Brandes to Lead Port of Oakland
Longtime shipping industry executive Bryan Brandes has been named Maritime Director at the Port of Oakland. The port said today he was selected following a nationwide search. Brandes, a 25-year maritime veteran, replaces John Driscoll who left to manage the Alabama State Port Authority.Brandes will lead a staff of 20 responsible for one of the nation’s 10 largest container seaports. Oakland’s Maritime…
A New Role for Service Providers Amidst Energy Upheaval
In today’s energy industry, things are moving fast. The upheaval brought about by COVID-19 and exacerbated by the Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war has been so profound that the International Energy Agency (IEA) has described the situation as “a once in a century event for energy demand”. This is supported by current IEA predictions which suggest a 6% drop in global energy demand in 2020 – seven times…
Rhine Water Level Rises, Too Shallow in North for Full Shipping
Water levels on the Rhine in Germany have risen after rain in past days but are still too shallow in northern areas for cargo vessels to sail fully loaded, traders said on Friday.The river had fallen below normal levels in late May after dry weather. Shallow water means vessel operators impose surcharges on freight rates, increasing costs for cargo owners.Repeated rain this week has raised water to normal levels in central and southern sections of the river.
Pandemic Forces Ship Owners to Shelve Scrubber Installs
Ship owners are postponing or canceling the installation of “scrubbers” that extract harmful sulphur emissions from their vessels as the coronavirus pandemic tightens…
How China Got Venezuelan Oil Despite US Sanctions
Last year, China replaced the United States as the No. 1 importer of oil from Venezuela, yet another front in the heated rivalry between Washington and Beijing.The…
Cuba Cancels Economic Fair as Imports Plummet
Cash-strapped Cuba has canceled its annual international trade and investment fair slated for November due to the pandemic, state-run media reported on Friday, even as fallout from the novel coronavirus hammers revenues and imports.Container traffic at the port of Mariel, responsible for 90% of containers entering the country, was down between 20% and 25% through May, compared with the same period last year…
Training Tips for Ship #13: How's Your Training? You Can't Know Unless You Ask!
We have all heard it a thousand times: “If you do not measure it, you cannot manage it”. This is especially true with training because the inputs (the training provided) are often far removed in time and apparent direct causality from the key output (performance). Therefore, it is important that we measure everywhere we can. One universal form of measurement is the requirement for exams at the end of the course.
Final Containership Leaves Stockholm's Frihamnen Port
The unloading of the final containership at the Frihamnen port in Stockholm marks the end of an era.The 1,349 TEU Dutch-flagged containership Essence unloaded the final cargo at Frihamnen on June 1, but the CTF container terminal will remain open until June 23 to allow customers to collect the last of their containers.Going forward, Stockholm's container cargoes will be redirected to the city's new freight port…
Mitsubishi Heavy in Talks to Acquire Mitsui E&S's Shipbuilding Business
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said it had agreed to begin talks with Mitsui E&S Holdings to acquire its shipbuilding business.A deal to acquire Mitsui E&S's shipbuilding unit could help Mitsubishi Heavy, Japan's biggest defense company, better compete for naval contracts.
The Emerging U.S. Offshore Wind Industry in a Post-COVID-19 World
Join a webinar on June 17, 2020 for the global release of a major new market study on the depth, breadth and growth prospects of the Offshore Wind Market -- https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_UR5uY1boTOKdAAcAXDbR4gJust when it was looking like the offshore wind industry was finally about to take off in the United States, the COVID-19 pandemic has introduced one more significant layer of uncertainty upon an already very complicated playing field.
COVID-19 & the US Workboat Market: Business Continuity, Not Business as Usual
In today’s environment, the overarching challenge for the American tugboat, towboat and barge industry is to continue transporting the vital commodities that help keep our nation’s economy moving during a highly uncertain time, while taking all necessary measures to ensure the health and safety of our workforce as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve – in other words, to ensure business continuity, while recognizing we are not, nor can we be, going about business as usual.
Market in Focus: Containershipping
The only orders to be placed since the beginning of the year are from OOCL and Great Horse China for a combination of 7 ULCV’s ranging in size. This is a drop of 86% compared to this time last year and can only be due to the Covid-19 outbreak.As the global lockdown intensified through March, rates and values across all sizes fell. We have seen the larger 8,500 TEU tonnage earnings fall by c.40% since the start of the year which has bought values down a considerable amount.
The Nippon Foundation Grant for Work on Unmanned Ship Navigation System
Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co. and Shin Nihonkai Ferry Co., have successfully applied for grant aid under the "Joint Technological Development Program for the Demonstration of Unmanned Ships" sponsored by The Nippon Foundation.Funding in hand, the companies will co-develop underlying technologies and systems to enable unmanned ship navigation in the future, with the tangible results of the project being…
Fugro Extends IMR Despina Vessel Charter
Norwegian offshore vessel owners Golden Energy Offshore has secured a contract extension for its IMR Despina vessel.The charter extension will take effect in direct continuation of the current contract with Fugro. Golden Energy Offshore did not provide info on the length of the new contract.According to available info, Fugro is currently using the 2011-built IMR Despina for a geotechnical site investigation…
