Windward Unveils AI Solution for Critical Maritime Infrastructure Protection
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Windward has launched a Critical Maritime Infrastructure Protection solution, an AI-powered solution designed to protect the world’s essential maritime infrastructure against growing threats.Windward’s Critical Maritime Infrastructure Protection solution addresses three primary threats to maritime infrastructure, deep-sea research operations, shallow-water sabotage, and attacks on offshore oil rigs and platforms. The AI-powered solution monitors high-risk vessels to flag suspicious activities…
Oil Falls After Tariffs Pause
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Oil prices retreated on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump agreed to hold off imposing steep tariffs on Mexico and Canada, the two biggest foreign oil suppliers to the United States, for a month.Brent futures LCOc1 fell 41 cents, or 0.5%, to $75.55 a barrel at 0149 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 declined 75 cents, or 1%, to trade at $72.41.Both Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said they had agreed to…
Estonia Proposes Baltic Shipping Fee to Fund Subsea Infrastructure Protection
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Shipping companies using the Baltic Sea, one of the world’s busiest maritime routes, may face a new fee to help finance the protection of critical undersea cables, Estonia’s defense minister suggested on Wednesday. The proposal comes in response to a series of breaches that have raised security concerns.Last week, NATO announced plans to deploy frigates, patrol aircraft, and drones in the Baltic Sea following multiple incidents where ships allegedly damaged power and communication cables with their anchors in suspected acts of sabotage.Beyond military patrols…
Colonial Pipeline's gasoline line likely shut until Friday
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Colonial Pipeline's main U.S. gasoline artery is expected to be shut through Friday as the company continues to search for the source of a suspected leak in Paulding County, Georgia, the company said in a statement on Wednesday.Line 1, one of two mainlines on the more than 5,500-mile Colonial system, was shut on Monday night after Colonial received reports of a gasoline release and began investigating. The pipeline moves gasoline from Texas to North Carolina and was earlier expected to resume service on Tuesday night…
Russia Accuses Ukraine for Attempted Attack on TurkStream Gas Pipeline
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Russia said on Monday it had downed nine Ukrainian drones that tried to attack part of the infrastructure of the TurkStream gas pipeline, through which Russian gas flows to Turkey and Europe.The Russian defence ministry said the attack was aimed against a compressor station in the Krasnodar region of southern Russia, but the facility was working normally and there were no casualties.Reuters could not independently confirm the incident, and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine.TurkStream and Blue Stream…
Subsea Sabotage in the Baltic Sea - a Timeline for Perspective
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A Finnish court today denied a request for the release of an oil tanker suspected by police of damaging an undersea power line and four telecommunications cables in the Baltic Sea last week. The incident was one of several since 2022 in which underwater critical infrastructure in the Baltic Sea has suffered suspicious damage. Baltic Sea nations are on high alert and NATO has said it will boost its presence in the Baltic Sea.The following is a timeline of major 'incidents' since September 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.SEPT 2022: NORD STREAM BLASTSNord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2…
Russia’s Domination of European Energy Ends
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Russian gas exports via Soviet-era pipelines running through Ukraine came to a halt on New Year's Day, marking the end of decades of Moscow's dominance over Europe's energy markets.The gas had kept flowing despite nearly three years of war, but Russia's gas firm Gazprom said it had stopped at 0500 GMT after Ukraine refused to renew a transit agreement.The widely expected stoppage will not impact prices for consumers in the European Union - unlike in 2022, when falling supplies from Russia sent prices to record highs…
Saipem’s Castorone Vessel on Its Way to Türkiye’s Largest Gas Field
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Saipem’s pipelay vessel Castorone has crossed the Bosphorus Strait in Türkiye, continuing its journey toward the Black Sea for a pipeline installation job as part of the second phase of the Sakarya project for Turkish Petroleum - Offshore Technology Center (TP – OTC).In the early hours of December 26, the vessel crossed the Dardanelles Strait, covering a distance of 36 nautical miles in approximately six hours.In the afternoon, it continued its journey through the Sea of Marmara.
Russian Gas Exports to Europe Rise 20% in 2024
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Total exports of Russian gas to European countries have so far been 18-20% higher this year than in 2023, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday.In January to November, supplies of pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exceeded 50 billion cubic metres, Novak said."Despite all the statements and sanctions pressure because gas is a highly ecological product, it is in demand. And Russian gas is the most cost-efficient, both in terms of logistics and the price…
US Pipeline Operator Signs 20-Year LNG Agreement with Chevron
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U.S.
Trump to Boost LNG Exports, Oil Drilling from Day 1
Donald Trump's transition team is putting together a wide-ranging energy package to roll out within days of his taking office that would approve export permits for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects and increase oil drilling off the U.S. coast and on federal lands, according to two sources familiar with the plans.The energy checklist largely reflects promises Trump made on the campaign trail, but the plan to roll out the list as early as day one ensures that oil and gas production will rank alongside immigration as a pillar of Trump's early agenda.Trump, a Republican, also plans to repeal some of his Democratic predecessor's key climate legislation and regulations…
Netherlands to Enlist Private Firms to Protect North Sea Assets from Russian Sabotage
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The Netherlands plans to temporarily enlist additional personnel and equipment from private companies to strengthen security in its part of the North Sea, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday, confirming media reports.The decision follows reports last year from Dutch military intelligence agency MIVD that Dutch North Sea infrastructure, such as gas pipes and windmills, is the target of Russian sabotage activities.
