Yanmar Opens Middle East Branch in Dubai
Japanese engine manufacturer Yanmar said it will soon open a new parts warehouse at its Middle East Branch, located in the United Arab Emirates, near Dubai Airport.The Middle East Branch began operation in January of 2019 in the Dubai Airport Free Zone providing sales, service support and training to dealers in Yanmar’s middle east territory. The new site, which serves both Yanmar’s marine pleasure and marine commercial engines business in the Middle East region…
U.S., Greece Call for Peaceful Resolution of East-Med Maritime Disputes
The United States and Greece called on Monday for a peaceful resolution of maritime disputes in the east Mediterranean as U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo began a two-day trip to Greece amid increased regional tension over energy resources.NATO allies Greece and Turkey, at loggerheads on a range of issues, have agreed to resume exploratory talks over contested maritime claims following weeks of tensions that culminated in a collision between their warships."The United States and Greece ..
Maersk Supply Service, Ørsted Working on Offshore Charging Buoy
Danish offshore vessel specialist Maersk Supply Service and its compatriot offshore wind developer Ørsted have teamed up to test a prototype offshore charging buoy.The buoy will act as a safe mooring point and a charging station for vessels, potentially displacing a significant amount of marine fuel with "green" electricity. The prototype buoy has been developed by Maersk Supply Service while Ørsted is responsible for the buoy’s integration with the electrical grid at the offshore wind farm.
Argentine Grains Port Workers to Strike After Talks Collapse
A labor union representing Argentine grains port workers said on Sunday it would stage a 24-hour walk-off from midnight after failing to strike a deal on a collective work agreement with the business chamber that represents private port owners.The URGARA union, which represents inspectors who check the quality of grains before they are loaded onto ships, called on its workers to "cease all ... activity in ports throughout the country…
Milaha, Schlumberger to Build Stimulation Vessel
Qatar's maritime and logistics firm Milaha said it entered into a formal agreement with U.S. headquartered oilfield services firm Schlumberger to cooperate on projects that will localize the energy sector supply chain, including the construction of a Qatari offshore oil well stimulation vessel.Milaha said its offshore and marine arm signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will support value building projects while jointly driving Qatar Petroleum-led Tawteen program…
Congress Passes Bill Supporting Jones Act Enforcement in Offshore Wind
The U.S House of Representatives passed the Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act (H.R. 4447) aiming to reform U.S. energy policy and authorize significant investment in the transition to greater use of low-carbon energy.The legislation, which addresses a wide range of energy topics and initiatives, includes an amendment by Congressman John Garamendi (D-Calif.) which would enforce Jones Act requirements for all offshore wind development…
Panama Canal Authority Wins $265 Mln Arbitration Case
The Panama Canal Authority said it won an arbitration ruling on Friday for $265 million to be returned to it from the consortium that built a third set of locks for the key transoceanic waterway.The authority cited a decision from a Miami-based arbitration board it said was issued earlier on Friday.The GUPC consortium, which includes Spain's Sacyr SA and Italy's Impregilo International Infrastructures NV, no longer exists.
BMT Wins Isles of Scilly Steamship Design Deal
BMT won a contract with The Isles of Scilly Steamship Group (ISSG) for new vessel designs for the Isles of Scilly, replacing the iconic Scillonian III.The ISSG require a vessel design solution to run between the harbors of Penzance and St Mary’s, in addition to an onward freight supply chain from St Mary’s to the off islands of St Martins, Tresco, Bryher and St Agnes.“The designs will maximize passenger and crew comfort…
Partners Seek to Guarantee Ship Performance in Real Sea Conditions, Waves and All
Japanese shipping company NYK Line and shipbuilder Japan Marine United Corporation (JMU) say they plan to introduce a new shipbuilding contract that guarantees propulsion performance in actual sea conditions, factoring in heavy sea states encountered by vessels at sea.Typically, shipbuilding contracts guarantee ship speed based on horsepower in calm sea conditions, without waves. Mutual confirmation then occurs during sea trials before the ship is delivered.However…
RINA, SDARI Move Toward 3D Ship Classification
Classification society RINA has announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI) to create an interface to the SDARI 3D Ship Model, marking another step toward 3D design verification.SDARI is a member of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and is one of the largest and most prolific research and design institutes in China.
