DELHI POLICE LICENSING UNIT NO: F.2 (S.6) PRESS/2016
SEA AND COAST MONTHLY MARITIME MAGAZINE VOICE OF MARINE COMMUNITY
January - 2022 | Volume-06 | Issue-01 |RNI NO : DELENG/2017/70663 | ₹315 Distributed in India,Singapore,Canada,Sri Lanka,Iran,Italy,Greece,Venezuela,Israel,UAE,SouthAfrica, Usa, Spain, Australia,Kazakhstan,Vietnam,Tunisia,Turkey,Bulgaria,Belgium,Brazil,Malaysia,New Zealand, Nigeria, Poland, And Russia
COVID-19 Wreaking Havoc Over the Maritime Industry
Admiral R K Dhowan (Retd). PVSM.AVSM.YSM,Chairman of Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies Former Chairman of National Maritime Foundation and Former Chief of the Naval Staff, (Indian Navy)
Dr.Malini V. Shankar, (IAS,) Vice Chancellor Indian Maritime University Chairman of National Shipping Board, Former Director General of Shipping (Ministry Of Shipping) Goverment of India. Member, Board of Governors, World Maritime University,Malmo, Sweden
EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
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January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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CONTENTS JANUARY 2022
VOL 06 ISSUE 01
Admiral R K Dhowan (Retd).
David Hammond Esq
Frank Viegas
PVSM.AVSM.YSM,Chairman of Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies Former Chairman of National Maritime Foundation and Former Chief of the Naval Staff, (Indian Navy)
CEO, Human Rights at Sea
President Goan seamen association of India.
New Year Wishes
07
New Year Wishes
Dr.Malini V. Shankar, (IAS,) Amit Kumar Sea And Coast Founder. CEO, Editor-in-Chief
Editorial 04
05
Angelica Cuyno Third engineer
Philippines She @ Sea 06
www.seaandcoast.in
New Year Wishes
08
Mr Krishnendu Das
Mr S K Mukherjee
Associate Professor & (SMET), IMU Kolkata Campus
Faculty Members & Placement Ofcer, IMU Kolkata Campus
Vice Chancellor Indian Maritime University Chairman of National Shipping Board, Former Director General of Shipping (Ministry Of Shipping) Goverment of India. Member, Board of Governors, World Maritime University,Malmo, Sweden
EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
ADVISORY BOARD
07
EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
09
12
Dr Anil Mehndiratta (MBBS, MD, A.F.I.H, FCCP) Chest Physician & DG Shipping Approved Medical Examiner, Indian Medical Association Goa State President 2019
EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
14
SHIPPING NEWS
16
SHIPPING TECHNOLOGY NEWS
20
CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS
24
MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS
29
OFFSHORE NEWS
34
SHIPBUILDING NEWS
38
INTERNATIONAL NEWS
43
NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
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INDIA
Website www.seaandcoast.in Email: info@seaandcoast.in
Amit Kumar Founder. CEO, Editor-in-Chief
Assistant Editors Jeannette Pérez Fernandez Captain.Ayse Asli Basak Edward Mithamo Kinyua
Greetings and warm wishes for the New Year 2022.Last year saw a lot of ups and downs. Though it was a relief, concrete measures were taken by global entities to combat climate change and to improve the lives of seafarers. Although, a few individual cases were the exception. We have been constantly striving to serve the maritime fraternity through our exclusive updates on the maritime subjects, technical expertise, and all-around progress and happenings in and around the maritime industry. After the unprecedented circumstances faced by the maritime industry due to COVID-19, the global trade witnessed an upsurge in demand and so has been experiencing bottlenecks. However, there has been hardly any negative impact on the industry's progress towards being more self-reliant with the help of progressive technologies.
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Note Views expressed in the articles are those of the authors and may not be shared by the editor or the members of the editorial board. Unsolicited material will not be returned.
Copyright
The magazine also has a column on new covid variant , Omicron by Dr Anil Mehndiratta, Indian Medical Association Goa State President 2019. We also have an article on effective teaching and training in Maritime Training Institutes by Krishnendu Das(Marine Engineering) IMU, Kolkata Campus and Mr S K Mukherjee Faculty Member & Placement Ofcer,IMU Kolkata Campus.Along with some more exclusive columns in the magazine, all major international and national news with new IMO guidelines of the last month has been covered. Indian maritime news and all new initiatives of shipping ministry has been dealt in detail in our columns.
Editorial
This edition presents you an exclusive column on Marine Pollution by Dr Malini V Shankar, Vice Chancellor, Indian Maritime University and Dr Sheeja Janardhanan, Associate Prof., Indian Maritime University (Vishakapatnam Campus) which talks about Renewable Energy for Fishing Sector in India in detail.
Graphic Designer Ramjeet
Indian Maritime and Naval fraternity experienced quite a tumultuous time this month. The Indian Navy celebrated Navy Day on the 4th of December, 2021 to recognize the role of the Navy, its achievements, and its contribution to nation-building. The Indian Navy through its coordinated operation among countries like Samudra Setu I, II, etc., played a dominant role in bolstering India's ght against the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this month has been sorrowful for India as we lost honorable Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, his wife Mrs. Madhulika Rawat and 11 Indian defense ofcials on board an Indian Air Force helicopter in a crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu who served India with utmost diligence. We pour in the deepest condolences to the families of those who perished in the crash. India's rst CDS, Honourable General Bipin Rawat spearheaded a historic period of transformation in the Indian military and strategic affairs to pursue "joint doctrine" providing for deeper operational synergies among the Army, Navy and Air force which helped India triumph various conventional and proxy wars. We dedicate this edition of the magazine to honourable General Bipin Rawat, all armed personnel and bereaved families who serve our country with utmost dedication and valour.
Jai Hind
Amit Kumar Founder. CEO, Editor-in-Chief
No material published in the magazine should be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronics and mechanical, including photocopy or digital device without prior written permission from the publisher
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ADVISORY BOARD
Admiral R K Dhowan (Retd). PVSM.AVSM.YSM,Chairman of Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies Former Chairman of National Maritime Foundation and Former Chief of the Naval Staff, (Indian Navy)
Lt. Gen. Arun Kumar Sahni, PVSM, UYSM, SM, VSM, Former General Ofcer Commanding in Chief, Indian Army.
Mr.Shekhar Dutt (IAS) Former Governor of Chhattisgarh, Former Dy National Security Advisor and Former Defence Secretary (Goverment Of India)
Admiral Jayanath Colombage RSP, VSV, USP, rcds, psc MSc (DS), MA (IS), Dip in IR, Dip in CR, FNI (Lond) is the 18th Commander of the Sri Lankan Navy
Commodore Odakkal Johnson (Retd), PhD Former Director Maritime History Society, Maritime Scholar and Mentor
Colonel Rohit Dev (Retd) M.Sc. Operational Art & Strategic Thinking
Jillian Carson-Jackson M.ED, FNI, FRIN President, The Nautical Institute Director, GlobalMET Assistant Editor, Peer Reviewer, the Journal of Navigation
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Cmde. Sujeet Samaddar, NM (Retd.)
Hony Secy, Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies.
Dr.Malini V. Shankar, (IAS,) Vice Chancellor Indian Maritime University Chairman of National Shipping Board, Former Director General of Shipping (Ministry Of Shipping) Goverment of India. Member, Board of Governors, World Maritime University,Malmo, Sweden
Dr. R K Tyagi Independent Director on the Board of Air India Limited Former President, Aeronautical Society of India Former CMD of the Hindustan AeronauticsLimited (HAL)
Rear Admiral Shekhar Mital (Retd), O-7 CDR (Retd.) Dr.Eyal Pinko (PHD) Maritime Cyber and Security Former Chairman & Managing Senior Consultant. Director of Goa Shipyard (Fastest Growing Shipyard)
Dr.Patrick Verhoeven Shri Ashish Wankhede Managing Director, International Deputy Director General of Shipping , Directorate General of Shipping, (Ministry of Association of Ports and Harbors Shipping ) Govt of India.
Mrs. Suneeti Bala India’s First female Merchant Navy Chief Engineer.
Dr. (Cdr) Arnab Das Director of the Maritime Research Centre (MRC) under the Indian Maritime Foundation, Pune
Captain Radhika Menon World’s First Woman Captain to Receive An IMO Award And India’s First female Merchant Navy Captain
Captain Nick Nash, Mnm Cmmar Frgs Frn Fni former President of NAUTICAL INSTITUTE Professional Admission for NI Mumbai Branch (RN / MN Cooperative)
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PHILIPPINES
Sea And Coast |Volume-06|Issue-01
SHE @ SEA Name :- Angelica Cuyno Rank :- Third Engineer Hello! Im Angelica Cuyno. Im a seafarer. Third engineer in rank. Onboard VLGC vessels. Ive been sailing for almost 3 years now. Life at sea is ver y tough but with the determination and perseverance that i have in myself i believe i can surpass the challenges that i may encounter at sea. This is what i want to share to females out there who want to take a path in maritime industry: Do not be scared to swim against the tide. It means do try to do something which is not common, not typical. Do not believe what other people say if they havent seen for themselves. The world is changing. There is no more division between what men and women can do. Because we women can also do what men can do. Most of the time it is us who create our own limits. I did it,so can you.
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NEW YEAR WISHES 2022
David Hammond Esq CEO, Human Rights at Sea “With a growing realisation that fundamental human rights of seafarers and their families must be put at the highest consideration within the global maritime and shing industries, now is the time to capitalize upon the narrative of protecting , not the time to see it as an issue that has been raised, discussed and can be discarded. The challenge is to now address the violators, bring them to justice, and insure effective remedy for victims and their families. This can only be done with transparency of due process and the effective enforcement of existing national and international laws. The failures to comprehensively enforce the Maritime Labour Convention during the COVID pandemic must also be addressed.” “Looking forward, our charitable NGO, Human Rights at Sea, will be publishing the nal version of the Geneva Declaration on Human Rights at Sea in early 2022 for submission to the UN Human Rights Council. Based on the fundamental principle that human rights are universal, and apply at sea as they do on land, this innovative work will seek to further raise the issue of abuses at sea in the UN forums.”
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January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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NEW YEAR WISHES 2022
Surviving and thriving during times of upheaval and organizational change is possible with the right mindset. Let us be more resilient in our life with great enthusiasm for chasing goals and dreams in the year ahead.
2022
Frank Viegas President Goan seamen association of India.
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
Dr.Malini V. Shankar, (IAS,) Vice Chancellor Indian Maritime University Chairman of National Shipping Board, Former Director General of Shipping (Ministry Of Shipping) Goverment of India. Member, Board of Governors, World Maritime University,Malmo, Sweden
Marine Pollution - A case for solar power for shing vessels? OverviewDr. Malini V Shankar, Vice Chancellor, Indian Maritime University & Dr. Sheeja Janardhanan, Associate Prof., Indian Maritime University (Vishakapatnam Campus)
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Need Rapid industrialization leading to over production and consumption culminated in the degradation of our coastlines and oceans. The pollution of the marine environment poses a threat to the very existence of life on this earth no matter whether it is micro-organisms or human colonies. While the blue economy model of a developing nation aims at human wellbeing through opportunities for economic growth and tackling unemployment, food security and poverty, the degradation of marine environment can do no good in realizing these aims. For reaping the fruits of the blue economy, we need to sow the seeds of healthy and safe marine environment and resilient coastlines.
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN The Effect of pollution on coastal communities
Table 1Shippingpollution and its effect on the coastal communities
Pollution has a socio-economic impact on the living of coastal populace. About 3 billion people (40% of world's population) live within 100 km from the coastline. Long-term exposure to the pollutants causes deprivation of sound health, degradation of heritage, destruction of cultural sites, loss of aesthetics and change in values of coastal communities.Statistics of various sources of marine pollution is shown in Fig.1.
Source of pollution Litter
Oceanic debris
Health hazards, reduced catch and damage to shing boats, propellers and shing gears due to entanglement
Oil-Spill
Coastalwaterscontaminated with traces of oil
Chronic diseases, loss of biodiversity and access to beaches, destruction of environment and loss of livelihood due to poor- and lowquality catches
Ballast Water
Growth of invasive nonnative species and microbes that migrate to coastal regions
Kills the native species and a threat to coastal industries depending on the infested waters.
Emissions
Release of gases and particulate matter into the marine environment
The emissions from ships are a major Fig.1 Main sources of marine pollution[source- component of air pollution in coastal areas. About 70% of ship emissions occur within Liu et-al, 2019] 500 km from land and are believed to Maritime transport accounts for the transport of c o n t r i b u t e s i g n i c a n t l y t o m a r i n e more than 80% of the international trade and p o l l u t i o n . S t u d i e s r e v e a l t h a t has been the backbone in the growth of global CO2emissions from shing boats reported economy. The sea-borne trade has doubled in 2016 has quadrupled since 1950s. between 1990 and 2020 and is estimated to Maritime transport emits around 940 triple by 2050. There are about 55,000 merchant million tonnes of CO2 annually and is ships operating in the seas as of 2021 responsible for about 2.5% of global contributinga signicant share (12%)to the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and is estimated to increase by an average of overall pollution of the marine environment. 150% by 2050- an alarming situation that The major types of pollution arising from needs swift action.The Global Climatic shipping and its effect on coastal communities Change is expected to manifest as grave repercussions on the planet and the are addressed in Table 1. posterities. The damage fossil fuels have done to our planet demands a major paradigm shift to renewable resources of energy.
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Effect on coastal communities
Action
Acute respiratory diseases and contribution to global warming
COP26 and its role for swift action. The 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26) held in Glasgow during November 2021 on global climate change organized by the UN had the following three key outcomes envisaged to be in action by 2023.
1. Adaptation · Moving away from fossil fuels · Strengthening the Santiago Network 2. Finance · At least double the nance for adaptation · USD 100 billion from developed to developing countries 3. Mitigation · Align with Paris Agreement (COP21) · Rise in average temperatures limited to 1.50C · Unied tables and for mats for documenting emissions · Enhanced Transparency Framework
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN World Bank in 2021 reported that theprospects of zero-carbon bunker fuels for decarbonising shipping, thereby commending ammonia and hydrogen as future fuels only ifproduced using renewable electricity. It has also been stated that LNG is unlikely to play a signicant role in decarbonising maritime transport. Decarbonisation and renewable resources in the energy sector seem to be a promising way ahead as a remedy to marine pollution due to emissions and the subsequent global climatic change. Nevertheless, a practical insight unveils the immense scope of renewable sources of energy in the near future. Few countries have already implemented renewable energy in their maritime operations such as Milford Haven seaport; Singapore harbour; port and shing harbour of Seattle, Croatian solar ferry, Botswana's solar boats, Kochi's solar taxi ferries to name a few. Renewable Energy for Fishing Sector in India Fishing is a major industry in India employing 14.5 million people, exporting 1 million tonnes a year and earning a foreign exchange of INR 300 billion. However, the Handbook of Fisheries Statistics published by the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, GoI, in 2019 shows a steady decline in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the economy from sheries from 11.36% in 2016-17 to 6.69% in 2017-18 to a nominal margin of 1.83% in 2018-19 even during the pre-CoViD-19 period and the decline can be attributed to the following reasons
1. Low catch owing to pollution of coastal and deep-sea waters 2. High fuel cost forbidding the shermen to use mechanized crafts The inadequate size of the catch doesn't justify the high operational costs of the boat for 4 million shermen engaged in short distance shing in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, West Bengal and Kerala. Solar power seems to be a clean energy option for them according to Shri.SandithThandasherry, CEO, Navalt Solar and Electric Boats who revolutionized electrication of marine transport.Moreover, the total CO2 emissions from about 0.25 million shing boats in India per year is prohibitively massive.
