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Sunday, April 28, 2024
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26 Apr 2024

SOVs ā€“ Analyzing Current, Future Demand Drivers

Norwind Offshore service operation vessel ā€˜Norwind Breezeā€™ in the port of Emden
Copyright Bjƶrn Wylezich/AdobeStock

At a high-level, there are three solutions to transferring technicians from shore bases to offshore wind farms for construction and O&M activities: crew transfer vessel (CTV), helicopter, and SOVs/CSOVs.SOVs and CSOVs generally house 60-120 technicians offshore for a few weeks at a time, allowing them to transfer to structures on integrated heave compensated gangways, by daughter craft or on CTVs. The vessels are also equipped with cranes, storage, and small workshop areas.SOV: Service operations vesselsā€¦

26 Apr 2024

MOL Takes Delivery of Dual-Fuel LPG and Ammonia Carrier Newbuild

The LPG-fueled LPG and ammonia carrier Aquamarine Progress II (Credit: MOL)

Mitsui O.S.K. Line (MOL) has taken delivery of the newly built dual-fuel LGP and ammonia very large gas carrier (VLGC) Aquamarine Progress II, which will sail under charter with a Japanese LPG importer and distributor.Ordered by MOLā€™s company Aramo Shipping (Singapore), the Aquamarine Progress II has been delivered by Namura Shipbuilding.The Aquamarine Progress II will sail under a time charter contract with GYXIS Corporation, a Japanese LPG importer and distributor.The vessel is 230 meters long, with the breadth of 36.6 meters.

25 Apr 2024

Dredge Sunk by Undetected Flooding from a Through-hull Pipe

WB Wood (Photo: Wood Resources)

A companyā€™s lack of requirements for crew to regularly check below-deck compartments led to undetected flooding and the eventual capsizing of a dredging vessel last year on the Mississippi River, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Thursday.Wood Resources' owned and operated non-propelled dredging vessel WB Wood capsized on the early morning of Jan. 16, 2023, during dredging operations. Before the capsizing, the dredge had been in the same location for nine days, pumping sand from the riverbed to a pit on the west bank.

25 Apr 2024

Russia Reinsurer Backs Firms to get India Marine Insurance Permit

By Maksym Yemelyanov

Russia's state-owned reinsurer has given financial backing to three Russian insurance firms, allowing them to get Indian approval to provide marine insurance cover to tankers, two sources said, as Moscow seeks to facilitate trade with India amid Western sanctions.A raft of sanctions by the U.S. and allies against Moscow over its Ukraine invasion, along with tighter scrutiny of Russian oil trade, has almost cut Russia off from the global network of service providers such as insurers and brokers.Russian companies Sogaz Insuranceā€¦

25 Apr 2024

China Harbors Ship Tied to North Korea-Russia Arms Transfers

Ā© djvstock / Adobe Stock

China is providing moorage for a U.S.-sanctioned Russian cargo ship implicated in North Korean arms transfers to Russia, according to satellite images obtained by Reuters, as U.S. concerns grow over Beijing's support for Moscow's war in Ukraine.Britain's Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) think tank said the Russian vessel Angara, which since August 2023 has moved to Russian ports thousands of containers believed to contain North Korean munitions, has been anchored at a Chineseā€¦

24 Apr 2024

AUKUS Sub Contract Props Up Australian Steelmaker Shares

Copyright 2D/AdobeStock

Australian steelmaker Bisalloy shares have risen some 40% since December 2023, powered by defence deals signed as part of the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal between Australia, Britain and the United States.Defence contractors large and small are looking at the $237 billion plan to build Australia a fleet of nuclear-powered submarines as a decades-long source of work. Australia will build the vessels to a British design with U.S. technology.Bisalloy said earlier this month it had signed a deal to sell a shipment of steel to part of U.S. shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries, maker of the U.S.

23 Apr 2024

ICS Publishes New Edition of Shipping and the Environment: A Guide to Environmental Compliance

Emmanuele Grimaldi, Chairman of the International Chamber of Shipping, courtesy of ICS

International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) Publications has launched the fifth edition of Shipping and the Environment: A Guide to Environmental Compliance.This latest edition offers comprehensive updates and expanded insights into the intricate relationship between shipping operations and environmental protection.The fifth edition is a definitive guide, providing a holistic introduction to companies and crew members navigating this complex subject matter. Recognising the need for accessibilityā€¦

