US Warship Sails Through Sensitive Taiwan Strait; China Angered
A U.S. warship sailed through the sensitive Taiwan Strait on Thursday, part of what the U.S. military calls routine activity but which has riled China.In recent years, U.S. warships, and on occasion those from allied nations such as Britain and Canada, have sailed through the strait, drawing the ire of China, which claims Taiwan against the objections of its democratically elected government.In a statement, the U.S.
Saab Receives Order for Life Extension of Swedish Mine Countermeasures Ships
Saab has signed an agreement with FMV on the life extension of two Koster-class mine countermeasures ships. The order value is SEK 350 million. The contract also includes options for FMV to order measures regarding the remaining three ships in the Koster-class. The total value of the options are SEK 270 million.The contract with FMV means that Saab will carry out life extensions of two Koster-class mine countermeasures ships.
Personal Locator Beacons Improve the Chance of Rescue at Sea
New Year’s Eve is a time of celebration and remembrance. Three years ago, on December 31, 2019, as the new year was being rung in across the lower 48 states, a tragedy was playing out in icy Alaskan waters. The fishing vessel Scandies Rose, with seven crew members aboard, encountered severe icing conditions and high winds and waves as it transited from Kodiak to fishing grounds in the Bering Sea. The crabber tried to make it to Sutwik Island to shelter from the storm…
Hess Signals Guyana's Seventh Oil Platform
Hess Corp on Thursday said drilling results expected this month could add a seventh platform in Guyana, which would lift the nascent oil producing nation's output above the 1.2 million barrels of oil equivalent per day planned.The U.S. oil producer is part of the Exxon Mobil Corp-led consortium that controls all production in the tiny South American nation. The group has confirmed so far plans for six floating production vessels in the country…
New Whale Protections to Impact Shipping Lanes off California
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has adopted a U.S. proposal to increase protections for endangered blue, fin and humpback whales off the California coast. The proposal takes effect this summer and expands areas that vessels should avoid to give whales more space, and extends vessel traffic lanes west of, in and around NOAA’s Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary.The Channel Islands…
ATB Tug Partially Sinks in Port Milwaukee
Multiple agencies are responding to prevent any potential environmental damages after a tug partially sank at its moorings on the Kinnickinnic River in Port Milwaukee.The Coast Guard said its watchstanders at Sector Lake Michigan were notified by the National Response Center at 11:27 a.m. on Monday that the vessel Michigan, part of an articulated tug and barge (ATB) unit, began taking on water and…
What's in Store for US Offshore Wind?
January brings with it the expectation that the United States' first commercial wind farm in federal waters will start generating power by year end, the promise that permitting for close to 5 gigawatts (GW) of projects will be finalized within the year and that federal agencies will auction leases containing more than 15 GW in the Gulf of Mexico, in the Central Atlantic and offshore Oregon by the end of the year.However…
Lack of Dredging Could Delay Chevron's Venezuela Oil Exports
A shipping channel snafu is slowing Chevron Corp’s efforts to load tankers at one of its four Venezuelan joint ventures and bring heavy crude to the United States, three people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.Washington in November authorized the last major U.S. firm still operating in Venezuela to restore lost output and begin exporting oil as a way to encourage talks between Nicolas Maduro’s…
Norway Gas Exports to Stay at Record Levels for 4-5 Years
Norway plans to export around 122 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas in 2023, in line with last year’s level, and to maintain this volume for the next four or five years, Minister of Petroleum and Energy Terje Aasland said on Thursday.The output for 2022, which had not previously been released, was up 8% from 2021, in line with a previous government forecast, and similar to the all-time high…
Eagle Bulk Buys an Ultramax Bulk Carrier for $24.3 Million
U.S.-based shipowner Eagle Bulk Shipping announced it has expanded its fleet with the purchase of a secondhand Ultramax bulk carrier for $24.3 million.The vessel…
CMA CGM Completes Russia Exit
French-based shipping group CMA CGM has completed its withdrawal from the Russian market by divesting stakes in terminals through an asset swap, the company said.“With this finalized transaction and the decision to suspend all new bookings to and from Russia since March 1st, 2022, the CMA CGM Group will no longer be involved in any entities operating in Russia,” it said in an emailed statement.The deal was concluded on Dec.
