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Tuscany News

14 Nov 2023

Snam to Invest in Ravenna FSRU

Stefano Venier courtesy of Snam

Italian gas grid operator Snam will invest 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in a new LNG offshore terminal near Ravenna, the company's CEO said on Tuesday.The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) will add to another LNG terminal already set up in Tuscany, increasing Italy's gas import capacity and reducing dependence from its traditional suppliers, including Russia."To increase energy security for Italy we decided last year, together with the government, to increase the country's LNG import capacity in order to have more flexibility and diversify energy supplies…

23 Dec 2022

Italy's LNG Import Capacity and New Terminals

Italy plans to boost its liquefied natural gas (LNG) import capacity to 27 billion cubic metres (bcm) from nearly 17 bcm currently as it seeks to completely replace Russian gas supplies following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.In 2021, Moscow provided Rome with 29 bcm of gas via pipelines, equal to around 40% of Italy's total imports but Russian supplies have fallen in recent months to around 10% of total imports. Italy, which can now count on three LNG terminals, has mandated gas grid operator Snam SRG.MI to buy and set up two additional floating storage and regasification units (FSRU) near the cities of Piombino and Ravenna.A timely start for the Piombino FSRU is crucial to allow Italy to fill gas storage facilities in time for winter 2023…

12 Dec 2022

Italy's Snam to Select Offshore Site for New FSRU in Early 2023

Illustration only - Credit: Karel/AdobeStock

Itay's Snam will choose the offshore site for its new floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) in the next 100 days, Italy's special commissioner for the project said on Friday, with its initial location already facing a legal challenge.Under the government's plan to diversify energy supply away from Russian gas, Italy's gas grid operator plans to moor the newly-bought FSRU in the port of Piombino, on Italy's west coast, for the next three years. After this period, it has…

31 Oct 2022

Italy Commissioner Gives OK for New LNG Terminal in Piombino

© Uwe / Adobe Stock

A state-appointed commissioner in Italy on Tuesday gave his formal go-ahead to the set up of a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the port of Piombino, on the western coast of the country.Preparatory works by gas grid operator Snam for the infrastructure can start on Wednesday, Commissioner Eugenio Giani said during a press conference in Florence.The floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), which is part of a broader plan designed by the former government of Mario Draghi to replace dwindling Russian gas supplies, needs to be operational by end-March.The gas grid operator said

31 Oct 2022

Tuscany Requests Costly Compensations for New Italian LNG Terminal

(Photo: Snam)

The region of Tuscany has asked for hundreds of millions of euros in investments in exchange for allowing a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the Tuscan port of Piombino, the Italian region said.In a statement on Monday, the region's administration said it had approved the new terminal, adding it was sending a list of requests to the national government.In June Italian state-controlled gas grid operator Snam bought a new floating storage and regasification unit (FRSU) in an effort to boost the country's energy security in the face of dwindling Russian gas supplies.Tuscany President E

17 Jun 2022

Costa Toscana: Costa Cruises Christens New LNG-powered Flagship in Barcelona

Costa Toscana in Barcelona - Credit: Bartolomej Tomić

Italian cruise line Costa Cruises on Thursday held a christening ceremony for its new flagship, the Costa Toscana, in the port of Barcelona, Spain.The LNG-powered, Italian-flagged ship sailed away from Civitavecchia, Italy on Monday, making a stop in Naples on Thursday, before arriving in Barcelona on Thursday for the christening ceremony. The 337-meter ship is one of the largest ocean liners and can accommodate 6,554 passengers. Chanel, a Cuban-Spanish singer, dancer, and actress…

27 Dec 2021

Italian Sea Group Buys Bankrupt Yacht Builder for $91 Million

(Image: Perini Navi)

The Italian Sea Group said on Wednesday it had bought bankrupt luxury yacht maker Perini Navi for 80 million euros ($91 million) in an auction held by a court in Lucca, Tuscany.Italian yacht makers Ferretti Group and SanLorenzo had also offered to buy the luxury sailing brand Perini Navi, which was declared bankrupt in January.The Italian Sea Group said in a statement that the deal, funded with most of the proceeds of its IPO and through bank financing, will double its order intake for refits and lead to new contracts for the construction of 90-130 metre motor yachts.($1 = 0.8835 euros)(Report

26 Mar 2021

Ever Given Salvors Weigh Time and Tide with Risk of Tip or Tear

(Photo: Suez Canal Authority)

The Dutch emergency response team hired to free the vast ship blocking the Suez canal has pulled off some dramatic recoveries, including lifting Russia’s Kursk nuclear submarine from the Barents Sea floor, but says this is one of the trickiest.Weighing 200,000 tonnes without cargo, the Ever Given is the heaviest vessel that Smit Salvage, a subsidiary of the Dutch marine services company Boskalis contracted in the rescue, has faced in its nearly 180-year history.With real-time emergency response crews across the globe…

04 Dec 2017

WFW Advises Italian Shipowners on Partnership with Gigilinis

International law firm Watson Farley & Williams (WFW) advised three leading Italian shipowners -Rimorchiatori Mediterranei, Gesmar and Fratelli Neri – on their partnership agreement with Thessaloniki-based Greek maritime operator Gigilinis Shipping Group. The deal closed on 29 November. The deal represents a strategic milestone in Italian ship owners’ expansion into the Greek and broader Eastern Mediterranean markets, most notably into the key port of Thessaloniki. Rimorchiatori Mediterranei is the leading player in the harbour towage sector in Italy, and number two in the Mediterranean, operating a modern fleet of more than 100 tugs and other units, equipped with advanced technology. In 2016 it generated revenues of around €110m.

