France News

A group of protesting farmers on Thursday sought to block operations at the port of Bordeaux in southwestern France, as a new bout of agricultural anger intensified in Europe's largest crop-producing country.Farmers in their tractors blocked all of the access roads to the port, which links the city to the Atlantic via the Garonne river, Jose Perez, a local labor representative from the Coordination Rurale union told Reuters."We will stay here because we still don't have answers (from the government)"…

The COP29 climate talks in Azerbaijan aim to agree an annual finance target of $1 trillion or more a year to help poorer countries respond to global warming. Some see new taxes as one way to get there. The Global Solidarity Levies Task Force (GSLT), led by France, Barbados and Kenya, is exploring the issue. Below are excerpts from its latest report on the options being discussed -- as it pertains to shipping and fossil fuels -- and estimates about how much could be raised.SHIPPINGThe levy that could be closest to being agreed is for shipping…

Germany is expanding its natural gas import options to replace Russian supply. Following are updates on key facilities and terminals being developed to host floating storage regasification units (FSRUs) to receive seaborne liquefied natural gas (LNG). Plans also include shore-based regasification terminals and facilities to import and produce ammonia and hydrogen.STADEState-owned Deutsche Energy Terminal (DET) has said in German media reports that FSRUs at both Stade and Wilhelmshaven 2 will start operations before the winter, without specifying precise commissioning dates.

Almost five years ago, BP embarked on an ambitious attempt to transform itself from an oil company into a business focused on low-carbon power. The British company is now trying to return to its roots as a big oil and gas player with a growth story to match rivals, revive its share price and allay investor concerns over future profits.Rivals Shell and Norway's state-controlled Equinor are also scaling back energy transition plans set out earlier this decade. Their change of direction…

The LPMA: Maritime and Aquaculture Professional School of Bastia will on November 15, 2024, inaugurate France's first hydrogen-electric powered fishing training vessel, dubbed Alba, which was designed by a MAURIC-led consortium.Alba vessel has been specifically designed to include fishing training capabilities such as longline and seine techniques.The vessel can accommodate up to 12 students and 2 instructors (crew).With an overall length of 19.95 meters, the maximum length allowed by the LPMA specifications…

Germany has refused to allow a Russian LNG shipment at the Brunsbuttel terminal in northern Germany in line with Berlin's policy not to import LNG from Russia, industry sources said on Thursday.The Financial Times reported earlier on Thursday that Germany's economy ministry BMWK had instructed the Deutsche Energy Terminal not to accept any deliveries of Russian LNG after the company informed Berlin that its Brunsbuttel import facility was set to receive a Russian cargo on Sunday.It was not clear who ordered the shipment.

A new study published by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) indicates that up to 4,300 premature deaths can be avoided by an emissions control area in the North Atlantic. The economic benefits of this health benefit could amount to as much as €29 billion ($31 billion).As part of an international coalition that has already contributed to the establishment of an Emission Control Area (ECA) in the Mediterranean, NABU is committed to an ECA in the North Atlantic (AtlECA) and plans to submit a proposal to the IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) in spring 2025…

Strong global demand pushed up CMA CGM's third-quarter profit while the current quarter was seeing a rush to ship goods from China, the shipping group said on Friday as it played down the risk to trade from possible U.S. tariffs.The French company reported a net profit of $2.73 billion for third quarter, up from $388 million in the year-earlier period, supported by a 5.5% increase in volume for its main ocean shipping division.Like other shipping firms, CMA CGM has benefited from restocking by U.S.

A ceremony attended by dignitaries has marked the official ‘birth date’ for the two new ships which will serve the Penzance to Isles of Scilly route for the Isles of Scilly Steamship Group (ISSG).The keel laying is a milestone in the build process, recognized for centuries as the ‘birth’ of a new ship and an important point for the Scillonian IV passenger ferry and the cargo vessel, Menawethan.Guests attended Piriou’s shipyard in Vietnam on November 6.,2024 to officially mark the moment, while dignitaries from Britain and France were all present.

The French government has selected winning proposals for a hydrogen import terminal, a renewable fuels facility and a lithium production factory to be built at the state-run port of Le Havre as part of an effort to attract industrial investment, the finance ministry said on Thursday.The land around the port was labelled a turnkey investment site under the 30 billion euro "France 2030" plan, allowing Haropa Port — the public entity that manages the ports of Rouen, Le Havre and Paris — to launch a tender for green projects.The three winners will benefit from accelerated approval procedures…

Almacam is a leader in nesting-CAM software for shipyards. Philippe Rouzeau, Manager of the Shipyard Team, Almacam, explains how it solutions can help shipyards shave production costs and increase efficiency.Almacam is a 45-year-old, employee-owned company created by researchers that were mono-focused on developing nesting algorithms in a laboratory of Grenoble University, France, aiming to bring this nesting algorithm tech to the industry.According to Rouzeau, it is the world's only independent CAD-CAM software publisher offering CAM solutions across industries…

