Maritime Industry Top News
New Bill Aims to Increase US Federal Funding for Public Ferry Service
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A new bill recently introduced by Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA) and U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) aims to increase federal funding for public ferry services in the United States.The āFerry Service Expansion Actā would boost funding for both the Federal Highway Administrationās formula and the Federal Transit Administrationās competitive grant programs to the levels requested by the Public Ferry Coalitionā¦
Capesize Dip Drags Baltic Dry Index Lower
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The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, tracking rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities, edged down on Tuesday pressured by a dip in rates for the larger capesize vessel segment.The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, fell 6 points, or about 0.3%, to 1,807.Even after an improvement in both basins (Atlantic and Pacific) last week for the capesize segmentā¦
Petrofac Hires AHTS to Assist with Northern Endeavour FPSO Disconnection
![Skandi Atlantic - Credit: DDW Offshore](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/skandi-atlantic-credit-ddw-offshore-135440.jpg)
Akastor's subsidiary DDW Offshore has won a one-year contract with Petrofac for the AHTS vessel Skandi Atlantic. The AHTS will support the disconnection of the FPSO "Northern Endeavour" together with towing and well isolations work in the Laminaria Corallina oil fields in the West Timor Sea. The contract start date is September 27th, 2022.The Australian Government earlier this year awarded London-listedā¦
NOV Launches Solution that Promises to Cut Offshore Wind Blade Installation Cost
![Credit: NOV](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/credit-nov-135435.jpg)
GustoMSC and NOV Lifting & Handling said Tuesday they had developed a solution to improve offshore wind turbine blade installation efficiency."Blades are highly susceptible to wind loads, so they currently take the most time to install," the companies said.The solution has been named Sjøhest - Norwegian for āseahorse.""Like the seahorseās unique and strong grasping tail enables it to resist ocean currentsā¦
Greater Tortue Ahmeyim FPSO Returned to Quayside after Drifting Off Due to Typhoon
![Tortue Ahmeyim illustration - Credit: BP](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/tortue-ahmeyim-illustration-credit-bp-135434.jpg)
Oil and gas company Kosmos Energy said Tuesday that the FPSO for the Greater Tortue Ahmeyim project had been returned to the quayside of the COSCO shipyard in China, following the recent incident in which the vessel drifted away due to the impact of Typhoon Muifa.The floating production, storage and offloading vessel (āFPSOā) for the GTA development in Mauritania/Senegal is being constructed at the COSCO yard.
Uniwise Offshore Boosts OSV Fleet Cyber-Security with Inmarsat's Fleet Secure UTM
![Credit: Inmarsat](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/credit-inmarsat-135431.jpg)
Uniwise Offshore, a Thailand-based offshore support vessel (OSV) company, has boosted cyber-security standards across its OSV fleet by adopting technology from Inmarsat, a mobile satellite communications specialist."With reliable connectivity delivered by Inmarsatās Fleet Xpress, Fleet Secure Unified Threat Management (UTM) provides Uniwise with end-to-end functionality to protect its network from cyber-attacks and intrusion via infected devicesā¦
Tankers to Discharge Iranian Crude, Condensate at Venezuela's Main Port
Tankers carrying about 1.22 million barrels of Iranian crude and 2 million barrels of condensate are scheduled to discharge at Venezuela's Jose terminal in the coming daysā¦
Safe Bulkers Sells 2006-built Kamsarmax
Dry bulk shipping company Safe Bulkers announced on Monday that it has entered into an agreement to sell one of the older vessels in its fleet to an undisclosedā¦
Seven More Crop-laden Ships Leave Ukrainian Ports
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Seven more ships laden with agricultural produce left Ukrainian ports on Sunday, the country's infrastructure ministry said, bringing the total to 218 since a U.N.-brokered corridor through the Black Sea came into force at the start of August.Ukraine, a major agricultural producer, was left unable to export through the Black Sea after Russia's invasion on Feb. 24 until the agreement of the grain dealā¦
Alfa Laval to Use Fossil-free Steel in Heat Exchangers
![Alfa Laval's concept zero plate heat exchange (Image: Alfa Laval)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/alfa-lavals-concept-zero-plate-135425.jpg)
Alfa Laval on Monday announced it has signed an agreement with Swedish steel company SSAB to develop the first plate heat exchanger made using fossil-free steel.Alfa Lavalās heat exchanger portfolio includes plate heat exchangers that are suitable for both traditional and alternative fuels. The partners aim to have the first unit made with hydrogen-reduced steel ready for 2023.āOur marine plate heat exchangers are already key to decarbonizing on boardā¦
HII Names Borkey Chief Technology Officer
![Todd Borkey (Photo: HII)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/todd-borkey-photo-hii-135422.png)
Defense and technologies company HII announced on Monday that Todd Borkey has been promoted to executive vice president and chief technology officer, effective immediately and reporting directly to HII President and CEO Chris Kastner.The move comes during a time of technological advancement for HII and expands the scope of responsibilities for Borkey, who has served as chief technology officer of HIIās Mission Technologies division since 2021.
