Port Arthur News

U.S. liquefied natural gas developers awaiting permits for new export projects this week expressed confidence President-elect Donald Trump will ease the way for their multi-billion-dollar expansion plans.Their confidence is buoyed by Trump's promise to end an expanded Department of Energy review that has slowed new export permits. President Joe Biden had paused new non-FTA export permits and asked the DOE to more broadly evaluate the cumulative effects of new LNG projects' climate…

Vicksburg, Miss. based Golding Barge Line has commissioned its newest vessel, Scott Golding, built by Vessel Repair, in Port Arthur, Texas.The new towboat features a pair of Mitsubishi EPA Tier 4 engines supplied by Laborde Products, each delivering 1,260 HP at 1,600 RPM.“Golding Barge Line is proud to welcome our first Mitsubishi propulsion system to the fleet. The experience with Laborde Products has been exceptional,” said Austin Golding, President of Golding Barge Line. “These Tier 4 engines are not only environmentally friendly but also extremely efficient…

TDI-Brooks on Tuesday announced it will repower its oceanographic research vessel Brooks McCall to ensure compliance with California Air Resources Board (CARB) emissions regulations ahead of a U.S. West Coast offshore wind survey campaign next year.The 2000-built Brooks McCall is a 48.46-meter (LOA) Jones Act-complaint multi-use vessel suited for various comprehensive site investigation surveys and research duties.TDI-Brooks said it will replace the vessel's three diesel propulsion engines and two generators with Tier 3 diesel engines.

Gulf LNG Tugs of Port Arthur on Thursday announced it has placed orders for four new escort tugs to serve the Port Arthur LNG export facility in Texas. Two will be constructed by Master Boat Builders in Coden, Ala., and two by Sterling Shipyard in Port Neches, Texas. Gulf LNG Tugs—a joint venture comprised of Bay-Houston Towing, Moran Towing Corporation and Suderman & Young Towing Company—said the new high horsepower, highly maneuverable RApport 2800 tugboats have been designed by naval architect Robert Allan Ltd.

U.S.

The wreck of a World War II-era freighter has been discovered in over 600 feet of water around 35 miles north of Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula.Over the last 7 years, shipwreck researcher Dan Fountain has been studying remote sensing data in the search for shipwrecks in Lake Superior. After coming across a particularly deep anomaly, he reached out to the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society (GLSHS) for help in identifying the potential wreck. In 2023 GLSHS Director of Marine Operations…

Blake Powell, president at JMS Naval Architects, discusses his career, company and latest trends in naval architecture and marine engineering.Please give a brief professional bio, including education, experience and overview of current duties as president of JMS Naval Architects.I earned my degree in Naval Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley where I attended on a Navy ROTC scholarship and was commissioned as a Diving and Salvage Officer after I graduated.

Houston based dredging and marine construction contractor Orion Group Holdings – Marine Group has become a member of trade group the Dredging Contractors of America (DCA).Orion has a near 100-year legacy and today ranks among market leaders in the provision of dredging services to keep waterways serviceable and to expand ports and other marine infrastructure throughout the United States, territories and Caribbean. The company works to create beneficial marsh habitats, dredging…

Analysts and commentators are quick to point out that fossil fuels will power maritime equipment, and indeed dominate the fueling marketplace, well into the future. However, they will do so alongside new fuels, and new technologies, that will be introduced to the maritime sector in the coming years. In its September, 2023 report “Beyond the Horizon: View of the Emerging Energy Value Chains”, the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) explains that, “During the recent 80th meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC 80)…

A U.S. court has removed an emissions permit for Sempra's Port Arthur LNG export terminal in Texas, potentially halting construction of the facility.In its decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Tuesday found that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) failed to impose the same emissions limits on the Port Arthur plant as on other projects, including the Rio Grande LNG project which is now under construction.The approximately 13.5 million-metric…

Houston-based dredging contractor Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Corporation announced it has been awarded a dredging and disposal contract in support of the Port Arthur LNG Phase 1 project.Great Lakes has been contracted by Bechtel Energy, the engineering, construction, and procurement company that’s managing the project in partnership with Sempra Infrastructure. The Port Arthur LNG project is a natural gas liquefaction and export terminal in Southeast Texas with direct access to the Gulf of Mexico.

A loss of propulsion due to a false alarm led to cargo vessels colliding near Port Arthur, Texas last year, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Thursday.While transiting the Sabine Pass on August 21, 2022, the general cargo ship Damgracht lost propulsion when the vessel’s main engine shut down due to “high oil mist density” sensed by its oil mist detector (OMD). Due to the abrupt loss of propulsion, the Damgracht began veering into the path of the bulk carrier AP Revelin.

