RMK MARINE Delivers Tug Pair
Istanbul-based shipbuilder RMK MARINE delivered two 70-metric-ton bollard pull towing vessels, T.DAMLA-8 and T.DAMLA-9, handed over to a local client on January 31, 2020 and March 27, 2020 respectively.The RAmparts 2500-SD vessels are based on Robert Allan Ltd.’s RAmparts 2500-W design, modified to suit the requirements of the owner including a significant reduction in draft and thus the “SD” suffix…
Failure to Heed Weather Warning Led to Duck Boat Sinking -NTSB
The continued operation of an amphibious passenger vessel despite severe weather warnings led to its fatal sinking during a derecho in July 2018, the National Transportation Safety Board said during a public board meeting Tuesday.The 33-foot-long, modified, World War II-era DUKW amphibious passenger vessel Stretch Duck 7 sank in Table Rock Lake, near Branson, Mo., killing 16 of 29 passengers and one of two crewmembers on board for a tour.Operator Ripley Entertainment Inc.…
Vigor to Overhaul USNS Guadalupe
Military Sealift Command has awarded a $20,880,790 firm, fixed-price contract to Portland, Ore. shipyard Vigor Marine for an 87-day shipyard availability for the overhaul dry-docking availability of the underway replenishment oiler USNS Guadalupe (T-AO 200).Scheduled work includes the furnishing of general services, shipboard access, clean and gas free tank voids and cofferdams, preservation of aft ballast and cargo tanks as well as the flight deck…
Fire Protection with Turbine
The Italian company EmiControls has been working on innovative fire protection solutions worldwide since 2011. With the FT10e water mist turbine, EmiControls has launched a product that gives companies more safety in the fight against fires. This is a brief Case Study of an FT10e installation at the Recycling Center Santini in Northern Italy.EmiControls develops stationary and mobile firefighting turbines.
Liberia Calls for Flag States to Join Together for Crew Changes
The Liberian Registry continues its efforts toward the recognition of seafarers as “key workers” and for much needed crew-exchange to be allowed at key ports globally during the global COVID-19 pandemic, and is looking to enlist the help of other flag States in this mission. The Liberian Registry, already working with industry bodies such as the IMO, ICS, and ITF, calls for other major flag States…
Box Ship Crewman Medevaced off Virginia
The U.S. Coast Guard medevaced a crew member from a containership 48 miles northeast of Virginia Beach, Va., Monday night.Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector Virginia command center received a report from the captain of the motor vessel Zim Shekou that a member of the ship's crew was was experiencing symptoms of a potential heart attack.
EU's Piracy Fight Continues Amid COVID-19 Crisis
The European Union's counter-piracy military force said it continues to patrol and work with global partners to fight piracy at sea during the coronavirus pandemic. Seafarers face continuing threats from pirates and armed robbers, says the ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB), who reported 47 attacks in the first three months of 2020, up from 38 in the same period last year. Pirates boarded 37 ships…
Pemex Trading Arm Mulls Canceling May-June Cargos
The trading arm of Mexican state oil company Pemex is mulling options to slash the number of fuel cargoes the country imports in May and June as demand plummets because of the coronavirus, three sources close to the talks told Reuters.Pemex last week declared force majeure over fuel supplies from its trading arm PMI Comercio Internacional after a bottleneck of more than 60 vessels built up outside Mexican ports…
Namdock Shipbuilders Help Local Hospital Get Ship-shape
Namibian ship repair company Namdock, situated in Walvis Bay on the west coast of Africa, has utilized its fabrication expertise to provide assistance to the Walvis Bay state hospital in its fight against COVID-19 by helping with the maintenance and repair of hospital beds, trollies and bedside cupboards.“While national infection rates and fatalities are currently low, COVID-19 has the potential to trigger a major health crisis in Namibia.
