EnTrust Raises $2.1 Bln for Its Blue Ocean Funds
Alternative asset management firm EnTrust Global said Wednesday that it has completed fundraising for its EnTrust Global Blue Ocean Funds for investment in the global maritime industry. The Funds closed at $2.1 billion after raising $925 million since April of 2020.Part of EnTrust Global’s private debt and real asset division, the Blue Ocean Funds engage in direct lending and similar financing opportunities…
New Book: Steaming to Djibouti…My First Hitch on an Underway Replenishment Ship
The following excerpts are from the new travelogue by Captain Sean P. Tortora, titled, “Steaming to Djibouti…My First Hitch on an Underway Replenishment Ship.” Join a motivated young merchant marine officer on his first journey onboard a venerable navy auxiliary steamship. Accompany him through the convoluted reporting for duty process through his truly surreal first tour onboard. Meet the oddball characters in the crew and follow their outlandish daily routine.
Hapag-Lloyd Sees Some Transport Volume Recovery in 2020
German container liner Hapag-Lloyd expects transport volumes in the fourth quarter to pare sharp losses seen earlier this year as a demand recovery in Asia lifts seaborne shipments.Fourth quarter volumes should show a low single-digit gain year-on-year after they fell by 3.5% in the January-September period, Chief Executive Rolf Habben Jansen said at a virtual meeting with journalists late on Tuesday.He…
Ships Make Record Number of Arctic Sailings in 2020
Ships sailing through the Arctic region’s busiest lane along the Siberian coast made the highest number of trips on record this year as a quicker-than-expected melting of ice enabled more traffic, data showed.The Arctic has warmed at least twice as quickly as the rest of the world over the last three decades and shipping activity has picked up.Analysis by the Centre for High North Logistics (CHNL)…
Passengers Stuck on 'Cruise to Nowhere' After Onboard COVID-19 Case
Nearly 1,700 passengers on a Royal Caribbean ‘cruise-to-nowhere’ from Singapore remained confined in their cabins for more than 14 hours on Wednesday after a COVID-19 case was detected on board, forcing the ship back to port.All passengers aboard the Quantum of the Seas vessel had cleared a mandatory polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for the virus up to three days before the four-day cruise started on Monday.Authorities said close contacts of the patient among the 1…
Petrobras Takes DOF AHTS on a Three-year Charter
Brazilian oil and gas company Petrobras has awarded a contract for DOF Group's AHTS vessel Skandi Rio.DOF said Thursday that the vessel would support Petrobras'…
Wallenius Bets on Wind-powered Cargo Ships
Two centuries after the first coal-powered steamships crossed the Atlantic Ocean, a Swedish company is designing a futuristic throwback: a huge, wind-driven cargo ship that could help end the fossil fuel era and limit climate change.Shipping accounted for 2.9% of man-made greenhouse gas in 2018, and the industry’s share of planet-heating emissions has been rising in recent years, according to the U.N.’s…
Report: EU to Toughen Sanctions on Turkish Offshore Drilling in Contested Waters
The European Union will impose sanctions on more Turkish individuals and companies responsible for drilling in contested waters in the Mediterranean, according to a draft statement prepared for EU lea
Seafarers Are Key Workers: It’s “All Hands on Deck” @ WMU to Solve the Seafarer Crisis
Dr. Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, President, World Maritime University, discussed the ongoing seafarer crisis plus the new report from WMU, A Culture of Adjustment, which outlines systemic failures in the implementation of the regulatory regime for seafarers’ work and rest hours.Search as you like, but you will be hard-pressed to find anyone as passionate about all matters surrounding maritime and seafarers than Dr. Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry.
