Savannah News

Cambodia's former Prime Minister Hun Sen said on Friday that Japan would be granted visitation rights to the country's Ream Naval Base, a facility the United States is concerned could become a military outpost for China.Chinese military vessels have been rotating through Ream since a Beijing-funded upgrade started in June 2022. Cambodia has denied reports of a secret deal with China to station its forces at the base. The upgrade came after Cambodia demolished a U.S.-built facility at the base in Sihanoukville in 2020…

With a strike possible again next month at East Coast and Gulf Coast container ports and President-elect Donald Trump planning to increase tariffs, the nation’s major container ports are expected to see a continued surge in imports through next spring, according to the Global Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.“Either a strike or new tariffs would be a blow to the economy and retailers are doing what they can to avoid the impact of either for as long as they can,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said.

HII, America’s largest military shipbuilder and provider of all-domain defense solutions, is celebrating National Apprenticeship Week from Nov. 17-23, honoring the essential role of apprenticeships in workforce development and skills training.National Apprenticeship Week is a nationwide celebration established by the U.S. Department of Labor to showcase and promote high-quality and in-demand career pathway opportunities through registered apprenticeship programs. With apprenticeship programs offered at each of HII’s three divisions…

U.S. shippers are steering clear of East and Gulf Coast ports amid worries the 45,000 dockworkers at those trade hubs will go on strike again if their union leader does not land a new contract with employers by a Jan. 15 deadline.The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) labor union and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) employer group had ended a three-day strike in October with a tentative agreement on wages, but left the thorny issue of port automation still to be resolved."Anything we expect that we need in the back half of January…

U.S. shippers are steering clear of East and Gulf Coast ports amid worries the 45,000 dockworkers at those trade hubs will go on strike again if their union leader does not land a new contract with employers by a Jan. 15 deadline.The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) labor union and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) employer group had ended a three-day strike in October with a tentative agreement on wages, but left the thorny issue of port automation still to be resolved."Anything we expect that we need in the back half of January…

At least seven people were killed after part of a boat dock collapsed, sending at least 20 into the Atlantic waters off the coast of the U.S. state of Georgia.U.S. Coast Guard ships were searching on Saturday night for missing people.The accident, which also caused multiple injuries, happened during a celebration of Sapelo Island's tiny Gullah-Geechee community of Black slave descendants, authorities said.A gangway crowded with people waiting for a ferryboat collapsed late on Saturday afternoon on the Georgia barrier island about 60 miles (100 km) south of Savannah…

The initial design for a new ammonia bunkering articulated tug-barge (ATB) has been granted approval in principle (AIP) from classification society the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS).The partners behind the project, including ABS, A.P. Moller – Maersk A/S, Fleet Management Limited, Georgia Ports Authority, Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping (MMMCZCS), Sumitomo Corporation and TOTE Services, came together in March 2023 and have been conducting a feasibility study on ship-to-ship bunkering of reduced emission ammonia along the U.S.

A threatened Oct. 1 strike by dockworkers at ports on the U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico would immediately disrupt the flow of goods in the country, the North America chief executive of French container carrier CMA CGM said on Wednesday.The International Longshoremen's Association union represents 45,000 workers at 36 ports including New York/New Jersey, Houston and Savannah, Georgia. The union has vowed to stop work if it does not have a new labor agreement in place when the current six-year contract expires on Sept.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has unveiled nearly $300 million in grants from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law aimed at transforming and expanding ferry systems across the United States. This substantial investment will support the modernization of ferry services, which are vital for millions of Americans.Each year, ferries facilitate approximately 56 million trips nationwide, playing a crucial role in transporting people and goods…

Imports of U.S. container cargo in August jumped 12.9% from a year ago as a summer volume surge delayed cargo at major ports and anxiety builds over a threatened longshore worker strike on the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico on Oct. 1, trade data provider Descartes Systems Group said on Tuesday.U.S. seaports processed almost 2.5 million 20-foot equivalent units in August. That was 3% less than in July, when imports hit a 26-month high. Volume above 2.4 million TEU created bottlenecks and cargo backups in the early days of the pandemic…

Container liner shipping company ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd., announced it has entered into a new long-term operational cooperation with Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) on the Asia - U.S. East Coast and Asia - U.S. Gulf trades.The new services are scheduled to be launched in February 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and filings, ZIM said.Eli Glickman, ZIM President & CEO, said, "This important collaboration reflects ZIM's commitment to both delivering an outstanding shipping solution to its customers…

Crowley on Wednesday announced it has taken delivery of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunker barge Progress, the largest U.S. Jones Act-compliant vessel of its kind, after construction was completed at Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay, Wis.The Progress will expand access to cleaner energy for ship operators at the Port of Savannah, Georgia, upon final commissioning there this month. Shell NA LNG, LLC, (Shell) signed a long-term agreement with Crowley to operate the barge…

Charleston, S.C. based dredging contractor Marinex Construction has been awarded a $22,826,500 firm-fixed-price contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to perform maintenance dredging in Savannah, Ga.Marinex was one of two bidders for the project.The work in the Savannah Harbor deep draft navigation project is scheduled to be completed by July 11, 2025Up to four million cubic yards of material may be dredged, and dredged sediments will be placed in upland confined disposal areas owned by various state and local entities along the Savannah River, according to the Corps.