29 Mar 2017

Interview: Crystal CEO Edie Rodriguez

Edie Rodriguez (Photo: Crystal)

Edie Rodriguez is Chairman, CEO and president of Crystal Luxury Corporation, Ltd., a broad travel brand that includes Crystal Cruises, Crystal Yacht Expedition Cruises, Crystal River Cruises, Crystal Luxury Air, Crystal AirCruises and Crystal Exclusive Class ships with Crystal Residences. She met with Maritime Reporter in NYC to discuss the evolution of the cruising brand, as well as the benefits of owning your own shipyards in today’s torrid cruise market. You’ve been at the helm of the Crystal brand for about three years now.

28 Nov 2016

Majo Appointed President of Civitavecchia, Gaeta and Fiumicino Port Authority

International law firm Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW“) is delighted to announce that Rome corporate Counsel Francesco Maria di Majo has been appointed president of the prestigious Port Authority of Civitavecchia, Gaeta and Fiumicino (Lazio Region, Italy). The appointment was confirmed today by Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Mr Graziano Delrio, following approval from the Italian Chamber of Deputies’ Transport Commission on 15 November 2016. The Port Authority of Civitavecchia, Gaeta and Fiumicino is a key maritime hub for Rome and the central Italian regions of Campania, Umbria, Tuscany and Marche, linking them to the rest of the Mediterranean and beyond, as well as offering access to some of Italy’s most popular tourist destinations and captivating cruise routes.

21 Nov 2016

Damen Workboats for Fratelli Neri Fleet Expansion

Italian towing company Fratelli Neri S.p.A. has expanded its fleet with the delivery of three new Damen workboats. The trio of vessels will be based in the company’s home port of Livorno, on the Tuscan coast. Damen delivered all the vessels from stock;completing the final outfitting works within a timescale of three and a half months. This current delivery to Fratelli Neri consists of three different vessels. The first, an ASD 2913, was built at Damen Shipyards Galati. This vessel sailed from Romania to Italy on her own keel. The other two vessels – a Stan Launch 1305 and a Stan Tug 1606 – were being held on stock at Damen Shipyards Gorinchem in the Netherlands. Damen transported these two workboats to Livorno on a heavy-lift vessel.

18 Jul 2016

Fratelli Neri S.p.A. Orders Three Damen Vessels

L to R:  Dott. Corrado Neri, Director Fratelli Neri Group and Managing Director Labromare Livorno; Andrea Trevisan, Damen Sales Manager; Dott. Piero Neri, President Fratelli Neri Group; Dott. Corrado Neri, Director Fratelli Neri Group and Mr. Riccardo Sala, Broker Branchero Costa on the occasion of the contract signing for the three vessels. (Photo: Damen Shipyards)

Fratelli Neri S.p.A., the family-owned, Livorno-based harbor towage company, has ordered three new Damen vessels; an ASD Tug 2913, a Stan Tug 1606 and a Stan Launch 1305, the last for its subsidiary company Labromare, which is 50% owned by Tripmare S.p.A. All three vessels will operate in and around the port of Livorno, one of the busiest in the Mediterranean Sea. Delivery will take place in November this year. This order takes to six the number of Damen vessels ordered by Fratelli Neri in the past year.

11 Feb 2015

Costa Concordia Captain Sentenced to 16 Years

Captain Francesco Schettino was sentenced to 16 years in prison after an Italian court found him guilty of  manslaughter today for his role in the 2012 sinking of the Costa Concordia. The 52-year old was captain of a cruise liner carrying 4,252 passengers  when it sank off the coast of Isola del Giglio, Tuscany in January 2012, killing 32 people. Schettino was accused of taking the liner too close to shore and abandoning the ship while passengers and crew were still on board. Prosecutors had sought a sentence of 26 years and three months. Schettino was not in the Grosseto court when the verdict was read. Schettino claimed he had taken the ship so close to land for "commercial reasons" and to please his passengers and those ashore, the BBC reported.

26 Jan 2015

26-year Jail Term Sought for Concordia Master

An Italian prosecutor asked a court on Monday to sentence the captain of the Costa Concordia cruise liner to more than 26 years in jail for his role in the 2012 disaster that killed 32 people. Francesco Schettino was the commander of the vessel, a floating hotel as long as three football pitches, when it came too close to shore and hit rocks off the Tuscan holiday island of Giglio. In summing up arguments at the trial in the nearby of Grosseto, Prosecutor Maria Navarro said Schettino should serve 14 years for manslaughter and causing injuries, nine for causing a shipwreck, three for abandoning ship, and a further three months for giving false testimony. The trial is expected to go to the jury next month.