U.S. Blacklists Companies, Ships Linked to North Korean Coal Exports
The United States has blacklisted six companies, including several based in China, and four ships accused of illicit exports of North Korean coal, the Treasury Department…
Sonardyne's Sensors for Ocean Infinity's Armada USV Fleet
Ocean Infinity, a U.S. based marine survey firm developing the world's largest fleet of unmanned surface vessels - Armada - has ordered Sonardyne sensors for its robotic vessels.As reported previously, Ocean Infinity in February launched Armada, a marine technology and data company boasting the industry's largest fleet of unmanned surface vehicles (USV).Sonardyne said Wednesday it would provide the…
Scorpio Continues to Sell Bulkers in Transition to Offshore Wind
Scorpio Bulkers has sold off another vessel as the NYSE-listed shipowner shifts its focus to the offshore wind market. SBI Tethys was sold for $18.25 million and…
Coronavirus Slows Bangladesh's Shipbreaking Safety Reforms
The coronavirus pandemic has slowed efforts to make safer the often hazardous job of dismantling old ships in Bangladesh, officials said, following the latest worker fatality.COVID-19 temporarily shuttered ship-breaking yards in Bangladesh, one of the world’s main destinations for end-of-life vessels, delaying safety reforms ahead of a 2023 deadline.Almost all of the 70 active yards in Bangladesh have submitted Ship Recycling Facility Plans since 2019…
Hundreds of Thousands of Seafarers Are Still Stranded at Sea
Hundreds of thousands of seafarers around the world are stranded at sea due to coronavirus travel restrictions, unable to go home or get medical care, the International Labor Organization (ILO) said on Tuesday, calling on nations to address their plight.Many shipping and transport workers have been at sea as long as 17 months or longer, as COVID-19-related restrictions make it almost impossible to rotate crews…
US Coast Guard Upgrades First Lighthouse to LED
The U.S. Coast Guard said it lit a first-of-its-kind LED-based rotating beacon at Oak Island Lighthouse on Caswell Beach, N.C., Monday.This upgrade is the Coast Guard’s first LED-based rotating beacon for an active aid to navigation and will provide a permanent, cost-effective and energy-efficient solution for the lighthouse. Necessary renovations of the lighthouse to prepare for the new beacon began in October."Lighthouses have navigational and historic significance here in North Carolina…
2020 Has Been a Big Year for US Offshore Wind
This has certainly been an active year for offshore wind, both in the U.S. and globally. Looking at the U.S. in particular, the East Coast is certainly giving cause for real optimism with a clear pipeline of state procurement targets indicating 12 gigawatts installed by 2030 and 29.1 gigawatts total installed by 2035. That means around $55 to $87 billion of capex, which will support the growth of the…
Bulker Rescues Sailors Caught in Rough Seas
A bulk carrier rescued two people from a sailboat disabled by rough weather approximately 345 miles east of Hatteras Inlet, N.C., Saturday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.Watchstanders at the Coast Guard’s 5th District Command Center received notification from the International Emergency Rescue Coordination Center at approximately 9:30 a.m. that a GPS alert had been received from a vessel in distress. The…
Baltic Index Dips as Capesizes Slide to Near 6-month Low
The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index fell on Tuesday, as concerns over trade frictions between Australia and China on coal shipments sent capesize rates to a near six-month low.The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, was down by 41 points or 3.5%, to 1,121, its lowest since Nov. 18.The capesize index was down 140 points, or about 10%, at 1,279, a trough since June 10.Average daily earnings for capesizes…
US Targets Coal Shipments in Fresh N. Korea-related Sanctions
The United States imposed new sanctions on six groups and four vessels related to the transport of North Korean coal on Thursday, including operations based in China, the Treasury Department said on Tuesday."The DPRK (North Korea) continues to circumvent the U.N. prohibition on the exportation of coal, a key revenue generator that helps fund its weapons of mass destruction programs," Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement.
France's Next-generation Aircraft Carrier Will Be Nuclear-powered
France's next-generation aircraft carrier will be nuclear-powered and replace the national fleet's flagship warship, the Charles de Gaulle, in 2038, President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday.The 11th carrier-vessel in the French Navy's history will be built by French defense contractor Naval Group and equipped with the new electromagnetic aircraft launch system developed by U.S. company General Atomics…