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Recalling the key outcomes of COP26 it is clear that adaptation requires nance. The economics of solar electric shing boats in its present state doesn't seem to be feasible for Indian shermen as 61% of thepopulation is below poverty line. It costs INR 1 million per solar electric boat as against INR 0.3 million for a conventional boat. Fishermen or the boat owners have to bear aninitial onus of INR 0.7 million forbuyingsolar electric boats. The Government of India (GoI) has been supporting the shermen through a centrally sponsored scheme on “Development of Marine Fisheries, I n f r a s t r u c t u r e a n d Po s t - H a r v e s t Operation”which offers subsidies for shermen but not limited to the following
1. Intermediate craft of improved design This scheme provides a back ended subsidy up to INR 0.4 million for improving the design of an existing craft of length range 18m. 2. Motorization of traditional crafts Under this scheme a total subsidy of INR 20,000 per unit of outboard motors of 8-10 HP will be provided. The centre and state governments shall have equal shares in the subsidy. 3. Fishermen development rebate on HSD oil A subsidy of INR 1.5 per litre is provided for fuel 4. Resource specic deep sea shing vessels A subsidy up to INR 1.5 million for converting trawlers into resource specic vessels. The total subsidy is estimated to INR 2 million per craft with a budget allocation of INR 4.5 billion for the entire scheme. There are schemes introduced by stategovernments too. Recently Tamil Nadu government has offered a at subsidy of INR 3 million per craft fornew builds.
A solution for abridging the gap of INR 0.7 million per solar boatwould be to request GoIto extend the scheme to electrication of crafts.This calls for immediate policy reforms for making the shing marine transport clean and green in India. Other Opportunities in India for Cleaner Coastlines The coastal communities in the pursuit of clean and safe living can avail the following opportunities
1. An estimated USD 1+ trillion funds for developing countries for decarbonising shipping as well as setting up land-based infrastructure such a renewable energy and fuel synthesis plants. 2. India has the world's fth-largest installed solar power capacity with 38 GW in 2019 and production of 54 TW of electricity. 3. Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana (PMMSY) with an allocation of INR 1000 crores. 4. USD 100 billion from developed to developing countries according to COP26. Conclusion Implementation of renewable energy in the marine transport sector, shing crafts to start with can be considered as a step towards combatting global climatic change that demands colossal support both socially and technologically.Universities and educational institutionsplay a lead role in bridging the gaps existing todayby spreading awareness and providing technological solutions. The root cause for the present problems lies in the way we look at our oceans-the source of life on earth. It is now time for rethinking and redevising the way we consumed everything possible on earth anddumped thetrash into oceans. Oceans are the mirrors reecting our inner selves. Let's keep them clean for a better living on this planet.
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
Krishnendu Das Krishnendu Das (Marine Engineering)
(Marine Engineering) Indian Maritime University, Kolkata Campus Indian Maritime University, Kolkata Campus
Mr S K Mukherjee Faculty Members & Placement Ofcer, IMU Kolkata Campus
Effective Teaching & Learning Process (EDUCATION + TRAINING) The Maritime Training Institutes are largely Selection of the best Teacher cum Trainer is involved in educating and training the nation's the baseline to maintain maritime standards youth for a Seafaring Career. This calls for a at their highest levels. stringent regimental course curriculum that will implement a level of competency, caliber, discipline and attitude in the graduates, prior to their embarkation onships. The Nautical Science & Marine Engineering careers are distinct from shore based careers, and need attention that is quite different from all other disciplines. The demands at sea are sometimes life threatening and our students are prepared for dealing with such exigencies, as no external resources or help is available in the middle of a vast ocean. To attend to the same, quality of teaching and training are of utmost importance to inculcate and strengthen these traits.
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Class-room activities improve upon their theoretical knowledge; and this is again is reinforced with practical demonstrations and exercises in workshops. Simulation programs in Laboratories give near – real life experiences as at sea. The cadet's evolution into the best sea-farers in the country from the Institutes, does not happen merely through class room and workshop participation. The development of character, camaraderie, ofcer like personality, respect, and humble submission to Authority, are the key elements inculcated in them during their mandatory residency in the Campus.
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN Creation
Evaluation
Analysing
Applying
Hostel life for cadets is also a learning process where they are taught to respect their seniors, guide their juniors, care for the environment, be thankful for the food and avoid wastage. Tidiness and hygiene are impressed upon by the teachers. These traits are essential requirements on board ship.
Understanding & Feeling
Amit Kumar FOUNDER. CEO, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF SEA AND COAST The extracurricular activities in the form of seminars, debates, quizzes, competitions on stage, sports, swimming, parades and fallins are all designed and intended to bring about a sense of well- being and development to face the world while making a successful career for themselves. They ultimately become the assets of the nation and contribute to the wealth of the country. Here experiences, academics, dedication, discipline, attitude, support and quality teaching with loyalty of a Teacher are the most valuable support to build strong Maritime Domain.
Mental & Physical Development with Social & Environmental Responsibilities
Teacher: Involvement as Motivator
We the IMU Teachers are proud and happy to be contributing our best to the next generation of seafarers / students and shall continue to do so as long as sea transportation exists.
A Teacher or Trainer is someone who inspires to students to learn in every sense of life. Teachers or Trainers require to update their knowledge, teaching ability, planning continuously to improve themselves in line with student's advancements.
Professional Skill Development
Teacher: Involvement as Trainer
Jai - Hind As graduates, they are ambassadors of the MTIs. This label remains with the graduates for life. On this concept an Institution may be gauged by the levels of achievements of its Alumni. IMU is proud to note several of its Alumni have excelled and held exalted positions in the Shipping Industry, Govt. of India Administrative Services and in other Domains past and present. Such success of the students can be attributed to the teachers who inspire and instill the desire and motivation into the students during their course curriculum.
“No Pollution, Protect EnvironmentHave a Smiling Globe”
Academic Development
Teacher: Involvement as Academic Partner & Evaluator
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EXCLUSIVE COLUMN
Health
Dr Anil Mehndiratta (MBBS, MD, A.F.I.H, FCCP) Chest Physician & DG Shipping Approved Medical Examiner, Indian Medical Association Goa State President 2019
OmicronCorona Virus- Variant of ConcernA new threat to the world. In 1869, British naturalist Charles Darwin, suggested that organisms which best adjust to their environment are the most successful in surviving and reproducing. He popularized the concept of survival of the ttest as a mechanism underlying the natural selection that drives the evolution of life. Organisms with genes better suited to the environment are selected for survival and pass them to the next generation. SARS-CoV-2 is a classic example which is trying to survive and is undergoing mutation. When a virus undergoes a lot of mutation, it is called as a “Variant of Concern”. This corona virus has undergone a large number of mutations, and early evidence suggests an increased reinfection risk. This is now labelled by WHO as the OMICRON (B.1.1.529) variant of Corona Virus. It was rst reported to the WHO from South Africa on 24 November, and has since then has become the major strain all over the world. This new variant, B.1.1.529 seems to spread very quickly and is possibly 500% more infectious. Also, it has more than twice the number of bad spike mutations than Delta. While scientists suspect it to be more infectious, it is not yet certain whether the illness caused by it would be more lethal, leading to a greater number of patients dying.
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The clinical symptoms reported from patients suggest that it’s a mild disease, withsymptoms being sore throat, dry cough, sore muscles and tiredness for a day or two not feeling well. So far, those infected do not suffer loss of taste or smell. They might have a slight cough. There are no prominent symptoms. Of those infected most are being currently being treated at home and hospitalisation is not necessary. 90% of the current cases are most probably due to Omicron virus and most of the patients have mild symptoms which are mainly upper respiratory tract infection either because of low virulence of the mutant Omicron strain or because of immunity induced by vaccine/past infection is still not known. Vaccine does not prevent Omicron infection but seems to protect severity/hospital admissions. Omicron rarely affects Lungs and hence 70% less chance of admissions. The general public s h o u l d n o t t a ke a n y u n n e c e s s a r y medicines specially steroids during the rst ve days of the infection.
Current vaccines are not an ideal match so might not work quite as well, say experts.But that doesn't mean they'll offer zero protection. Vaccines are still very effective at protecting lives by cutting the risk of severe illness against other major Covid variants, including Delta, Alpha, Beta and Gamma. The treatment remains the same, One needs to maintain the uid intake and monitor the oxygen saturation by doing the 6 minutes walk test. If the oxygen saturation drops below 93% after the 6MWT, one needs to get admitted for oxygen therapy. No steroids to be administered in rst ve days of the infection, as the virus is still replicating and starting steroids during rst ve days will not benet and only worsen the disease.Similarly no CT Scan chest or blood tests are needed in rst ve days of the infection, unless and until patient is breathless or getting high temperature. L et us prevent this tsunami from happening, by preventing the spread of the covid virus,which can be reduced by wearing a mask, maintaining social distance and a good hand hygiene.
The effectivity of Covid-19 vaccine against Omicron variant is still being studied by scientists.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies Website : www.samdesindia.in
Internship opportunity with SAMDeS It is always curiosity and looking at new opportunities as the pathways to excel that reward us with a rewarding career. SAMDeS (Society for Aerospace Maritime and Defence Studies), India’s nonprofit think tank verily rich in expertise and experience with navy veterans, defense professionals, key chairpersons and stakeholders in maritime, aerospace and defence industries has come up with an unparalleled internship opportunity for intrinsically motivated individual with Masters Degree/PhD scholars in Blue Economy Studies or Maritime Law to learn, work, and earn from the best and among the best. Being an avid supporter of Blue Economy, SAMDeS aims to draft the worlds’ first Global Maritime Accord to ensure safe, secure and sustainable oceans with equity and rule based order in the Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction and looks forward to thinkers, innovators, and scholars for the same. Why an internship with SAMDeS? Gives you an opportunity to be a part of an innovative, vibrant, scholarly, and cultured ecosystem. Ÿ An opportunity to learn and seek guidance from leaders and scholars across multi disciplinary domains. Ÿ Latitude to quadruple your future prospects via networking with topgovernment officials. Ÿ International stage to cultivate diversified approach and better work ethics.
SAMDes Founding Members
Admiral RK Dhowan PVSM, AVSM, YSM (RETD)
Ms. Shobhana Joshi IDAS
Air Marshal Ajit Bhavnani PVSM, AVSM, VM(G) (RETD)
Dr. Vijayalakshmy Gupta IDAS
Ÿ
Lt. General (Dr.) AS Lamba PVSM, AVSM, Ph.D, MA (IR) (RETD)
Cmde. Sujeet Samaddar NM (Retd.)
Dr. RK Tyagi F.Ae.S.I.
Note: Candidates from across the globe are open to apply for the opportunity. Contact email: cmde_ssamaddar@samdesindia.in
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SHIPPING NEWS Highlights from the speech of Hon’ble Union Cabinet Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and AYUSH, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal
The Hon’ble Union Cabinet Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and AYUSH, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal Inaugurated the Marine Engineering Workshop in the Chennai Campus of the Indian Maritime University (IMU) and dedicated in virtual mode the new buildings of the Visakhapatnam Campus. The minister started his address with Vanakkam (Namaste) and thanked the people of Tamil Nadu for their contribution to nation building. The Minister observed that students from the length and breadth of our country are studying in India. That is the beauty of India and it also depicts our unity in diversity and oneness, he added.
The Hon’ble Minister stated that, under the Maritime India Vision 2030, IMU is poised to play a pivotal role to make India a top seafaring nation. Quoted the President of India, Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, the Hon’ble Minister said "If you want to shine like the sun, rst burn like the sun and urged student of IMU to commit hard work, take all opportunities and become global citizens. The Minister stated that the phase of life as student is very important phase in everybody’s life. The students should try to acquire knowledge in multiple disciplines, work hard and sincerely and commit to their goals. The Hon’ble Union Cabinet Minister also advised the Cadets during his interaction with them that they should do daily physical exercises and yoga for keeping up their body active throughout their life, in addition to good mental health.
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Union Shipping Minister Shri Sarbananda Sonowal announces the Tariff Guidelines, 2021 for PPP projects in Major Ports
Major reform initiative as Government moves towards deregulation of tariffs for PPP Projects at Major Ports Will provide level playing eld to the PPP concessionaires at Major Ports to compete with private ports Guidelines will usher in a new era of market economy, make Major Ports more competitive: Sonowal In a major reform for the Port sector, Union Minister for Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal today announced the Tariff Guidelines, 2021 for the PPP projects in Major Ports. The need for new guidelines arose consequent upon the new Major Port Authority Act,2021 coming in vogue w.e.f. 3.11.2021. In the new Act, the provision of the erstwhile Tariff Authority for Major Ports (TAMP) stands abolished. The Guidelines allow the concessionaires at Major Ports to set tariffs as per market dynamics. Currently, Major Port’s PPP concessionaires handle around 50% of the total trafc handled by all the Major Ports in India. The biggest benet of transition to market linked tariff is that a level playing eld will be provided to the PPP concessionaires at Major Ports to compete with private ports. PPP concessionaires at Major Ports were constrained to operate under the stipulations of these guidelines (by TAMP) whereas private operators/PPP concessionaires at non-major ports were free to charge tariff as per market conditions. These new guidelines will be applicable for future PPP projects including the projects which are currently under the bidding stage. Making the announcement, Shri Sonowal said that government mandated concessions in tariff for trans-shipment and coastal shipping shall continue to apply to all PPP future Concessionaires. In fact, the government has gone a step further and made further concessions to promote transshipment and coastal shipping. The royalty payable for trans-shipment cargo will now be 1.0 times (from 1.5 times earlier) the normal container. Similarly, for the coastal cargo, the concessionaire has to pay only 40% of the royalty payable for foreign cargo (from 60% earlier) in accordance with coastal concession policy of the government. For transparency, the tariffs so xed are to be hosted on the website of the concessionaire. The Minister added that these guidelines will usher in an era of market economy for the sector and go a long way in making the Major Ports competitive. He said, the announcement of the market linked tariff guidelines also comes at a time when the Government is celebrating the current week as the ‘Good Governance’ week.
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SHIPPING NEWS
Green Freight Corridor Along Development Of Infrastructure In Shipping Sector Western Coast
The government has accorded high priority to building greater synergies between the Major Ports and Non-Major Ports in order to promote coastal trade and to provide sustainable, cost-effective and efcient Intermodal & Multimodal customer solutions. By doing so, the Ministry aims to provide seaborne connectivity to the trade and industries in the hinterland, reduce congestion on the road and rail besides bringing down logistics cost. Green freight Corridor-2 service started from Cochin to Beypore and Azhikkal ports. Various steps are being taken to promote coastal trade and to provide sustainable, cost effective and multimodal customer solutions. This will minimize congestion on the road and rail trafc. However, efforts are being made to make costal shipping more economical and effective. At present Green freight corridor service is operated by Round the coast Private Limited, Mumbai twice a week the vessel calling at Beypore and Azhikkal ports with containers. The steps taken to promote coastal shipping includes: Ÿ
licensing relaxation to foreign ag vessels for carrying transshipment containers, empty containers, fertilizers and agricultural, sheries, animal husbandry and horticultural commodities on coastal routes;
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minimum 40% discount is offered by major ports on vessels and cargo related charges to coastal vessels;
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prioritization in berthing of coastal ships at major ports, subsidy to Indian agged vessels for carrying Public Sector Unit’s cargo; and
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GST Reduced on Banker Fuel from 18% to 5 %.
There are 63 Projects worth more than Rs 17,000 Cr. identied under Sagarmala Programme in the state of Kerala for enhancing the infrastructure related to Port led Industrialization, Port Modernization, Port Connectivity enhancement, Coastal Community Development & Coastal Shipping, and Inland Waterways. These projects have been undertaken by Central Ministries, lWAl, Indian Railways, State Government and Major Ports etc. There are 6 projects worth Rs. 128Cr partially funded through Sagarmala Programme. Out of these 6 Projects, 4 projects worth Rs 104 Cr have been completed and 2 projects worth Rs. 24 Cr. are under implementation. This information was given by Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.
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The Government of India has taken concerted efforts for expansion and modernization of Shipping Sector in the Country. Infrastructure development in the Shipping Sector is a continuous process. In the past three years, the Government has given a strong push to Shipping modernization, mechanization and digitalization, with a number of Ease of Doing Business initiatives. Infrastructure projects are mostly undertaken either through private investments (PPP projects) or through the Port’s Own Resources (IEBR). In addition, the Sagarmala Scheme intends to achieve the broad objectives of enhancing the capacity of Major and Non-Major Ports and modernizing them more efcient, thereby enabling them to become drivers of port led economic development. Non-Major Ports are under the jurisdiction of respective State Maritime Boards/State Governments.
