Marine Link
Tuesday, March 19, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Default News

21 Feb 2024

BIMCO Publishes Quiet Enjoyment Letters

© Gajus / Adobe Stock

BIMCO has published two standard Quiet Enjoyment Letters (QELs), the first standard form QELs available to the industry, to offer a tool that can ensure the charterers’ uninterrupted use of a ship if the owner defaults under the financing facility. The QELs will be provided by the lender to the charterer to ensure that the charterer, who does not have a contractual relationship with the lender but only with the owner, can continue to “quietly enjoy” the ship in case of the owner’s default.

23 May 2023

InterManager Urges European Commission to Employ Polluter Pays Principle

Captain Kuba Szymanski courtesy of InterManager

Ship management association InterManager is urging the European Commission to follow the polluter pays approach when finalising legislation intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from shipping in European waters.Shipowners are concerned that proposed EU-ETS legislation could miss its mark if it holds ship management firms accountable for emissions reductions rather than target the parties who control key pollution-related aspects of ship operation such as fuel, machinery and vessel speed.In a submission to the Commission


10 Apr 2023

A Proposal for a Small Change in Lloyds Open Form

Beached Schooner. No Cure No Pay offered and signed. Schooner refloated within two hours. All costs and award settled in three days.  Photos courtesy Rik van Hemmen

In February Gard published the results of its review of Lloyds Open Form (LOF). Their review indicated a disturbing reduction in the number of LOF contracts, and noted some other concerns with regard to loss of use of LOF in salvage situations.Lloyds Open Form is a classic and, in my mind, cherished, example of the core beauty of maritime. It combines a large number of maritime concepts into a simple device that solves a complex problem.It reminds me of a few of the lines in the song “Wooden Ships” by Crosby, Still, Nash and Young.

27 Feb 2023

Uncrewed Ships Set to Bring Diversity Boost

(Image: Icean Infinity)

The maritime industry’s movement toward remote vessel operations will not only build a more diverse workforce, it will benefit from it, argues marine robotics company Ocean Infinity.Greater workforce diversity, whether it be considered along lines of ethnicity, gender identity, sexuality, age, socioeconomic status, neurotype, physical ability or any other parameter, has shifted over the course of the last decade from a ‘nice to have’ to a fundamental value. The modern view of society that the thought leaders at Ocean Infinity subscribe to, is often characterized as ‘intersectionality’.

31 Oct 2022

Pacific Basin Chooses Methanol as Preferred Fuel

Hong-Kong-headquartered dry bulk shipowner Pacific Basin Shipping said it sees methanol as its best option as it pursues commercially viable zero-emissions vessels.In May 2022, the company entered into a memorandum of understanding with Nihon Shipyard Co., Ltd and Mitsui & Co., Ltd to cooperate on the development of zero-emission vessels and potential investment in related green fuel bunkering infrastructure."We have collectively now completed our feasibility assessment of the various potential green fuels (covering fuel characteristics, availability and scalability, technical pros and cons, lifetime operating and capital costs, etc.)


15 Sep 2022

NTSB Reports on Collision Between Mississippi River Barge and Train

Aerial photo of the derailment of the two locomotives and eight hopper cars. Two additional hopper cars are submerged in the river. (Source: BNSF)​

The National Transportation Board said Thursday that a Mississippi River towing vessel’s pilot and its captain pushed its tow up against a riverbank too close to a railroad track, leading to a collision and train derailment near Galland, Iowa.Marine Investigation Report 22/22 details the NTSB’s investigation into the Nov. 13, 2021, collision between the towing vessel Baxter Southern and a BNSF coal train transiting the track along the shoreline of the Upper Mississippi River. The train struck a barge that was overhanging the railroad track.

23 Aug 2022

Superyacht Linked to Sanctioned Russian Oligarch Auctioned in Gibraltar

A $75-million superyacht linked to a sanctioned Russian steel billionaire was auctioned on Tuesday in Gibraltar, court sources said, in what is understood to be the first sale of its kind since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.The Axioma was granted entry into Gibraltarian waters and then impounded by the authorities in March after U.S. bank JP Morgan said its alleged owner Dmitry Pumpyansky had reneged on the terms of a $20 million loan.The 72.5-metre vessel is being auctioned by the Gibraltar Admiralty Court. It was listed for one day, with closed bids to be sent electronically by midday on Tuesday, a court spokesman said.Nigel Hollyer


05 Jul 2022

Maritime Communications: Easier, Faster, Cheaper

(Photo: David Clark Company)

In November 2021, GTMaritime published a white paper: “Maritime Communications - A look over the horizon.” The report, available here, is built around three broad Sections – 1. “Basics of marine Communications;” 2. “The connected ship;” and 3. “Special services.”Then, each Section presents a closer look at various topics. The “Basics” section, for example, covers regulatory issues established by IMO treaties and national agencies. It presents the terms and concepts that define satellite systems and networks


31 Oct 2022

Armach Robotics Set to Take the Pole Position on Ship Hull Maintenance, Intelligence

Image courtesy Armach Robotics

Melding advanced software, intelligence, robotics and navigation, Armach Robotics – a spinoff of Greensea Systems – leads a step change in ship hull cleaning and maintenance with its Robotics as a Service model. Ben Kinnaman, the CEO of Greensea Systems, explains.Ben, to start us off, please give us a background on Armach Robotics? Where did the idea come from and where are we today?Greensea Systems is a software company, well-known for our software platform on ocean robotics. We're also well-known for our unique navigation and autonomy solutions.

