Western European News

The spot price of liquefied natural gas (LNG) is continuing to meander at low levels amid ample supply from major exporters and signs that winter demand is easing in the top-importing regions of Asia and Europe.The spot price for LNG delivered to north Asia ended at $9.60 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) in the week to Feb. 2, up slightly from the seven-month low of $9.50 the previous week.Spot LNG prices have broken their usual seasonal pattern of rising during the northern winter and again in summer…

How the Maximum Contingency of 2,200 MW Was Recast to a 1,200 MW CeilingAs policy makers and energy developers look to develop and interconnect large offshore wind projects in the most economically efficient and least environmentally impactful way, an issue has developed. A relatively recent limit, set in place by the grid operator in New England in a planning process document, states that no single system loss of energy, or “contingency”, can be larger than 1,200 megawatts (MW). This 2016 addition to ISO New England’s (ISO-NE) Planning Procedure No.

Lifting specialist KenzFigee has signed a contract with Aker Solutions for the supply of an offshore pedestal crane destined for the Norfolk Vanguard West offshore wind farm developed by Vattenfall.The delivery involves an electric hydraulic box boom offshore Ram Luffing 2400 type with a SWL of 20t, designed and manufactured by KenzFigee for installation on the Norfolk Vanguard high-voltage, direct current converter station situated off the coast of Norfolk, UK.The crane is designed and verified in accordance with EN13852-1 and certified to DNVGL-ST-0378 lifting requirements…

Heavy rain has raised water levels on the Rhine in Germany, but the river is still too shallow in central northern areas for cargo vessels to sail fully loaded, commodity traders said on Wednesday.The river is a major western European shipping route for commodities including grains, minerals, coal and oil products. Dry weather in June meant it became too shallow for vessels to sail fully loaded and operators imposed surcharges on freight rates to compensate for ships sailing partly empty…

Elisabeth Cosmatos, Managing Director of Cosmatos Group, has been elected President of The Heavy Lift Group (THLG), an international association for specialised heavy transport companies.The appointment was made as part of the executive committee election during the 68th THLG Conference on June 5.Taking over from FOX Brasil’s Murilo Caldana, Cosmatos becomes THLG’s first female president. She is joined on the executive committee by Rhenus Projects’ Colin d’Abreo, Alessio Bianchi of DCS Liburnus…

A.P. Moller - Maersk's container terminal operating arm APM Terminals announced the expansion of its Maasvlakte II terminal in Rotterdam, increasing the terminal's capacity by approx. 2 million TEU The project involves a site of approximately 47.5 hectares with 1,000 meters of deep-sea quay. The Port of Rotterdam Authority is now constructing the new quay walls, which will be completed by mid-2024. The new section is expected to be operational in the second half of 2026.APM Terminals opened at Maasvlakte II in 2015 as a fully automated facility with zero carbon emissions.

Nord Cereales, which runs France's third largest grain export silo at Dunkirk port, has shipped its biggest volume in over 10 years for the first five months of the season, it said on Friday, illustrating a fast pace of French exports. Between the start of this season on July 1 and the end of November, Nord Cereales exported more than 1.2 million tonnes of grain, it said. This is a turnaround after the silo operator recorded a 30% fall in exports to 1.6 million tonnes over the full 2021/22 season due to a disappointing harvest, the COVID-19 pandemic and renovation work, it said.

The Port of Corpus Christi reports it set another tonnage record in the third quarter of 2022, driven in large part by record exports of crude oil.The new quarterly tonnage record of 48.3 million tons surpassed the previous tonnage record set in the second quarter of 2022 of 46.4 million tons, a 4% increase on overall tonnage. The growth primarily was a result of strong exports of United States produced crude oil to Western European buyers who have moved away from Russian crude imports. The U.S.

Ukraine has sent around 80,000 tones of grains to the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta so far, with more expected to arrive, the port's manager said on Tuesday.Ukraine's sea ports have been blocked since a Russian invasion two months ago and the country, a major agricultural producer, has been forced to export by train via its western border or via its small Danube river ports into Romania.European Union member Romania shares borders of the Black Sea - a major shipping artery for grain and oil - with Bulgaria…

The iron ore market is focused mainly on developments in China, which isn't surprising given the world's biggest buyer of commodities takes about 70% of global seaborne cargoes.But that other 30% does matter - and there are signs of a recovery in demand in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.The total global volume of seaborne iron ore discharged at ports in January was 134 million tonnes, according to vessel-tracking and port data compiled by Refinitiv.This was up from 122.82 million tonnes in December and 125.18 million in November…

Shiosai, a bulk carrier operated by NYK Bulkship (Atlantic) NV., rescued a distressed yachtsman on October 23 (local time) off the coast of Western Australia.While Shiosai was navigating in the southern Indian Ocean, the vessel received a call from the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre (JRCC) of Australia to cooperate with a search and rescue operation for a distressed yacht.The ship immediately headed to the instructed area, and in bad weather and heavy swells rescued a man in a yacht whose mast had broken.The rescued yachtsman is in good health and will disembark at the next port.NYK Bulkship (Atlantic) NV is responsible for the commercial aspects, including chartering, financial, and the operation of more than 40 vessels (owned and chartered) which include dry bulkers, woodchip carriers.

U.S. crude oil exports to India hit a record in June and so far this year are almost double last year's total as the Asian nation's refiners move to replace supplies from Iran and Venezuela in a win for the Trump administration.U.S. President Donald Trump's administration has been pressuring its allies to cut imports of Iranian goods to zero by November and India's shift advances the U.S. administration efforts to use energy to further its political goals.The United States has become a major crude exporter…

AIDA Cruises’ new flagship AIDAprima docked in Britain’s Southampton port for the first time on the morning of April 27, 2016, as part of a four-day short cruise. AIDAprima will become the first cruise ship to depart from a German port all year round, from May 3 onwards visiting Southampton on Mondays as part of seven-day cruises to Western European cities from Hamburg. From April 30, 2016 Hamburg will be the departure and arrival port for seven-day round trips to cities such as London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.

