United Kingdom News

Armed pirates attacked a British-flagged chemical tanker in the Gulf of Aden on Sunday but were repulsed, the ship's manager Stolt Tankers said.The pirates approached the Stolt Apal in two speedboats some 75 nautical miles off Yemen, it said, in one of the most important trade routes for oil heading from the Middle East to Europe."After multiple warning shots were fired by the armed guard team aboard Stolt Apal, the skiffs opened fire on the ship. The armed guard team returned fire…

Global commercial fishing activity for 2020 fell by around 1 million hours as of end-April, a 6.5% decline over the two previous years, the result of plummeting demand caused by coronavirus lockdowns, according to Global Fishing Watch.Fishing fleets spent 14.4 million hours on the water for the year so far to April 28, a decline from an average of 15.4 million hours for the same year-to-date periods of 2018 and 2019, according to the nonprofit organization that tracks fishing operation worldwide.Global Fishing Watch collects and analyses data from onboard identification systems known as AIS…

The wreck of one of the U.S. Navy's longest serving battleships has been found 15,400 feet beneath the surface about 65 nautical miles southwest of Pearl Harbor, researchers said Monday.The USS Nevada (BB-36), which served in two world wars over the course of a career that spanned more than three and a half decades, was discovered by underwater and terrestrial archaeology firm SEARCH, Inc. and marine robotics company Ocean Infinity at the bottom of the Pacific.The mission was jointly coordinated between SEARCH's operations center and one of Ocean Infinity's vessels, Pacific Constructor.

The Women’s International Shipping and Trading Association announced a new initiative aimed at helping seafarers.WISTA Norway, WISTA UK, WISTA Singapore, WISTA Brazil, and WISTA Argentina have come together to offer free WISTA membership for seafarers through August 31, 2020. Membership allows seafarers to access the largest network of female managers in the shipping industry, as well as online seminars, webinars and workshops. The idea for the project came from WISTA Norway.Pia Meling…

Finnish ship technology and power-plant maker Wartsila said on Tuesday the coronavirus outbreak has caused the share of renewable energy in Europe's power production to increase rapidly.The pandemic has caused demand for electricity to fall across Europe, Wartsila said, according to data it collected and analysed.Countries such as Germany, Spain and Britain have had to temporarily shut down coal-fired power generation, causing the share of renewable energy to increase rapidly in the power mix."Take Germany last week, they actually had over 10 gigawatts of excess energy production because they were still running their coal-fired plants ...

The ramping up of shipbuilding programs in Adelaide this year is providing an employment lifeline for South Australia as the state’s looks for ways to tackle boost jobs growth post coronavirus.There are already almost 700 people working on the Hunter Class Frigate Program. Those numbers are expected to reach 1000 by, the end of the year and 1,500 by mid-2025 before reaching a peak of 2,400 in 2028.Nine anti-submarine warfare frigates will be built by ASC Shipbuilding at the Osborne…

Carnival Corp Chief Executive Officer Arnold Donald defended the company’s safety record on Thursday, telling reporters in a media call that Carnival followed protocols from international authorities while handling high-profile coronavirus outbreaks aboard two of its ships.On Feb. 3 the company’s Diamond Princess cruise ship was quarantined in the port of Yokohama, Japan, where 712 passengers were ultimately infected in what was then the biggest concentration of confirmed cases outside China.

A Hong Kong-flagged tanker was briefly detained in Iran before being freed after armed Iranian guards in speedboats directed the vessel into its waters while it was sailing through the Gulf of Oman, maritime security sources said on Wednesday.The sources said the SC Taipei chemical tanker had been sailing in international waters on Tuesday when it was stopped."The vessel was approached 48nm (nautical miles) offshore Fujairah and hailed by four skiffs carrying armed Iranian coastguard personnel…

Armed men boarded a vessel at anchor in the Gulf of Oman on Tuesday but the ship was later released, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said."Vessel and crew are safe," it said in an updated advisory, urging all vessels in the vicinity to remain vigilant.UKMTO had earlier said the vessel had been at anchor around three nautical miles (nm) off Ras Al Kuh.Maritime security firm Dryad Global separately tweeted that a Hong Kong-flagged vessel had been released. It…

Last month a Hydrex team removed a bow thruster from a 170-meter container ship. This was done during a stop in Rotterdam. The unit needed to be overhauled and the operation had to be carried out within a very short window that would fit the schedule available to the vessel’s owner.The team mobilized to the ship’s location using a workboat loaded with all the needed equipment. These workboats are fully equipped as dive support stations with hydraulic cranes, winches, nautical and communication equipment and a dive control room.

