of law.

Offshore installation firm Jan De Nul said Thursday that Les Alizés, its next-gen floating offshore installation vessel had been launched at the CMHI Haimen shipyard in China.The vessel is now ready for the final construction phase, including sea trials, to be completed by H2 2022.Les Alizés will be the largest Heavy Lift Vessel in Jan De Nul’s fleet, able to install XXL offshore wind components, in floating conditions and with ultra-low emissions.The launch started on January 2, by flooding the dry dock in which Les Alizés was built.

Technologies developed and deployed in pursuit of net zero bring environmental and societal benefits for shipping owners and operators to outweigh their own emissions.SIM is a technology with the potential to make a significant contribution to maritime decarbonization, writes Patrick Ryan, ABSOne of the biggest problems for shipowners seeking to understand how environmental regulation will impact the performance of their fleets in future is uncertainty. While the regulatory framework is in place…

Turkey will not bow to threats in its dispute with Greece and Cyprus over maritime claims in the eastern Mediterranean, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday as European Union foreign ministers met in Brussels to discuss the issue.But Erdogan also said Turkey wanted negotiations over the conflicting claims to continental shelves and rights to potential energy resources.The EU ministers were due to evaluate grounds for sanctions against Turkey. The bloc's leaders will then decide on Thursday whether to make good on their threat, after Turkey sent an exploration vessel into waters claimed by Greece."In the eastern Mediterranean issue, our country never sides with tension, but with peace, cooperation, fairness and implementing justice.

Virginia officials have established a well-planned, extensive strategy to build out an offshore wind industry, including wind towers for electricity generation and the supply chain to support that extensive infrastructure and operations. The State’s big picture is ambitious: developing 2,000 MW of offshore wind by 2028.As currently envisioned, VA’s offshore wind development will likely start this year with two 8-megawatt wind turbines 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach. This is a Dominion Energy pilot undertaken in partnership with the Danish wind company Orsted.

Next generation economizers are being introduced by Ulmatec Pyro. This will carry on the history of 35 years of heat recovery from ship’s exhaust – a technology that’s still unknown for many in the marine industry. You can’t ignore waste energy recovery systems if you want to participate in discussions about efficient marine designs. That statement is based on the fact that most diesel engines on board a vessel still operate on an efficiency scale in the 30 percent range. The remaining 60-70 percent represents losses, converted into heat.

As Congress wrestles with the budget, there is at least a bipartisan consensus that defense spending should grow, and that includes growing the Navy’s fleet. The current goal is 355 ships, an admirable goal, but an objective that faces many cost hurdles. The surface fleet (which excludes submarines and aircraft carriers) needs to grow in capability and capacity. The numbers of ships being procured or envisions would increase as the total n umber of ships increases, but the number in this story represents current program status.

Singapore-based Enterprize Energy and partner Renewable Energy Global Solutions (REGS), together with PetroVietnam consortium comprising Petroleum Equipment Assembly & Metal Structure (PVC-MS) and VietSovPetro (VSP), MHI-Vestas Offshore Wind (MVOW), and DNV GL signed a series of exclusive Agreements forming an alliance for multi-phased, utility-scale wind developments, offshore Southern Vietnam, including feasibility, environmental, development, financing planning through implementation. Ian Hatton, Enterprize Energy’s Chairman and Founder Director commented, “Vietnam’s impressive economic growth is driving a need for new energy resources. Government has a very clear determination to meet rising energy demand with substantive growth in the supply of low-carbon, renewable energy”.

A joint development project (JDP) between DNV GL, Statoil and Farstad Shipping has demonstrated that offshore supply vessels (OSV) can save up to 21,000 Euros on their annual fuel bill, by running the vessel at optimal trim. The project partners carried out a comparative study in the North Sea to document potential energy savings created by using DNV GL’s trim optimization tool ECO Assistant on a platform supply vessel (PSV). “Even if our modern PSVs are highly fuel efficient due to advanced hull designs as well as innovative engine- and propeller configurations, it is interesting to observe how much impact operational considerations such as trim optimization has on the energy consumption”,says Børge Nakken, Vice President – Technology & Development, Farstad Shipping Norway.

Abu Dhabi's ADNATCO & NGSCO, the shipping arm of ADNOC and its group of companies, has signed an MOU with Marorka, incorporated and registered in Iceland, a leading company in marine energy management, to supply and install ship performance monitoring systems for the ADNATCO & NGSCO fleet. The agreement was signed by Dr. Ali Obaid Al-Yabhouni, CEO of ADNATCO & NGSCO, and by Ole Skatka Jensen, CEO of Marorka, on the side lines of ADIPEC 2015 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. “This agreement is part of our ongoing commitment to protecting the environment and optimizing the energy efficiency of our fleet using the trusted technology of our partner Marorka,” Dr. Al-Yabhouni said after the signing ceremony.

