Vasco Da Gama News

The Portuguese government has issued a an international public  tender for the development of the Vasco da Gama container terminal at the Port of Sines, seeking a concessionaire who would invest in the project.According to the government sources, public tender will for a concession period of 50 years with an investment of 642 million euros, adding that the specifications include the construction and operation project, with a deadline of nine months for the submission of proposals.The Minister of the Sea Ana Paula Vitorino said that the tender will be awarded in the last quarter of 2020 and the terminal should be completed in 2024. The new terminal will have an annual handling capacity of 3.5 million TEU.The terminal facility would be capable of hosting 24…

The visit of the cruise ship AIDAprima on Saturday, October 12, marked the end of the oceangoing cruise season in Kiel, and what a season it was with ship visits and passenger numbers up over 2018.In total the port was visited 174 times (2018: 169) by 32 different cruise ships with a total tonnage of 15 million GT (2018: 11.5). For the first time the port exceeded the 800,000 cruise passenger threshold (embarked or left a ship at the terminals) in Kiel (+ 33.6 %). The cruise and…

The economic importance of nautical tourism for Schleswig-Holstein is continuing to increase. More than 2.2 million passengers are expected in the port of Kiel alone this year, forecasting record numbers like 600,000 cruise passengers and 1.6 million ferry travelers.Last year, passengers generated a turnover of about 68 million Euros in Kiel. The consumer spending of the port’s ferry passengers amounts to more than 53 million Euros. These are complemented by another 15 million Euros spent by cruise passengers and the crews.

State-of-the-art laser scanning technology has helped researchers to confirm that an artifact recovered from the wreck of a sunken 15th century ship in the Indian Ocean is the earliest known marine navigation tool. When the Blue Water Recovery team found the object in 2014, they believed it was an astrolabe used by mariners to measure the altitude of the sun during voyages, but they were not certain as there were no visible navigational markings. The team approached Professor Williams, who conducts high-tech scanning analyses in his laboratory at WMG University of Warwick in the U.K.

In the waning days of 2016, the outlook brightened dramatically for the big U.S. dredging contractors. Just before Congress dispersed for the Holidays, then-President Obama signed a pivotal piece of legislation – the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN) Act, S612. Authorized needed investment in America’s ports, channels, locks, dams, and other infrastructure that supports the maritime and waterways transportation system and provides flood protection. Authorized U.S.

Although a small nation on the Atlantic shores, Portugal in the 16th century was credited with discovering most of the “New World” previously unknown to Europe. In the process it became the richest nation in the West. The names of Bartolomeu Dias (Africa), Vasco da Gama (India) and Fernão de Magalhães – Magellan, who led the first circumnavigation of the globe but was killed in the attempt – echo down the centuries. Over the years the country underwent a transformation and saw the hard won glory fade. In fact until 1974, strong public protection dominated the national shipping sector, especially regarding merchant shipping to Portugal’s overseas territories.

A wooden figurehead of a sea monster with ears like a lion and a crocodile's jaw was carefully lifted from the sea in southern Sweden on Tuesday by divers bringing up treasures from the wreck of a 15th-century Danish warship. The figurehead came from the wreck of the Gribshunden, which is believed to have sunk in 1495 after it caught fire on its way from Copenhagen to Kalmar on Sweden's east coast. Although the hull suffered extensive damage, the remaining bits make it one of the best preserved wrecks of its kind, dating from roughly the same period as Christopher Columbus's flagship, the Santa Maria. "Last time it looked at the world…

Shipping group CMA CGM has taken delivery of the newbuild box ship CMA CGM Vasco de Gama [sic] on July 27. Built by China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), the 18,000 TEUs vessel is, with its 399 meters length and 54 meters width, is the largest ship in the CMA CGM fleet and the largest containership ever built in a Chinese shipyard. Calling 11 different countries, the U.K.-flagged CMA CGM Vasco de Gama is positioned on the CMA CGM Group’s French Asia Line (FAL) joining Europe to Asia.

General Dynamics Canada is installing an adjunct processing system on three VASCO DA GAMA-class frigates of the Portuguese Navy. Designed by General Dynamics Canada, the ECLIPSE adjunct processor provides the in-service AN/SQS-510 sonar systems with enhanced operational capability to detect submarines and torpedoes. "General Dynamics Canada has a 40-year history of providing and supporting underwater systems and components to navies around the world. As the original designer and manufacturer of the AN/SQS-510 hull-mounted sonar system, we are pleased to bring new capabilities to this valuable and trusted system," said David Ibbetson, vice president, General Dynamics C4 Systems International.

Further analysis of the approach by a suspected pirate skiff to the MV EJNAN in the Gulf of Aden on 19 Jun indicates that the initial assessment that a pirate attack was underway was incorrect and that the VHF call made by the ship was not a distress call. EU NAVFOR regrets any misinterpretation of the situation and thanks the Master of the MV EJNAN for reporting the location of the skiff which resulted in the suspect pirates being apprehended and their piracy paraphernalia being removed.