17 Nov 2014

Italy Region, Island Seek $274m in Concordia Damages

Photo courtesy of The Parbuckling Project

Officials for Italy's Tuscany region and the island of Giglio said on Monday they would seek a total of 220 million euros ($274 million) in damages from Costa Cruises, a unit of Carnival Corp, for the 2012 Concordia cruise liner disaster. The Costa Concordia was carrying more than 4,000 passengers and crew when it struck rocks off the Tuscan island of Giglio and capsized, killing 32 people. The ship remained partially submerged near the port of the holiday island for more than…

30 Oct 2014

Keel Laid, Fabrication Started on 2 Navy Warships

Photo: Bath Iron Works

This week, General Dynamics Bath Iron Works celebrated two milestone events for the Arleigh Burke-class program. On October 30, Bath Iron Works held a keel laying ceremony for the Rafael Peralta (DDG 115), the company’s 35th Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer. The ship is named for Sgt. Rafael Peralta, U.S. Marine Corps, who was deployed to Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom and was killed November 15, 2004, during the Second Battle of Fallujah in house-to-house urban combat at the age of 25. Sgt.

20 Aug 2014

New Water-activated Life Raft

International Convention for the Safety of Lives at Sea (SOLAS), states commercial vessels must carry life rafts. In the majority of mass marine disasters globally, life rafts have been on board the vessels, but people either didn’t know how to deploy the rafts or the life rafts were not accessible. Australian company Rescue & Survival Group has designed a life raft inflation system that eliminates any human factors and any accessibility issues. The invention relies on the life raft’s slight submersion to activate, become erect and perform its designed function - to save and preserve life. On January 13, 2012, 32 lives were lost when the Costa Concordia, carrying 4,252 people, capsized and sank at Isola del Giglio, Tuscany.

06 Aug 2014

Bones Found on Concordia Possibly Final Victim's

Photo courtesy of the Parbuckling Project

Divers have found human remains in the wreck of the Costa Concordia and will check whether they belong to the one person still unaccounted for 2 1/2 years after the luxury liner sank, Italian authorities said on Wednesday. Russel Rebello, an Indian who worked as a waiter on the ship when it hit rocks and sank off the Tuscan coast in January 2012, killing 32 people, is the only victim of the disaster whose body has not yet been found. Rebello's relatives have been informed of the findings on the third deck of the ship…

08 Jul 2014

Concordia Disaster to Cost Owners More than $2b

Photo courtesy of the Parbuckling Project

The Costa Concordia disaster, when the cruise liner capsized off Italy more than two years ago, will likely end up costing the ship's owners just over $2 billion (1.5 billion euros), a company executive told a German newspaper. "So far, our costs are at 1 billion euros. But that does not include 100 million for the ship to be broken up for scrap and the cost of repairing damage to Giglio island," Michael Thamm, chief executive of Costa Crociere - a unit of Carnival Corp and operator of the ship - told weekly Bild am Sonntag.

30 Jun 2014

Costa Concordia Wreck to be Scrapped in Genoa

Photo courtesy of The Parbuckling Project

The bulk of the Costa Concordia cruise liner that capsised off the Tuscany coast in 2012, killing 32 people, will be demolished and scrapped in the port of Genoa, the Italian government decided on Monday. The decision for the work to be done in Genoa, in northern Italy, followed a choice last month by Costa Cruises for a consortium including oil services company Saipem and Genoa-based companies Mariotti and San Giorgio. A number of other ports in Italy and abroad had expressed interest in the contract.

30 May 2014

Costa Chooses Saipem to Scrap Concordia

Costa Cruises has chosen a consortium including oil service company Saipem to scrap the hulk of the Costa Concordia cruise liner which capsized off the Tuscany coast in 2012, sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. The green light from the Italian government is still missing, the sources added. Besides Saipem the consortium includes Genoa-based companies Mariotti and San Giorgio, one of the sources said. Costa Cruises, a unit of Carnival Corp, and Saipem declined to comment. The luxury liner hit rocks more than two years ago as it sailed close to the island of Giglio, killing 32 people. Since then, it has been hauled upright but still rests where it capsized off the coast of the holiday island.   Reporting by Antonella Cinelli and Stephen Jewkes

29 May 2013

SENER Presents Paper on Early Design in COMPIT

Photo: SENER

SENER took part in COMPIT, the International Conference on Computer Applications and Information Technology in the Maritime Industries that takes place every year in Europe. This edition was held from of April 14-17 in Cortona, in the Tuscany in Italy. In this edition Verónica, Alonso presented the paper, “Efficient use of 3D tools at early design stage,” written by Carlos González, Rodrigo Pérez and Verónica Alonso, all from SENER. The work, of great interest in the marine field…