Operational Headquarters News

Renewable energy company Source Galileo has signed a non-exclusive memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Portland Port, a commercial port on the South Coast of England, to jointly advance offshore wind development off Dorset coast in English Channel.Portland Port has a history of servicing the offshore wind sector and is in discussions with potential partners to enable and support the future construction and operation of offshore wind developments in the English Channel.With significant deep-water berths and quayside space…

A British Royal Navy ship will supply aid to Gaza as part of an international effort to help set up a new humanitarian maritime corridor in early May, the foreign office and ministry of defence said on Saturday.The multinational effort, involving the United States, Cyprus and other partners, will develop a new temporary pier off the coast of Gaza, British foreign minister David Cameron said."The situation in Gaza is dire and the prospect of famine is real. We remain committed to getting aid to those who so desperately need it…

Russian energy company Novatek said on Sunday it had been forced to suspend some operations at a huge Baltic Sea fuel export terminal due to a fire started by what Ukrainian media said was a drone attack.The giant Ust-Luga complex, located on the Gulf of Finland about 170 km (110 miles) west of St. Petersburg, is used to ship oil and gas products to international markets. It processes stable gas condensate - a type of light oil - into light and heavy naphtha, kerosene and diesel to be shipped by sea.It was not clear how long the disruption would last…

Eastern Shipbuilding Group, Inc. (ESG) has opened a new outfitting and repair yard in Port St. Joe, Fla.The new facility, dedicated to final outfitting and testing of commercial new construction vessels as well as topside repairs, adds to the company’s operational capabilities a 40-acre site that encompasses 1,000 feet of deepwater bulkhead with unrestricted access to the Gulf of Mexico test and trials grounds. “We are proud to commission our third facility with the strong support from the local community and our dedicated workforce…

KOTUG International B.V. has completed the 100% acquisition of Marsol International Ltd., an offshore and marine terminal service center, specialized in offshore single point mooring (SPM) buoy terminals and its related infrastructure.The core business of Marsol is integrity management based commercial and technical marine service solutions for SPM and offshore terminals. Over the years Marsol’s management has operated on 32 offshore marine terminals in more than 20 countries. Marsol’s operational headquarters are based in Dubai.

The headquarters of the EU’s anti-piracy missions off the coast of Somalia will be moved from the UK to Spain next year as EU leaders revealed the latest consequence of Brexit."EU NAVFOR confirms that following the decision from the Council of the European Union the mandate of Operation ATALANTA will continue until 31 December 2020," said a press release. EU NAVFOR Somalia, also known as Operation Atalanta, is a current counter-piracy military operation at sea off the Horn of Africa and in the Western Indian Ocean, that is the first undertaken by the European Union Naval Force.The mandate extension signals the EU’s commitment to continuing counter-piracy operations off the Somali coast.

Governor Bobby Jindal and Viking Cruises Chairman Torstein Hagen announced the selection of New Orleans as the homeport for Viking River Cruises’ first North American river cruise itineraries. The Mississippi River cruises will operate from docking facilities near the French Quarter in New Orleans. Viking’s new service will result in the creation of 416 new direct jobs for Louisiana-based operations and vessel crews, with an average salary of $40,000, plus benefits; and Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in an additional 368 new indirect jobs, for a total of more than 780 new jobs in the Southeast Region of the state.

Foster Wheeler AG announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Power Group’s Environmental and Industrial division has been awarded a contract by Longview Power, LLC to rehabilitate and optimize the wet flue gas desulfurization system at their existing 700 MWe (net megawatt electric) Longview Power facility in Maidsville, West Virginia, USA. Foster Wheeler has received a full notice to proceed on this contract. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed, and the contract value will be included in the company’s third-quarter 2014 bookings. Foster Wheeler will provide new components as well as engineering and installation services to optimize the performance of the existing dewatering and forced oxidation systems with the fuel currently being used by Longview.

NAMJet’s tractor jets seal the deal on a significant military boat building contract. The Army’s one-of-a-kind bridge erection boats fill an obscure, shallow draft workboat niche, while showcasing capabilities that someday could be commercially viable. When the U.S. Army turned to industry in its quest to design the next generation, prototype bridge erection boat, the ensuing competition attracted no less than three industry competition teams, all of whom eventually submitted prototypes in 2010. Birdon America, Inc., teaming with a (now) wholly owned NAMJet propulsion group, was one of the players. These models were then handed over to the U.S. Army for extensive testing. Eventually, in March of this year, Birdon won the US Army Bridge Erection Boat (BEB) platform contract.

Foster Wheeler AG announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Engineering and Construction Group has signed an engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCm) services agreement with BOC, a member of the Linde Group, for the installation of replacement heat exchangers at BOC’s Teesport facility, Teesside, in northeast England. The Foster Wheeler contract value was not disclosed and was included in the company’s first-quarter 2014 bookings. Under this agreement, Foster Wheeler will provide project management, front-end engineering design, detailed engineering design, procurement services, construction supervision and quality assurance for the replacement of existing aluminium plate fin exchangers in the 1,300 tons per day air separation plant.

Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq: FWLT) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Power Group has been awarded a contract by Turun Seudun Energiantuotanto Oy (TSE) for the design, supply and erection of a retrofit-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system for TSE’s Naantali unit 3 in Finland. Foster Wheeler has received a full notice to proceed on this contract. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed, and the contract value will be included in the company’s bookings for the second-quarter of 2014. Commercial operation of the SCR system is scheduled for October 2015. Foster Wheeler will design, supply, erect and commission the selective catalytic NOx reduction system for the Naantali 125 MWe pulverized coal fired boiler (unit 3).