Under Sagarmala Programme, Ministry provide nancial assistance to State Government for port infrastructure projects, coastal berth projects, Road & Rail projects, shery harbours, skill development projects, Coastal community development, International standard cruise terminal and unique & innovative projects such as Ro-Pax ferry services etc. Ministry has undertaken 123 projects under 5 pillars of Sagarmala worth Rs.7518 cr. Till date Ministry has sanctioned fund of Rs. 2995 cr and released Rs.1482 cr under Sagarmala Scheme. This information was given by Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways Shri Sarbananda Sonowal in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.
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SHIPPING NEWS
Onboard training for cadets from Asia and Pacic countries
Cyprus has made a contribution of 20,000 to IMO's Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP). Under the ITCP, developing countries are supported to improve their ability to comply with international rules and standards, with priority given to technical assistance programmes focusing on human resources development and institutional capacitybuilding. The donation was presented to IMO SecretaryGeneral Kitack Lim by H.E. Mr. Andreas Kakouris, High Commissioner, Permanent Representative of Cyprus to IMO, at IMO Headquarters, London (14 December).
Ten cadets from Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand are participating in onboard training on the Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology (KIMFT) training ship, Hanwoori. The training (27 November to 15 December) is being delivered within the framework of IMO’s Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP), and funded by the Republic of Korea, under a Memorandum of Understanding between the Republic of Korea and IMO on technical cooperation, and a partnership with the Korea Institute of Maritime and Fisheries Technology (KIMFT).
Find out more about IMO's technical cooperation work, here.
Implementing electronic data exchange – new data model published
Four of the cadets are female. The programme supports the needs of Asia and Pacic countries by providing an opportunity for education and training, especially for women in the maritime sector. The onboard training for deck and engine cadets utilizes training ships and other training facilities of the Republic of Korea.
Financial boost for IMO’s technical cooperation work
The latest version of the World Customs Organization (WCO) Data Model (version 3.11.0) has been published (read more here). This version includes a new Message Implementation Guide (MIG), providing practical guidance for implementing part of the IMO Compendium on Facilitation and Electronic business. The IMO FAL MIG provides additional technical information, in addition to the semantic denitions, for implementing ship reporting formalities outlined in the Convention on Facilitation of International Maritime Trafc (FAL). The MIG has been developed following cooperation between the WCO and the IMO.
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SHIPPING NEWS The IMO Compendium is a tool for software developers that design the systems needed to support transmission, receipt, and response via electronic data exchange of information required for the arrival, stay, and departure of the ship, persons, and cargo to a port. The IMO Compendium consists of an IMO Data Set and IMO Reference Data Model agreed by the main organizations involved in the development of standards for the electronic exchange of information related to the FAL Convention: the WCO, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Watch the video here. The WCO Data Model is a compilation of clearly structured, harmonized, standardized and reusable sets of data denitions and electronic messages designed to meet operational and legal requirements of cross-border regulatory agencies, including customs. The WCO DM package is published in the free-of-charge DM App: http://datamodel.wcoomd.org.
The Assembly of the International Maritime Organization has elected the Members of its Council for the 2022-2023 biennium.
IMO Assembly elects new 40-Member Council
Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates
The Assembly of the International Maritime Organization has elected the Members of its Council for the 2022-2023 biennium.
Category ©: 20 States not elected under (a) or (b) above, which have special interests in maritime transport or navigation and whose election to the Council will ensure the representation of all major geographic areas of the world: Bahamas, Belgium, Chile, Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Morocco, the Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, Turkey and Vanuatu. The IMO Council The newly elected Council will meet, following the conclusion of the 32nd Assembly, for its 126th session (on 15 December) and will elect its Chair and Vice-Chair for the next biennium. IMO Assembly
The Assembly of the International Maritime Organization has elected the Members of its Council for the 2022-2023 biennium. The Council is the executive organ of IMO and is responsible, under the Assembly, for supervising the work of the Organization. Between sessions of the Assembly, the Council performs the functions of the Assembly, except that of making recommendations to Governments on maritime safety and pollution prevention. The Assembly of the International Maritime Organization has elected the following States to be Members of its Council for the 2022-2023 biennium:
The 32nd Assembly of IMO is meeting in London at IMO Headquarters from 6 -15 December 2021. All 175 Member States and three Associate Members are entitled to attend the Assembly, which is IMO's highest governing body. The intergovernmental organizations with which agreements of co-operation have been concluded and international non-governmental organizations in consultative status with IMO are also invited to attend. The Assembly normally meets once every two years in regular session. It is responsible for approving the work programme, voting the budget and determining the nancial arrangements of the Organization. It also elects the Organization's 40-Member Council. Council election photos: https://www.ickr.com/photos/imoun/albums/72157720223263961
Category (a): 10 States with the largest interest in providing international shipping services (listed in alphabetical order) China, Greece, Italy, Japan, Norway, Panama, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States Category (b): 10 States with the largest interest in international seaborne trade:
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SHIPPING TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Sumitomo Plans Ammonia Launch by 2025 for Bulker and Singapore Bunkers
Tests Advance the Future of Wind Propulsion Technologies
Power generator turbine (left), hydrogen room (center), vessel sailing with hydrogen power (right) (MOL)
Harnessing the power of the wind continues to be one of the technologies shipping companies are testing for future generations of ships. Some of the efforts are looking at traditional sailing or wind assistance as a propulsive force while others are seeking to harness wind energy as a source of stores power for vessels. Two test projects are proceeding to demonstrate the potential of wind energy for future ships. Japan’s Mitsui O.S.K. Lines undertook the rst tests of a program called Wind Hunter working along with a broad collaboration of Japanese organizations including ClassNK and academic institutions. Demonstration voyages were conducted using a sailing yacht, the Winz Maru, in Sasebo-city, Nagasaki in Japan. During strong winds, the yacht sailing with the wind used the energy to generate electricity. Using an underwater turbine, the system produces hydrogen in an electrolyzer and stores the hydrogen onboard. When the wind is weak, the stored hydrogen is used at hydrogen fuel cells to generate electricity to rotate the propeller. MOL reports that ve experimental sailings were conducted and a series of cycles successfully demonstrated from the power generation by ocean wind to hydrogen production and storage, and fuel cell power generation used for propulsion by supplying electricity to the motor to drive the propeller. The goal of the project is to complete the rst stage of the testing, including accumulating and analyzing navigation data, to verif y the per for mance characteristics of various equipment and the efciency plant. These tests are scheduled to conclude by March 2022 and then they envision moving on to a larger 197foot-long vessel by 2024. The goal is to have the system operational on a large ship by 2030.
Separately, in Europe, the next phase of monitoring and evaluating wind-assist equipment is launching as part of the WASP (Wind Assisted Ship Propulsion) project. The goal of the project is to bring together universities and wind-assist technology providers with ship owners to research, test, and validate the operational performance of a selection of wind propulsion solutions. Recently, the installation of two retractable wing sails was completed on a shortsea vessel operating between the Netherlands and the U.K. The 289-foot long Tharsis, operated by Tharsis Sea-River Shipping, was tted with the units supplied by eConowind, which each measure approximately 10 feet by 29.5 feet. The wing sails can be folded into a specially designed storage unit and when in use they employ self-adjusting technology to maximize their efciency in coordination with the vessel’s diesel-electric drive. The installation of the wing sails was completed at the Neptune Shipyard near Rotterdam. The 2,364 dwt vessel was also tted with an air lubrication system for its hull in 2020. That system was also upgraded during the recent drydocking. “With this installation operating in both river and North Sea routing with varying winds we are eager to see how the rigs perform, especially with the unique combination of this self-adjusting technology in combination with a modern d i e s e l - e l e c t r i c d r i v e , ” s a y s Fr a n k Nieuwenhuis, CEO of eConowind. Over the next few years, Tharsis Sea-River reports the system will be tested and optimized as part of the WASP project. The expectation is that it will serve as an example of how wind assistance can help the shortsea shipping sector.
Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation announced several new initiatives designed to further support the adoption of ammonia for maritime and other industries. The company plans to launch an ammonia-fueled dry bulk vessel within the next four years. They also plan to accelerate development efforts in Singapore through a partnership with Keppel FELS, a subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine. Sumitomo notes that it has been exploring the opportunities for ammonia to support decarbonization worldwide. Earlier this year the company launched several initiatives supported by an in-house, cross-divisional project team. In an agreement with Oshima Shipbuilding, they plan to develop their rst ammonia-fueled dry bulk carrier to enter service in 2025. The two companies have been building dry bulk carriers since 1973. The new vessel is projected to be 751 feet long and 106 feet wide with a deadweight of approximately 80,000 tons. No details were provided on the propulsion system, only noting that the vessel is projected to have a speed of 14.3 knots. After the completion of the bulk carrier, Sumitomo Corporation says it will own and operate the vessel. They said it would be available for charter helping users of the ship’s transportation service to reduce their GHG emissions across their supply chains. Since March 2021, Sumitomo report it has also been exploring the launch of an ammonia supply business to fuel ships in Singapore. The company has been in discussions with the Singapore government for the development of operating guidelines and the necessary regulations. They are now reporting that they have signed a memorandum of understanding with Keppel FELS to explore the feasibility and implementation of various ammonia fuel applications in Singapore. Together, the companies will work on the implementation of ammonia bunkering in Singapore, with the aim to commence commercial operations in the mid-2020s.
Sailboat used for the rst test of the Wind Hunter (MOL)
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Sails deployed on the Tharsis (Tharsis Sea-River Shipping)
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SHIPPING TECHNOLOGY NEWS They plan to pursue several different elements of the ammonia supply chain. Sumitomo and Keppel O&M will accelerate the development of an ammonia bunkering vessel in coordination with the relevant authorities, expediting the implementation of ammonia bunkering in Singapore, and contributing to the realization of zero-carbon shipping. Sumitomo Corporation and Keppel O&M will also work to expand the ammonia value chain in Singapore, exploring other business opportunities including the use of green energy such as ammonia for offshore power generation in Singapore. The marine applications for ammonia are part of Sumitomo’s broader programs. They are also exploring hydrogen, ammonia, storage batteries, forest resource and woodchip, and biomass businesses, and other next-generation energy-related businesses.
Research into Low-Pressure CO2 Shipping for Carbon Capture and Storage
A new project is getting underway exploring the use of low-pressure solutions as a means of scaling up capacities and reducing the transportation cost of captured CO2 to offshore storage facilities. CO2 capture and storage is considered a critical part of the long-term solution in the efforts to decarbonize emissions and meet the climate goals outlined in Paris and Glasgow. Leading energy companies, Equinor, Shell, TotalEnergies, will be working with Norwegian pipeline operator Gassco and classication society DNV to explore the challenges of CO2 transportation. Multiple projects are exploring the opportunities to use ships as a critical link in the CCS programs currently under development. This partnership looks to leverage their collective experience to develop an industrial-scale shipping solution. They believe that low-pressure transportation systems (approx. 7 bar at -49ºC) versus the current medium pressure (15 bar at -28ºC) technology could provide the ability to scale up CO2 transportation to the scale required for commercial operations. “As an important part of tackling the climate crisis, reducing costs across the whole CCS value chain is essential,” said Johan Petter Tutturen, VP, Special Projects – Gas at DNV.
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“Low-pressure CO2 ship designs are a potentially important piece of the chain, but they need to be reliable and meet accepted safety standards. That is why we are very pleased to be working together with this strong consortium of CCS stakeholders to identify the technical risks and challenges to enable safe and economical operations going forward.” To transport CO2 safely and efciently at an industrial scale by ship, the joint industry project believes low-pressure transport systems are a potential solution that would enable much larger tank volumes, cargo capacities, and therefore reducing transportation costs. However, they note that the industry currently has little practical experience with the transport of liquid CO2 (LCO2) under these conditions. The project’s goal is to build experience in low-pressure transport by examining the fundamentals of a low-pressure CO2 transport chain. They plan to test LCO2 behavior at low pressure as well as explore the elements of ship design with lowpressure tanks and cargo handling systems. They will research the choice of material and testing required to develop the systems as well as conditioning and liquefaction.
The naming and launch of the rst batterypowered tanker were celebrated in Japan on December 22. The ship is an electric propulsion tanker powered by a large-capacity lithium-ion battery and will operate as a bunker vessel in Tokyo Bay for the Asahi Tanker Company. The design for the vessels was developed by e5 Lab Company as part of its effort to develop zero-emission ships and through the use of technology improve the working environment aboard the vessel. The tanker will be powered by lithium-ion batteries with a capacity of 3,480kWh. Kawasaki Heavy Industries manufactured the battery system that will power two 300kw azimuth thrusters and two 68kw side thrusters. The tanker will have an operating speed of about 10 knots and a range of approximately 100 miles. It will require about 10 hours to fully recharge the batteries. Asahi Tanker announced in October 2020 its plans to build two battery-powered electric tankers as demonstrations of the e5 tanker concept. Each vessel will measure approximately 203 feet in length and have a 34foot beam. With a gross tonnage of 499 tons, each vessel will have a capacity of 1,280 m3 supplying heavy oil to ocean going vessels in Tokyo Bay. ClassNK is the classication society for the vessels.
“It is critical that we are able to ship CO2 safely, economically and at scale,” said Syrie Crouch, VP Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage at Shell. “Ensuring these CO2 transport vessels and their associated loading/unloading facilities are standardized to enable interconnectivity between capture and storage facilities will be key to success.” The project is being funded by Norway’s C L I M I T P ro g r a m m e f o r r e s e a rc h , development, and demonstration of CO2 capture and storage technology (CCS). They expect to complete the research into low-pressure solutions in 2023.
First Electric ZeroEmission Tanker Launched in Japan
The rst of the two ships was named Asahi during the ceremonies at the KOA Sangyo shipyard. It is due for delivery in March 2022. The second vessel will be built by Imura Shipbuilding and is due for delivery a year later in March 2023. By electrifying the internal combustion engine, Asahi Tanker says it will not only eliminate exhaust emissions but will also improve the working environment aboard the ship. It will eliminate vibration and noise as well as reduce the maintenance requirements. Adoption of various automated equipment and digital tools including the Internet of Things (IoT) will also reduce the crews’ onboard workload and increase the ship’s operating efciency. The battery storage system also has the advantage that it can be used to supply emergency power to a land-based facility in the event of a natural disaster.
Naming took place on December 22 (Asahi Tanker Company)
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SHIPPING TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Rolls-Royce developing mtu methanol engines to make shipping greener
With the help of a reformer, hydrogen can be produced from methanol, which can then be used in fuel cells to generate electricity. This is particularly attractive for ships that do not have sufcient space for hydrogen tanks.
World’s First Hydrogen Carrier Departs Japan on Maiden Voyage
Rolls-Royce will release the new generation of its mtu Series 2000 and 4000 engine ranges for use with sustainable fuels such as synthetic diesel (secondgeneration biofuels or e-diesel) from 2023, enabling climate-neutral operation in almost all applications. Focusing on methanol as a fuel for climatefriendly shipping, technology company RollsRoyce aims to set standards in high-speed methanol engines. Rolls-Royce business unit Power Systems is currently working on mtu engines for use with methanol. The new high-speed four-stroke engines, which are based on mtu technologies, are planned to be available as soon as possible for use in commercial ships and yachts. “With the new development of mtu methanol engines, we want to lead the way as pioneers in the marine industry. We are clearly committed to methanol as a power source for green shipping and want to set standards and create planning security for our customers,” Denise Kurtulus, Vice President Global Marine at RollsRoyce Power Systems, said. “We urgently need to create concrete solutions together to achieve the climate targets.” Methanol offers a number of advantages — the fuel can be produced in a CO2-neutral manner in the so-called power-to-X process, in which CO2 is captured from the air. The energy density of methanol is high compared to other sustainable fuels and, thanks to its liquid state, it can be easily stored and refuelled at ambient temperatures. Existing infrastructure can continue to be used in many cases. Unlike ammonia, methanol is not highly toxic and is environmentally safe. The combustion of methanol in a pure methanol engine can be climate-neutral with signicantly reduced nitrogen oxide emissions, thus eliminating the need for complex SCR exhaust gas after treatment. Methanol tanks can be exibly arranged in the ship and require signicantly lower safety measures compared to hydrogen or ammonia. Besides the safety aspects and the lower complexity, the lower investment costs for users are a further upside of the methanol tank system.