28 Feb 2022

UN Bodies Call for More Action to End Crew Change Crisis

© Genya / Adobe Stock

Four UN organizations have called for continued global collaboration to address the crew change crisis that at times during the COVID-19 pandemic has left more than 400,000 seafarers stranded at sea.In a joint statement issued on February 28, the International Labor Organization (ILO), the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the World Health Organization (WHO) say new challenges and variants of concern like Omicron threaten to worsen the plight of the world’s seafarers


10 Nov 2021

OpEd: Why We Must Assess Shipping’s Route to Decarbonization

© nmann77 / Adobe Stock

Despite transporting roughly 90% of the world’s cargo, the shipping industry has so far been underrepresented in the global decarbonization discussion. This rhetoric is however changing. For the first time in history, shipping was officially on the agenda at the UN climate change conference, COP26. Likewise, the recent United Nations General Assembly saw leaders from the U.S., Australia, India, and Japan place shipping at the top of a list of pledges, with plans to form a “Green


04 Nov 2021

Maritime Cybersecurity: Prepare, Detect and Respond

© pinkeyes / Adobe Stock

At a time when the world has become more aware than ever before about the vital importance of the world’s ocean shipping fleet, which carried supplies, merchandise and much needed personal protective equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic, an increased risk from a different threat, cyberattacks, presents a set of new challenges. According to Israeli cybersecurity specialist Naval Dome, since February 2020, there has been a 400% increase in attempted hacks on the maritime realm


28 Oct 2021

Marine Biofouling in Ports: Wet Docks Acting as ‘Hot Spot’ Biofouling Transfer Stations

Figure 3.  Ships Sea Water Cooling System Components. Source: The Author

The GEF-UNDP-IMO Glofouling partnership (2017) is a global initiative to counter the environmental issue of invasive aquatic species (IAS) and the resulting harmful ecological and financial damage that can occur when such invasion events are introduced through the medium of biofouling on ships hulls and other marine structures such as those found in the oil and gas industries.One of the key objectives of the Glofouling project is to develop a Global Knowledge Hub and also identify


21 Oct 2021

Stena Partners with Proman to Develop Methanol Retrofit and Supply Solution

(Image: Stena)

Shipping company Stena is working with methanol producer Proman to develop a retrofit and supply solution that will allow both Stena’s vessels as well as third party vessels to operate on cleaner-burning methanol fuel.The plan builds upon the previously announced joint venture between Stena Bulk and Proman for three methanol-ready tankers. The first of these vessels, the 49,900 DWT Stena Pro Patria will be delivered in early 2022, with a further three Proman-owned but mutually


20 Jul 2021

Offshore Wind & Shipping – Importance of Interplay Between Shipbuilding Contracts and Charters

Credit: benoitgrasser/AdobeStock

While 2020 proved to be a challenging year for offshore oil and gas markets, the same cannot be said about offshore renewables, which saw substantial growth."It is expected that a number of offshore support vessels (“OSVs”) and crew boats will be redeployed from the offshore oil and gas sector to service the offshore wind industry and that existing offshore wind installation vessels will be upgraded as turbines continue to scale up."Offshore renewable projects achieved an estimated record project sanctioning of US$56bn


05 Jul 2021

Infrastrata Responds to Triumph Subsea Claims

Credit: Triumph Subsea Services

Triumph Subsea Services last week said it had cancelled a letter of intent with Infrastrata related to the proposed construction of an offshore wind development vessel, and said it wouldn't build any vessels with Infrastrata or any of its shipyards. Responding to Triumph, Infrastata said Triumph had not achieved any of the milestones required to proceed with the shipbuilding project.The two companies had signed the Letter of intent for one firm and one optional ST designed 200m x 35m Windfarm Development Vessels (WDV)


25 Jun 2021

Seismic Firm Polarcus Set for Business Wind-down, Delisting from Oslo Exchange

Polarcus Limited, a seismic surveyor in liquidation, is set to be wound down and delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange.As previously reported, in January this year, lenders took control of the company's vessels after a debt payment default, and decided to sell them and let go all the employees.On February 8, 2021, David Griffin and Andrew Morrison of FTI Cayman, and Lisa Rickelton of FTI London were appointed Joint Provisional Liquidators (JPL) of the struggling seismic services provider by an order of the Court. Liquidators were specifically authorized by the Court to take all necessary steps to develop and propose a restructuring of the company’s financial indebtedness with a view to making a compromise or arrangement with the company’s creditors.Since their appointment


