Two Bodies Found Inside Sunken Yacht off Sicily
Scuba divers scouring the wreck of British tech magnate Mike Lynch's family yacht, which sank off Sicily two days ago, have found two bodies inside it, a source close to rescue operations said on Wednesday.One of the bodies belonged to a heavily built man, the source said.Rescue officials have been looking for six missing people, including Lynch, his 18-year-old daughter and Jonathan Bloomer, a non-executive chair of Morgan Stanley International.The British-flagged Bayesian…
Accusations Fly Between China, Philippines in Maritime Squabble
The Philippines said China's Coast Guard was not helping efforts to build confidence in the South China Sea, after accusing it of ramming and damaging its vessels in the latest in a succession of altercations.The Philippines urges China to refrain from aggressive actions and adhere to international law, said Alexander Lopez, a spokesperson for the country's maritime council, an inter-ministerial body…
Bahri to Spend $1B on VLCC Vessels
The National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) signed a purchase agreement to acquire nine Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) from Capital Maritime and Trading Corporation for approximately $1B, the company said.The purchase is part of a modernization drive and will enable the company to start phasing out older vessels, Bahri said in a statement issued via Saudi Arabia's stock exchange.The ships will be delivered before the end of the first quarter of 2025, with Bahri paying for 10% of th
And the Winner is ... Singapore ... (again)
Singapore announced top maritime centre for 11th consecutive yearThe Baltic Exchange, in collaboration with Xinhua News Agency, announced the release of the 2024 Xinhua-Baltic International Shipping Center Development Index (ISCDI) Report. Now in its 11th year, the report ranks the world’s leading shipping centers.For the 11th consecutive year, Singapore was recognized as the world’s leading shipping center, achieving a score of 96.23 out of 100.
Norway Eyes Increased Oil and Gas Exploration Through 2050
According to the Norwegian Offshore Directorate's projected scenarios leading up to 2050, the difference between high and low production of oil and gas can amount to nearly an entire government pension fund.Norway still has extensive oil and gas resources on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS). This can provide a basis for high levels of production, export and value creation for the broader society for many years to come, according to the new resource report.
Product Tanker Vessel Contracting Flying High, Up 17%
“During the first seven months of this year, 194 product tankers larger than 10k deadweight tonnes (DWT) have been contracted with a combined capacity of 13.3m DWT. This is a 17% increase compared to last year and the highest level of contracting since 2006,” says Niels Rasmussen, Chief Shipping Analyst at BIMCO.Contracting during the first seven months of 2024 has reached the second highest level on record while the third highest was achieved last year.
Marsh Launches $50M Port Blockage Insurance Facility
Marsh launched a $50 million port blockage insurance facility, covering shipping ports and terminals around the world.Created by Marsh following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge and subsequent disruption at the Port of Baltimore, the insurance facility can be purchased independently or used to supplement existing cover. Available to Marsh clients globally, it is specifically designed to…
More Chinese Steel Enters India
India continued to be a net importer of steel during the first four months of the current fiscal year beginning April, with China as its biggest supplier of the alloy, according to provisional government data seen by Reuters.India imported 2.69 million metric tons of steel between April and July, and exported 1.57 million tons, the data showed.India, the world's second-biggest crude steel producer…
Ballast Water Technology: Getting the Numbers Right
It was never going to be realistic to expect treated ballast water to have zero viable organisms on discharge.The G8 guidelines that define the type approval process for ballast water treatment systems were initially agreed at the IMO before any systems had actually been developed.The IMO had already been working on the issue of invasive species being transferred around the world in ballast water for a couple of decades. It was on the radar back in the 1970s.