MEPs Urge EU to Stop Funding Libya's Coastguard
Members of European Parliament say the EU should stop channeling funds to Libya to manage migration and to train its coastguard, as the violation of human rights of migrants and asylum-seekers continues.In a debate in the Civil Liberties Committee with representatives of the Commission, Frontex, UNHCR, the Council of Europe and NGOs, a majority of MEPs insisted that Libya is not a “safe country” for…
Meyer Turku Announces Layoffs
Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku on Tuesday started statutory talks to lay off up to 450 of its roughly 2,000 employees because of a hit to business from the coronavirus pandemic.The Turku shipyard on Finland's west coast, which primarily builds cruise ships, had initially started talks over temporary layoffs, but said the market situation had now forced it to look for permanent cuts."These negotiations…
Willis Towers Watson Launches New Cyber Insurance, CyNav for Ship Owners
Willis Towers Watson unveiled a new type of cyber insurance product for shipowners that redesigns standard cyber policies to better navigate the risks for ship operators in the digital era.The solution, CyNav, addresses cyber threats in the broadest sense, including losses that occur from cyber-related business interruptions, even when the cyber events originate with third party IT service providers.CyNav’s…
Nexans Aurora Cable Layer Blocks Fall into Place
All the grand blocks for the Cable Laying Vessel (CLV) ‘Nexans Aurora’ have now been assembled at the hull yard, CRIST, Norway's Ulstein has informed. "Work tasks such as some steelwork, outfitting, and paintwork now need to be carried out before the hull can be towed to Ulstein Verft, Norway, for finalizing," Ulstein said Tuesday.Nexans Aurora is a DP3 cable laying vessel that will be outfitted for power cable laying…
Rolf Stiefel Joins Bureau Veritas as Regional Chief Executive
Bureau Veritas (BV) appointed Rolf Stiefel as its new Regional Chief Executive based in Hamburg, responsible for Central Europe - Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Russia. He will be based in the BV regional office in Hamburg and his appointment is effective May 1, 2020. He succeeds Dr. Hans Gaetjens who is retiring in July following a two month hand-over period.For the past 17 years Stiefel has been…
Schottel to Power 'Wind of Hope'
Schottel will provide a range of propulsion systems for Louis Dreyfus Armateurs's second wind farm service operation vessel (SOV) the Wind of Hope.The new walk-to-work vessel, a sister vessel to the Wind of Change SOV, is currently under construction at Cemre shipyard in Turkey and will enter service operating under a long-term contract with Ørsted.The propulsion system of the vessel designed by Salt Ship Design vessel is powered by four diesel generators…
Van Oord Installs Slip Joint Foundation at Borssele Wind Farm Site
Dutch offshore installation and construction company has installed what it calls the "Slip Joint" foundation at the Borssele Wind Farm Site V in the Dutch sector of the North Sea.The Slip Joint is an alternative connection between foundation elements, a monopile, and a transition piece. It consists of two conical sections placed on top of each other. The foundation was installed at at the Borssele…
Covid-19 Catches up with Seaborne Coal in Asia
The coronavirus pandemic has finally caught up with seaborne thermal coal in Asia, as soft demand in major importers India and China sends prices to multi-year lows and dents the polluting fuel's relative outperformance against other energy.The price of low-energy coal from Indonesia, the world's top exporter of thermal coal, has dropped to the lowest since assessments were started by commodity price reporting agency Argus in 2008…
Danish Companies Testing New Workboat Stabilizer
Two Danish companies have joined forces to test a novel workboat stabilizer for the first time at sea.DACOMA’s groundbreaking Airkeel-technology will be integrated on a 7-meter test vessel from Tuco Marine's ProZero workboat range to demonstrate heel compensation and optimization of roll damping in waves.The DACOMA stabilizer is based on the Airkeel, a submerged, air-filled flotation body mounted at the bottom of the hull.
BHP to Expand Iron Ore Exports from Port Hedland
Miner BHP Group said on Tuesday it plans to expand its iron ore export capacity from Port Hedland, the largest global shipping hub for the steel-making commodity, by up to 40 million tonnes a year to 330 million tonnes a year.The move comes as improvements across BHP’s supply chain have opened the way to raise shipments if market conditions allow, Tim Day, BHP’s Acting Asset President Western Australia Iron Ore…
Jones Act Tankers Booked for Storage, Foreign Trips Amid Oil Glut
Oil traders are hiring expensive U.S. vessels, normally only used for domestic shipments, to store gasoline or ship fuel overseas, five shipping sources said, in…
