Vigor Wins Repair Contract for Hospital Ship USNS Mercy
Vigor Marine has been awarded a contract for a 93-calendar day shipyard availability for a mid-term availability of Military Sealift Command’s (MSC) hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19).The $21,198,656 firm-fixed-price contract includes a base period and options, which if exercised, would bring the cumulative value of this contract to $21,711,746. Vigor was the sole bidder for the project.Work will be performed in Portland…
Windward Offshore Orders Two More CSOVs from Vard
Windward Offshore has exercised its option for the design and construction for two additional hybrid commissioning service operation vessels (CSOV) from Vard.Windward Offshore, a consortium led by ASSC's offshore arm SeaRenergy Group in Germany, announced its initial order for two CSOVs from Vard in October 2023. Other founding partners behind the venture include Blue Star Group, Diana Shipping Inc.
BYD's First Chartered Vessel Sets Sail with 5,000 EVs for Europe
BYD's first chartered vehicle carrier has set sail from China's southern city of Shenzhen, carrying more than 5,000 electric vehicles to Europe, state media Xinhua reported on Tuesday.Chinese automakers including BYD, Chery Automobile and SAIC Motor, have been placing orders for vessels to counter rising shipping costs as they boost exports.The new roll-on, roll-off vehicle carrier named "BYD Explorer…
US Denies Houthis Claim of Attack on US Military Cargo Ship Ocean Jazz
The U.S. military on Monday denied claims made by the Yemeni Houthi movement that it had attacked American cargo ship Ocean Jazz in the Gulf of Aden."The Iranian-backed Houthi terrorists' report of an alleged successful attack on M/V Ocean Jazz is patently false," the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command said in a statement. "NAVCENT has maintained constant communications with M/V Ocean Jazz throughout…
Red Sea Shipping Attacks Pressure China's Exporters
For Chinese businessman Han Changming, disruptions to Red Sea freight are threatening the survival of his trading company in the eastern province of Fujian.Han, who exports Chinese-made cars to Africa and imports off-road vehicles from Europe, told Reuters the cost of shipping a container to Europe had surged to roughly $7,000 from $3,000 in December, when Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement escalated attacks on shipping."The disruptions have wiped out our already thin profits…
Suez Canal Authority Carries Out Repairs to Missile-hit Vessel
Egypt's Suez Canal Authority said on Monday it had conducted repair work on a missile-hit Greek dry-bulk carrier, highlighting its readiness to restore damaged ships passing through the Red Sea.The Malta-flagged, Greek-owned vessel Zografia had berthed at a floating dock of the authority-affiliated Suez Shipyard Company for repairs after the ship's hull and some components sustained external and internal damage in a Jan.
Red Sea Shipping Disruptions Could be Avoided by Using the Arctic, But Challenges Exist
Attacks by Yemeni Houthi rebels on merchant ships in the Red Sea have hit world trade. Between November and December 2023, the number of containers travelling through the Red Sea each day fell by 60% as ships moving goods between Asia and Europe diverted their routes around the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.This route results in at least ten days more sailing time, so has caused freight prices to surge and has triggered costly delays to production.
Penguin Marks Milestone Crewboat Delivery
Singaporean shipbuilder Penguin International Limited last week held a ceremony marking the delivery of a milestone vessel.The 40-meter aluminum crewboat, Pelican Breeze, is noteworthy for being Penguin's 100th newbuild vessel powered by Cat C32 ACERT main propulsion engines and Cat C4.4 auxiliary generators."Back in 2014, almost two decades after we built our first ship, we took our first step with Caterpillar and Tractors Singapore with our first Cat C32-powered vessel…
GOST Promotes Breaux
Marine security, tracking, monitoring and video surveillance systems company GOST (Global Ocean Security Technologies) announced the promotion of Scott Breaux to Global Sales and Marketing Director – Business Strategies Analyst.In his new role, Breaux will oversee GOST’s initiatives and strategies for both recreational and commercial maritime markets. His responsibilities will include identifying potential markets for expansion…
VIDEO: UK Naval Ships Collide in Bahrain, No Injuries
Two British Royal Navy mine-hunter vessels were involved in a collision in a port in Bahrain, the Royal Navy said.No one was injured in the accident which occurred in Bahrain Harbor on Friday, it said. An investigation into the incident has been opened.The Royal Navy is working with the U.S. Navy in the Gulf region in an effort to protect Red Sea shipping from an upsurge in attacks by Houthi forces based in Yemen.The Houthis say they acting in solidarity with the Palestinian group Hamas…