In addition to the use of sustainable fuels, the company is also building on new technologies such as CO2-free fuel cell systems. Smart-ship solutions that enable the semi- and fully autonomous operation of ships are also expected to help reduce CO2 emissions.
Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries released a video showing the world’s rst vessel able to transport large volumes of hydrogen departing on its maiden voyage after receiving classication certicates. Built as a demonstration of the technologies, Kawasaki says it expects to build additional hydrogen carriers to develop this new segment of the The methanol initiative and the other shipping industry. developments mentioned are part of RollsRoyce Power Systems’ sustainability Launched in 2019, the Suiso Frontier is a 380programme “Net Zero at Power Systems”, foot-long vessel developed to provide a means of with which the company is taking concrete transporting liqueed hydrogen at 1/800 of its steps towards climate-neutral solutions for original gas-state volume. To transport large all its applications. In doing so, the volumes of hydrogen over long distances it is company is relying on several technological cooled to –253°C. Kawasaki installed a specially approaches. manufactured 1,250 m3 (44,143 cubic feet) vacuum-insulated, double-shell-structure “On the road to climate neutrality, there liqueed hydrogen storage tank. The capacity will not be one technology and one fuel that equates to transporting 75 tons of liqueed is the best solution for all applications. hydrogen on each voyage. Rather, there will be a coexistence of different propulsion technologies and The vessel uses diesel-electric propulsion with fuels. Hydrogen, for example, which is a top speed of 13 knots. It is operated by a crew converted into energy in a fuel cell or even of 25 and registered at 7,800 gross tons or 2,200 in a combustion engine, will be as much an dwt. She is owned by the CO2-free Hydrogen issue for us and our customers as e- Energy Supply-chain Technology Research methanol, e-methane, e-diesel or e- Association (HySTRA) as part of a larger ammonia,” Daniel Chatterjee, Director project developed in Japan and Australia to Technology Management & Regulatory demonstrate the commercial potential of Affairs at Rolls-Royce Power Systems, importing hydrogen. Among the participants in explained. the project are Kawasaki, Shell Japan, Iwatani Corporation, and Electric Power Development Co., Ltd. (J-POWER), and it received funding from Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) along with support from Australia.
Another advantage of methanol is that it is not only suitable for use in combustion engines (both Diesel and Otto), but also in combination with emission-free fuel cells:
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The project calls for, in addition to the vessel, a liqueed hydrogen unloading terminal built in Kobe City, Japan, and a brown coal gasication facility is being constructed in Australia. The Suiso Frontier was inspected for its hull structure, machinery, onboard equipment and materials, and more, in accordance with its class rules and the requirements for the safe transport of hydrogen by sea, formulated by ClassNK, based on the provisional recommendations of IMO. The vessel was then added to ClassNK’s register on December 3. After departing Japan on December 24, the Suiso Frontier is expected to reach Australia in mid-January after a two-week trip.
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SHIPPING TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Ammonia and Methanol Designs Advance with Approvals from ABS
The shipping industry continues to seek a broad range of advanced designs that will help it to move towards the goals of reducing emissions, transitioning to alternative fuels, and achieving zero-carbon operations. Naval architects, shipyards, and shipping companies are all pursuing designs supported by the classication societies evidenced by the announcement that ABS has just awarded two more Approval in Principle (AIP) for designs employing ammonia and methanol. Anglo-Eastern Technical Services (AETS), a technical consultant specializing in newbuildings, conversions, naval architecture, plan approvals, inspections, and surveys, developed designs for an ammonia-fueled Newcastlemax bulker that was granted an AIP by ABS. The classication society calls it an innovative design.
The basic design was reviewed in accordance with the principles of the ABS Guide for Gas and Other Low-Flashpoint Fuel Ready Vessels. When built, the vessel will be able to claim the ABS Methanol Fuel Ready Notation.
It will be developed using the Roboship concept which is a standardized platform for hybridelectric propulsion vessels and it will also be equipped with the Marindows digital platform that utilizes communications and digital technologies to improve the operation of coastal vessels and improve productivity and working “The AIP for methanol fuel-ready medium conditions aboard ships. Marindows is an range tanker design is just the beginning,” offshoot of e5 launched in Mach 2021. said Mr. Tae-Hyun Koh, K Shipbuilding Chief Technology Ofcer. “Now we are The planned biomass vessel is the second one conducting the research and development to be developed on the Roboship platform. on eco-friendly fuel-powered vessels such Japan’s Asahi Tanker Co. in October 2020 as LPG, ammonia, and hydrogen to announced the order of two electric-powered prepare for the future, and we will bunker vessels to operate in Tokyo Bay. The continue this R&D work.” bunker vessel construction project will be managed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, with The awarding of this AIP was also notable one vessel built at the Koa Sangyo shipyard as it marked the next step in the restoration Marugame, Japan, and the other at Imura of the former STX Korea operations. Once Zosen KK in Komatsushima, Japan. They will one of the leaders in the industry, STX be powered by large-capacity lithium-ion collapsed into a nancial crisis that saw its batteries using an all-electric core energy global network dismantled. Last summer, a system. Asahi had targeted as early as 2022 for new investor group purchased the the introduction of these vessels. surviving operation in South Korea rebranding it as K Shipbuilding and The Roboship platform utilizes a standard announcing plans to restore the company system package comprising the hardware for as an innovator in shipbuilding. electric propulsion, including propellers, motors, switchboards, storage batteries, and generators, together with the software to safely Roboship Proceeds with and efciently control the equipment. The e5 and Mitsubishi Designing system is currently able to handle a cargo ship of up to around 749 tons.
Hybrid Battery Ship
According to Mitsubishi, the ships will forego conventional diesel engines in favor of operating on a hybrid system with largecapacity storage batteries and generators to drive the propulsion motors.
The concept is for a dual-fuel vessel that sacrices no cargo space according to ABS. The design uses deck-mounted IMO Type C tanks under the accommodation block on each side of the vessel. AETS reports that its focus was on a system for retrot to existing vessels as well as ammonia-fueled and ammonia-ready newbuildings. “The transition to alternative fuels is an unavoidable part of our industry’s journey towards net-zero propulsion technologies,” said Bjorn Hojgaard, CEO of Anglo-Eastern Univan Group. “Having in place advanced alternative ship designs of equivalent safety as conventional vessels will facilitate the rate of adaptation.” Ammonia is one of the promising alternatives that continue to make advancements as a potential marine fuel. At the same time, others in the industry are pursuing methanol which appears to potentially be on a faster track to widespread availability for the maritime industry. ABS also recently awarded an AIP for a methanol fuel-ready medium range tanker design. This AIP is the culmination of a vemonth joint development project between ABS and K Shipbuilding in South Korea to evaluate a range of aspects including storage, bunkering, and issues caused by methanol’s corrosive properties.
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Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and Japan’s e5 Labs have agreed to design the next vessel for their prototype Roboship concept for automated, hybrid electric ships. e5, founded by a consortium of four Japanese companies to promote electric propulsion and digitization of ships, developed the platform and last a year ago conducted some of the rst proof of concept tests. The companies have agreed to develop the designs for a 499-ton biomass fuel carrier that will be built by Honda Heavy Industries. Final dimensions will be resolved as part of the design process according to the companies. They expect that this vessel will enter service in April 2023 operating for Aioi Bioenergy Corporation.
The adoption of Mitsubishi Shipbuilding’s high-performance twin skeg ship design lowers propulsion horsepower by more than 20 percent, reducing CO2 emissions during cruising, and allowing the ship to navigate completely CO2-free during port operations such as freight loading and unloading, pier docking and undocking, and entering or leaving port. The generators will be capable of switching between eco-friendly fuels including LNG, hydrogen, ammonia, biofuel, and synthetic fuel, allowing all operations, including navigation, to be CO2-free. Additional benets of the system include reduced noise and vibration for greater comfort inside the vessel, less need for diesel engine m a i n t e n a n c e , a n d i m p ro v e d s t e e r i n g capabilities that make pier docking and undocking operations easier, reducing the workload on the crew. Further, e5 and Mitsubishi predict that in the future, the mass production of ships equipped with this standardized system will lower costs, which will accelerate the widespread adoption of electric propulsion vessels.
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CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS Roboship conducted its proof of concept tests a year ago conducting a successful demonstration of a remote-controlled ship equipped with an automatic collision avoidance algorithm. A series of verication tests were conducted over two days including offshore high-speed broadband communication with the “zero accident” application operating system for the ship and the next generation digital navigation tools. They also experiment with next-generation ship land power management and robot ship operation utilizing AI remote control technology.
Florida-based cruise operations have a particular vulnerability to COVID-19, as the state is currently experiencing record-setting daily case counts. Nearly 33,000 new cases were reported on Christmas Eve, exceeding the Delta wave's daily peak (in August) by more than 5,000.
Malaysia and Taiwan Permit Domestic Cruises COVID Cases Disrupt Cruise Operations in Caribbean, U.S. to Resume West Coast
As the vaccine-resistant Omicron variant spreads, COVID-19 outbreaks are disrupting cruise ship itineraries for departures from American ports. Despite stringent vaccination and testing requirements, small clusters of cases are popping up on cruise ships in the Caribbean and the U.S. West Coast. On the Mexican Riviera, the Holland America line cruise ship Koningsdam had to skip a port call in Puerto Vallarta when local ofcials refused to allow passengers to disembark. 21 members of Koningsdam's crew had reportedly tested positive, and port ofcials did not want to take the risk that passengers might also have the disease. Koningsdam returned to her home port in San Diego, swiftly disembarked her passengers and left again with a new cohort of guests at about 1600 hours Sunday. A spokesperson for the line told local media that there were no conrmed cases of COVID amongst the passengers. All positive employees were quarantined as soon as their test results were known. The identied cases were all "mild or asymptomatic," he said. “They sent us a letter to all the passengers saying that they had a mild case of COVID and it was isolated and basically we had nothing to worry about," passenger Rosemary Capuano told OnScene.TV. "They offered us $50 extra to spend on ship and basically said, ‘Keep your mask on, enjoy the rest of your cruise.'” A sister brand, Carnival Cruise Lines, reported another outbreak Friday aboard Carnival Freedom. It was the third Florida-homeported cruise ship in the span of a week to report COVID cases aboard. The outbreak aboard Carnival Freedom included a small number of cases amongst the passengers. Carnival conrmed that the vessel was refused entry at the islands of Aruba and Bonaire because of the positive cases.
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Cruising is resuming in both Malaysia and Taiwan using strict health and safety restrictions. Genting Cruise Lines through its Star and Dream Cruises brands had been working with local authorities to begin cruises in both markets following a similar model to what the company is using for its cruises from Singapore and Hong Kong. Genting working with the Penang Port Commission and Penang Port Sdn Bhd port operator was able to win approval from the Malaysian government for the cruises after several previous attempts. Penang had been anxious to resume some tourist activities seeking government permission for most of 2021 for the cruise program. Star Cruises is deploying its 40,000 gross ton Star Pisces for the cruises roundtripping from Penang. The cruise ship sailed on its rst trip on December 22 and will be operating ve trips per week. The one-night cruises are sailing in the Malacca Strait but unlike the other cruise programs from Singapore and Hong Kong, a two-night cruise includes a 10-hour port call at the tourist and resort area of Langkawi. “We’re off to a positive and exciting start as we kick off today’s rst sailing with Star Pisces from Penang, introducing new holiday options and experiences for Malaysians, including the 1-Night Straits of Malacca cruise and the 2-Night Langkawi Escape cruise,” said Madam Cynthia Lee, Vice President of Sales, Genting Cruise Lines. “We are taking the necessary steps to educate consumers on how cruising has evolved to operate in a new norm with layers of safety measures and the application of new safety equipment.” Star Cruises agreed to restrictions for the cruises including all passengers and crew must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 with the passengers also undergoing a health screening and being tested for the virus at the terminal before embarkation. The ship, which normally accommodates over 1,000 passengers, is being limited to 50 percent of capacity. Malaysian citizens, foreign residents of Malaysia, and international tourists who cleared the quarantine requirements are being permitted to sail on the cruises.
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CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS In Taiwan, Genting’s Dream Cruises is being permitted to resume cruises for Taiwanese citizens after a seven-month pause. Genting’s 75,300 gross ton Explorer Dream cruise ship initially started cruises around Taiwan in July 2020 and carried over 90,000 passengers before the government ceased the cruises in May 2021. The cruises will restart on December 31 offering two- and three-night trips from Keelung with stops at other ports including Hualien, Anping, and Kaoshiung. Taiwan authorities have placed new restrictions on the cruise operation. All passengers and crew must be fully vaccinated with the passengers testing negative for COVID-19 within 48 hours prior to departure. Capacity on the ship will also be reduced and all passengers must use a social distancing app that alerts users if they are exposed to conrmed COVID-19 cases. Japan and Singapore became the rst destinations in Asia to resume cruising for their domestic markets in November 2020, while Hong Kong followed nearly a year later. China has also reportedly permitted limited domestic cruises but the international market, which had been the fastest-growing segment of the cruise industry, remains closed.
Bahamas Forces MSC Cruise Ship to Skip Private Port due to COVID Cases
“Unfortunately, and unlike most ports of call, the government of the Bahamas has decided to force us to cancel our call at Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve today out of an abundance of caution,” wrote Captain Galano, master of the MSC Seashore in a letter distributed to passengers. “Due to the short notice, we will replace it with an additional day at sea. I apologize for any inconvenience this might cause you and thank you for your understanding.” The captain reported that “a limited number,” of cases of COVID-19 had been identied among the crew, “as well as a handful of guests who tested positive for COVID-19,” during the ve-day cruise from Miami. MSC reports that all of its crew is vaccinated and tested every two days for the virus, while passengers age 12 and older are also required to be vaccinated. All passengers ages two years and up have to test negative before boarding the cruise ship. The majority were reported to be asymptomatic and “feeling well.” All the passengers and crew that tested positive were isolated and being monitored. The captain in his letter also reminded passengers that they are required to be wearing masks indoors and physical distancing. The Bahamas was one of the rst destinations to reopen to cruise ships with the arrivals in June 2020. The Chief Executive Ofcer of Nassau Cruise Port Limited, Mike Maura Jr., told the Guardian Business news outlet at the beginning of this week that cruise ships were not being denied and that the health protocols appeared to be working.
The Bahamas has become the latest destination to turn away a cruise ship due to reports of cases of COVID-19 aboard, but unlike the other ships which were denied port calls in the Caribbean, the Bahamas turned away a cruise ship that was docked at the cruise line’s private port on an uninhabited island. Details of the Bahamas’ decision are unclear, but it could have signicant consequences for the cruise industry as the major cruise lines each operate private ports in the Bahamas. The denial came a day before the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention raised its alert level on cruising advising travelers to avoid cruises regardless of their vaccination status.
It is unclear why the MSC Seashore’s passengers were unable to go ashore on the private island. Only a handful of maintenance workers live on the island and there might be a few Bahamians who work there, but the port is mostly for cruise passengers. MSC invested in the development of the island, which opened in December 2019 as its private destination. On November 18, 2021, MSC held a naming ceremony for the MSC Seashore and dedication event for Ocean Cay MSC Reserve that was attended by ofcials from the Bahamas. Other cruise lines appear to be continuing their calls at their private ports in the Bahamas. Royal Caribbean International, Carnival Corporation’s Holland America Line, and Norwegian Cruise Line, all have private ports while other cruise ships stop at Nassau, Freeport and Virgin has a dedicated beach Club on Bimini. AIS data indicates that Royal Caribbean ships and Virgin’s Scarlet Lady were at their private ports in the Bahamas today.
MSC Cruises’ new cruise ship the MSC Seashore arrived at the company’s private island of Ocean Cay in the Bahamas on December 29 with some passengers saying the ship was docked an hour ahead of schedule. Passengers were preparing to disembark for their day on the beach and in the ocean conservation facilities when the captain informed them that the ship would remain at sea for the day.