Eureka Naval Craft is introducing its suite of high-speed AIRCAT (air cushion catamarans) surface effect ships (SES), already in use with the offshore energy industry, to the defense market.According to Bo Jardine, CEO of Eureka Naval Craft, a newly formed U.S.-based naval defense company, the versatile suite of AIRCAT naval vessels can serve as a patrol craft, rescue craft, medical evacuation vessels, heavily armed small combatants and landing craft.The AIRCAT SES has both an air cushion…

Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson will remain in detention in Greenland where he has been held since July while Denmark decides whether to extradite him to Japan, local police said on Wednesday.U.S.-Canadian Watson, 73, founder of the Sea Shepherd conservationist group and of the Captain Paul Watson Foundation, was apprehended by police in the Danish autonomous region when his ship docked at the port of Nuuk on July 21."We continue to fight for the case to be concluded," his lawyer Jonas Christoffersen told Reuters…

Germany inaugurated on Monday a new multinational naval headquarters for the Baltic Sea capable of leading operations for NATO during a conflict, as the military alliance increases focus on the area amid rising tensions with Russia."Our message to our partners and to those who threaten our peace is simple: Germany stands firmly by its commitments," Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said according to a draft of his speech at a ceremony at the country's naval command in the coastal city of Rostock…

Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, detained in Greenland and awaiting possible extradition to Japan, has appealed to President Emmanuel Macron for political asylum in France his Captain Paul Watson Foundation said on Wednesday.US.-Canadian Watson, 73, founder of the Sea Shepherd conservationist group, was stopped by police when his ship docked at the port of Nuuk in Greenland on July 21.He has since been detained in Greenland, a Danish autonomous region, while Denmark decides whether to extradite him to Japan.Japan issued an international warrant for his arrest more than a decade ago…

India approved on Wednesday plans to construct two of a new class of nuclear-powered attack submarines, two defence officials said, in a project estimated to cost about 450 billion rupees ($5.4 billion).As India scrambles to modernise its military in the face of China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean region, it is focusing on boosting naval capabilities, and improving domestic weapons-making capacity.Prime Minister Narendra Modi's cabinet gave the go-ahead for the first two submarines of a new class of six the Indian Navy plans to make, the officials added, speaking on condition of anony

Green hydrogen producer Lhyfe and low-carbon molecules specialist Elyse Energy have set out plans to jointly develop the production of e-methanol from green hydrogen at Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port area in France.The project, known as Green Coast, will be developed the heart of the Loire estuary’s industrial and logistics port ecosystem, to produce e-methanol – one of the key fuels for the decarbonization of maritime transport industry.In late 2023, Nantes Saint-Nazaire Port selected Lhyfe to set up an industrial production and distribution operation for green hydrogen.At the time…

Greece will start negotiations to buy a fourth Belharra frigate from France to strengthen its navy as it recovers from a decade-long debt crisis, the country's defence minister said on Thursday.Greece agreed in 2021 to get three new Belharra frigates for 3.0 billion euros ($3.34 billion), with an option for one more, as it aims to replace old units that have operated for more than 30 years in its navy."I am pleased to announce today Greece's intention to start negotiations to acquire one more frigate…

Eight people have died trying to cross the Channel from France to England, French authorities said on Sunday, confirming earlier media reports.This latest incident follows the deaths of 12 people earlier this month when their boat capsized in the Channel on its way to Britain and highlights the pressure on the British and French governments to find ways to tackle the boat crossings.Jacques Billant, the Prefect of the Pas-de-Calais region, said that rescue crews were alerted that a boat with 59 people onboard was in difficulty in waters off the coast of Ambleteuse in the Pas-de-Calais area."A n

The Maine Department of Transportation and Maine State Ferry Service commissioned the Charles Norman Shay ferry in Rockland on September 12.The 104-foot passenger/vehicle ferry, which will primarily serve Matinicus Isle, was designed by Gilbert Associates and built by Bayou la Batre, Ala. shipbuilder Steiner Shipyard. It has capacity to carry 149 passengers and seven cars. The Maine Department of Transportation said it paid approximately $11.7 million for the vessel.The new ferry…

As two U.S. aircraft carrier battle groups patrolled the Indian Ocean this week in an explicit effort to deter Iran from striking Israel and sparking a major regional conflict, a very different military messaging effort was underway in a luxury conference centre in Manila.The 35th annual Military Law and Operations Conference organised by the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command – running from Aug. 27-30 – is held every year in a different country in the region – but its presence in the capital of the Philippines this week was likely far from a coincidence.Since late 2023…

As two U.S. aircraft carrier battle groups patrolled the Indian Ocean this week in an explicit effort to deter Iran from striking Israel and sparking a major regional conflict, a very different military messaging effort was underway in a luxury conference centre in Manila.The 35th annual Military Law and Operations Conference organised by the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command – running from Aug. 27-30 – is held every year in a different country in the region – but its presence in the capital of the Philippines this week was likely far from a coincidence.Since late 2023…

As the shipowners stare down decarbonization mandates that grow increasingly strict through 2050, the engine makers are at the tip of the spear of this energy transition phenomena, working to design and build engines and components that are built to operate on a long and growing list of alternative fuels. We recently visited with Dr. Gunnar Stiesch, CTO, MAN Energy Solutions, to take a look inside the research and development process at this global power leader, for insights on ‘what’s next’ in ship propulsion.Dr.