Icebreaking AHTS 'Tor Viking' Sub-Arctic Charter 2014/15 Cancelled
Sweden's Rederi AB TransAtlantic owners of the offshore drilling vessel 'Tor Viking' inform that the charter agreement for “Tor Viking” for the 2014 and 2015 seasons has been cancelled but the contract is still valid for the remainder of its period covering 2016 & 2017. The duration of each season is approximately 7 months including mobilization and demobilization with commencement around May 1st each year.
Investors Snap Up Shipping Loans, Reflecting Growing Confidence
Global private equity firm KKR has bought $150 million worth of shipping loans from two European banks amid a surge of interest in the industry as world trade in goods picks up along with the global economy. There have been a flurry of deals in recent months for ship finance loans, many of which are being put up for sale by banks under pressure to boost their capital in order to adhere to new, stricter industry legislation born of the financial crisis.
GD Electric Boat Awarded US$11-million Navy Contract
Amongst the latest listing of US Department of Defense, Navy contracts, GD Electric Boat is awarded a contract to provide submarine repairs. General Dynamics, Electric Boat Corp., Groton, Conn., is awarded an $11,000,000 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to the previously awarded contract (N00024-13-C-4308) to incrementally fund previously exercised options to provide non-nuclear submarine repair work on Groton-based submarines under the New England Maintenance Manpower Initiative (NEMMI).
Chile Port City Still Shut Following 8.2 Quake
As the aftershocks from a massive 8.2 magnitude quake that rattled northern Chile entered a third day, basic services were still out in the port city Iquique nearest the epicenter and residents fearful of tsunamis were fleeing into the hills. Iquique, an important port for freight travelling between Asia and South America, is shut for now. Even when ships are allowed to resume docking, it may struggle with a labor shortage…
Kongsberg Maritime's Double Whammy 200th Anniversary
Kongsberg Geoacoustics informs it has delivered its 200th Geoswath Plus on Kongsberg Maritime’s 200th anniversary. Nick Burchill, Subsea Sales Manager for Kongsberg Maritime in Canada presented a plaque to Denis D'Amours, Director of the Canadian Hydrographic Service's Pacific Region, which uses the equipment, in honour of the occasion. The Canadian Hydrographic Service uses its GeoSwath Plus systems for shallow water mapping when a high rate of coverage is required.
New Satellite Images Earth Environment, Monitors Disasters
Europe has launched the first satellite of its multibillion-euro 'Copernicus' Earth observation project that will supply valuable images in the event of natural disasters, ocean oil pollution, or even a plane crash. The Sentinel-1a satellite, which blasted off into Earth's orbit from Europe's spaceport in French Guiana, carries a 12-metre-long (40-foot-long) radar antenna and has two 10 metre-long solar panels, and is now orbiting the planet at 693 km (439 miles) above the earth.
Crew Missing as N. Korean Cargo Ship Sinks
Two crew members were found dead and three were rescued, while a search was under way for the other 11 crew still missing, the officials said. The Grand Fortune…
UK Shipping Industry Broadly Welcomes Commons' Committee Report
The UK government’s new maritime strategy “poses the right questions” about the country's shipping industry but “does not yet provide compelling answers on a range of key points that will have a major impact on this valuable sector of our economy” according to Louise Ellman, chairman of the House of Commons Transport Select Committee. The report here is from shipping trade association 'Maritime London'.
