Maritime Industry Top News
SAFEEN Drydocks - a New Name in Middle East Ship Repair
AD Ports Group and Premier Marine Engineering Services LLC formed a new joint venture, SAFEEN Drydocks, owned 51% by AD Ports Group, 49% by Premier Marine.The new enterprise will offer a broad range of vital services including drydocking, afloat repairs, ship building and refurbishment. The hub of SAFEEN Drydocksâ operations will be located at Khalifa Port and encompass a 45,000 sq. m. shipyard and repair facilityâŠ
Panama Canal Postpones Depth Restrictions after Much-needed Rain
The Panama Canal will postpone depth restrictions that were set to affect the largest ships crossing the key waterway, the canal authority said, after much-needed rain provided relief to the strained maritime passage.A series of measures were scheduled to go into effect on June 25 and July 9 requiring ships to float at higher depths, meaning they needed to carry less cargo or otherwise shed weightâŠ
Shell Shipping, Orca AI Aim to Drive Navigation Innovation
Shell Shipping & Maritime and Orca AI kicked off with a pilot project trialing Tel Aviv-based start-up Orca AIâs maritime navigation platform on a Shell-managed gas tanker. But it has now morphed into a long-term development collaboration resulting in new features that can significantly enhance safety at sea. Here Saurabh Kumar, Project Engineer at Shell Shipping & Maritime, and Dor Raviv, CTO at Orca AIâŠ
Maritime Transport in 2040: How FutureTechnologies Will Impact Seafarers
On 26 June, the International Transport Workersâ Federation (ITF) and the World Maritime University (WMU) launched a flagship report entitled, Transport 2040 - Impact of Technology on Seafarers - The Future of Work, during the International Chamber of Shippingâs Shaping the Future of Shipping event in Manila, Philippines. The research results provide an in-depth exploration of a number of maritime issues related to future ship technologiesâŠ
USCG Launches Titan Submersible Investigation
The U.S. Coast Guard convened a Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) -- the highest level of investigation in the Coast Guard -- into the loss of the Titan submersible and the five people on board. The crew of the Polar Prince research vessel lost contact with the Titan submersible 1 hour and 45 minutes into its dive on Sunday, June 18, 2023. After an extensive search and rescue effort, wreckage ofâŠ
Maersk Orders Six Methanol-powered Container Vessels
Shipping group A.P. Moller-Maersk on Monday said it had ordered from China's Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Group six mid-size container vessels capable of running on green methanol.The ships, which run on dual-fuel engines that can operate on both fuel oil and methanol, can carry upwards of 9,000 containers. Maersk, which ordered its first methanol-powered vessel in 2021, now has a total 25 methanol-powered ships on order."With this orderâŠ
U.S. House Committee Green-Lights Strong Funding - WCI
The House Committee on Appropriations approved by a vote of 34-24 the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Energy and Water Development (E&W) Appropriations Bill. Included in the bill are Community Project Funding (CPF) requests for Inland Waterways Trust Fund (IWTF) construction projects.Overall proposed funding for Corpsâ Civil Works is $9.57 billion, an increase of $910 million above FY23âs appropriated levelâŠ
Maritime Safety - Enclosed Space Safety
It's nearly 45 years since the tragedy on the ANCO Duke where seven crew died at the bottom of the tank they were cleaning. âI was working on chemical tankers then. All the crew felt this terrible loss of life and took on tank entries with a heightened safety focus,â says Captain Dave Watkins, Deputy Director of the confidential near-miss reporting service CHIRP Maritime. Since then, enclosed space deaths still occurâŠ
Subsea Cable Laying, Protection Innovation Funded in Japan
NYK, as a member of a consortium of four companies (also including: Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.; Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.; and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd.) has been selected by Japanâs New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) in an open call for applications related to the "Development of basic technologies for a multi-purpose and multi-terminal high voltage direct current transmission systemâŠ
After Titanic Sub Disaster, Industry Faces Scrutiny
The first fatal accident aboard a deep-sea tourist submersible is certain to raise calls for additional safety regulations, but industry experts say any new measures may be impossible to enforce given the international nature of the business.Moreover, they say the tragedy of the Titan submersible that imploded during its expedition to the wreckage of the Titanic was an outlier, given that the maker of the vessel opted against certifying the vesselâŠ