01 Jun 2021

Waterways Commerce Cutter: It's Time for an Upgrade

USCGC Smilax is an inland construction tender commissioned in 1944. Smilax is the “Queen of the Fleet”, as the oldest commissioned U.S. Coast Guard cutter. (Photo: U.S. Coast Guard)

In the last week of April, with little fanfare, the U.S. Coast Guard released a much-anticipated opportunity to build up to 27 Waterways Commerce Cutters. After the detailed design and construction contract is awarded in Spring of 2022, a lucky shipbuilder will begin replacing the Coast Guard’s eclectic fleet of 18 venerable river buoy tenders (WLR) and 13 inland construction tenders (WLIC).The Coast Guard’s inland waterways maintenance fleet has been ignored for far too long.

22 Apr 2021

Samskip to Run Part of Its Fleet on Biofuel

(Photo: Samskip)

Multimodal logistics company Samskip said it has reached a formal agreement with sustainable cargo initiative GoodShipping to run part of its vessel fleet on cleaner burning biofuels.According to Samskip, the initial usage of biofuels will enable a CO2 emissions reduction of up to 45%, with plans to scale up to a CO2 reduction of up to 80% for any given voyage later in 2021.The Samskip Endeavour, an 800TEU capacity containership which normally runs on traditional fuels, is the first of Samskip's vessels to have started using sustainable biofuels in its recent sailings.Two years ago


15 Feb 2021

Subsea Defense: Navy Deepens Commitment to Underwater Vehicles

Senior Chief Mineman Abraham Garcia (left) and Aerographer's Mate 1st Class Joshua Gaskill, members of the Knifefish Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (UUV) test team, man tending lines during crane operations as part of an operational test conducted by members from Operational Test and Evaluation Force (OPTEVFOR). Knifefish is a medium-class mine countermeasure UUV designed for deployment off the Littoral Combat Ship. OPTEVFOR is the Navy’s sole test and evaluation organization for surface, air, and un

The U.S. Navy uses unmanned and robotic underwater vehicles for a multitude of functions, including environmental sensing, mine hunting, and salvage. The Navy plans to evolve an unmanned systems operating concept that is platform agnostic and capable of operating in highly complex contested environments with minimal operator interaction.The most recent edition of the Navy’s Unmanned Systems (UxS) Roadmap was issued in 2018, and a new version is expected in the near future. The 2018 document states that UxS will operate in every domain


03 Feb 2021

Shipbuilder in Mozambique Debt Scandal Says It Made Payments to Now-President Nyusi

(Photo: Alexie Morin / Privinvest)

A Lebanese shipbuilder at the center of a $2 billion debt scandal in Mozambique said it made payments to its now-president and ruling party in 2014, but said these were legal campaign donations not bribes, according to a London court filing.Privinvest said payments made to President Filipe Nyusi in the run-up to his election and to the Frelimo party were allowed under Mozambican law, according to the Jan. 15 filing at London’s High Court.The case relates to a series of tuna fishing


02 Feb 2021

Lenders to Sell Polarcus' Vessels. All Employees to Be Laid Off

A Polarcus vessel - Credit: Alf van Beem - Wikimedia/CC0 1.0

Lenders of the troubled marine seismic contractor Polarcus, which last week took control of the company's vessels after a debt payment default, will sell Polarcus' vessels and all the employees will be let go.Banks last week tool control of Polarcus' subsidiaries that own seismic vessels, with the subsidiaries in question being Polarcus Asima AS, Polarcus Alima AS, Polarcus Amani AS, Polarcus Adira AS, Polarcus Nadia AS, Polarcus Naila AS - bearing the corresponding vessels' names,   and Polarcus Shipholding AS.

27 Jan 2021

Lenders Take Control of Polarcus' Ships After Default on Debt

A Polarcus vessel - Credit: Alf van Beem - Wikimedia/CC0 1.0

Lenders took control of Polarcus' ships on Tuesday after the seismic surveyor defaulted on its bank loans and bonds, hit by a drop in spending by energy companies struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic and volatile oil prices.The company's Oslo-listed shares plunged as much as 47% after they resumed trading following an earlier suspension.Polarcus said lenders had taken over shares in subsidiaries that own seismic vessels and replaced directors in each subsidiary, but wanted to continue its operations."In parallel with their actions described above


Subscribe for
Maritime Reporter E-News

Maritime Reporter E-News is the maritime industry's largest circulation and most authoritative ENews Service, delivered to your Email five times per week