U.S. refiners last month imported the most heavy crude in nearly two years, customs data showed, as they cranked up motor fuel production and sought to replace sanctioned Russian oil.Higher heavy-crude imports are common in summer-driving months, but this year's increase comes as the Biden administration is calling on for refiners to ramp up output and shave profit margins to ease soaring prices. The administration has asked for a parley to explore further efforts.Heavy crudes are cheaper than lighter shale oils produced in the United States and typically make more diesel and less gasoline.

At least three proposed U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants have likely found enough customers to receive financial approvals this year, according to Reuters calculations, developments that would make the country the world's largest LNG exporter for years to come.After a dearth of plant approvals last decade, developers have secured dozens of long-term contracts to finance new multibillion-dollar LNG plants. The pace of approvals has accelerated as Europe has shifted…

ConocoPhillips said on Thursday it would take a 30% equity stake in Sempra Energy's Port Arthur liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Texas, as the U.S. oil and gas producer expands its LNG business to meet soaring demand.Western sanctions on Russian fuel has choked an already undersupplied market and sent buyers scrambling for the heating fuel.

Britain's INEOS Energy, part of INEOS Group, has signed an agreement with U.S. firm Sempra Infrastructure for the supply of 1.4 million tonnes per annum of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from North America for 20 years, it said on Wednesday.It marks INEOS's entry into the global LNG market, with the volumes intended both for trading and supplying of INEOS' own industrial needs in Europe.The LNG will be delivered free-on-board, from either the proposed Port Arthur LNG Phase 1 project or the Cameron LNG Phase 2 projects in the U.S.

Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Lines,(MOL) has signed a long-term agreement with INEOS Energy Trading, a subsidiary of UK-based INEOS Group Ltd., for the charter of two newbuild LNG carriers. This marks INEOS' entry into the LNG carrier market, and INEOS will use the vessel for the import of LNG into Germany from the United States. "These agreements are a significant milestone for INEOS Energy Trading following the long-term Sales and Purchase Agreement signed with Sempra for 1.4 mtpa of supply out of Port Arthur and the purchase of long-term regasification capacity in Brunsbuttel…

U.S. power and gas utility Sempra Energy said on Monday the first phase of its proposed Port Arthur liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal received the financial greenlight to move ahead with investment firm KKR & Co agreeing to a minority stake in the project.Though KKR's investment was not disclosed, an infrastructure fund managed by it will buy a 25% to 49% indirect, non-controlling interest in the project. Sempra Infrastructure Partners, the 70%-owned unit of Sempra, would target 20% to 30% of indirect ownership interest in the project…

An ailing crew member was medecaced from a tanker in the Gulf of Mexico on Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said.Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston command center watchstanders received a medevac request at 12:17 p.m. from the vessel agent of the 980-foot tanker vessel Tenergy, stating a 40-year-old crew member aboard was experiencing numbness, shortness of breath and an elevated heart rate. Watchstanders consulted with the duty flight surgeon, who recommended a medevac.A Coast…

Four mariners were rescued in dramatic fashion from a tugboat that was sinking in Sabine Pass, Texas, on Friday.The U.S. Coast Guard said its watchstanders at Sector Houston-Galveston command center were notified at 5:38 a.m. that the crew of the 71-foot tug Sea Cypress hailed mayday on VHF-FM channel 13 and reported they were capsizing while moored near the mouth of the Sabine Pass channel.Watchstanders issued an urgent marine information broadcast and directed the launch of…

The November edition of Marine News magazine highlighted the most notable newbuilds delivered in 2022. From sturdy and nimble workboats, to the first new Jones Act laker in a generation, each vessel on display showcases the industry’s engineering prowess and technological ingenuity, with the focus on improving efficiency in operations. The maritime industry has no shortage of challenges to overcome, and each of Marine News’ top vessels will, in one way or another, aid efforts to tackle them.Mark W.

Oil major Chevron has closed the transaction to enter a U.S. Gulf of Mexico carbon capture and storage joint venture with Talos Energy and Carbonvert.The companies on Tuesday announced the execution of definitive documentation and closing of the expanded joint venture to develop the Bayou Bend CCS offshore carbon capture and sequestration hub, effective May 1, 2022.Under the terms of the transaction, Chevron has acquired a 50 percent stake in the expanded Bayou Bend CCS joint venture for a gross consideration of $50 million to Talos and Carbonvert…

The high-powered tug Spartan joined the Seabulk fleet, featuring a fully integrated hybrid propulsion plant from Berg Propulsion. The tug is already operational at Port Arthur following delivery by Master Boat Builders, and the Robert Allan-designed RApport 3000 vessel is the first of two 90-ton bollard pull tugs using the Berg package, with the second due in service in Q3 2022.In addition to Berg MTA 628 azimuthing thrusters, Berg VS3 variable frequency drives with motors, and its own hybrid control system…