The Coast Guard Assistant Commandant for Prevention Policy has published an update March 16, 2020 to MSIB: Novel Coronavirus – Update (Change 2)An outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) may affect mariners and maritime commerce. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated their Interim Guidance for Ships on Managing Suspected Coronavirus Disease 2019 (see https://go.usa.gov/xdfyG) and Cruise Ship Travel (see https://go.usa.gov/xdfVP).Illness…

French ferry operator Brittany Ferries said that the takeover of of Condor Ferries  has been completed. The deal, announced last year, had been subject to scrutiny by competition authorities, but work on the transition has been completed."Brittany Ferries is today the proud part-owner of Condor Ferries," it said in a press note.“This is excellent news for Brittany Ferries, our new partners and for Condor Ferries,” said Christophe Mathieu, CEO Brittany Ferries. “We are committed…

France on Wednesday said it was imperative that negotiations over a future trade relationship between Britain and the European Union included customs checks in the Irish Sea.British Prime Minister Boris Johnson struck a divorce deal with the EU last October that leaves the United Kingdom's province of Northern Ireland inside the UK customs area but all EU procedures will apply to goods arriving there."There must be controls in the Irish Sea", France's junior minister for European…

French electricity giant Électricité de France (EDF) is moving into the Irish energy market.EDF Renewables, a subsidiary of the French energy utility, has acquired a 50% stake in the Codling offshore wind project from Hazel Shore, a company linked to the property developer, Johnny Ronan.EDF Renewables will develop and build the project alongside Fred Olsen Renewables, which owns the other 50% stake in 1100MW Codling Wind ParkIt is the first investment by the international energy player in the Republic.The Codling project is located south of Dublin…

United Kingdom-based maritime company  Silverstream Technologies has entered into a framework agreement with  European ship design consultancy International Contract Engineering (ICE) group for worldwide installation design services for retrofitting of the Silverstream System.Silverstream System is a patented air lubrication system designed for reduction of friction between ships’ hulls and seawater. The company claimed that it the system has been proven to deliver substantial…

Authorities in the United Arab Emirates are "working to put out a fire that broke out aboard an oil tanker 21 miles off the coast of Sharjah after receiving a distress message. A proper investigation is in progress," an official at the UAE National Media Council said on Wednesday, citing the UAE Federal Transport Authority – Land & Maritime (FTA).The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said earlier on Wednesday that it had received reports of a vessel on fire northwest of the UAE emirate of Sharjah.(Reporting by Ghaida Ghantous and Alaa Swilam; Editing by Bernadette Baum)

The British Queen, in her speech to both houses of  United Kingdom (UK) parliament, revealed that the UK’s target for installed offshore wind energy has been raised to 40 GW by 2030, and that the UK government will support the development of floating wind turbines.The announcement follows a pledge by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson in his pre-election campaign to boost offshore wind ambitions from the previously set target of 30 GW by 2030 in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050.This commitment…

Offshore vessel provider Esvagt has been awarded a new contract with the United Kingdom-based petroleum exploration and production company EnQuest for the provision of emergency response and rescue vessels (ERRV).According to the provider of safety and support at sea, under this contract, four ESVAGT vessels will support EnQuest Heather Ltd’s operation in the UK.The contract includes a continued support on the Kraken oil field and Kittiwake and, since December 2019, ERRV duties…

Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding, the classic Maine boat designer and builder will build to Baltic Workboats design for the domestic workboat market.Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding, the classic Maine boat designer and builder will announce at this year’s International WorkBoat Show that it has entered into the domestic workboat market as the Jones Act builder for the Estonian, Baltic Workboats wave piercing pilot boat, currently popular with Danish and Belgian pilots.How do you feel about taking on something as unusual as building a pilot boat designed and built in Estonia…

The offshore wind giant Ørsted has introduced a new operating model for the Offshore business, to support the execution of its project pipeline and future growth."The global market opportunities in renewables continue to expand and present significant opportunities for growth. In 2019, Ørsted expanded into Taiwan and the US with the award of significant projects," the largest energy company in Denmark said.The new operating model creates a more scalable organisation for Ørsted’s…

Condor Ferries, an operator of passenger and freight ferry services between UK and France, has been sold to a consortium including the French shipping company Brittany Ferries.Brittany Ferries, in consortium with the Columbia Threadneedle European Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (ESIF), has reached an agreement to acquire 100 percent of Condor Ferries from Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA).Contracts have been signed and the deal is expected to be executed following scrutiny by relevant regulatory authorities.

The global offshore wind market grew nearly 30% per year between 2010 and 2018, benefiting from rapid technology improvements and about 150 new offshore wind projects are in active development around the world.Europe in particular has fostered the technology’s development, led by the United Kingdom, Germany and Denmark, but China added more capacity than any other country in 2018, says 'Offshore Wind Outlook 2019',  a report funded by the governments of Denmark and Germany.Yet…

The US Central Command announced the opening of operations from its Bahrain headquarters to protect shipping in the troubled waters of the Gulf, after a string of attacks that Washington and its allies blamed on Iran.The new mission, dubbed Operation Sentinel, is designed to “ensure freedom of navigation and free flow of commerce in international waters” throughout the Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Oman, US Central Command said in a release“Today…