Sea Rescue Charities Say New Italian Rules Will Cause Migrant Deaths
Sea rescue charities on Thursday condemned tough anti-immigration measures recently introduced by the Italian government, saying the new rules will cause ever more deaths in the Mediterranean.The decree, which was introduced last week, says charity ships must request a port and sail to it "without delay" after a rescue, rather than remain at sea looking for other migrant boats in distress, as it now happens.Ship captains risk fines of 50…
Liebherr Delivers Mobile Harbor Crane to Port Esbjerg
Last week, Liebherr-MCCtec Rostock GmbH delivered a new LHM 800 High Rise mobile harbor crane to its customer Port Esbjerg.The delivery took place shortly after an incident in the Kiel Canal, in which an LHM 600 ordered by Port Esbjerg was damaged while passing under the Holtenau High Bridge.Liebherr-MCCtec Rostock GmbH said it sent service engineers and technical specialists to assess the situation on site and to assist with the recovery immediately after the incident.
Interview: Grant Pecoraro, US Managing Director, Incat Crowther
Grant Pecoraro, is the U.S. managing director for naval architecture and marine engineering company Incat Crowther. The Australia-based firm’s Incat Crowther USA arm has been in business for over 10 years, and the broader Incat Crowther group is approaching 50 years in business. To date, Incat Crowther has delivered more than 650 vessels, with 130 vessels currently on the order books.Please give an overview of Incat Crowther’s U.S. presence as well as its offering to the American market.
China, Philippines Agree to Handle Disputes Peacefully, Resume Joint Offshore Oil Exploration Talks
China and the Philippines have agreed to set up a direct communications channel between their foreign ministries on the South China Sea to handle disputes peacefully, they said on Thursday.Their agreement, which contained 14 elements aimed at cooling security tensions and boosting economic cooperation, comes as they strive to mend a relationship hurt after the Philippines won a 2016 arbitral ruling…
VIDEO: Ocean Infinity's Armada 7801 Robotic Vessel Reaches Norway
Ocean Infinity's Armada 7801 has reached Norway after a long journey from Vietnam, where its hull was built last year at the Vard Vung Tau shipyard."Our first new ship has arrived in Norway, having set sail on its maiden voyage from Vietnam in November. Installation of the payload equipment and remote systems will now commence ahead of the ship entering service on offshore data acquisition tasks in the coming months…
AiP for Ammonia Floating Storage and Regasification Barge (A-FSRB)
ClassNK issued an Approval in Principle (AiP) for an ammonia floating storage and regasification barge (A-FSRB) jointly developed by NYK Line, Nihon Shipyard Co., Ltd. (NSY), and IHI Corporation (IHI), reportedly the world's first AiP for A-FSRBs handling ammonia as cargo.Ammonia, which does not emit CO2 during combustion, has attracted attention for its use in thermal power plants and other applications as a potential fuel for decarbonization…
TSC, Offshoretronic in Offshore Wind Monopile Installation Collab
OTSC Offshore Corporation (“TSC”), a subsidiary of CMIC Ocean En-Tech Holding Co., Ltd. has signed a memorandum of understanding with Spain-based offshore vessel and equipment design firm Offshoretronic.The MoU entails bringing together Offshoretronic's technical engineering experience in offshore wind transportation and installation, and TSC offshore equipment design and manufacturing expertise, with…
Obituary: Donald Keehan, founder, Advanced Polymer Coatings
Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC), based in Avon, Ohio, announced the passing of its founder Donald Keehan on December 28, 2022, aged 87.In a statement the Keehan family said:“Don was key driving force behind the business, but much more than that, he was a brilliant mind, a great friend, and an extraordinary human being. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit, Don was involved in starting and running several polymer-based technology companies since the 1960’s…