Yara Clean Ammonia, Bunker Holding Team on Ammonia
Yara Clean Ammonia (YCA) and Bunker Holding Group signed an MoU establishing the intention to collaborate to accelerate the development of the market for ammonia as a shipping fuel. This agreement connects two key elements of the supply chain needed to achieve the use of clean ammonia as a shipping fuel, namely a global supplier of clean ammonia and the largest bunker supplier today in terms of endâŠ
Siemens Energy Shares Tumble 31% as Wind Turbine Troubles Exposed
Siemens Energy saw $6.3 billion wiped off its market capitalization on Friday after warning that the impact of quality problems at its Siemens Gamesa wind turbine business would be felt for years.The group scrapped its 2023 profit outlook late on Thursday after a review of its wind turbine division exposed deeper-than-expected problems that could cost more than 1 billion euros."This is a disappointing and severe setbackâŠ
Marubeni and bound4blue Agree Wind Propulsion Sales Partnership
Japan-based Marubeni Corporation and bound4blue, a Spanish engineering company which manufactures and sells a wind propulsion system, have concluded entered a sales partnership.Marubeni will promote retail activities for bound4blueâs suction-type eSAILs both domestically and internationally and will act as the exclusive business partner in the Japanese market.The basic principles of eSAIL are similar to those underlying the generation of lifting power by airplane wings.
Mixed Fortunes on Far East to Europe Trades
With the peak ocean freight cargo season approaching, the latest data from Oslo-based Xeneta shows mixed fortunes, and outlooks, for the two main Far East to Europe trade corridors.Xenetaâs analysis reveals that shippers opting for the Far East â Mediterranean route are currently paying a spot rate premium compared to those choosing a North European option. There are also clear implications for long-term contractsâŠ
Retrofit Package Designed to Include Solar, Wind and Storage
RINA has awarded an Approval in Principle (AiP) for a green retrofit package designed by naval architect Aurelia in partnership with Econowind, Wattlab and Vertom.The solution incorporates rigid sails, solar panels, batteries, optimised weather-routing, and a smart decision support system developed by Hydrographic and Marine Consultants (HMC) to dramatically reduce emissions on an existing 203,000dwt Newcastlemax bulk carrier.For the Newcastlemax bulk carrierâŠ
ABS and Texas A&M University Partner on Fuel and AI Research
ABS and Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) have signed a research agreement to investigated ammonia as fuel, ship electrification, carbon capture and sequestration, trusted artificial intelligence (AI), and safety of industrial wearable visualization technologies, among other topics.The research agreement is part of the continuing collaboration between ABS and Texas A&M which includes a recent endowment establishing the ABS Ocean Engineering Department Chair.
Voyage Planning Tool Errors Contributed to Grounding
The use of a draft voyage planning tool which included waypoint data errors plus an ongoing technical fault with the vessel monitoring and surveillance system for the Great Barrier Reef contributed to a cargo shipâs grounding on a shoal, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has concluded.The 81-meter general cargo ship Trinity Bay grounded on Harrington Shoal, a charted feature with a depth of 0.9 metres north-west of Harrington ReefâŠ
USCG Commandant Visits Austal USA
Admiral Linda Fagan, U.S. Coast Guard Commandant, visited Austal USA Thursday to tour the Mobile, Ala. shipyard's manufacturing facilities and discuss the companyâs contract for the serviceâs Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC).Austal USA said in a press release its leadership briefed the Commandant on the companyâs steel shipbuilding production line. The 117,000 square foot steel panel lineâŠ
Titanic Sub Pieces Found on Ocean Floor; No Survivors
The five people aboard a missing submersible are thought to be dead, according to the company that owns the vessel, bringing a grim end on Thursday to the massive search for the vessel that was lost during a voyage to the Titanic."These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the worldâs oceans," OceanGate Expeditions said in a statement.
Corps Launches Lower Miss 'Mega-study'
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is kicking off a five-year, $25 million "mega-study" with the goal to help guide effective and practical management of the Lower Mississippi River.The Corps said the the study will help it to identify recommendations for the comprehensive management of the region across multiple purposes, including hurricane and storm damage reduction, flood risk management, structure and nonstructural flood controlâŠ
