Maritime Industry Top News
NRL Models Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Dr. Jason Jolliff is an oceanographer with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL). "The emphasis here," he says, "is on developing models of the ocean environment to help the naval warfighter." His most recent paper, published in Ocean Modeling (March 2014), shows NRL can also forecast where oil will go following a major spill. "If you're going to do forecasting," he says, "you have to get the ocean circulation correct.
Nine Ships Detained in the UK During February
The U.K. Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) announced that nine foreign flagged ships were under detention in U.K. ports during February 2014 after failing Port State Control (PSC) inspection.
Today in U.S. Naval History: March 17
Today in U.S. Naval History - March 17 1898 - USS Holland, first practical submarine, launched 1942 - United States Naval Forces Europe established to plan joint operations with British 1958 - Navy Vanguard rocket launches 3.25 pound sphere from Cape Canaveral 1959 - USS Skate (SSN-578) surfaces at North Pole For more information about naval history, visit the Naval History and Heritage Command website at history.navy.mil.
Babcock Completes DSV Refit for Bibby
Babcock has completed a contract to undertake a substantial refit on Bibby Offshore’s dive support vessel (DSV), Polaris, at its Rosyth dockyard. The project was Bibby’s largest ever refit package and underlines Babcock’s move to expand its role in the maintenance and refitting of complex oil and gas support ships. The Bibby Polaris vessel is one of Bibby’s international fleet consisting of eight subsea support vessels, including the most modern fleet of DSVs in the North Sea.
Norwegian Seminar to Focus on Financing, Procurement
The challenges of managing efficient procurement processes and getting the right funding in the shipping and offshore sectors is the topic for a major half day…
Japan Gives $1 Million to Gulf of Guinea Fund
The Government of Japan has made a contribution of $1 million (USD) to the IMO West and Central Africa Maritime Security Trust Fund, established by IMO Secretary…
Arctic Taskings for the Coast Guard
On January 30, 2014, the White House released the Implementation Plan for the National Strategy for the Arctic Region. The purpose of the Implementation Plan is to put flesh on the bones of the May 10, 2013 National Strategy for the Arctic Region. The National Strategy had identified three lines of effort to address challenges posed by the changing Arctic environment. The Implementation Plan sets forth the methodology, process, and approach for executing the Strategy.
Johnson Matthey’s New Engines for Tier 4 Compliance
To meet the emission limits for of the EPA’s New Source Performance Standards, new engines will come from the factory with low NOx, PM, CO and HC emissions. For existing engines, Johnson Matthey introduces a Tier 4 solution with its compact and efficient integrated SCRT (Selective Continuously Regenerating Technology) system combining its CRT diesel particulate filter (DPF) and SCR technology making it the best available retrofit technology on the market today.
New Propeller Optimization Process Can Analyze 10,000 Designs a Day
A newly developed propeller optimizer makes it much faster to identify propeller-hull reactions and reach design decisions. In the EU project STREAMLINE the fuel efficiency of a chemical tanker was improved by optimizing the hull form and propeller. To this end, MARIN used its hull optimization program PARNASSOS EXPLORER and a newly developed propeller optimizer. The hull form itself was optimized for low resistance and for having a wake field as rotationally symmetric as possible…
Marine Casualty Reports – Clarified
So you think you know when to make a marine casualty report? There has been a lot of confusion over the years as to when to make a marine casualty report with regard to certain incidents. Yet, although the Coast Guard constantly urges industry to make required reports, it has never promulgated national guidance to promote consistency in reporting based on uniform interpretation of the regulatory standards – until now.
New Stainless Steel Chemical Tanker Platform
Principal Maritime Management LLC of Southport, Connecticut, a shipping company owned by affiliates of Apollo Global Management LLC, has formed a new platform in…
Old Ships & Dirty Machinery
• 68 ships (41% of all detentions) were detained over the 3 month period as a direct result of the CIC for deficiencies related to propulsion and auxiliary machinery. Problem areas included the propulsion of the main engine, cleanliness of the engine room and emergency source of power/emergency generator. • In previous years deficiencies related to propulsion and machinery installations accounted on average for 7% of the total number of deficiencies within the Tokyo and Paris MoU´s…
FERC Drafts EIS on Freeport LNG Project
The staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has prepared a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Phase II Modification Project and the Liquefaction Project. The Projects are proposed by Freeport LNG and are located in Brazoria County near the city of Freeport, Texas. The proposed Phase II Modification Project includes: modification to the previously authorized liquefied natural gas (LNG) vessel berthing dock…
Floating Production Inventory Continues to Grow
The number of floating production systems continues to grow; 349 floating production units are now in service, on order or off-field/being remarketed. This inventory is 5% higher than a year ago, 27% higher than five years ago. Current Inventory: Of the total, 320 units are used for oil/gas production. Included in this figure are 211 FPSOs. They are the most common type system, comprising 65% of the existing systems and 72% of the systems on order.
EPA Lifts BP Suspension and Debarment
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and BP today executed an agreement resolving all suspension and debarment actions against BP that barred the company from doing business with the federal government following the company’s guilty plea in the Deepwater Horizon disaster of April 2010. The administrative agreement will be in place for five years. “This is a fair agreement that requires BP to improve its practices in order to meet the terms we’ve outlined together…
Proposal on Spray Painting Passes
NMMA in conjunction with Lauderdale Marine Center (LMC) and the National Fire Protection Committee on Spray Finishing, recently drafted and approved a new standard…
USCG ... Past, Present & Future
Ebeneezer Scrooge would be proud. This is our annual United States Coast Guard edition, and it could best be dubbed the “Christmas Carol” edition as we examine USCG Past, USCG Present and USCG Future. First looking back (but not too far back), and in step with our continued celebration of Maritime Reporter & Engineering News’ 75th Anniversary, Patricia Keefe takes an insightful look at the times, tribulations, leadership and legacy of Thad Allen, past Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard.
Kongsberg to Equip 10 Newbuild Pipelayers
Kongsberg Maritime has been chosen to deliver substantial technology packages for ten new pipelaying vessels ordered by Brazilian multinational energy corporation, Petrobras.
Coast Guard Closes Depoe Bay Bar Entrance
The U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port Sector Columbia River in Warrenton, Ore., issued the closure of the Depoe Bay bar entrance due to hazardous conditions at approximately 12:30 p.m., Sunday.
Manage Crew from the Cloud
With cloud computing technology having an increasing impact on daily life, its no surprise that more and more companies are turning to the cloud and the superyacht industry is no different. i-Bos Ltd, a crew management software provider is one of the first companies to launch their software to the cloud for the superyacht sector. i-Bos Ltd’s Cello Marine software is already used on 250 superyachts to assist in crew management, proving its need at sea.