American Cruise Lines Christens New Coastal Cat American Glory
American Glory, the second Coastal Cat in American Cruise Lines’ new series of 100-passenger ships, was christened in Key West, Fla. on Sunday. The ceremony took place at Mallory Square where the ship docks when visiting Key West along the company’s newest U.S. itinerary—Florida Gulf Coast & Keys cruises, operating roundtrip from St. Petersburg.Charles B. Robertson, President & CEO of American Cruise Lines…
Two US Navy SEALs Died Raiding Vessel in Gulf of Aden
Two U.S. Navy SEALs who went missing in the Gulf of Aden earlier this month during a raid on a boat carrying Iranian weapons have not been located following an exhaustive search and their status has been changed to deceased, military officials said on Sunday.The SEALs were reported missing after boarding the vessel in a Jan. 11 operation near the coast of Somali, the U.S. Central Command said on X.“We mourn the loss of our two Naval Special Warfare warriors…
TEN Sells 2005-built Suezmax Tanker
Tsakos Energy Navigation (TEN) on Monday announced it has sold one of the older vessels in its fleet, noting it plans to sell additional vessels in the near future.The 164,608 dwt suezmax tanker Eurochampion 2004, built at South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries in 2005, was sold to an undisclosed buyer in a deal expected to contribute approximately $40 million to the TEN’s cash balances, the Greek shipowner said.In announcing the sale…
MAN Cryo Ammonia Fuel-supply System Earns AIP
MAN Cryo announced its design for an ammonia fuel-supply system to safely provide ammonia to marine-engine applications has been awarded an Approval in Principle from classification societies, DNV and Bureau Veritas.MAN Cryo, part of MAN Energy Solutions, developed the system in cooperation with Chinese company Yada Green Energy Solutions, with whom the company has previously cooperated to provide equipment for LNG and methanol marine fuels.Xiang Guangqing…
Argeo Searcher Set to Sail to Indian Ocean after Shell’s Nigeria Task
Oslo-listed offshore service company Argeo has informed that its DP2 vessel Argeo Searcher completed the deepwater inspection services at Shell’s Bonga field, and is scheduled to set sail to Indian Ocean for a job with India’s National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR).In a vessel schedule update, released on January 22, 2024, Argeo confirmed its current backlog includes close to $53 million (NOK 550 million)…
Subsea 7 Pipelay Vessel to be Equipped with Huisman’s Crane
Dutch company Huisman has secured a contract from Subsea 7 for the delivery of its 500MT offshore mast crane for one of pipelay vessels for deep water installations.The 500mt Offshore Mast Crane will be equipped with a passive and active heave compensation system on the main hoist to counter-act the vessel’s heave motion when landing a product onto the seabed.Huisman has upgraded its heave compensation system with a variety of new control modes to extend the operational window…
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Signs Korean Customer and Acquires Two RoRo Ships
Wallenius Wilhelmsen, the world’s largest RoRo vessel operator, has signed a multi-year shipping contract with South Korea’s construction machinery company and taken delivery of two vessels.Through its 80% owned subsidiary EUKOR, Wallenius Wilhelmsen welcomed the 2009-built, 6,600 CEU Morning Camilla vessel following the declaration of a purchase option under the long-term charter-in agreement.The purchase price is $30 million…
Ship Recycling: Few Sales Confirmed
In its Week 3 market report, cash buyer GMS says that even as vessel prices have improved from the lows seen towards the end of 2023 and plate prices made a massive jump in Bangladesh over the last couple of weeks, only a trickle of sales have been confirmed into the recycling markets in 2024 thus far.“There also seems a reluctance from ship owners to bite at current offers in the low USD 500s/LDT, having seen levels around USD 100/LDT higher only a couple of quarters ago.
Australia Recalls Livestock Carrier Destined for Middle East
The Australian Government has recalled the livestock carrier Bahijah after it diverted from the Red Sea over a week into its voyage to the Middle East.The Bahijah loaded cattle and sheep in Fremantle, Western Australia, and departed for the Middle East on January 5, 2024. The vessel has an Israeli company name painted in large letters along the side of the hull.At the time of departure, the Department of Agriculture…
US Strikes Another Houthi Anti-Ship Missile
U.S. Central Command forces on Saturday struck a Houthi anti-ship missile that was aimed into the Gulf of Aden and prepared to launch, the U.S. military said, with the latest round of strikes coming hours after the United States struck three other Houthi anti-ship missiles."U.S. forces determined the missile presented a threat to merchant vessels and U.S. Navy ships in the region, and subsequently struck and destroyed the missile in self-defense," the U.S.