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CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS
Fred. Olsen to Sail Second Record Cruise Through Corinth Canal
Fred. Olsen Cruise Lines, which markets trips in the U.K., is planning a second record transit in 2023 through the four-mile-long Corinth Canal in Greece, giving passengers what is being described as a oncein-a-lifetime experience. In 2019, the cruise line’s ship the Braemar made history when she became the largest ship to ever traverse the nearly 130-year-old canal with as little as two-and-a-half feet of clearance at the narrowest points in the passage. The cruise line plans to give adventurers the chance to relive history aboard the Braemar with a repeat of its record-breaking transit of the Corinth Canal. The transit is scheduled for the morning of May 14, 2023. The nerve-racking voyage, which takes at least two years to plan, had originally been slated for April 2023. “Our journey planners work hard to craft every cruise with the joy of the journey in mind, but this cruise offers a sailing experience like no other,” said Clare Ward, Director of Product and Customer Service for Fred. Olsen. “Here, Braemar will showcase exactly what we mean when we say ‘smaller is better,’ embarking on another record-breaking sailing of the Corinth Canal.”
Spanning a distance of four miles, the Corinth Canal has a depth of 26 feet and its width varies between a minimum of 69 feet at its bottom and a maximum of 82 feet at the surface. Surrounded by walls standing at a height of 170 feet, the canal which was carved from the rock helps ships reduce their journey by 185 nautical miles. The canal connects the Gulf of Corinth with the Saronic Gulf, separating the Peloponnese from mainland Greece. In recent years, the canal has been losing its economic importance due to its inability to accommodate modern large vessels, a development that has prompted Greek authorities to explore expansion plans. It is estimated that around 15,000 ships, mainly small vessels, cruise ships, and yachts transit annually through the man-made canal.
Fuel Cell Systems Discussed as MSC’s Newest Cruise Ship Floats Out
During the 2019 transit, the ship was assisted by a tugboat to avoid bumps. However, with a 79-foot width at the narrowest point in the canal, the cruise ship had just feet of clearance on each side. Passengers on board were able to touch the walls of the canal at certain points.
MSC Cruises and Chantiers de l'Atlantique celebrated the beginning of the oat out for the company’s newest and most technologically advanced cruise ship today, along with the placing of the rst keel block for the company’s next cruise ship. Both of the ships will use liquied natural gas, making them the rst ships built both in France and for MSC Cruises to operate on LNG, as well as outtted with other new environmental technologies. While ships have been navigating through the narrow waterways since 1893, the 24,344 gross ton Braemar, which is 642 feet long, exceeded the normal maximum dimensions of ships permitted to use the historic waterway. Traditionally, the authorities limit the canal to vessels with a beam under 58 feet. She has a draft of 17.9 feet, providing at points just eight feet of clearance under her keel.
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As part of the launching ceremony, MSC and the shipyard discussed in more detail the plans to t a test fuel cell system aboard the new cruise ship, the MSC World Europa. The system is seen as a demonstration that will help to advance fuel cell technology.
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CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS The system, based on technology from Bloom Energy, is a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) that will be made up of two 75kW modules. The fuel cells using LNG will produce electricity generated by the electrochemical reactions. Chantiers de l'Atlantique described the SOFC cell saying that they use ceramic materials allowing operations at high temperature which ensures high electrical efciency. They are also recovering the heath from the exhaust, which they noted could lead to energy yields in the long term close to 90 percent. Employing the SOFC solution they believe will also make it possible to reduce GHG emissions by around 30 percent compared to the conventional dual-fuel engines currently tted to ships powered by LNG. The shipyard also reported that the technology will be compatible with many fuels, ranging from LNG to methane, methanol, ammonia, and hydrogen, as future fuels become available. “I am proud that we have been able to achieve, with Chantiers de l'Atlantique as partners, the launch of these new LNG vessels - the rst ever built in France,” said Pierfrancesco Vago, Executive Chairman, MSC Cruises during today’s ceremonies. “They will also integrate fuel cells as new pilot technologies to make these ships even more efcient. We are determined to take new steps and we know that we can count on the continued support of our suppliers, partners, and governments to jointly build an ever more sustainable industry.” In addition to the fuel cells, the MSC World Europa uses other technologies including selective catalytic reduction systems, shore-toship power connectivity, advanced wastewater treatment systems, and an underwater radiated noise management system to reduce its environmental impact. MSC also reports that it will explore the use of bio and synthetic forms of LNG as they become available to the market.
Luxury Expedition Cruise Ship Delivered to Relaunch Historic Brand
The rst of the new luxury expedition cruise ships, the SH Minerva, was delivered to her owners and has begun a positioning voyage to Antarctica before her maiden voyage later this month. The ship also represents the relaunch of one of the oldest brand names in the educational and expedition cruise market. The 10,500 gross ton SH Minerva was ofcially completed and handed over to Swan Hellenic on December 3 by the Helsinki Shipyard. The vessel, which was completed in just 26 months from contract signing, departed Cuxhaven, Germany on December 6 after making her way through the Kiel Canal. Her rst scheduled stop is in Tenerife as she sails to Ushuaia, Argentina from where the vessel’s maiden cruise will begin on December 29. The rst expedition is scheduled to last 10 days crossing the Drake Passage and visiting the South Shetland Islands and cruising around the Antarctic Peninsula. A private naming ceremony for the SH Minerva took place at the shipyard on November 23 and was followed by nal sea trials. Helsinki Shipyard reports that the trials went according to the plan and were completed within a demanding schedule demonstrating the cruise ship’s maneuverability and stability to top speed.
Rendering of the MSC World Europa due to enter service in December 2022 (MSC Cruises) The MSC World Europa also holds several other distinctions, including being the longest and largest cruise ship MSC has built. At 1,060 feet in length, the ship’s gross tonnage will be 205,700 GT, meaning the class follows Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis Class and rivals Genting’s Dream Class as among the largest cruise ships in the world. The MSC World Europa will have a maximum passenger capacity of 6,334 along with a crew of over 1,400. There will be a broad range of new passenger amenities on the ship, including six pools and 14 whirlpools, along with a 340-foot-long promenade that will be partially indoors and partially open air. The cruise ship will have a total of 13 dining venues, including six specialty restaurants, and over 2,000 cabins in 19 different categories. A total of 65 percent of the cabins will have balconies. The oat out of the MSC World Europa began today after the keel laying ceremony for the MSC Euribia, an additional ship in a prior class that however is also being outtted to run on LNG. The MSC World Europa is being moved to the tting out dock with delivery scheduled for November 2022. She will debut sailing from Dubai before repositioning to the Mediterranean in the summer of 2023. The MSC Euribia is scheduled for delivery in 2023 while work on the second cruise ship in the World Class is due to begin construction in 2023.
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The new cruise was purpose-designed as the rst in a series of three polar expedition vessels. While the vessels will operate worldwide cruising, there was a strong focus on high-latitude operations. The SH Minerva features a 5-megawatt diesel-electric propulsion system with selective catalytic reduction and a PC5 ice-strengthened hull with extra-large stabilizers for improved passenger comfort. The SH Minerva is designed to be completely self-sufcient for up to 40 days or 8,000 nautical miles. The vessels are equipped with exhaust gas cleaning, advanced wastewater treatment systems, and the waste storage facilities required for operating in sensitive polar areas. In addition, preparations have been made to implement battery technology that would make it possible to operate silently. Like the other new cruise ships being built for the expedition market, the SH Minerva provides luxurious accommodations for her passengers as well as amenities including a restaurant, lounge, and club room with large windows for viewing the scenery as well as a stargazing platform. She has a capacity of 152 passengers in 76 cabins and suites and is operated by a crew of 120. The SH Minerva will be followed by her sister ship the SH Vega (NB517) and the slightly larger NB518, which are both already under construction at Helsinki Shipyard.
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CRUISE INDUSTRY NEWS The Swan Hellenic brand dates to the 1950s when a father and son team in the U.K. launched tours to Greece and began operating educational trips on chartered Greek passenger ships. The brand developed a loyal following and in the 1980s was acquired by P&O which provided dedicated vessels. The brand became part of Carnival Corporation after the P&O acquisition but in 2007 they announced that they were ending operations. The brand was sold to a series of investors and for a time revived by the All Leisure Holiday Group, before that company led for bankruptcy in 2017. The current investors purchased the brand in 2020 and announced plans to relaunch operations as a luxury expedition cruise line. The keel for the second cruise ship, the SH Vega, was laid in February 2021 and she is due to enter service in the spring of 2022 followed by the third cruise ship before the end of 2022.
Ponant Delays Two New Cruise Ships from Word
Since then, the cruise ship Paul Gauguin has undergone several renovations, including being upgraded to operate of marine gas oil and in 2021 extensive renovations to her passenger accommodations as well as additional technical upgrades. Ponant recently took delivery of the rst LNG-fueled expedition icebreaker cruise ship, Le Commandant Charcot, which it is currently operating in the Antarctic. The French company also completed delivery of the last of its six Explorer class cruise ships shortly before operations were suspended during the pandemic. The Polynesian cruises resumed sailing in the summer of 2020, while operations resumed for the French brand rst domestically in 2020 and now expanding to additional operations. The company has resumed additional cruises, including the recent reopening of the Seychelles, although other popular destinations including Australia and New Zealand remain closed. Fincantieri, like other major shipyards, was successful in 2020 rescheduling the delivery of the cruise ships on order to help the lines adjust operations to the pandemic. In the last week, Fincantieri’s shipyards delivered a new cruise ship, the Silver Dawn, to Silversea Cruises and yesterday oated out the MSC Seascape, the next large cruise ship for MSC. As of the end of the third quarter of 2021, Fincantieri had orders for 31 cruise ships due for delivery through 2025 and beyond. The yards are scheduled to deliver seven cruise ships a year in both 2022 and 2023.
Brazil Halts Costa Cruise Ship's Operations After COVID Outbreak
In what may be the rst instance of a cruise company postponing new cruise ships on order since the onset of the pandemic, Ponant conrmed reports that it is delaying two new builds ordered from Fincantieri’s Vard subsidiary. The French cruise company ordered the ships at the end of 2019 as part of a plan to expand the operations of the newly acquired Paul Gauguin Cruises. Responding to an inquiry, Ponant’s Chief Sales, Marketing and Communications Ofcer, Hervé Bellaïche said, "In this period of uncertainty, with additional capacity arriving in the market, we decided to postpone this project. Our focus is the very promising commercial success of Le Commandant Charcot and the two ships delivered since 2020, Le Bellot and Le Jacques-Cartier.’’ Ponant entered into a contract with Fincantieri valued at approximately $338 million for two new-generation luxury expedition cruise ships signed in December 2019. The vessels, which were to be an evolution of the previous Explorer class that Vard built for Ponant, were due for delivery in 2022 and Ponant had an option for a third ship. Each of the cruise ships was to be 11,000 gross tons with a capacity of approximately 230 passengers. Fincantieri said the new ships would be advanced hybrid vessels with cutting-edge technology. They were planning the most extensive battery package in the market giving the vessels the ability to operate from battery power at anchor, in ports, and environmentally sensitive areas. Plans also called for further optimization of the hull, more energy-efcient equipment, and new applications for energy recovery, improving waste treatment, and reducing underwater noise. Paul Gauguin cruises began in 1998 operating a single, 19,200 gross ton vessel sailing year-round in French Polynesia. The cruise line was acquired by Ponant in the summer of 2019.
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On Friday, Brazil's National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) announced that it has suspended the operations of the cruise ship Costa Diadema, which docked recently at the Brazilian port of Salvador with 68 COVID cases on board. Anvisa and local health agencies have declared the outbreak a "community transmission of Covid-19, level 4" incident, according to CNN Brasil. Until the agency has completed an assessment of the situation on board, Costa Diadema will transit to her home port of Santos, where she will disembark the remainder of her passengers. The COVID-positive individuals have disembarked in Salvador, along with passengers who are local residents. Brazil's Strategic Health Information Centers (Cievs) will monitor their onward travel. For the next leg of her voyage, "the vessel will continue under restrictions during navigation [and] all non-essential activities on board must be interrupted and the sanitary safety protocols inside the vessel must be complied with until its nal destination in Santos," Anvisa said in a statement.
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MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS The Diadema arrived Thursday at Salvador with more than ve dozen conrmed COVID cases. The ship counted 56 crewmembers and 12 passengers infected out of a total complement of 3,800 people on board. According to Anvisa, the majority of the individuals who tested positive are asymptomatic. There are only a few passengers with mild symptoms, and no serious cases reported.
Marina Militare / Kostas Thoctarides
The voyage was Diadema's inaugural sailing from the port of Santos. She arrived on a transit voyage from the Mediterranean on December 20, then took on passengers and departed on an itinerary for Salvador and Ilheus, returning January 3.
Greek ROV Company Finds Lost WWII Submarine Off Mykonos
A research team headed up by Greek explorer Kostas Thoctarides has discovered the wreck of an Italian WWII submarine off the coast of Mykonos.
The whole project was successfully delivered in a very tight operational weather window, according to Leask Marine. Kostas Thoctarides
As for HMS Torbay, she went on to a successful wartime career, sinking 24 coasters, 17 merchant ships and ve warships, including Jantina. She survived the war and was scrapped in 1945.
Leask Marine ticks another tidal decommissioning job off to-do list
Thoctarides and his crew discovered the location of the Jantina during an ROV sonar sweep, and they sent down a second ROV to get images of the sub and conrm its identity. The video survey showed that the sub sank with periscopes down and a deck hatch open. Thoctarides' company, Planet Blue ROV Services, normally uses its submersibles for subsea pipeline inspections. The rm has nine of the high-spec devices, and wreck-hunting is a long-time side project. Jantina is his fourth nd, Thoctarides told CNN Greece, and he has published several books on the subject. His daughter, Oceanis, has joined him in his work.
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After the retrieval, the 1MW turbine – dubbed OceanQuest – was transported to the Port of Cherbourg, for the assessment.
Nova Innovation reaps multi-million crowdfunding reward
Orkney-based marine specialist Leask Marine has provided its services to tidal developer HydroQuest for a major decommissioning project in France.
The submarine Jantina was a 1932-built Argonauta-class attack sub, a diesel-electric design of about 650 tonnes displacement. On July 5, 1941, she was under way on a surface transit from the Greek island of Leros when she was attacked by a British submarine, HMS Torbay. The Torbay was operating submerged and spotted Jantina on the surface at a distance of about four nautical miles. Torbay red a spread of six torpedoes at a range of about 1,500 yards, and several found their target, sinking Jantina and killing 42 out of 48 crewmembers. Six survivors managed to swim to shore on Delos, a small island to the west of Mikonos.
To remind, the 1MW turbine was retrieved in late September 2021 after two years of being submerged and operating at the PaimpolBréhat site.
Scottish tidal energy company Nova Innovation has closed a crowdfunding round on Seedrs platform, collecting over £2 million in investment commitments. Leask Marine provided its services to remove HydroQuest’s 1MW turbine from the test site off Paimpol-Bréhat in Brittany. The job entailed project management, engineering, and marine operations with the engagement of the North Sea Atlantic vessel. I n a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h Ta d e k , t h e decommissioning and recovery procedures were developed with all appropriate hazard and operability analysis (HAZOP), risk assessments, and emergency response plans. The turbine lift, together with the foundation and ballast lifts, were managed on site by Leask marine personnel, with a total of 1500 tons of hardware recovered to surface and ofoaded to quayside.
L aunched in late November 2021, the investment round proved very successful as Nova Innovation managed to collect more than double of its original target. Namely, the company set a minimum target of £1 million at a share price of £29.59, but over the course of one month, managed to secure more than £2 million in proceeds. Closing the founding round, Nova Innovation said: “Thank you to everyone who has invested to create a more sustainable world through tidal energy”. The company has been making headlines recently with several major funding incentives secured to further advance its tidal energy projects and technology.
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MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS In mid-December 2021, Nova Innovation was granted 2.5 million to build an upscaled tidal energy turbine by the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator Fund. The advanced 200kW device, featuring various innovations, is expected to expected to further slash the cost of tidal power. Earlier in December, the company also secured £800,000 for the CREATE project through UK government’s Energy Entrepreneurs Fund, along with £200,000 for its FLITE (Feasibility of Larantuka and Indonesian Tidal Energy) project from Innovate UK received in late November. Beforehand, Nova Innovation received £6.4 million from the Scottish National Investment Bank to fund mass manufacturing and distribution of its innovative tidal energy turbines. In addition, the company recently entered into collaboration agreement with SIMEC Atlantis Energy, with the goal of delivering more UKbuilt tidal turbines in the water and turbo charging the tidal industry.