23 Apr 2024

Lhyfe Launches First Marketplace for Green Hydrogen

Source: Lhyfe

Green hydrogen producer Lhyfe has launched the first Green Hydrogen Marketplace, on its online portal Lhyfe Heroes.Since 2017, Lhyfe has been working to accelerate decarbonization through major innovations such as the worldā€™s first industrial-scale green hydrogen production site directly connected to a wind farm in 2021, the worldā€™s first pilot platform for producing green hydrogen at sea in 2022, and the digitalization of the sector, since 2022, with the Heroes digital platformā€¦

22 Apr 2024

As Shale Oil Gains Slow, Deepwater Port Struggles for Customers

Ā© vladsv / Adobe Stock

As U.S. shale oil boomed last decade, an oil pipeline company pitched an ambitious multi-billion-dollar export port off the Texas coast to ship domestic crude to buyers in Europe and Asia.In April, Enterprise Products Partners' SPOT became the first project to receive a license from the U.S. maritime regulator for a deepwater port that could load two supertankers, each of which can carry up to 2 million barrels of oil at a time.But multi-year regulatory delays, a loss of commercial backers and slowing U.S.

18 Apr 2024

Helm Operations and Spinergie Partner on Fleet Optimization

Paul Cyr (left), Manager of Partnerships, Helm Operations; and Patrick Sanguily, General Manager ā€“ Americas, Spinergie. (Photo: Spinergie)

Maritime technology companies Helm Operations and Spinergie announced they are teaming up to create a fully integrated fleet optimization platform and centralized source of record keeping.The partnership will integrate vessel management system data from Helm Operations' Helm CONNECT into Spinergie's Smart Fleet Management, including logbook entries, engine room readings, and other essential sources. When combined with Spinergieā€™s data streams, including AIS, GPS, custom GIS Mapsā€¦

16 Apr 2024

Trafigura to Deploy GHG Emissions Measuring System on LNG Carrier

Daphne Technology CEO & Founder Dr Mario Michan courtesy of Daphne Technology.

Daphne Technology has been selected by Trafigura for its first commercial deployment of PureMetricsā„¢ emissions measuring system, scheduled for the summer of 2024.The system will be deployed aboard an LNG carrier chartered by Trafigura and managed by Latsco LNG LLC.PureMetrics directly measures and accurately reports real-time tonnes of GHG emissions to the environment, eliminating inaccurate reporting based on fuel consumption estimates. The system features a combination of an array of sensorsā€¦

17 Apr 2024

Maritime Risk Symposium 2024 ā€“ Great Power Competition and Gray Zone Engagement

Copyright Grispb/AdobeStock

For 15 years the Maritime Risk Symposium (MRS), an annual three-day event, has brought together government and maritime industry leaders, port representatives, international and domestic researchers and solution providers to examine current and emerging threats to maritime security. World events highlight that maritime security is increasingly at risk during the current period of great-power competition and ongoing conflicts. The active competition between nations who are notā€¦

16 Apr 2024

US Sanctions Impacting Sovcomflot's Ability to Trade, CEO of Russian Tanker Group Says

Ā© Andriy Sharpilo / Adobe Stock

U.S. sanctions are limiting tanker activity for Russia's top shipping group, Sovcomflot, the company's head said on Tuesday, as Washington tightens the screws on Moscow.The U.S. imposed sanctions on Sovcomflot on Feb. 23 as Washington seeks to reduce Russia's revenues from oil sales that it can use to support its military actions in Ukraine.Sanctions have impacted the company's operations, "limiting our geography and commercial prospects", Sovcomflot CEO Igor Tonkovidov told reporters.He added that as sanctions are a relatively new instrument to the shipping marketā€¦

16 Apr 2024

Ocean Charger for Offshore Wind Vessels Proves a Success

(Credit: VARD / Screen media)

The industry consortium behind the Ocean Charger project, led by Vard, has completed the demonstration of the charging solution in a port as well the connection solution offshore, proving the technology designed to supply clean power to offshore wind vessels is ready for the market.By connecting vessels to the power grid in the wind farm and charging batteries regularly, the Ocean Charger solution is securing availability of emission-free vessel operations.The Ocean Charger has proved through the tests that it can power operations at the field without using any additional energy sourcesā€¦

15 Apr 2024

Optimizing Blast and Paint Processes in New Construction Shipbuilding

(Photo: BlastOne International)

The efficacy of surface preparation and coating application in the new construction shipbuilding industry is fundamentally anchored in a well-coordinated, integrated approach. This intricate process, essential for achieving top-tier corrosion control, is methodically segmented into five crucial stages:Raw material entryPainting the modulesSmall partsPainting of erection joints at the module levelFinal paint and ship's completion. Each stage is crucial in its own right but achievesā€¦

14 Apr 2024

Denmark Bans Discharge of Scrubber Water

Ā© Alexander / Adobe Stock

The discharge of scrubber water from ships out to 22km (12 nautical miles) from the Danish coasts will be prohibited by law. The ban will come into effect on July 1, 2025, for ships with scrubbers in open operation, where the wash water is discharged into the sea. For ships with scrubbers in closed operation, the ban on water discharge will take effect on July 1, 2029.The Ministry of Environment has stated that scrubber water has contributed to excessive levels of a number of heavy metals and tar substances such as lead, cadmium, anthracene and benz(a)pyrene in the marine environment.