The rising influence of Black Sea markets on world prices prompted Euronext to start working on developing futures contract that would allow price hedging in one of the world's largest export zones for the grain, it said on Friday. Production swings in the Black Sea and European Union have become the main drivers of world wheat prices to the detriment of Chicago futures as U.S. farmers increasingly turned to corn and soybean crops, analysts and traders said. "Having assessed the long-standing need for a proper price-setting mechanism in that production zone, we are now engaged in a serious reflection about a careful design," Euronext head of commodities Olivier Raevel told Reuters at the Cereals Europe conference in Geneva.

Wood Group has expanded into Slovakia, opening an office in Bratislava that The Automated Technology Group, a Wood Group Mustang company, will use to support automation projects in Slovakia and the surrounding region. "Proximity to Western European markets, a skilled labour force and a high number of university research facilities have resulted in an influx of high-tech and automotive multinational corporations to Slovakia in recent years," explained Mark House, president, Wood Group Mustang Automation and Control. "Although we have provided installation, commissioning and maintenance of control systems at clients' sites for a number of years, these are our first dedicated premises outside of the UK," explained Andy Robinson, CEO of The Automated Technology Group.

Nordic Tankers and Borealis Maritime Ltd has announced the intention to form a jointly held company, Crystal Nordic A/S – a strong player in the short-sea, ice class chemical tanker trade in the Baltic and North-Western European market. Crystal Nordic A/S will be owned on a 50/50 basis by Nordic Tankers and Embarcadero Maritime (Borealis Maritime). The new company will take over the respective ice classed stainless chemical tankers businesses from its owners, which currently operate under the Nordic Tankers and Crystal Pool trade names. All other Nordic Tankers and Borealis Maritime operations and ventures are unaffected by the new partnership.

While much of the focus on coverage of the Chinese shipbuilding industry is on big shipbuilding, Maritime Reporter switches gears this month to explore activities in select boatbuilding sectors. The Damen boatbuilding name is ubiquitous around the world, and China is certainly no exeception. The Damen Yichang Shipyard in China started ops in 1999 as a JV between Damen Shipyards Group and Sinotrans CSC, focused on building cargo vessels from the Dutch company’s portfolio. Recently Damen said it intends to broaden the market audience courtesy of an increased portfolio of vessels from the yard…

Since ancient times, maritime trade has been a backbone of Greece’s economy with shipping playing the dominant role. Today, it is the second largest contributor to the national economy after tourism. It is the country’s geography with a coastline almost that of the U.S. (including Alaska) in length together with the mountainous nature of the landmass with 85% of Greek population living within 30 miles of the sea, that has been responsible in creating a strong influence on this industry. Although the country’s shipping experienced regression during the late Roman period, it grew in prominence during the last few centuries of Ottoman rule, when Greek traders dominated the grain trade between southeastern Europe and the West.

The Damen Yichang Shipyard in China, commencing operations in 1999 as a joint venture between Damen Shipyards Group and Sinotrans CSC, has delivered cargo vessels from the Damen portfolio. Now, Damen announces the yard is rolling out an increased portfolio of vessels to a wider market audience. “Over the years we have achieved a good reputation for delivery time, reliability and quality,” said Executive Director at Damen Shipyards Group Hans Voorneveld about the yard on the Yangtze River.

Cruise Shipping Miami 2015 is gearing up to offer the most comprehensive and robust roster of panel discussions featuring the industry's most knowledgeable and experienced executives. The panels will be grouped under several broad themes based on industry trends during the four-day conference. The 31st edition of Cruise Shipping Miami is scheduled for March 16-19 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. Organized by UBM Connect, thematic topics include The Geography of Cruise Tourism, Safety and Ship Operations, Market Segments and Cruise Product Development. On Tuesday morning, March 17, the conference will open with the popular State of the Industry session. Participants in that plenary session will be announced in the coming weeks. This program may be subject to alterations and additions.

WiFi@Sea high-speed network will combine land-based systems and advanced satellite connectivity designed to give passengers faster, more stable and powerful internet service at sea. With connectivity speeds that can be roughly 10 times faster than ever before, passengers will be able to share their cruise experience via Internet, email and social media in real time. Carnival Corporation & plc has unveiled a hybrid wireless network – a high-speed service to eventually be rolled out to all 101 of its ships on all nine of its brands.

The Danish Mariime Authority (DMA) informs that a number of North Western European countries have made a commitment in Copenhagen to cooperate on making the control of ships’ sulphur emissions more efficient. The DMA describes the various countries' commitment as being an 'international musketeer' agreement [readers will call to mind Alexander Dumas's three musketeers and their "All for One and One for All" vow]. The background for the meeting was the new, stricter sulphur requirements that take effect on 1 January 2015. According to these provisions, ships must use low-sulphur fuel in the so-called SECAs in the future. Since this type of fuel is considerably more expensive than ordinary fuel, there will be a large economic incentive to bypass the regulations.

The MSC shipping company is to consolidate all its activities in the port of Antwerp in the Deurganck dock, on the left bank of the Scheldt. The Port Authority board of directors gave the go-ahead for the move on Monday evening. The transfer is necessary in order to permit further expansion by MSC in Antwerp. The shipping company announced at the end of last year that it wished to have a new location below the locks, not only because its present site in the Delwaide dock had reached saturation point but also because of the increasing size of the ships being introduced. The Deurganck dock was the obvious choice, as it is already used by the other members of the P3 alliance of which MSC forms part, and furthermore the alliance plans to make even greater use of it in future.