Evergreen’s 1st 24,000 TEU boxshsip launched in China On December 29, a 24,000 TEU containership ordered by Taiwan’s Evergreen Group was launched at HudongZhonghua Shipbuilding’s Changxing Shipbuilding Base.
Equipped with a hybrid scrubber system, it adopts the latest technology in terms of environmental protection, energy saving, efciency and safety, according to the shipbuilder.
As described, nine new tanks will be comprised of a mix of stainless steel and carbon steel, with a total capacity of 32,400 cbm, enabling OTH to relocate and consolidate products of existing customers and optimise the use of its current storage capacity for new customers and All six ships will have a specic bow design, products. large-diameter propellers, and energysaving ducts to ensure low energy Furthermore, the tank bay will be highly automated, requiring less manual intervention, consumption. and will benet from the ongoing digital Evergreen Marine has been on a major transformation program, which includes an eet rejuvenation campaign as it strives for advanced ERP system and automated control “a completely sustainable” life cycle for its systems, Odfjell said. vessels — from design, construction, o p e r a t i o n a n d u l t i m a t e l y t o The expansion project is said to be in line with decommissioning. OTH’s strategy of positioning itself for healthy demand for storage capacity in the In September 2021, it ordered 24 specialty/petrochemical industry in the US c o n t a i n e r s h i p s a t C S S C H u a n g p u Gulf Coast region, where OTH has been We n c h o n g S h i p b u i l d i n g C o m p a n y operating for years. Limited. The order comprises eleven 3,000 TEU vessels, eleven 2,300 TEU ships, and Bay 13 is set to begin construction in the rst two units a capacity of 1,800 TEU. quarter of 2022 and is expected to be operational by the end of 2023. The expansion What is more, in March this year, will be fully nanced through an existing credit Evergreen placed an order for the facility. construction of twenty 15,000 TEU boxships at South Korean shipyard According to Odfjell, bulk chemicals, including Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI). intermediate and specialty chemical products exports in the US Gulf are expected to increase The Evergreen series of ultra large by 2.3 million metric tons by 2024, while import container vessels (ULCVs) have been volumes are expected to increase by 389,000 independently designed by Hudong metric tons by 2030. Zhonghua. In 2020, the shipbuilder transformed the No. 1 dock of the “As a result, storage demand is expected to rise Changxing Shipbuilding Production Base and the development of Bay 13 will assist in to be able to build the 24,000 TEU further optimizing OTH and allow Odfjell behemoths more efciently. Terminals to support industry growth for new and existing customers”, Odfjell said. Hudong-Zhonghua is currently building 19 large containerships slated for delivery OTH is strategically located near the entrance by 2025. of the Houston ship channel and serves as a major international hub for chemical import and export to and from the United States.
Odfjell adding new tank bay at Houston terminal
This is the rst ship from a series of six identical 24,000 TEU units being built for Evergreen by a subsidiary of China Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC). Back in November 2019, the Taiwanese owner ordered four 23,000 TEU boxships. The newbuilds were subsequently upgraded to 24,000 TEU. In June 2021, Evergreen placed an order for two more identical sister vessels. The newbuild features a length of 399.99 meters, a width of 61.5 meters, and a draft of 33.2 meters.
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It currently owns 119 tanks, two deepwater ship docks, four barge berths and one of the largest stainless steel storage capacities of any independent tank terminal in the world. Last month, Odfjell entered into a sales agreement for the last three 9,000 dwt shortsea vessels that operated in the company’s regional trade in Asia.
Shipping and tank terminal company Odfjell is investing in the construction of a new tank bay at Odfjell Terminal Houston (OTH) as part of its support for ongoing regional growth in the chemical industry. With the addition of a new automated tank bay, Odfjell expects to increase the capacity of Bay 13 at OTH by approximately 9% to 413,000 cubic metres (cbm).
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As informed at the time, the sale marks an exit from Odfjell’s short-sea regional trade in Asia as the remaining vessel on a time charter to Odfjell will also be re-delivered to its owners in January 2022. Earlier this year, Odfjell also sold two LPGethylene carriers, exiting the gas carrier business.
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MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS
Port of Zeebrugge boosts green energy with new wind farm
Emmanuel Van Damme, general manager of ter minal Wallenius Wilhelmsen Solutions, added: “We are delighted to be able to contribute to this expansion of green energy development at the port for our region. Wallenius Wilhelmsen Solutions is developing several innovations around green energy. The most eyecatching initiative will be the construction of a ro-ro sailing ship”.
The Belgian Port of Zeebrugge, one of Western Europe’s important energy hubs, has welcomed the new wind far m consisting of ve wind turbines as a part of the “clean port strategy”.
The Port of Zeebrugge, regarded as Belgium’s most important LNG hub and offshore wind power plant, also eyes boosting its role in the energy transition and is involved in several projects in this regard. These include the preparation of green hydrogen production and import and the further rollout of shore-based power.
Five new 150-metre wind turbines with a combined capacity of 18 MW have become operational on the terminals of transhipment companies C.RO Ports Zeebrugge and Wallenius Wilhelmsen Solutions. The green power producer Eneco carried out the development of the wind farm.
“In the coming years, we will further facilitate the construction of wind farms. In the outer port, for example, there’s still a lot of potential. In addition, we are making a lot of other efforts to make the port more sustainable as part of our ‘clean port’ strategy”, the port’s CEO added.
As informed, the wind turbines will produce approximately 50 GWh of green electricity per year. Part of this energy will be used locally at the terminals and the rest will be connected to the grid.
During the COP26 in Glasgow, Belgian ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) the energy ministry of Chile to collaborate on setting up a corridor between their countries to ship green hydrogen.
According to Tom Hautekiet, CEO of Port of Zeebrugge, with ve wind turbines added, the total production capacity in the port goes up to almost 200 MW. “We had already built up the necessary experience and expertise with the construction of wind turbines in the Port of Zeebrugge. The permit process for these 5 turbines went very smoothly. Port areas are an ideal location for wind turbines. .(..) As part of the One Planet plan, our goal is to be a climate-neutral company by 2035”, said Tine Deheegher, manager of Eneco Wind Belgium.
Court Orders Shell to Halt Seismic urveys off S. Africa's Wild Coast.
The rm and the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy were also ordered pay the plaintiff's legal costs. In the decision, Judge Gerald Bloem said that Shell had not adequately consulted communities with customary shing rights in the area. The plaintiffs argued that the seismic campaign posed a reasonable risk of harm to marine resources, potentially affecting shermens' livelihoods, and would interfere with longstanding cultural and spiritual practices. Since meaningful consultation with affected communities is a legal requirement and was not reportedly conducted, the judge determined that Shell's exploration license was "unlawful and invalid" and ordered a halt to the campaign, according to Greenpeace. "The case has huge signicance in that it shows that no matter how big a company is, it ignores local communities at its peril. This case is really a culmination of the struggle of communities along the Wild Coast for the recognition of their customary rights to land and shing, and to respect for their customary processes," said attorney Wilmein Wicomb of the Legal Resources Centre. A Shell spokesperson told Reuters that "we respect the court’s decision and have paused the survey while we review the judgement." For now, Shell must halt survey work, unless it chooses to appeal. Another court will take up the matter again when it considers a related question - whether Shell needs an environmental authorization under South Africa's National Environmental Management Act (NEMA) to proceed with the survey.
Marine insurers adopt principles to decarbonize shipping
The wind farm, which is a part of the port’s bigger energy transition picture, saw a combined investment of around 20 million (approximately $22.6 million). C . R O Po r t s Z e e b r u g g e a n d Wa l l e n i u s Wilhelmsen Solutions stated that opting for green energy was a logical choice. “We have both the space and favourable wind climate in our ro-ro ports to accommodate wind turbines. By supplying our terminals with green, locally produced electricity and using it to charge our customers’ e-cars, our own electric terminal vehicles and, in the future, possibly the batteries on our ships, we are making an extra effort to minimize greenhouse gas emissions”, commented Florent Maes, CEO of C.RO Ports.
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A court in South Africa has ordered Shell to halt a seismic campaign off the Wild Coast, an iconic section of the nation's Eastern Cape region. Shell has chartered the seismic vessel Amazon Warrior to survey an area of about 1,800 square nautical miles off the coast, and it began the work about one month a g o. E n v i ro n m e n t a l a c t i v i s t s a n d indigenous rights groups led suit to block the operation, and on Tuesday, a high court in Makhanda issued an order requiring Shell to stop work.
Six of the world’s leading marine insurers launch a groundbreaking initiative to provide transparency on carbon emissions and support the shipping industry’s green transition.
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MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS The Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance are a framework to quantitatively assess and disclose the climate alignment of marine insurers’ under writing portfolios. This pioneering initiative makes marine insurance the rst line of business to establish a sectorspecic methodology to support the ambition of the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA), where members commit to transitioning their underwriting portfolios to net-zero GHG emissions by 2050, consistent with a maximum temperature rise of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100, in order to contribute to the implementation of the COP21 Paris Agreement. “The transition to net zero is a massive endeavour and we appreciate the efforts of the marine industry. As risk managers, insurers and investors, the insurance industry has a key role in supporting the transition to a net-zero economy. The Poseidon Principles will serve our institutions as well as our clients to quantitatively assess and disclose the climate alignment of their underwriting portfolios and thus improve decision-making at a strategic level and shape a sustainable future for all. The disclosure framework provided by the Poseidon Principles will enable us to credibly report our progress towards net-zero insurance using granular marine data,” says Patrizia Kern, Marine Head at Swiss Re Corporate Solutions and Chair of the drafting committee for the Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance. “As signatories of the Net-Zero Insurance Alliance, NZIA, we at Swiss Re encourage everyone in the marine industry to align with net-zero 2050 targets.” Signatories to the Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance commit to assessing and disclosing the climate alignment of their hull and machinery portfolios, and to benchmarking them against two trajectories: one linked to a 50% reduction of annual CO2 emissions by 2050 compared to 2008 – in line with the International Maritime Organization’s Initial GHG Strategy; and one linked to a 100% reduction of emissions by 2050. Furthermore, a third trajectory will be introduced to align the full decarbonization trajectory with zerolifecycle GHG emissions in order to meet the ambition of net-zero commitments such as the NZIA, and to support a zero-emissions future for shipping. “We need to work together to tackle the challenge of climate change. As such, the Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance are an important contribution from the marine hull insurance industry. The principles provide us with a common tool to monitor progress over time. As a leading marine insurer, we will work together with our Members and clients to make sure that the principles and the methodologies applied are as practical and straightforward as possible. Our common goal is an accelerated move towards a decarbonized industry,” says Rolf Thore Roppestad, Chief Executive Ofcer of Gard, and Vice-Chair of the drafting committee.
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DNV lists all potential benets of marine energy for Dutch power system
Brokers and other key stakeholders in marine insurance commit to supporting the Principles as afliate members and align with the goal of decarbonizing international shipping by 2050. “By joining this important initiative, we wish to demonstrate our deep commitment to working with our clients and business partners to successfully navigate the transition to a net-zero future,” says Ben Abraham Chief Executive Ofcer, Global Marine at Willis Towers Watson.
Several parties can benet from the development and integration of marine energy technologies in the Dutch energy mix, as they may play a role in bulk power generation, balancing of the grid, and the optimization of generation portfolios, according to certication group DNV.
“Cefor is committed to promoting a more sustainable ocean industry, and supports the transparency offered by the Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance to foster dialogue towards this common goal,” says Helle Hammer, Managing Director, Cefor, the Nordic Association of Marine Insurers. Founding Signatories include Swiss Re, Gard, Hellenic Hull Management, SCOR, Victor International, and Norwegian Hull Club. Additional marine insurers are expected to join in the near future. A fliate members supporting the Principles are Willis Towers Watson, Cefor, and EF Marine. The Poseidon Principles for Marine Insurance are founded on the methodology used in the Poseidon Principles for Financial Institutions and were developed in an effort spearheaded by leading marine insurers and industry stakeholders with expert support provided by the Global Maritime Forum, Swiss Re Institute, and UMAS. The International Union of Marine Insurers (IUMI) is a supporting partner.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
DNV has released a paper, commissioned by the Dutch Marine Energy Centre (DMEC), which provides an overview of the most promising marine energy technologies for the Dutch North Sea and highlights the potential benets for the Dutch energy systems and the stakeholders involved. According to the paper, wave energy and tidal energy are currently the most promising technologies to harness the power of the North Sea, whereas salinity gradient technologies may be used in any body of water with a difference in salt concentration, such as in river mouths, where fresh water is discharged at sea, or where the water of the IJsselmeer connects with the Waddenzee. If co-located with offshore wind farms, marine energy technologies can enable a more efcient use of transmission capacity and a multifunctional use of space at sea, DNV states. This could also bring benets to wind stakeholders as they can optimize their portfolio and hedge their market risks by using marine energy technologies for providing balancing services and by capturing price peaks at moments when the wind does not blow, generating a more diversied and steadier source of income.
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MARINE TECHNOLOGY NEWS The potential for both tidal and wave energy could be larger if considering other infrastructures like oil and gas platforms and coastal defense works as well, DNV states. The development of marine energy may also contribute to other purposes that lay outside the scope of the paper, DNV said, such as creating job and export opportunities for the Dutch offshore and maritime sector, as well as potentially contributing to coastal and river protection projects.
Challenges of integrating marine technologies into energy mix
“Including marine energy more explicitly in national subsidy schemes could be a way to support and accelerate its commercial development and to reduce the risk of investments”, it is stated in the paper.
The recent eld trial built upon previous stages of the anchor test programme at the scaled anchor centrifuge testing facility at University of Dundee (UoD), and on-land testing at the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy System (IWES) in cooperation with the Test Centre for Further studies, eventually followed by Support Structures (TTH) of the Leibniz pilot and demonstration projects, are also University of Hannover. required to investigate and address the uncertainties in marine energy potential Cross validated results coming from the multiand the environmental implications of location and scale test programme indicate several leaps in performance which show the large-scale marine energy systems. anchor is suitable for sand/soil seabeds where Likewise, including marine energy more large tensile loads need to be resisted, and that explicitly in national subsidy schemes its tensile holding capacity is up to 15MN per could be a way to support and accelerate its anchor. commercial development and to reduce According to developers, the solution is also the risk of investments, DNV concludes. resistant to cyclic loading or pile ratcheting, can be fully de-commissioned with nothing left on seabed, and has negligible impact to marine mammals during Installation
UMACK anchor gets green light for fullscale build-out and ocean demo
As grid connections for offshore marine energy are not catered for by society through Tr a n s m i s s i o n S y s t e m O p e r a t o r ( T S O ) investments – as with offshore wind, the additionally required infrastructure investments to connect marine technologies are an important cost challenge as well for investors in these technologies, DNV has pointed out. Yet, if co-location of marine technologies within offshore wind areas is proven possible and cable pooling is permitted, salinity gradient energy, tidal range and current energy, and wave energy can improve their economic and technical feasibility and start to contribute to the national energy mix between 2030 and 2050, DNV predicts. Therefore, it is important that marine energy technologies are not overlooked by developers, policy makers and parties in search of synergies between options that can help to meet sustainability targets and improve coastal protection. “To achieve the Netherlands’ bold climate goals, all available resources must be evaluated and utilized. In ‘Nederland Waterland’ marine energy may contribute as both bulk generation and balancing of the grid from a societal perspective and help to optimize portfolio revenues for wind farm owners”, the paper reads. T h e r e f o r e , t h e ro l e o f m a r i n e e n e r g y technologies should be clearly dened and integrated within the national renewable policy, considering their potential contribution the need for multifunctional use of space and infrastructure as stressed in the Draft North Sea Programme 2022-2027, the certication group suggests.