Foster Wheeler AG (Nasdaq:FWLT) announced today that a subsidiary of its Global Engineering and Construction Group has been awarded a contract by Marubeni Corporation for the engineering and material supply of a new Terrace Wall steam reformer heater, including an air preheating system, for the KazMunayGaz oil refinery located at Atyrau, Republic of Kazakhstan. The value of Foster Wheeler’s contract was not disclosed and was included in the company’s first-quarter 2014 bookings. The steam reformer will be part of a hydrogen production unit with a capacity of 24,000 normal cubic meters per hour to be built at the refinery. The hydrogen plant is based on Foster Wheeler’s hydrogen technology. Foster Wheeler’s scope of work is scheduled to be completed in April 2015.

Rear Admiral Christian Canova (French Navy) hands over the responsibility of Deputy Operation Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia, Operation ATALANTA to Rear Admiral Rainer Endres (German Navy) on 12 January 2012 at the Operational Headquarters (OHQ) in Northwood, near London. Rear Admiral Canova added this duty to an impressive career including three commands at sea and three operational duties in the Indian Ocean and Arabian Gulf. His comprehensive knowledge of NATO and EU policy was beneficial to the overall mission.

On 14 October 2010, EU NAVFOR Operational Headquarters (Northwood, UK) welcomed maritime industry representatives to provide them with an update on the current piracy threat in the Horn of Africa. A variety of topics were covered throughout the meeting, but of particular note were the possible ways to improve the military support to merchant vessels and the challenges for masters of vessels transiting the area. “The pirates’ business model has not evolved: they simply look for easy targets, that is to say low freeboard and slow vessels.

On 14 June 2010, Rear Admiral Hudson Peter Hudson CBE handed over the responsibility of Operation Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia, Op ATALANTA to Major General Buster Howes OBE. The handover was conducted in the Operational Headquarters in Northwood near London. Rear Admiral Hudson, who joined the operation in June 2009, has been instrumental in the ongoing success of EU NAVFOR and the execution of the Op ATALANTA mission. Rear Admiral Hudson leaves EU NAVFOR to continue his appointment as Commander United Kingdom Maritime Force (COMUKMARFOR) in Portsmouth.

On 11 Dec 2009, Rear Admiral Thorsten Kaehler (German Navy) handed over the responsibility of Deputy Operation Commander of the European Union Naval Force Somalia Operation ATALANTA, the EU anti-piracy campaign in the Horn of Africa area, to Rear Admiral Bartolomé Bauzá (Spanish navy). The handover was conducted in the Operational Headquarters in Northwood near London. Rear Admiral Bartolomé Bauzá, prior to his new task, had assignments in Joint HQ, Fleet HQ, and Navy HQ (his last tour as DACOS Plans & Policy and Head of the Strategic Planning Branch).

ABS was named Best Classification Society during the recent Lloyd’s List Middle East & Indian Subcontinent Awards held in Dubai. The award ceremony is one of six regional events hosted by the industry’s daily newspaper to benchmark excellence within the maritime industry. A panel of judges from a broad spectrum of industry selected ABS as the winner in the Classification Society category. The society has maintained a network of regional and port offices throughout the Middle East area for more than 30 years with regional administrative and operational headquarters in Dubai…

Four shipping industry companies and organisations have been honoured for their outstanding contributions to maritime safety. The third annual Safety at Sea International Awards were presented June 10 at a banquet in Oslo in recognition of excellence in programmes, products and services that encourage and promote safety in the maritime environment. Prizes were awarded in four categories: equipment, systems, training and management/operations. In addition, a special AMVER (Automated Mutual-assistance Vessel Rescue System) award was given to pay homage to bravery and seamanship in assisting those in peril on the sea. The awards ceremony was moderated by Paul Gunton…

accept the offer from World Nordic Aps to buy all shares of Bergesen. registered as shareholders as of 24 April 2003. paid on May 14 2003. On 7 April 2003 World Nordic ApS, a Danish limited company controlled by the Sohmen family, announced a mandatory cash offer for the A- and B-shares of Bergesen d.y. ASA (“Bergesen”). On 6 April 2003, World Nordic ApS entered into an agreement with Petter C. G. Sundt and Morten Sig. Bergesen to acquire their shares in Bergesen, in aggregate 16,575,106 A-shares. The price was NOK 180 per share, and included the proposed dividend of NOK 7 per share. capital of Bergesen. Pursuant to the Securities Trading Act Section 4-16, the Board of Directors of Bergesen shall make a statement regarding the offer.

Houston-based Cal Dive International established another Gulf of Mexico first when it installed a reeled flowline/riser combination for Kerr-McGee in East High Island block A-379 in 350 ft. of water. Cal Dive utilized its newly established Pipe Spool Base at their Morgan City, Louisiana operational headquarters to: weld, x-ray, sand blast and coat 14,000 ft. of 4.5 in. 337 wall pipe with fusion bonded epoxy. The pipe was reeled directly onto an 28.2 ft. installation reel provided by CDI's strategic alliance partner Coflexip Stena Offshore. CDI's procedure is to secure reels on a barge during the spooling process, in order to expedite transportation to the staging area.

During the early morning hours of February 21, 2009, TITAN Salvage was notified by the Marine Response Alliance (MRA) of the grounding of the Yasa Golden Dardanelles, a tanker, off the coast of Galveston, Tex. The tanker was fully laden with approximately 620,000 barrels of fuel oil onboard. TITAN responded by mobilizing a response team consisting of TITAN Salvage Master,  Guy Wood, an assistant salvage master and a naval architect, who all arrived on site later the same day.