Navigating Climate Change: How Shipping is Adapting in the St. Lawrence
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When compared to other major river navigation routes around the world, the St. Lawrence River is a favored waterway.It flows from the mouth of Lake Ontario, at an altitude of 250 meters. From its source to the Gulf, the river travels 1,197 kilometers, and is fed by several tributaries including the Ottawa, Richelieu, Saint-François and Saguenay rivers.But the effects of climate change are being felt. The marine industry is adapting.
J.F. Brennan Tallies $23.5 Million Lock and Dam Contract
![A tow enters the lock chamber from downstream at Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Joliet, Illinois. (Photo: USACE Rock Island District)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/a-tow-enters-the-lock-135420.jpg)
La Crosse, Wis. based marine construction firm J.F. Brennan Co. Inc. has secured a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for work at the Brandon Road Lock and Dam in Rockdale, Ill.The company was the sole bidder for the $23,484,700 firm-fixed-price contract, which will see it install a miter gate installation and replace machinery at the site. Work is estimated to be completed by January 19ā¦
Linda S. Harris Crovella Named Administrative Law Judge
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Chairman Daniel B. Maffei announced today the hiring of Linda S. Harris Crovella to serve as an Administrative Law Judge of the Federal Maritime Commission.Judge Crovella joins the Commission after serving as an Administrative Law Judge with the Social Security Administration in Richmond, Va. and Buffalo, N.Y. for the past six years. Prior to joining the Social Security Administration, she worked at the National Labor Relations Board as a Field Attorneyā¦
Ship Recycing: Plates Plunge
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While activity seemed as though it had been steadily increasing going into the final quarter of the year, the last couple of weeks have sent mixed signals as to whether the fourth quarter will actually be better for the ship recycling sector as many have been anticipating.A couple of weeks ago, we saw currencies plummet in Pakistan and Bangladesh to the point, a wait-and-watch attitude encompassedā¦
Philly Shipyard Launches First Training Ship Empire State
![(Photo: SUNY Maritime College)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/photo-suny-maritime-college-135416.jpg)
The first in a series of new training ships being built for the United States' state maritime academies was launched at Philly Shipyard on Saturday.The newbuild, Empire State VII, is the first of five new National Security Multi-Mission Vessels (NSMV) being built under a program for the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (MARAD), which owns and operates training ships for the nation's state maritime academies.The newly launched vessel is slated to undergo final outfittingā¦
Gas from Russia's Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Leaks into Baltic Sea
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The Danish authorities on Monday asked ships to steer clear of a five nautical mile radius off the island of Bornholm after a gas leak overnight from the defunct Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 pipeline drained into the Baltic Sea.The German government said it was in contact with the Danish authorities and working with local law enforcement to find out what caused pressure in the pipeline to plummet suddenly.
US Official Rules Out Secondary Sanctions for Russian Oil Price Cap
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A U.S. Treasury official has ruled out secondary sanctions to enforce a price cap mechanism on Russian oil exports despite a proposal last week by U.S. senators.Democratic and Republican senators last week proposed that U.S. President Joe Biden's administration use secondary sanctions on international banks to strengthen the price cap aimed at capping Russia's oil revenues while minimizing the impact on global markets and prices."We don't think secondary sanctions are neededā¦
MAN and ABB Partner on Dual-fuel Electric Propulsion
![Pictured at SMM, Stig Leira, Transformation Program Manager, ABB Marine & Ports; Rune Lysebo, Global Head of Global Sales, ABB Marine & Ports; Marita Krems, Vice President and Head of Four-Stroke Marine & License, MAN Energy Solutions; and Elvis Ettenhofer, Head of Marine Four-Stroke ā Region Asia Pacific, MAN Energy Solutions. (Photo: ABB)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/pictured-at-smm-stig-leira-135410.png)
Engine manufacturer MAN Energy Solutions and technology company ABB will work together to develop a dual-fuel electric plant concept for liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, engineered as part of the companies' efforts to help the international shipping industry reduce its emissions footprint.Under a Memorandum of Understanding, signed at Septemberās SMM trade show in Hamburg, the two companies will develop a Dual-Fuelā¦
Austal Launches New Ferry for Molslinjen
![(Photo: Austal Philippines)](https://images.marinelink.com/images/maritime/w200h200c/photo-austal-philippines-135409.png)
Austal Philippines has launched the 115-meter, high speed vehicle-passenger ferry Express 5, for Molslinjen of Denmark, utilizing a new vessel transportation system designed by Austal.The Auto Express 115 high-speed catamaran ferry is the largest ferry (by volume) constructed by an Austal shipyard and was transported onto Austal Philippinesā floating dock by a new, rail-based system called āANTSā,ā¦