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Matt Dickson, UMACK project manager, said: “The tests were designed to ensure the anchor could be installed and decommissioned in sandy conditions, on land, as close to the deployment site as possible. “The test programme has allowed us to verify the anchor’s holding capacity in as close to ‘reallife’ conditions as possible before ocean deployment of the full-scale anchor, not far from this eld trial site. “Importantly we have also been able to successfully align and back up the results previously observed at UoD and IWES and prove that the Vibrohammer install methodology is working successfully”. CorPower’s Portugal country manager Miguel Silva said the HiWave-5 ocean deployment project is now gathering pace, with teams being mobilised on the ground in northern Portugal.
A new mooring, anchoring and quick connect solution optimised for marine energy systems, developed as part of the UMACK project, has been validated in onland trials ahead of ocean demonstration.
“The initial anchor lay is pivotal, providing a solid foundation for our wave energy converter to operate in extreme Atlantic conditions. The UMACK system provides us with a series of unique benets, including quick-connection The UMACK (Universal Mooring, Anchor and full-surface operation, removing the need & Connectivity Kit) project has developed a for dive support. unique mooring and anchoring solution in a bid to supersede traditional ‘gravity- “This not only streamlines marine operations based’ and tubular monopile anchors – for the installation process but also the retrieval reducing CAPEX, installation and O&M of our wave energy converters for maintenance, (Operational & Maintenance) costs by helping maximise operational windows”, said Silva. more than 50%, according to developers. After undergoing rigorous eld trials in northern Portugal, the novel technology is now rapidly advancing through full-scale production ahead of ocean deployment. The UMACK system will be integrated with wave energy developer, CorPower Ocean’s rst commercial-scale wave energy converter, as a key part of the overall HiWave-5 ocean demonstration project.
The UMACK project is led by a European consortium including geotechnical specialist Ter nan Energy, wave and tidal energy developers CorPower Ocean and Sustainable Marine, mooring experts TTI Marine Renewables, the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) and marine renewable energy modelling experts from the University of Edinburgh.
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OFFSHORE NEWS
Floating Offshore Wind Developers Eye Growth Opportunities in Italy
Floating offshore wind startup Hexicon has started a joint venture with renewable power company Avapa Energy to bring Hexicon's twinturbine oating foundations to Italian waters. Italy stands to benet from EU Green Deal project funding, Hexicon said, making it a natural market for offshore wind development. As Italy begins a program of regulatory change to enable offshore wind farm installation, Avapa and Hexicon will look for suitable sites and prepare for permitting opportunities. "An important part of our business model is to enter new and promising markets as early as possible and to establish both our project development skills and technology together with local partners," said Marcus Thor, the CEO of Hexicon. "We have found a perfect partner in Avapa Energy, and with AvenHexicon we are looking forward to support Italy in its expansion of fossil-free electricity production." Floating offshore wind will be an important component of a future zero-carbon energy mix, as the majority of the world's offshore wind resources are located in waters too deep for bottom-xed foundations. Floating towers come with their own challenges, including periodic mooring maintenance, and their initial cost is higher than the expense for bottom-xed projects. Hexicon's approach to oating offshore wind is a bit different. The platform is centered on a single-point mooring, allowing the structure to rotate to face the wind. It has two outwardleaning towers, doubling the turbine count per mooring location. The company says that this helps save cost on installation by reducing the amount of steel per MW of capacity, reducing the number of inter-array cable lay runs, and reducing the number of platform tows and installations. The platforms and their canted towers are unique, but they use standard commercial turbines. At present, Italy has no operational offshore wind farms; construction on its very rst facility, the Taranto project, began in September. However, there is considerable market interest:
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In November, Italy’s Ministry of Ecological Transition said that it had received 64 expressions of interest in building oating offshore wind farms off the coast. The interested parties include big industry names, like Copenhagen Offshore Partners, Eni, Fincantieri, Fred. Olsen, RWE, Principle Power, Saipem, Falck Renewables and Vestas, among others. Some of these expressions are already advancing. In December, Falck announced that it would partner with BlueFloat Energy on a proposal to install 90 oating turbines off the coast of Lecce, Italy. Compared to many oating proposals, he project would be relatively close in, with turbines located a minimum of seven nm offshore.
China Commissions Offshore Wind Power Giving It L argest Installed Base
“At present, wind farms are mainly located in the northwestern part of China, while eastern provinces have the largest electricity consumption,” explained the China Institute for Studies in Energy Policy that is part of Xiamen University. The development of offshore wind farms is seen as a critical step for the eastern regions which have limited land resources to establish wind farms. Construction was completed on a 300 MW offshore wind farm in the South China Sea. It is China’s deepest offshore wind farm located in an area of challenging sea conditions with complex topography and geological conditions. The builders had to address typhoons, thunderstorms, and swells. The rst of the turbines in the area was connected to the power grid in January and has generated 180 million kWh of electricity. Once fully in use, the project near Nanpeng Island in Guangdong province is expected to produce 800 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. The oating offshore wind turbine installed at Guangdong and developed in China is designed to resist a Grade 17 typhoon, which would be a superstorm once every 50 years. The turbine has a capacity of 5.5 MW.
China is moving quickly with its efforts to expand power generation from offshore wind farms. In the past week alone, the country reported the commissioning of three new projects, including China’s largest offshore wind farm with the largest turbines, the rst oating offshore wind farm that is typhoon-resistant, and expansion of projects in eastern China. China’s National Statics Administration recently announced that the country had reached 11.2 GW of installed offshore wind generation capacity. That would be up from 7.9 GW at the end of the rst half of 2021 and would give China the largest operational base of offshore wind farms. The U.K. had been the global leader at the end of 2020 with 10.2 GW of generation capacity from offshore wind farms. The new wind farms are helping China to overcome some of the challenges that have been seen to limit the development of offshore wind farms. The new farms include oating technology and turbines capable of withstanding the high winds and waves associated with a typhoon.
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China’s largest offshore wind farm in terms of single-unit capacity was also connected to the power grid on December 25. In Jiangsu province near the city of Qidong in eastern China, the farm has seven different models of wind turbines for a total of 134 installed. The rst turbine was erected in February with the last completed in early December. It is part of an overall project located about 18 to 25 miles offshore in the Yellow Sea which will have a total capacity of 802 MW. The rst phase of the Guodian Xiangshan 1 Offshore Wind Farm project in East China's Zhejiang Province became fully operational on December 23. It has 41 6.2-megawatt wind turbines connected to a 220-kilovolt offshore booster station. It is the second offshore wind power project developed by GD Power Development Co. giving the company a total of 506,200 kilowatts of installed offshore wind power capacity put into operation in the province. The Xiangshan 1 wind power project, the rst offshore wind power project in Ningbo, started on December 25, 2020. The wind power projects are part of the country’s effort to reduce its dependence on coal-red power plants. China’s goal is for carbon dioxide emissions to peak by 2030. The country declared it will be carbon neutral by 2060.
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OFFSHORE NEWS
Taylor Energy Liquidates All Assets to Settle Suit Over Giant Spill The U.S. Department of Justice announced a proposed resolution to lawsuits related to the country’s longest-running oil spill, which began in 2004 and continues to leak oil to this day. The United States led a civil complaint against Taylor Energy in the U.S. District Court in New Orleans in 2020 seeking removal costs, civil penalties, and natural resource damages under the Oil Pollution and Clean Water Acts arising from the discharge of oil from the company’s former oil production facility offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. The proposed settlement would resolve that case as well as several brought by Taylor Energy. Under the proposed consent decree, Taylor Energy will transfer to the Department of the Interior (DOI) a $432 million trust fund dedicated to plugging the subsea oil wells, permanently decommissioning the facility, and remediating contaminated soil. The consent decree further requires Taylor Energy to pay over $43 million for civil penalties, removal costs, and natural resource damages (NRD). The State of Louisiana is a co-trustee for natural resources impacted by the spill and the NRD money is a joint recovery by the federal and state trustees. “Offshore operators cannot allow oil to spill into our nation’s waters,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “If an oil spill occurs, the responsible party must cooperate with the government to timely address the problem and pay for the cleanup. Holding offshore operators to account is vital to protecting our environment and ensuring a level industry playing eld.”
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The spill began in 2004, when a Taylor Energy production platform located in the Gulf of Mexico about 10 miles off the coast of Louisiana collapsed during Hurricane Ivan, resulting in an ongoing oil discharge that continues to this day. Since April 2019, the vast majority of the leaking oil has been successfully captured by a containment system installed and operated by the U.S. Coast Guard through a contractor.
Oil sheen coming from the former Taylor site in the Gulf of Mexico “For the last three years, the Coast Guard, along with our federal partners, have committed to the challenging mission of containing and removing more than 800,000 gallons of oil discharging into the Gulf of Mexico,” said Captain Will Watson, Sector Commander of the Coast Guard New Orleans. “This settlement will provide signicant nancial resources for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Coast Guard to permanently secure the wells.”
Under the settlement, Taylor Energy will pay over $43 million — all the company’s available remaining assets — allocated as follows: $15 million as a civil penalty, $16.5 million for NRD, and over $12 million for Coast Guard removal costs. Taylor Energy also will transfer to DOI’s Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) $432 million currently held in a trust for decommissioning the Mississippi Canyon (MC)-20 site, and the company will be barred from interfering in any way with the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement’s (BSEE’s) decommissioning work. The settlement also requires the company to dismiss three lawsuits it led against the United States. Between 2016 and 2020, Taylor Energy led several lawsuits against the United States, including challenging the Coast Guard’s decision to install a spill containment system and appealing the Coast Guard’s denial of Taylor Energy’s $353 million spill-cost reimbursement claim submitted to the U.S. Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The settlement resolves the United States’ environmental enforcement claims against Taylor Energy and requires the company to drop its remaining lawsuits against the United States. In addition, Taylor Energy may not interfere with the Coast Guard’s oil containment and removal actions. Taylor Energy will turn over to DOI and the Coast Guard all documents relating to the site to assist in the decommissioning and response efforts. When Taylor Energy liquidates after court approval of the settlement, it will make a nal payment to the United States of the value of its remaining assets.
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OFFSHORE NEWS
Rystad: 2021 May be Worst Year Since 1946 for Oil & Gas Discoveries
Thailand's PTTEP and Malaysia's Petronas discovered a promising gas reservoir in shallow water off Baram Province, Malaysia; and Norway continues to yield a steady ow of smaller offshore nds with tieback development potential. Rystad chalked up the low overall results to an absence of big discoveries. Large individual nds typically make up an outsize portion of the annual total. Worldwide, just 900 giant oil and gas elds account for 40 percent of all petroleum ever discovered, and each new giant adds 500 million boe or more to the annual total. According to Rystad, the global oil and gas industry reacted to the pandemic-induced price crash of 2020 by cutting upstream spending by more than a quarter. That translated to an investment reduction of $145 billion in 2020 and a projected reduction of $140 billion in 2021, and the rm predicts that upstream investments will remain well below previous levels for years to come. For 2022, a healthy share of producers' capex budget increases may simply go to covering the effects of ination, not drilling extra wells, according to S&P.
Reecting reduced investment in E&P in the COVID-19 era, the global energy industry is on track to record its worst year for new oil and gas discoveries since 1946, according to the analysts at Rystad Energy. “Although some of the highly ranked prospects are scheduled to be drilled before the end of the year, even a substantial discovery may not be able to contribute towards 2021 discovered volumes as these wells may not be completed in this calendar year. Therefore, the cumulative discovered volume for 2021 is on course to be its lowest in decades,” says Palzor Shenga, vice president of upstream research at Rystad Energy. No big discoveries have been announced yet in December, and over the course of the year through November, only 4.7 billion boe worth of newly discovered volumes have been reported worldwide. This puts the industry on track to report less than half of last year's total, when despite the pandemic and a sharp drop in oil prices - oil and gas rms announced 12.5 billion boe worth of new discoveries. The monthly average for the year has been low, at about 425 million boe. November was particularly quiet, with just 220 million boe announced, and December has been nearly silent so far. Offshore nds have been the largest source in recent months: Lukoil discovered 75 million boe of oil and gas off Mexico;
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Columbia
" said Mark O'Neil, Group CEO and President of Columbia Shipmanagement. "We have demonstrated our long-term commitment to the Kingdom, our total belief and support for Vision 2030, and the top quality of our vessel management services to our valued partner Saudi Aramco." CSM Saudi Arabia is setting up a performance control room in Al Khobar dedicated to monitoring the offshore vessels that serve Saudi Aramco and other clients in the region, and it is implementing a management model featuring "smart" sensors to optimize vessel performance. According to George Vassiliades, the managing director of CSM Gulf Region, the Al Khobar facility will be the largest control room of its kind in the world. “The frontrunners have led the way, which is commendable, and the door is open to all. We are totally condent that we have a vessel management model which can be tailored to every operator within the Kingdom and the Gulf Region," said Vassiliades.
Shipmanagement Expands in Saudi Offshore Sector Spain approves
offshore wind and marine energy roadmap
Columbia Shipmanagement (CSM) has made a major expansion into the Saudi offshore oil and gas market, securing service commitments with six separate Saudi Arabian offshore vessel owners. Its CSM Saudi Arabia division has reached business agreements with Saudi operators Hadi Hamad Al-Hammam, ATCO, BGMS, BAAS, High Seas and Naghi Marine for services covering over 100 offshore assets. “We are proud that CSM Saudi Arabia is an Arab company, run by, and with, our Arab colleagues, for our Arab partners and international clients and wholly committed to the region long-term,
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
Spain’s Council of Ministers, at the proposal of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, has approved the Roadmap for the Development of Offshore Wind and Marine Energy.
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OFFSHORE NEWS The Roadmap contains 20 lines of action with the aim of reaching between 1 GW and 3 GW of oating offshore wind power capacity by 2030 – up to 40 per cent of the EU target – and up to 60 MW of other pre-commercial marine energies such as waves or tidal energy. Spain will also spend at least 200 million by 2023 on the advancement and development of offshore renewable energy technologies as the country tries to position itself as the leader in the eld of research and development. Spain is the European state with the most R&D facilities for oating wind and other marine energies, such as the Canary Islands Oceanic Platform (PLOCAN) and the Vizcaya Marine Energy Platform (BiMEP) or the Punta Langosteira Experimental Marine Energy Exploitation Zone (A Coruña), the second testbed in the world for wave energy, the government said.
The Dunas, Mojo, Cardon, and Guanche wind farms are independent projects, each expected to have 50 MW of capacity, located offshore the Gran Canarian SouthEast coast. The fth project, the 50 MW Goo, is described as the most advanced one and potentially the country’s rst operating oating wind farm.
Dutch issue offshore wind tender teaser
The port infrastructure will also be evaluated under the Roadmap, and between 500 million and 1 billion is expected to be invested to cover the new logistics needs. In addition to the 200 million for R&D, there are numerous funding programmes, both European and national which will facilitate the implementation of the Roadmap, the government said. Among the latter, the instruments managed by the Center for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI) and the Institute for the Diversication and Saving of Energy (IDAE) stand out, and others may be incorporated, such as the issuance of green bonds. The Roadmap takes advantage of the Sectoral Agenda of the Wind Industry, which is part of the Industrial Policy Strategy of Spain 2030 and is included in Component 7 of the PRTR, dedicated to the deployment and integration of renewable energies. There are currently seven oating wind projects in different stages of development offshore Spain, the government said. Most notably, Spain’s energy giant Iberdrola is planning to invest over 1 billion to develop a 300 MW oating wind farm. The project is expected to spearhead the development of up to 2,000 MW of oating offshore wind projects identied by Iberdrola off the coasts of Galicia, Andalusia, and the Canary Islands. The Madrid-based BlueFloat Energy is developing a 1 GW oating wind farm near the Gulf of Roses in Catalonia. The wind farm could be operational as early as 2026, the developer said.
The Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) plans to issue a tender covering expert support on soil investigations and expert support on wind and water investigations at the new offshore wind zones in the Dutch North Sea.
RVO plans to start site characterization within designated new areas for the preparation of offshore wind development. The state agency plans to issue an invitation to tendering in accordance with the European open procedure in February 2022. The tender will be divided into two lots. Lot 1 includes expert support on geological desk studies, geophysical investigations, geotechnical investigations, morphodynamical investigations, and ground modelling. Lot 2 includes expert support on wind resource assessments, metocean conditions and modelling, and possibly offshore client representatives during metocean campaign(s). In November, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management issued the Additional Draft North Sea Programme 2022 – 2027 which increases the country’s offshore wind target from the current 11.5 GW to 22.2 GW of operating offshore wind capacity by 2030.
