Michael News

Boston-based Blue Water Autonomy, a company designing and producing unmanned ships for the U.S. Navy, has formed an Advisory Board whose members include:• RADM (ret.) Tom Anderson, former Program Executive Officer, Ships (PEO Ships)• Stephen Rodriguez, Chairman of Blue Forge Alliance & dual-use investor• Michael Stewart, former Director, Navy Disruptive Capabilities Office and Unmanned Task Force• VADM (ret.) Roy Kitchener, former Commander, Naval Surface Forces Pacific"As we enter the next phase of growth…

Israeli forces stopped 14 boats carrying foreign activists and aid bound for Gaza, flotilla organisers said on Thursday, but 23 boats are continuing to sail towards the war-ravaged Palestinian enclave, according to the flotilla's tracking system.A video from the Israeli foreign ministry verified by Reuters showed the most prominent of the flotilla's passengers, Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg, sitting on a deck surrounded by soldiers."Several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port…

The Port of Philadelphia - PhilaPort has acquired the Mustin Yard from Norfolk Southern Corporation, deemed as one of the critical assets for the port’s future growth.Located adjacent to PhilaPort’s SouthPort Marine Terminal, the 152-acre Mustin Yard represents the last available land at the nexus of deep water, rail, and highway access.The acquisition of Mustin Yard, which was originally part of the former Philadelphia Navy Yard, will allow PhilaPort to significantly expand its cargo handling capacity…

Five U.S. unions are calling on lawmakers to pass legislation that would help secure long-term funding to revive domestic shipbuilding, an effort championed by President Donald Trump and boosted by new port fees on Chinese ships.The United States on October 14 is slated to begin collecting fees on China-linked vessels that visit the nation's seaports. While final rules from the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) are pending, HSBC analysts recently said China's COSCO Shipping is…

Inland Terminals Group (ITG), Zero Emission Services (ZES) and Nedcargo are launching fully emission-free container transport on inland waterways. From today, the inland vessel MS Den Bosch Max Groen will sail with exchangeable battery containers on board. With this electric propulsion system, no CO2, nitrogen or particulate matter is emitted.ZES offers a solution for making inland shipping more sustainable through mobile, swappable battery containers (Zespacks). These large-scale batteries provide inland vessels with clean energy without long charging times.

Homeland ministers from Britain, the United States and the other "Five Eyes" alliance will announce new measures this week to increase border security and target people smugglers, British interior minister Shabana Mahmood said on Sunday.The ministers from the Five Eyes intelligence sharing network - the U.S., Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand - will meet in London on Monday and Tuesday, Britain's Home Office said, with measures to "smash criminal smuggling gangs" the focus of the talks."We will agree new measures to protect our borders with our Five Eyes partners…

The cruise ship Genting Dream has rescued a person from a small boat in distress in the Straits of Malacca during a voyage from Singapore to Phuket, operator Dream Cruises informed.The crew spotted an individual signaling for help and launched a rescue operation, bringing the person safely onboard on the morning of September 3.The rescued individual received food, refreshments, and a medical assessment from the ship’s medical team, and is reported to be in stable condition.Dream…

The Trump administration on Thursday issued more Iran-related sanctions, targeting 13 entities based in Hong Kong, China, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands, as well as eight vessels, the U.S. Treasury Department said.The measures cover Greek national Antonios Margaritis and his network of companies and vessels that Treasury said was involved in transporting Iranian oil exports in violation of sanctions.Treasury also designated Ares Shipping Limited in Hong Kong…

It was at an 18th century Georgian manor house outside London that Japanese lawmaker Rui Matsukawa began to have serious doubts about America’s commitment to defending her country.Matsukawa, a former deputy defense minister, traveled in March to historic Fordham Abbey for a top-level bilateral conference. At the estate, now home to a Japanese-owned sake brewery, she said she learned from British lawmakers, diplomats and business leaders that a tectonic shift in their thinking was underway.U.S. President Donald Trump was openly berating America’s European allies and tilting toward Russia.

Lloyd’s List Intelligence has announced the appointment of Waqas Samad as Chief Executive Officer. In his role, Waqas will spearhead the Company’s ongoing global expansion and drive ambitious innovation initiatives, ensuring that as geopolitical developments reshape global trade and heighten the strategic importance of the maritime sector, the company continues to deliver comprehensive and forward-looking trade intelligence solutions.Waqas brings more than three decades of global experience at the intersection of finance, data and technology.

Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) advised a consortium of lenders comprising Nordea Bank Abp, filial i Norge (“Nordea”), acting as facility and security agent, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, ABN AMRO Bank N.V. and Danske Bank A/S on a US$350m revolving credit facility provided to Ardmore Shipping Corporation (“Ardmore”) to refinance Ardmore’s existing revolving credit facilities and for general corporate purposes. The facility was secured by 20 of Ardmore’s vessels.Founded in 2010…

An LNG tanker targeted by U.S. sanctions has berthed at Russia's Arctic LNG 2 plant, the fourth such vessel to do so this year, shiptracking data from Kpler and LSEG showed.The Christophe De Margerie tanker arrived unloaded at Arctic LNG 2 on August 9, showed Kpler data. The vessel was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury department in January as part of a broader goal to target Russia's oil and gas revenues.The Arctic LNG 2 project, which is 60%-owned by Russia's Novatek, is also subject to Western sanctions over Russia's conflict with Ukraine.Three sanctioned vessels…

The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on what it said was a Houthi-linked petroleum smuggling and sanctions evasion network across Yemen and the United Arab Emirates in fresh action targeting the Iran-backed militant group.The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said the two individuals and five entities sanctioned on Tuesday were among the most significant importers of petroleum products and money launderers that benefit the Houthis."The Houthis collaborate with…

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis said on Monday that a cargo ship they struck with gunfire, rockets and explosive-laden remote-controlled boats had sunk in the Red Sea, after their first known attack on the high seas this year.The ship's Greek operator Stem Shipping told Reuters it had no independent verification. Reuters could also not immediately verify whether the ship had sunk.The Houthis claimed responsibility for Sunday's assault and said they had allowed the 19 crew members to disembark from the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier…

Wind Multiplikator, a subsidiary of Danish company Semco Maritime, has signed a long-term charter agreement with Norwegian shipping company Norwind Offshore for a Commissioning Service Operation Vessel (CSOV), set for deployment at an offshore wind farm in German North Sea.The newly built vessel Norwind Maestro is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2026, with a sister ship of the same design available from the fourth quarter of 2025.Both CSOVs will operate directly out of Emden…

James Fisher and Sons, a global provider of marine solutions, has marked the start of construction of its chemical tankers fleet with the laying of the keel for the first vessel, Orca Fisher, at the China Merchants Industry Yangzhou Dingheng Shipyard (YZDH).Orca Fisher is the first of four next-generation vessels - known as the Sealife class - introduced as part of James Fisher’s Fleet of the Future, a long-term program to modernize its tankships fleet with more efficient, lower-carbon vessels that support the use of alternative fuel propulsion.The new vessels - which includes Orca Fisher…

A Greek-operated bulk carrier, Magic Seas, sustained severe damage in a multi-pronged attack off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, believed to have been carried out by Houthi militants. All 19 crew members aboard were safely rescued and are expected to arrive in Djibouti later Monday, according to the ship’s operator, Stem Shipping.However, Magic Seas, a Liberian-flagged vessel transporting iron and fertilizers from China to Turkey, is now at risk of sinking, Stem Shipping representative Michael Bodouroglou said.

Russia's only aircraft carrier, the 40-year-old Admiral Kuznetsov, is likely to be sold or scrapped, the chairman of Russia's state shipbuilding corporation told the Kommersant newspaper in comments published on Friday.Andrei Kostin's remarks follow a report in the daily Izvestia newspaper earlier this month, which cited unnamed sources as saying long-running refit and maintenance work on the warship had been suspended.Launched in 1985 when the Soviet Union still existed, the Admiral Kuznetsov saw action in Russia's military campaign in Syria in support of then-President Bashar al-Assad…

Britain's Prince William on Sunday called on world leaders and businesses to take urgent action to protect the planet's oceans, saying it was a challenge "like none we have faced before."Speaking ahead of the U.N. Ocean Conference, which begins in France on Monday, William said rising sea temperatures, plastic pollution and overfishing were putting pressure on fragile ecosystems and the people who depend on them."What once seemed an abundant resource is diminishing before our eyes…

A key U.S. warship arrived in Australia on Saturday ahead of joint war games and the first summit between Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and President Donald Trump, which is expected to be dominated by military issues.The America, the U.S. Navy's lead amphibious assault ship in the Indo-Pacific, entered Sydney Harbour as the first of three ships in a strike group carrying 2,500 sailors and marines, submarine-hunting helicopters and F-35B fighter jets.More than 30,000 personnel from 19 militaries have begun to arrive in Australia for Talisman Sabre, the largest Australian-U.S.

Scandlines is taking another step in its long-term strategy to protect the Baltic region and the Fehmarn Belt, which the ferries cross daily.With a total investment of more than EUR 31 million ($35 million), the company is converting two of the ferries operating the Puttgarden-Rødby route to plug-in hybrid ferries.The aim is to reduce CO₂e emissions by up to 80% and promote ferry operations based on power from renewable energy sources.On average, the batteries in the ferries will…

Britain has rejected a 25 billion pound ($34.39 billion) Moroccan renewable energy project that would have used solar and wind power from the Sahara to supply up to seven million UK homes.The British government, which is aiming to largely decarbonise its electricity sector by 2030, said on Thursday it believed domestic projects could offer better economic benefits."The government has concluded that it is not in the UK national interest at this time to continue further consideration of support for the Morocco-UK Power Project," energy department minister Michael Shanks said in a written stateme

Germany is considering changing its foreign trade law to prevent the company running the Nord Stream 2 pipelines from being taken over, a document showed on Friday, as part of Berlin's efforts to prevent any resumption of Russian gas imports.For decades Germany relied on cheap Russian gas, but since the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine, it has sought alternatives.German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said he will ensure Nord Stream 2, which the country once backed, would not go into operation…