On April 14, in a ceremony held at the Commercial Port of Djibouti, Portuguese Commodore Alberto Correia took over the command of Task Force 465 (TF 465) as the new European Union Naval Force Headquarters – Operation ATALANTA Force Commander. Commodore Correia takes over the duty from his predecessor, Spanish Rear Admiral Juan Rodriguez. During the handover, presided over by EU NAVFOR Deputy Commander, Rear Admiral Guido Rando, Commodore Correia congratulated Rear Admiral Rodriguez for the results achieved during his command and thanked him for his outstanding efforts. He emphasized that ”The mission priorities given to TF 465 are absolutely clear to me.

According to an August 9 release from India’s Press Information Bureau, the Indian Navy has recommended introduction of modern and emerging techniques in shipbuilding in the country in order to reduce the built periods. The Chief of Naval Staff has been encouraging the participation of capable private shipyards to augment shipbuilding capacity in the country. The Mazgaon Dock Limited, Mumbai, Goa Shipyard Limited Vasco-da-Gama and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, Kolkata are being modernized to augment and improve their production capacities to keep pace with the Naval requirements. Hindustan Shipyards Limited, Visakhapatnam has also been added to Defence Shipyards also to address the concerns of the Navy.

As the first containerships officially credited with capacities topping 8,000-TEU, the series of newbuilds ordered at the start of the year by Vancouver-based Seaspan for long-term charter to China Shipping Group embodies a design, which has been the subject of the most thorough structural analysis. The boxship sector has always been characterized by a propensity for driving developments to the limits of technical possibility. Its outstanding structural safety record over the years is testament to the industry's unflagging efforts to ensure long-term vessel integrity in combination with advancing scale. The considered technical approach expressed in current projects in the 8…

The Portuguese Navy has awarded a major ship handling simulator contract to KMSS. The contract consists of several naval bridge cubicles located on two different locations connected by a fibre optic network. The main shiphandling bridge will be installed at the Navy's tactical centre and will replicate the bridge of the "Vasco da Gama", a MEKO-class frigate. Each of the two naval training sites will be equipped with different configured bridges providing the capacity to train several bridge crews operating in the same exercise scenario, simultaneously. In addition to the bridge facilities, a simulated OPS room will be installed at the tactical centre to provide tactical information to each scenario.

The SMM exhibition in Hamburg has once again proven that it is the cradle of marine technology and the grand-daddy of all marine exhibitions. On display in 12 separate halls were more than 1,300 exhibitors from more than 50 countries, launching new products and discussing business with an estimated 37,000 visitors. More telling that sheer numbers, in this case, is the feeling of the exhibition and the ubiquitous marine technology theme. The quality of attendee and exhibitor is always high, but this edition of the bi-annual exhibition seemed especially charged due to the many positives currently running throughout the full spectrum of the maritime market.

The annual parade of Great Ships in our December edition includes a roster of unique vessels, from the record-setting heavy lift ships Black Marlin and Blue Marlin, to Vasco da Gama, the world’s largest trailing suction hopper dredger. And while these ships — plus the Marine Innovations feature starting on page 38 — help to highlight the industry’s many triumphs over the past 12 months, there are a full-plate of technical and non-technical issues, which will keep the marine industry challenged for many years to come. The complex matter of ship casualties — the causes, environmental ramifications and potential solutions — is now a top-agenda item of many organizations both inside and out of the marine world.

Despite what could be best termed as difficult operating conditions, the German maritime market has persevered through its collective adherence to the principles which propelled it to the lead of the maritime construction and outfitting markets: a steadfast adherence to producing technologically correct and advanced vessels, products and systems. The challenges facing the German maritime market are not unlike those facing many of its European colleagues and competitors, or those facing industrial operations in any of the world's leading economies. The proliferation of lower-cost shipbuilding, ship repair and marine equipment supply options outside of Europe, particularly in Asia, has led to a significant drain on business emanating from and dollars flowing to the German homeland.

Keppel Shipyard has secured two conversion contracts totaling about $56.6 million. The first contract is for a fast-track conversion of FPSO Marlim Sul from repeat customer Single Buoy Moorings Inc (SBM). Keppel Shipyard has completed four similar fast track projects for SBM since 2000. These projects include FPSO Espadarte, Yetagun FSO, FPSO Falcon, and FPSO Brasil. Work is currently in progress within schedule for FPSO Serpentina, which is due for delivery in April 2003. Tong Chong Heong, managing director and chief operating officer of Keppel Offshore & Marine Ltd (Keppel O&M) said, “Fast track projects are very challenging both for the owners and the shipyard especially in ensuring that a high standard of work is achieved without compromising safety and cost management.