Canada Commits Nearly $240 Mln to Aid Offshore Oil Industry
Canada will spend C$320 million ($238.56 million) to support its offshore oil industry in Newfoundland and Labrador, which has struggled as coronavirus pandemic travel restrictions reduced demand, the government said on Friday.The funds are intended to support jobs and to lower greenhouse gas emissions from crude production, and could be used for maintenance, upgrades and environmental services, Natural Resources Minister Seamus O'Regan said St.
MetalCraft Delivers High-performace RIBs in Mississippi
Shipbuilder MetalCraft Marine said it delivered two 34-foot high performance patrol RIBs to be used by the Mississippi Department of Natural Resources Police in the coastal bay areas and offshore checking on commercial and sport fishing compliance.Each boat is equipped with triple Suzuki 300-horsepower outboards, enabling the vessels to reach speeds up to 64 miles per hour.According to MetalCraft, the Interceptor hulls are noted for their "Soft Dry Ride"…
Great Lakes Wins Jacksonville Harbor Dredging Contract
Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation has been awarded a $105 million Base and Option B contract award on the Jacksonville Harbor Construction Dredging, 47-Foot Contract C Cut-42 Project, the U.S.' largest dredging services provider announced Friday.Great Lakes said it expects the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to award additional option work items on the contract by mid-2021 with a value of $11.5 million…
Charleston Will be the Deepest Harbor on the US East Coast
This September, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Charleston District awarded the final two dredging contracts on its harbor deepening project, which will make Charleston’s harbor the deepest on the East Coast.The contract awards also coincided with the arrival September 20 of the CMA CGM Brazil, a 15,072-TEU containership stretching 1,200 feet long, and the largest containership to ever call on the East Coast and Charleston harbor.Charleston was the last stop on its East Coast itinerary…
Metal Shark Builds Custom Tender for R/V OceanXplorer
Shipbuilder Metal Shark reports it has delivered a new research tender to OceanX, a New York-based nonprofit ocean exploration initiative and media organization.The custom 38-foot Defiant-class welded aluminum monohull pilothouse vessel will be carried aboard the recently-launched one-of-a-kind scientific research, media production and exploration vessel, the R/V OceanXplorer. The combined marine research and media vessel OceanXplorer is both a floating…
Trafigura Proposes Carbon Levy on Marine Fuels
Commodities trader Trafigura on Friday proposed a carbon levy of $250-$300 per tonne of carbon-dioxide (CO2) equivalent on shipping fuels to make zero and low carbon fuels more economically viable and competitive.The International Maritime Organization (IMO) wants to halve the sector's greenhouse gas output by 2050 against 2008 levels.
Partners Set Out to Develop Hydrogen-powered Tugs
Norwegian engineering and equipment company TECO 2030 ASA said it has signed a letter of intent with Austrian-based powertrain deveolper AVL List GmbH and Dutch shipping company Chemgas Shipping B.V. for the use of fuel cell technology as the main energy source for tugboats in the Blue Danube hydrogen project and similar projects.The Blue Danube project is among Europe’s most ambitious hydrogen projects.
Iran's Oil Exports Jump in September Defying Sanctions
Iranian oil exports have risen sharply in September in defiance of U.S. sanctions, three assessments based on tanker tracking showed, throwing a lifeline to the Islamic Republic and its collapsing economy.Exports have shrunk from over 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) since the United States withdrew from a nuclear deal with Iran and reimposed sanctions in 2018. Still, Iran has been working to get…
Baltic Index Hits Over Two-month High
The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index on Friday hit an over two-month high on higher vessel rates across segments, and along with the capesize index posted its highest weekly rise since mid-June.The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for ships ferrying dry bulk commodities and reflects rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, was up 62 points, or 3.9%, at 1,667 points.The index gained 28.6% this week.The capesize index gained 161 points…
Innovation with AI: A Sparring Partner for the Maritime Sector
The maritime sector keeps talking enthusiastically about it: artificial intelligence (AI). But what is it really? What is the role of technology in the maritime sector at this moment, and what does it mean for the future? Yves de Vos, Project Manager and Artificial Intelligence Expert at Shipbuilder, explains.“The term Artificial Intelligence is often misused because a lot of tools are not intelligent at all.