More Must be Done to Protect of Species from GOM Drilling, says Judge
At the urging of environmental groups, a U.S. judge threew out an assessment by a federal agency governing how endangered and threatened marine species should be protected from oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman in Greenbelt, Maryland, ruled the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Services' so-called "biological opinion" was flawed and did not adequately address…
Tanker Vessel Reported Attack off Yemen's Hodeidah
Oil products tanker Sounion reported being attacked by two small boats and struck by three projectiles in the Red Sea off Yemen on Wednesday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.There were no casualties reported among the 25 crew members onboard, but the Greek-flagged vessel has lost the ability to maneuver, UKMTO added.The vessel reported being approached by two small craft with approximately 15 people onboard and said there was a brief exchange of small arms fire…
Liberian-flag Vessel in Argentina Quarantined on mpox Suspicion
Argentine authorities have quarantined a cargo ship in the Parana River over a suspected case of mpox onboard, the government said on Tuesday, as global public health authorities remain on alert for a new faster-spreading variant of the virus.The quarantined Liberian-flagged ship was sailing from Santos, Brazil - also a major commodities hub - to pick up soy cargo, according to the health ministry…
The Heat is On: Rising Sea Temps Present Threat to Vessels
The shipwreck of a luxury yacht moored off the coast of Sicily is the latest sign that the Mediterranean is becoming a more dangerous sea to sail in, climate experts and skippers say.One man died and six people are still missing, including British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, after the Bayesian, a 56-metre-long (184-ft) sailboat, was hit by a ferocious storm on Monday, sinking in a matter of minutes.Climatologists…
USCG RDC: Vessels, Tech, Partnerships Help to Thwart Narcotics, Human Smugglers
In 2011 the 210-foot Coast Guard Cutter VIGILANT was on patrol in the Caribbean when it came upon a suspected maritime narcotics smuggler. As the chase ensued, the suspected smuggler jettisoned bales of what turned out to be cocaine. The VIGILANT crew marked the position on their radar and gathered the latitude and longitude for the bales, then went in pursuit of the suspect vessel. After the suspect was apprehended…
Johns Hopkins APL, USCG Team to Address Defense, Maritime Security Challenges
The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, and the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center (RDC) in New London, Connecticut, have signed a comprehensive memorandum of understanding (MOU) to team up on addressing critical technology challenges in national defense and maritime security.The MOU builds on a previous agreement signed in 2019, broadening and specifying more precisely the scope of collaboration between APL and RDC.
DeepOcean Wins Vessel Contract Extension in Mexico
DeepOcean won a contract extension with Diavaz for the vessel, Arbol Grande. The vessel will work on Inspection Maintenance and Repair (IMR) services in Mexico for the next five years.Arbol Grande is a construction and subsea vessel, delivered in 2003 with specifications tailor made for the Mexican market. The vessel has been used as an accommodation and topside maintenance support vessel for several IMR contracts involving saturation- and air diving…
Hess Guyana's Value is Central to Exxon Mobile Spat
An arbitration panel that will decide a high-profile clash between Exxon Mobil and Chevron will delve into the secret value of Hess' oil riches in Guyana, people familiar with the matter said.Chevron last October offered to pay $53 billion for Hess, one of the two biggest deals in the largest wave of consolidation in the oil industry in decades. The asset most coveted by Chevron in the takeover is Hess’s stake in a Guyana field operated by top U.S.
Marlink Upgrades Solstad Offshore Hybrid Network
Marlink extended its Sealink NextGen solution for Solstad Offshore to include a flexible fleet agreement for Starlink LEO services, aimed at increasing the flexibility to allocate data according to actual needs at any given time across the fleet.Marlink introduced its Starlink LEO fleet agreements to meet the growing demand for high throughput services within its smart hybrid network solutions. The agreement enables Solstad to share significant Starlink data allowance across their fleet…
MOL Increases Stake in MODEC
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. completed the purchase on the market of 89,500 shares of common stock of MODEC, Inc. and along with the 10,162,300 shares already acquired in June 2023, MOL now holds a 15% stake in MODEC and will make it an equity-method affiliate.MODEC is a leading company in the offshore oil and gas development industry, engaging in the entire process from Engineering, Procurement, Construction…
Inside the Future of AI-Driven Weather Prediction
Volue and Jua announce a partnership to harness the power of AI driven weather predictionVolue announced a partnership agreement with Jua that the tandem see as revolutionizing weather prediction for the renewable energy market. The partnership will see both companies work together to deliver solutions for forecasting and market insights. Volue will use Jua's weather prediction for fundamental analysis of the energy markets, providing highly accurate production, demand and price forecasts.