Poland Calls Nord Stream Attack Insinuations 'Groundless'
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Suggestions that Ukrainian authorities supported by Poland were behind planning and executing the sabotage attack on Nord Stream gas pipelines in 2022 are groundless, the Polish president's aide said on Sunday.Germany's former intelligence chief August Hanning told Die Welt this week he believed there were agreements between presidents of Poland and Ukraine to carry out the attack."These are completely groundless insinuations," Mieszko Pawlak, head of the international policy bureau at the office of President Andrzej Duda said when asked about the allegations by Polsat broadcaster…
Trans Mountain Pipeline to load 22 Tankers in Vancouver
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Twenty-two oil tankers are scheduled to load this month in Vancouver with crude from the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline, which is running around 80% full with a "little bit" of spot capacity also being used, a Trans Mountain executive said on Wednesday.Speaking with Reuters six weeks after the C$34.2 billion ($24.94 billion) project started commercial operations, Trans Mountain Corp's chief financial and strategy officer Mark Maki said so far the system is operating as expected and final costs for the expansion are not expected to rise significantly.The Trans Mountain expansion…
DOF’s Pipelay Support Vessel Hooks Petrobras Job
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Norwegian offshore vessel operator DOF Group has secured a ‘major contract’ from Petrobras for its pipelay support vessel (PLSV) Skandi Vitória.DOF secured a three-year firm contract, plus option, for its PLSV Skandi Vitória as part of an ongoing tender process.The contract starts in 2025, according to DOF.The vessel is Brazilian-built and flagged and owned by DOFCON Navegação, a joint venture between DOF Subsea (50%) and TechnipFMC (50%).kandi Vitória is an ROV construction support vessel…
Estonia Says China Has Not Responded to Subsea Cables Probe Request
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Estonia's state prosecutor said China has not responded to a six-month-old request for help with an investigation into a Chinese ship which Estonia suspects cut two of its subsea telecoms cables.The two cables connecting Estonia to Finland and Sweden were damaged on Oct 7-8, and an Estonia-Finland gas pipeline was broken the same night, hurting energy security and raising alarm bells in the wider region.Both Estonia, which is investigating the cables damage, and Finland, which is looking into the Balticconnector gas pipeline…
Sapura Energy Lands $1.8B Petrobras Deal for Six Pipelaying Vessels and Subsea Services
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Malaysia-based offshore services firm Sapura Energy has through its joint venture companies secured $1.8 billion worth of contracts with Brazil’s state-owned energy giant Petrobras for the provision of subsea services and six pipe-laying support vessels (PLSVs).Sapura Energy has through the joint ventures owned by Seabras Sapura Holding and Seabras Sapura Participações, in collaboration with Paratus Energy Services, secured contracts for its full fleet of six multi-purpose PLSVs as part of a competitive tender process run by Petrobras.Sapura Energy…
Allseas Makes Progress on Santos’ Barossa Gas Export Pipeline in Australia
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Offshore installation contractor Allseas has made progress on the installation of the pipeline for Santos’ Barossa Gas Export Pipeline (GEP) project offshore Australia.Allseas’ Audacia pipelay vessel has installed her largest ever PLET in S-mode, concluding several years of in-house engineering, fabrication and testing, the Swiss-based contractor said.Due to the weight of the pipeline end termination structure, Allseas’ production crew had to install it separately to the connector head.Audacia vessels is being supported with four other vessels - Fortitude…
No Remaining Recoverable Oil Sheen Seen off California
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The U.S.
Nord Stream Sues Insurers in London Over 2022 Pipeline Blasts
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Nord Stream is seeking more than 400 million euros ($436 million) from its insurers over explosions in 2022 which ruptured pipelines designed to transport Russian gas to Germany, court filings show.Nord Stream AG names Lloyd's Insurance Company and Arch Insurance (EU) DAC as defendants in its lawsuit, which was filed at London's High Court last month.Switzerland-based Nord Stream confirmed in an email there is a contractual dispute in London commercial courts between itself and insurers of the pipeline system."However…
Saipem Gets Offshore Pipelines Installation Job for CCS Schemes in UK
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Saipem has signed a letter of intent for the development of CO2 offshore transportation and storage facilities as part of the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP) and Net Zero Teesside Power (NZTP) projects for the East Coast Cluster in the UK.Saipem signed a Letter of Intent, received by the Northern Endurance Partnership (NEP), a joint venture between the operator BP, Equinor, and TotalEnergies, and Net Zero Teesside Power (NZT Power), a joint venture between BP and Equinor.The…
Sweden Ends Nord Stream Sabotage Probe
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Sweden on Wednesday dropped its investigation into the explosions in 2022 on Nord Stream pipelines carrying Russian gas to Germany, saying it lacked jurisdiction in the case but had handed evidence it had uncovered over to German investigators.The multi-billion-dollar Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines transporting gas under the Baltic Sea were ruptured by a series of blasts in the Swedish and Danish economic zones in September 2022, releasing vast amounts of methane into the air.Russia and the West…
MDL Assists Saipem on Gastrade’s LNG Development Off Greece
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Maritime Developments (MDL) has assisted Saipem in progressing an LNG project offshore Greece, which included work on the connection of Gastrade’s Alexandroupolis floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) to the country’s gas transmission system.The project consisted of a FSRU and a mooring and pipeline system, connecting the floating unit to the Greek National Natural Gas Transmission System (NNGTS).An MDL flex-lay spread was used for the installation of two flexible risers…