Maersk faces significant terminal congestion in Mediterranean and Asian ports, causing substantial delays in its vessel schedule, the Danish shipping group said in a statement on Monday.As a result of that congestion, the world's second-largest container shipping company, will skip two westbound sailings from China and South Korea that had been planned to depart in early July, it added.The notice from Maersk comes as global supply chains are suffering cascading delays and higher costs due to the Yemen's Houthi militant attacks on commercial vessels near the Suez Canal.

Maersk faces significant terminal congestion in Mediterranean and Asian ports, causing substantial delays in its vessel schedule, the Danish shipping group said in a statement on Monday.As a result of that congestion, the world's second-largest container shipping company, will skip two westbound sailings from China and South Korea that had been planned to depart in early July, it added.The notice from Maersk comes as global supply chains are suffering cascading delays and higher costs due to the Yemen's Houthi militant attacks on commercial vessels near the Suez Canal.

May 22 is National Maritime Day in the US, and MARAD celebrated the day saying: “The United States has always been and will always be a great maritime nation. From our origins as 13 British colonies, through every period of peace and conflict since, the Merchant Marine has been a pillar in this country’s foundation of prosperity and security. They power the world’s largest economy and strengthen our ties with trading partners around the world, all while supporting our military forces by shipping troops and supplies wherever they need to go.“Ninety-one years ago…

An at-sea training mishap off the coast of Jacksonville, Fla. caused injuries to 30 Sailors and Marines, the U.S. Navy said.The incident, which occurred on the evening of May 1, involved two landing craft, air cushions (LCAC) from USS Wasp (LHD 1) and USS New York (LPD 21).Five Sailors were medically evacuated for further care at Savannah Memorial University Medical Center, officials said. Four of the five Sailors have been released from the hospital after treatment, while one…

New Orleans-based marine towage provider Crescent Towing announced it has taken delivery of its newest tugboat, Angus R. Cooper II.The new escort tug was constructed at Blakeley BoatWorks in Mobile, Ala., to be added to Crescent's ship assist operations in the Port of Savannah, Georgia. It is powered by twin Caterpillar 3516E EPA Tier 4 engines, each producing 3,004HP to power Kongsberg 255 fixed pitch azimuthing drives (z-drives).This vessel is named in recognition of The Cooper Group’s longtime Chairman and CEO.

Norwegian car shipping firm Wallenius Wilhelmsen estimates a $5 million to $10 million hit to core earnings from last week's U.S. Baltimore bridge collapse and expects the key ship channel to be closed for weeks, it said on Wednesday.The company said its vessel Carmen - which according to shipping data is among the biggest car carriers in its fleet - remained stuck in Baltimore's port, with the ship and its crew ready to sail as soon as the channel was reopened.Recovery teams opened a second channel enabling smaller vessels to navigate the Port of Baltimore on Tuesday…

Ocean Network Express (ONE) has announced its Transpacific service starting from February 2025 which will deploy 16 core weekly services.“The emphasis will be on quality end-to-end direct services with high schedule reliability.

The catastrophic bridge collapse that closed the Port of Baltimore to ship traffic is unlikely to trigger a major new U.S. supply chain crisis or spike goods prices, due to ample and growing spare capacity at competing East Coast ports, economists and logistics experts say.With six people still missing after a container ship collision destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge, it remained unclear how long the span's twisted superstructure would block the harbor's mouth.But port officials…

U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford will reroute affected shipments after a bridge collapse in the U.S. shuttered the Port of Baltimore, but the companies said on Tuesday the impact will be minimal."We expect the situation to have minimal impact to our operations. We are working to re-route any vehicle shipments to other ports," GM said in a statement.The Port of Baltimore is the busiest U.S. port for car shipments, handling at least 750,000 vehicles in 2023, according to data from the Maryland Port Administration.

Derecktor Shipyards New York is building a pair of hybrid ferries for Savannah, Ga. based Chatham Area Transit (CAT). Delivery is expected in 2024.The two 65-foot-long, 50-passenger ferries will be equipped with an electric propulsion package from BAE Systems, including permanent magnet traction motors and HybriGen Power system. Each vessel will feature a 308 kWh energy storage system (ESS) from Xalt Energy and a pair of Marine Jet Power (MJP) Ultrajet 305 waterjets.The ferries are being built to operate on short…