IEA forecast sees renewable power as a cost-competitive option in an increasing number of cases, but facing growing risks to deployment over the medium term. The expansion of renewable energy will slow over the next five years unless policy uncertainty is diminished, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said today in its third annual Medium-Term Renewable Energy Market Report. According to the report, power generation from renewable sources such as wind, solar and hydro grew strongly in 2013…

World crude production may rise and fall, but the historical trend shows a steady increase in the price of a barrel of oil, and with it, the price of a ton of fuel. Add the demands of shareholders and charterers to increase operational efficiency and profitability, as well as increasing international pressure to reduce fuel consumption and associated greenhouse gas emissions. It is no wonder that ship owners have seen a steady rise, as well, in the availability of technologies — from ship design to propulsion and HVAC systems to hull coatings — that are purported to reduce fuel consumption.

Colfax Fluid Handling, a business of Colfax Corporation, introduced an Active Valve Control option to its Smart Technology CM-1000 Series intelligent sea water cooling system controller. The CM-1000 Series with optional Active Valve Control may be applied to both newbuild and retrofit operations. Introduced in April and featured at Nor-Shipping 2013, the CM-1000 Series is designed to enhance shipboard sea water cooling system pumping efficiency while lowering operating and maintenance costs and maximizing uptime for greener, sustainable operation.

The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) and HR Wallingford launched a tidal energy modeling tool for use by tidal energy developers to identify the most efficient sites for tidal energy converters, tidal arrays or tidal barrage schemes around the U.K. and French coastlines. The computer program, SMARTtide (Simulated Marine Array Resource Testing), incorporates a 2D hydrodynamic model of the U.K.’s continental shelf and the north-west European coastline. The software will be available to the public from May 21 as a fee-for-service via a portal on HR Wallingford’s website.

Design Alaska, a Fairbanks-based architecture, engineering and surveying firm; and Art Anderson Associates, its naval architecture subconsultant, were recently awarded a contract for the Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) to investigate potential energy efficiency improvements. The contract, driven by new International Maritime Organization (IMO) regulations, requires development of Ship Energy Efficiency Management Plans (SEEMPs) for three AMHS vessels. The new IMO standards require vessels traveling internationally to obtain International Energy Efficiency Certificates (IEECs) demonstrating that vessel owners and operators have developed energy efficiency plans for their travel routes and vessel operating systems.

Zodiac’s bulk carrier Cape Flamingo was the focus of a wind energy monitoring project, as the project partners investigated the potential to improve fuel efficiency. In 2012 Lloyd’s Register’s Strategic Research Group joined forces with Totempower Energy Systems to support Zodiac Maritime Agencies in assessing the potential for wind-generation devices to be placed onboard commercial ships. Last year, a fully autonomous wind-monitoring system, designed and assembled by Totempower, was installed on the Zodiac-managed bulk carrier Cape Flamingo. Sensors were installed in locations where the best wind conditions and the most relevant environmental data (wind speed…

The research ship 'Sonne' has arrived in Kaohsiung to help Taiwan scientists explore for gas hydrates off the country's SW coast. The research ship docked at the Port of Kaohsiung, where local experts led by National Taiwan University oceanography professor Saulwood Lin and researchers from the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences in Germany shared ideas on the potential energy source, reports Focus Taiwan. Interest in this new energy source comes at a time when Taiwan is debating its energy future…

Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salaza, launches review of the 2012 offshore drilling program in the Beaufort & Chukchi Seas. The expedited, high-level assessment of the 2012 offshore drilling program in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas is to review practices and identify challenges as well as lessons learned. The review, which is expected to be completed within 60 days, will pay special attention to challenges that Shell encountered in connection with certification of its containment vessel, the Arctic Challenger; the deployment of its containment dome; and operational issues associated with its two drilling rigs, the Noble Discoverer and the Kulluk.

Lloyd’s Register’s Strategic Research Group has joined forces with Totempower Energy Systems and Zodiac Maritime Agencies to assess the potential of wind-generation devices onboard commercial ships as the maritime industry steps up its pursuit of viable carbon-alternate fuels. A fully autonomous wind-monitoring system designed and assembled by Totempower has been installed on the Zodiac-managed bulk carrier Cape Flamingo. Sensors were installed in locations where the best wind conditions and the most relevant environmental data (wind speed, direction and turbulence) could be expected, with consideration given to the potentially most effective locations for onboard wind generation.