Talisman News

U.S. Army Mariners assigned to 7th Transportation Brigade (Expeditionary) aboard the LCU 2032 Palo Alto rescued an overboard fisherman 10 miles off the western coast of Obi Island, Indonesia Sept. 1, 2023.Sgt. Seth Leonard, a watercraft engineer, was on the bridge of the ship when he observed the typical calm waters in the path of the ship were more active than usual.“I noticed what looked like someone waving their arms, which is the signal for distress in water,” said Leonard.

The United States commissioned a warship in Sydney, Australia, on Saturday, the first time a U.S. Navy vessel joined active service at a foreign port, as the two close allies step up their military ties in response to China's expanding regional reach.The Independence-class littoral combat ship USS Canberra (LCS-30)—named after a Royal Australian Navy cruiser that was sunk while supporting the U.S. Marine landings on Guadalcanal in 1942—was commissioned at a ceremony at an Australian naval base on Sydney Harbour, officially joining the U.S.

Even as shipowners enjoy record low bunker fuel pricing, the search for hull cleaning and fuel-saving optimization continues. Jotun, which recently launched 'hull skater' hull grooming, found a willing partner in Wallenius Wilhelmsen -- an operator of a fleet of 126 RoRo vessels, 11 marine terminals and 71 processing centers globally -- to put the hull skater to the test.For the past decade, Wallenius Wilhelmsen has produced an annual Sustainability Report, describing initiatives undertaken to reduce the company’s emissions and safeguard life below the water line, among other target areas.

The first of a total of three lock gates for the new sea lock has arrived at IJmuiden harbour in the Dutch province of North Holland.According to Port of Amsterdam Authority, the lock gate was towed by a tug across the North Sea to its final destination. On its way from South Korea to IJmuiden - with a stopover at Maasvlakte 2 - the lock gate has covered a total of more than 26,000 km. The transport over the last 150 km took 30 hours and went smoothly.Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, Cora van Nieuwenhuizen, said: "It is good that - after a long journey - the first lock gate has now arrived at its destination. This is a milestone for this project and the start of a new chapter in the construction of the largest sea lock in the world".The lock gate…

With great fanfare, more than 1,500 officers and sailors have lined the decks of HMAS Canberra in the Australian Fleet’s 2017 Ceremonial Divisions. Sydney Harbour provided a spectacular backdrop as personnel from East based ships and shore establishments gathered in their finest summer uniform. The divisions were reviewed by Commander Australian Fleet, Rear Admiral Stuart Mayer who said the occasion marked a successful – and significant – year. “This year we have reintroduced the destroyer to the Australian Fleet with the commissioning of HMAS Hobart,” he said. “We have deployed maritime task groups in complex multinational exercises such as Talisman Sabre and used them to excellent effect in the inaugural Joint Maritime Task Group deployment Indo-Pacific Endeavour 2017.

HMAS Ballarat has sailed into her home port of Fleet Base West in Rockingham, Western Australia, to a large gathering of family and friends after completing a three month deployment to South East Asia and; participating in Exercise TALISMAN SABER off the Australian coast. The deployment, which began in early April, was part of the Australian Government’s efforts to promote regional stability and improve interoperability between regional partners and included port visits to Zhanjiang, Singapore, Sattahip, Bangkok, Da Nang and Kota Kinabalu. Ballarat’s Commanding Officer, Commander Paul Johnson said that the deployment facilitated great opportunities to enhance the Royal Australian Navy’s interoperability with regional partners…

As the activities of Exercise TALISMAN SABRE 17 started to draw to a conclusion in July, the crew of HMAS Darwin, took the chance of a brief time out to celebrate the final seagoing birthday of the Fleet veteran. Darwin’s cooks pooled their talents together to create a cake in the shape of ‘33’, with enough to go around to her crew of approximately 190. With most of the crew gathered in the Junior Sailors’ Café, Commanding Officer, Commander Phillip Henry took the opportunity to reflect on the team’s recent achievements and contribution to her rich history. “Darwin has spent over ten years continuously at sea,” Commander Henry said.