12 Apr 2024

Cruise Industry Reports Record Passenger Volumes

Ā© Mariakray / Adobe Stock

The global cruise industry reported record passenger volumes in 2023 as the sector continues its rebound following the lows of the COVID-19 pandemic.Cruise ships carried 31.7 million passengers in 2023, up 7% from previous highs recorded in 2019, according to latest figures published by the trade group Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA).Most increases were in the United Statesā€”which remains, by far, the world's largest cruise marketā€”with an incremental increase of 2.7 million passengersā€¦

11 Apr 2024

ClassNK Greenlights Mitsubishiā€™s Ammonia Fuel Supply System

(Credit: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries)

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding, part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group, has acquired an approval in principle (AiP) from the Japanese classification society ClassNK for its ammonia fuel supply system (AFSS).The AiP has been issued for the AFSS developed for the X-DF-A, a large, low-speed two-stroke ammonia-fueled engine under development by WinGD, a Swiss designer and licensor of large marine engines.In June 2023 Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and WinGD concluded a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to undertake joint technical studies on an AFSSā€¦

29 Mar 2024

Dali Incident Could Be Largest Ever Single Marine Insurance Loss

Satellite image Ā©2024 Maxar Technologies.

Britannia, the insurer of container ship the Dali, is working with the vessel's owner and U.S. authorities on the investigation into the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, the insurer said on Thursday.The bridge collapsed on Tuesday after the Dali suffered a power outage and struck a pylon, causing huge disruption in the port."We are working closely with the vessel's owner and manager and the relevant U.S. authorities as part of the investigation into the casualtyā€¦

01 Apr 2024

Maryland Governor Urges Congress to Fund Bridge Rebuild

(Photo: Kimberly Reaves / U.S. Coast Guard)

With efforts underway to clean up thousands of tons of steel debris from the collapsed bridge in Baltimore's harbor, Maryland Governor Wes Moore on Sunday urged Republicans to work with Democrats to approve the federal funding needed for rebuilding the bridge and to get the port economy back on its feet.Baltimore's Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed early on Tuesday morning, killing six road workers, when a container ship nearly the size of the Eiffel Tower lost power and crashed into a support pylon.

03 Apr 2024

DNV Approves Bergen Enginesā€™ Methanol-Ready Notation

Illustration (Credit: Bergen Engines)

Norwegian power solutions provider Bergen Engines has secured DNVā€™s approval of its methanol-ready statement for marine engines.According to Bergen Engines, methanol will be an important fuel option for marine applications and is currently adapting research accordingly, with the maritime industry in focus.Methanol, a versatile and sustainable fuel when produced from renewables, offers numerous advantages for Bergen medium-speed engines, the company said, adding that its efficientā€¦

05 Apr 2024

OpEd: Why the Wall Street Journal Got It Wrong and 74% of Their Poll Respondents Got It Right

Ā© ardasavasciogullari / Adobe Stock

A recent article in The Wall Street Journal claims that the assessment by 74% of poll respondents in election swing states who believe inflation moved in the wrong direction last year is incorrect. The piece went on to state that the respondentsā€™ perceptions were ā€œcontradicted by hard economic dataā€.Like many of us, I just love ā€œhard dataā€, especially when itā€™s ā€œeconomicā€.One great aspect of ā€œhard dataā€ is that we must assume itā€™s correct; otherwise, how could it be ā€œhardā€? In factā€¦

09 Apr 2024

Dali Hit Key Bridge with the Force of 66 Heavy Trucks at Highway Speed

(Photo:  Brandon Giles / U.S. Coast Guard)

The cargo ship Dali knocked down three main truss spans, constructed with connected steel elements forming triangles, on the Francis Scott Key Bridge just seconds after crashing into one of the bridge piers early on Tuesday morning, March 26, 2024.The bridge collapse happened so fast that it left little time for the work crews on the bridge to escape. Civil engineers like me have been paying attention to this disaster, because we want to find ways to make infrastructure like these large bridges more resilient. For a bridge this large to collapse would require a catastrophic collision force.