A new entrant to North Sea decommissioning, Well-Safe Solutions was established by a group of oil industry stalwarts Alasdair Locke, Mark Patterson and Paul Warwick, setting out to provide a new approach to the safe and cost-efficient decommissioning of subsea wells. The new start company, which aims to attract £200 million ($260 million) in investment and create 400 new jobs, will offer a specialist well abandonment service. Well-Safe has secured funding from Scottish Enterprise…

Australia’s amphibious capability was put to the test recently as the Amphibious Task Group Headquarters took charge of the largest amphibious assault conducted by an Australian force for 70 years as part of Exercise TALISMAN SABER. The assault, led from amphibious sssault ship HMAS Canberra, was a significant milestone in the Australian Defence Force’s development of a high end amphibious warfare capability. The Australian and New Zealand Amphibious Ready Group, consisting of HMA Ships Canberra and Choules and the Royal New Zealand Navy’s HMNZS Canterbury, landed 600 embarked personnel, predominantly consisting of the Australian Army's 2nd Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment, as part of a flanking force for the US Marine Corps’ 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit.

The Royal Australian and United States navies have proven a potent and agile force when operating together during the opening phases of Exercise TALISMAN SABER 17, which took place in the Northern Territory. HMA Ships Ballarat, Melbourne, Broome and Bathurst conducted four days of high-end warfare exercises with USS John S. McCain off the coast of Darwin, proving their ability to detect, track and engage surface, submarine, and air targets. Advanced air warfare serials were supported by the Royal Australian Air Force’s Classic and Super Hornets and the US Marine Corps’ F/A-18s. The warships conducted a wide range of training exercises including Officer of the Watch Manoeuvres…

Australia's largest military exercise, Talisman Saber, was officially opened on 29 June aboard the United States Landing Helicopter Dock Bonhomme Richard off the Sydney coast. Minister for Urban Development, the Honourable Paul Fletcher MP, representing the Minister for Defence, and the US Charge d'Affaires, Mr James Carouso, officially announced the start of the combined military exercise taking place thorought July. Field training will occur in Shoalwater Bay Training Area, near Rockhampton and Mount Bundy Training Area, south of Darwin. The Minister was joined by the US Pacific Forces Commander, Admiral Harry Harris, Jr and Officer Conducting the Exercise, Australia's Chief of Joint Operations Vice Admiral David Johnston along with other senior Australian Defence Force leaders.

Australia's HMAS Ballarat has completed a port visit to Sepanggar, Malaysia as part of a three month South East Asia deployment. She was in the region to enagage with the Royal Malaysian Navy, and load supplies before she returns to Australia for further exercises. Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral David Johnston, said Ballarat’s deployment provided an opportunity to engage with many nations in South East Asia. “Our enduring military to military engagement activities contribute to security and stability in our region,” he said. HMAS Ballarat will join Exercise Talisman Sabre in the coming weeks. Talisman Sabre is a biennial combined Australian and United States training activity…

One of the Royal Australian Navy’s largest maritime warfare exercises has begun in several locations off the New South Wales coast. Exercise OCEAN RAIDER involves 11 warships and submarines, aircraft and more than 1,500 personnel from Australia and the United States in a three week program of maritime activities. It is the first year Navy has staged OCEAN RAIDER, which along with OCEAN EXPLORER and OCEAN HORIZON are designed to train and certify the fleet in task-group-level joint sea combat. Commander of the Australian Fleet, Rear Admiral Stuart Mayer said Navy’s aim was to generate and deploy self-supported, sustainable maritime task groups by 2018 and OCEAN RAIDER was an important step toward achieving that goal.

Maersk Drilling has been awarded a new contract for the jack-up rig Mærsk Giant with Danish energy utility DONG Energy. The firm contract covers 150 days of work on the Nini and Siri field in the Danish part of the North Sea. The estimated contract value is USD 16m. The contract is in direct continuation of the current contract with Talisman keeping Maersk Giant employed until March 2016. “We are very pleased to continue our good corporation with DONG Energy, one of our key customers in the North Sea,” says Claus V. “In order to navigate the low visibility in the current market, it is essential that we reduce our exposure by securing a solid contract backlog. The Mærsk Giant is one of the ultra harsh environment jack-ups in Maersk Drilling’s fleet.

Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, embarked aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), conducted high-intensity land strike training with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) as part of exercise Talisman Sabre 2015 (TS15), July 16. The land strike training was one of 10 large-force strikes against simulated land adversaries throughout TS15. "The ultimate goal of conducting these exercises is to achieve and maintain interoperability between the U.S. and Royal Australian Air Force, as well as our other maritime components," said Lt. David Robinson, CVW 5's strike operations officer. Participants included F/A-18F Super Hornets from the "Diamondbacks" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 102 and RAAF's E-7A Wedgetail and KC-30A. During the strike exercise, the U.S.

More than 33,000 U.S. and Australian personnel will participate in the biennial military training exercise Talisman Sabre 2015 in Australia July 4-19. Talisman Sabre, jointly sponsored by the U.S. Pacific Command and Australian Defence Force Headquarters Joint Operations Command, will incorporate U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force and the Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army, and Royal Australian Air Force as well as other government agencies from each country. Featuring 21 ships, including the U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) and more than 200 aircraft and three submarines, this sixth iteration of the exercise will focus on joint training of a combined task force of U.S.

In a word, Pieter Schelte is BIG. Founded in 1985, Swiss-based Allseas Group S.A. is specialized in offshore pipeline installation and subsea construction. The company employs more than 2,500 people worldwide and operates a fleet of specialized, in-house designed and developed pipelay and support vessels. The company is known for its daring and imagination in ship design and technological innovation. The newest Allseas vessel, Pieter Schelte, is a huge ship, composed of two super-tanker hulls connected by a wide central work platform or slot, much like a catamaran.

ABIS Projects has won a clutch of contracts worth around £1million over the next 15 months. The oil and gas project services consultancy has secured frame agreements and call-off contracts with ADTI, Hunting, Talisman Sinopec and North Sea newcomer, MOL. Aberdeen-based ABIS Projects is working with these new clients providing multi-discipline resources covering business strategy, acquisitions, risk, projects and management systems across the supply chain. Francis Kiernan, who acquired an interest in ABIS Projects earlier this year, said: “With the considerable drop in oil price, the focus in the North Sea once again turns to innovative ways of working which will deliver cost-efficiencies and greater value. A one size fits all approach is no longer sustainable.

Talisman Sinopec Energy UK has closed its Buchan Alpha platform in the North Sea, the company said on Wednesday, ahead of an expected severe winter storm. The Buchan Alpha is a floating production installation that contributes less than 5,000 barrels of oil per day to the Forties crude stream. A spokeswoman for the company, a joint venture between Canada's Talisman and China's Sinopec, said 61 non-essential personnel had been taken from the installation to Aberdeen, Scotland, in advance of the storm. "This was completed on December 8. A team of 15 remain on board and production remains shut down for the time being," she said. Britain's Met Office has issued an amber "be prepared" warning for Scotland…

Several key oil and gas developments in Norway will cost much more than earlier expected and fields with approved development plans are now seen 10 percent more expensive than originally planned, the oil and energy ministry said on Wednesday. Costs in Norway's offshore oil sector, already one of the most expensive in the world, have soared in recent years, weighing on the budget which provides generous tax breaks during the development phase. The government has already said it would reduce tax breaks for new developments and the oil ministry launched an investigation into why costs soar.

In a refurbishment program to upgrade lifeboats on offshore platforms, Ampelmann completed a second successful reinstallation using its full motion compensation technology. The eight-metric-ton lifeboat was kept completely stationary above the vessel deck, to allow lifting by the platform’s davit cranes. Traditionally, refurbished lifeboats are reinstalled on the offshore structure in the following manner: a platform supply vessel takes the lifeboat offshore, where it is lifted from the deck to the sea.

Traveling to both Brisbane and the Australian capital Canberra, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus met with U.S. and Australian government and military officials to reinforce the alliance between the two countries. Mabus' visit represents a continuation of the Department of the Navy's focus on building partnerships designed to help distribute the burden of securing the global maritime domain based on alliances, shared values and mutual trust. "The United States and Australia have an historic and extensive relationship…

HB Rentals, a supplier of temporary onshore and offshore accommodation modules, said it expects strong growth after completing a custom build project for Wood Group PSN. The project believed to be worth in excess of £1,000,000 involved the firm designing, engineering and manufacturing a complex consisting of three separate modules that connect to produce a single living and work space on the Arbroath platform, central North Sea. HB Rentals Eastern Hemisphere business director…