According to the Additional Draft, the new offshore wind capacity would be developed within the newly designated, as well as the existing zones. The newly designated zones 1,2, and 5 East would accommodate 8 GW of offshore wind capacity, the IJmuiden Ver North 2 GW, and the remaining 700 MW zone was identied within the southern part of Hollandse Kust (west) area.
Greenalia is also planning on building up to ve oating wind farms off Gran Canaria.
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OFFSHORE NEWS
Prysmian secures $880 million in offshore wind contracts in USA Prysmian Group has secured two offshore wind cabling projects in the US for a total of approximately $880 million. Both projects have been awarded by Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Avangrid Renewables and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP). The rst cabling project will connect the 804 MW Park City offshore wind farm to the electricity grid in the state of Connecticut. Prysmian will deploy HVAC 275 kV three-core cables with XLPE insulation and single wire armouring. Cables will be produced in the Group’s centres of excellence Arco Felice, Italy, and Pikkala, Finland, and will be installed by the Leonardo da Vinci and Ulisse vessels. Delivery and commissioning are scheduled for 2026. The value of this contract is around $300 million. The Commonwealth Wind cabling project is worth around $580 million. Prysmian’s award follows the Massachusetts Baker-Polito administration selection of the Vineyard Wind’s proposal for delivering 1,200 MW of offshore wind farm capacity. Prysmian will design, supply, install, and commission as many as three export submarine power cable links to connect the Commonwealth Wind to the electricity grid in Massachusetts. Prysmian will supply HVAC 275 kV three-core cables with XLPE insulation and single-wire armouring.
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Cable Manufacturing Plant at Brayton Point As part of the Commonwealth Wind project agreement and subject to several customary conditions precedent, such as obtaining permits to build the facilities and closing the contractual arrangements with the property owner, Prysmian intends to build a manufacturing facility for submarine transmission cables at Brayton Point, the site of the former 1,600 MW coal-red power plant in Somerset.
”While we still have work to do to nalise the agreement, it is clear that, with the support of the state of Massachusetts and others, we are in a great position to reach a nal agreement that will prompt a major expansion of our Company.” Prysmian has previously won contracts to provide cable systems for the 804 Vineyard Wind 1 project and the 2.6 GW Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project.
Both cable supply awards are subject to the nalization of Prysmian Group plans to localize its footprint. The submarine cables for Commonwealth Wind are planned to be produced in the new plant in Massachusetts, as well as in Arco Felice and Pikkala. Cables will be installed by the Leonardo da Vinci and Ulisse vessels. Delivery and commissioning of the export cables are scheduled for 2027. ”The renewed partnership with Avangrid conrms the validity of Prysmian’s growth ambition in the fast-developing offshore wind farm industry in the US. Prysmian is also excited to announce signicant progress towards its rst submarine power cables manufacturing facility in the US,” said Hakan Ozmen, Executive VP at Prysmian Group.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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SHIPBUILDING NEWS
Gibson: One Quarter of Tankers on Order Will Use LNG Fuel
As another sign of the shipping industry’s growing adoption of LNG and dual-fuel vessels, as the rst dual-fuel VLCC prepares for its m a i d e n v o y a g e , t a n ke r o p e r a t o r s a r e increasingly ordering dual-fuel power plants for their new builds. Shipbroker Gibson in its latest weekly tanker market report calls LNG “The Shape of Things to Come,” based on the growth of orders. “While LNG has long been the fuel of the future,” Gibson reports that its analysis shows that fully a quarter of the tanker new builds are adopting LNG for propulsion. Gibson’s alternative fuel ship database counts over 530 vessels ranging from tugs to bulkers on order with LNG and alternative fuel powerplants. They report that nearly ve percent of the orders are specically for VLCCs following on from the rst it’s this kind entering service for COSCO Shipping Energy Transport Co. “Overall, the current LNG-fueled tanker newbuildings stands at 23 percent of the current total tanker orderbook,” reports Gibson. “So, it would seem that there is still some way to go before LNG fueled tankers become the dominant vessel type, but as a bunker fuel it is certainly being taken seriously.”
There are also around 40 LNG-ready tankers under construction, “meaning as and when the market, charterer or owner decide to make the vessel fully LNG capable, the vessel can have the required machinery and equipment tted,” says Gibson. After completing structural construction, the rst VLCC fueled with LNG went on sea trials in September 2021. Built at the Dalian Shipyard the 1,091-foot long vessel has a capacity of 318,000 tons while adopting numerous technical advancements to improve operating efciency. It uses LNG as its primary fuel supplemented by fuel oil. It adopts a WINGD low-pressure dual-fuel main engine along with dual-fuel generators and boilers and a single-pipe design which the shipyard says improves safety and exibility for the operations. The ship uses C-tanks, which have been common in other LNG vessels, and can operate 12,000 nm on LNG or 24,000 in dual-fuel mode. Daily gas consumption is around 60 tons. COSCO ordered its rst LNG VLCC in 2017 and that was followed by agreements in 2020 by Total to charter two LNGpowered VLCCs. The French company expects its vessel to also enter service in 2022.
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According to preliminary statistics, in terms of deadweight tonnage, CSSC reports that as of this point, it has again achieved the world's leading position in terms of shipbuilding completions, accepted orders, and size of its orderbook in 2021. CSSC noted that it has consistently ranked as the world's largest shipbuilding group. The shipbuilder noted through its various subsidiaries that it has delivered a broad range of vessels in 2021. This included 10 ultra-large containerships, two large FSRUs, large gas carriers, numerous bulkers, as well as specialized vessels.
The VLCCs follow the trends of an increasing number of orders for large, ocean-going vessels employing alternative fuels including LNG. DNV estimated that 12 percent of the global orderbook is for LNG-fueled vessels.
CSSC Meets 2021 Delivery Goal and Maintains Industry Leadership
Gibson's review of the current tanker orderbook
China’s technologically advanced rst dualfuel-VLCC will join several Aframax tankers that are dual-fuel tankers. According to the shipbroker’s analysis, there are two LNG-fueled Suezmax tankers on order and 41 Aframax/LR2s.
During 2021, China State Shipbuilding (CSSC) reports it delivered a total of 194 vessels of all sizes for the international and domestic markets. In total, that represents over 16 million dwt. The number of vessels is largely comparable to 2020 when they delivered 198 vessels for the full year. Tonnage, however, at this point is behind 2020 when they delivered over 17 million dwt for the year. There was no indication of how many additional vessels are scheduled to be delivered in the last month of 2021 or what the full year is likely to reach.
China State Shipbuilding Corporation reported with the delivery of two new ships on December 1, it has fullled its annual delivery target for 2021 a month ahead of schedule. The company has reafrmed its position as the world’s largest shipbuilder while China also reports strong growth in its orderbook to maintain the current momentum in future years.
TORM Helene delivered this week helped CSSC to meet its 2021 target for completions (TORM)
The most recent deliveries included a large product tanker, TORM Helene, for TORM Shipping in Denmark as well as the world’s rst hybrid car carrier for UECC that is tted with dual-fuel LNG engines and a large battery system to provide power in ports. CSSC, like its competitors in South Korea, also continues to be focusing on new, high-value vessels that employ market-leading technologies. Among the vessels that they are proud to highlight is the construction of the country’s rst, large domestic cruise ship being built with advice from Fincantieri for a joint venture with Carnival Corporation. Structural work was completed this fall on the cruise ship, which is expected to oat out before the end of this year. CSSC continues to also lead new orders benetting from the increased investment in new vessels from the world’s shipowners. During the rst 10 months of 2021, China’s overall shipbuilding industry reported that orders grew more than 210 percent versus 2020. The total orderbook now stands at over 98 million tons, which Chinese ofcials said represents more than half the total for new orders worldwide.
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SHIPBUILDING NEWS
China Wins NumberOne Rank in Annual Shipbuilding Orders for 2021
"We will strengthen the power of our shipbuilding industry and make it the overwhelming number one in the world that no one can match," South Korean President Moon Jae-in said in a speech announcing the plan. South Korea and China have battled over the number-one order volume ranking for years. Korean yards won the title away from China in 2018 and have held it for the past three years.
VT Halter Wins Contract for Second USCG Polar Security Cutter China has taken the number-one spot in shipbuilding, overtaking South Korea for annual order volume by compensated gross tons (CGT), according to data released Sunday by Clarksons. Over the span of the year, China's shipbuilders raked in orders totaling about 22.8 million CGT, almost exactly 50 percent of the global total of 45.7 million. South Korean builders took in orders totaling 17.5 million CGT, or about 38 percent. China dominated in sales of new container ships, a segment which has taken off thanks to a surge in consumer goods cargo. In South Korea, the Big Three shipbuilders have emphasized sales of high-margin, high-value LNG carriers, which have better protability. Korean shipyards dominate the LNG carrier segment, bringing in 37 orders of the type, including 16 for a megaorder for Qatar Energy and another 15 for Petronas. According to KBS World, Korean order volumes were lower in 2021 because South Korean shipbuilders were more selective, preferring high-value-added projects over total volume. All three of the Big Three exceeded their dollarvalue sales targets for the year in 2021, bringing in a combined $46 billion in orders - far above the combined goal of $32 billion. In Korea, ordering activity is expected to be lower in the year ahead. As an example, top Korean shipbuilder KSOE has set a sales target of $17.4 billion for 2022 - about $5.4 billion less than its actual sales performance in 2021. In the long term, the Korean government envisions a future in which Korean yards dominate the green-shipping and autonomousvessel markets of the next decade, just as they have long dominated LNG carrier construction. In September, the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced a plan for the nation's shipbuilders to win 75 percent of all eco-friendly vesse orders and 50 percent of all autonomous vessel orders by 2030.
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The U.S. Department of Defense conrmed the awarding of a $553 million contract to VT Halter Marine of Pascagoula, Mississippi, for the detail design and construction of the second Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (PSC) for the U.S. Coast Guard. It represents the exercising of an option in the original contract awarded to Halter in April 2019 for the rst of the new vessels designed to replace and expand the Coast Guard’s current aging heavy icebreaker eet. The PSC program is a multiple year Department of Homeland Security Level 1 investment and a USCG major system initiative to acquire up to three multimission PSCs to recapitalize the USCG’s eet of Polar Security Cutters. The program has been considered a high priority by both the U.S. Coast Guard and the Trump Administration which called for an expansion of the program. When the contract was rst awarded in 2019, Admiral Karl L. Schultz, Commandant of the Coast Guard, said, “This contract award marks an important step towards building the nation's full complement of six polar icebreakers to meet the unique mission demands that have emerged from increased commerce, tourism, research, and international activities in the Arctic and Antarctic.”
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
The sophisticated vessels are designed to ll a current, denitive need for the Coast Guard statutory mission, of polar icebreaking, and meet other mission needs in the higher latitudes vital to the economic vitality, scientic inquiry, and national interests of the United States. These vessels are 460 feet in length with a beam of 88 feet overall, a full load displacement of approximately 22,900 long tons. The propulsion will be diesel-electric at over 45,200 horsepower and readily capable of continuously breaking ice between six to eight feet thick. The vessel will accommodate 186 personnel for an extended endurance of 90 days. The initial award in 2019 was valued at approximately $750 million, to cover engineering, detail design, procurement of long lead-time materials, and construction of the rst ship. At the time they said, construction would begin in 2021 with and delivery set for 2024, but the contract also contained incentives for Halter to complete the vessel more quickly. The project, however, has encountered delays in part due to COVID-19 with design work reportedly continuing into 2021. After at one point speaking of an aggressive target to have the vessel by late 2023, the U.S. Coast Guard later said it was still committed to the summer 2024 timeline. However, they recently conrmed that the rst vessel is now scheduled for delivery in 2025. In the interim, VT Halter Marine has also completed a major upgrade project to its launch way in preparation for building the rst vessel. “By building the second Polar Security Cutter, Halter Marine will continue its mission in delivering a national priority to the United States Coast Guard,” said Bob Merchent, President and Chief Executive Ofcer of Halter Marine commenting on the announcement that the DoD had ofcially exercised the option. “Our talented workforce here at Halter Marine is proud to be part of such an important endeavor.” The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the ofcial contractor awarding Halter Marine the prime contractor a xed-price incentive-rm contract valued at $552,654,757 for a second PSC. In announcing the contract, DoD said is expected to be completed by September 2026. Halter said initial efforts under this option will target the purchase of long lead-time materials, specically the generator sets, necessary to support production while ensuring commonality across the rst two PSCs. Halter Marine is teamed with Technology Associates, as the ship designer.
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SHIPBUILDING NEWS Fincantieri also undertook sea trials as it moves toward the delivery of another new cruise ship to Carnival Corporation’s Princess Cruises.
ABB and Trident Marine have been selected for the Azipod propulsion and power distribution system, Raytheon for the command and control systems integration, Caterpillar for the main engines, Jamestown Metal Marine for joiner package, and Bronswerk for the HVAC system. The USCG currently operates two large, heavy icebreakers. The Polar Star, commissioned in 1976 has already undergone signicant overhauls with the recent being a life extension designed to keep it in service till 2025 when it would be replaced by the rst new vessel. The second active icebreaker is the Coast Guard Cutter Healy, commissioned in 2000. She was out of commission for the second half of 2020 after a re destroyed one of her motors resulting in a massive overhaul to replace the damaged motor.
Kenya Opens New Shipyard Facility in Mombasa
Kenya is looking to tap into the lucrative shipbuilding and repair business af ter commissioning of the new Kenya Shipyards Limited facility in the port city of Mombasa. The East Africa nation says that the new yard will have the capacity to handle vessels of more than 4,000 tonnes and 150 meters in length. It is a strategic infrastructure asset, enabling the country tap into the multi-billiond-dollar global shipbuilding and repair market.
The country has already trained teams of specialized workers in shiptting and welding to meet the yard's labor needs. “The direct, indirect and induced impacts of the Mombasa Shipyard will create many jobs, generate diverse investment opportunities and raise revenue for the country,” said President Uhuru. The Kenya Defence Force (KDF) has been involved in developing the facility for the past two years, and it stands to benet from access to a local maintenance hub for Kenya's navy and coast guard. The facility is expected to save the country substantially in terms of the foreign exchange that goes into maintaining its ships in foreign shipyards. The new yard is one component of Kenya's plan to boost its status as a regional maritime hub. It follows the operationalization of Lamu port in May. The new port's rst three berths were constructed at a cost of $367 million. The Kisumu Port on Lake Victoria has also been refurbished at a cost of $30 million. However, plans to revive the defunct Kenya National Shipping Line remain in limbo over concerns that the line cannot compete on a global scale.
AIDA and Viking Take Delivery of New Cruise Ships
“The key sub-sectors of the blue economy, which include maritime transport and logistics, sheries, as well as ship-building and repair, represent low hanging fruits that must be exploited,” said President Uhuru Kenyatta at the facility's commissioning. The new KSL Mombasa Shipyard facility has the country's longest slipway for construction, repair, retting and maintenance. It also has two ship-building hangers, one 150 meters long and 30 meters high and a smaller one 120 meters long, 20 meters high and 13 meters wide. The shipyard has four main workshops - an electronic repair workshop, a marine and general engineering workshop, a tting and carpentry workshop and a hull and superstructure repair workshop.
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Construction is continuing on pace for new cruise ships as the industry works to recover and manage operations in the face of the ongoing pandemic. Having maintained the orderbooks, the major shipbuilders are proceeding with the delivery of new vessels to the cruise lines, including new ships this week for both Carnival Corporation’s German cruise brand AIDA and the rst expedition cruise ship for Viking Cruises.
Fincantieri’s VARD shipyard in Søviknes, Norway, hosted the delivery ceremony for Viking’s newest cruise ship, the rst of two being built for the company’s entry into expedition cruising. Founded in 1997 operating river cruises, Viking expanded to ocean cruising in 2015 and will launch its expeditions in 2022 followed by Mississippi River cruising in August 2022. The Viking Octantis is a 30,150 gross ton vessel built by Vard specically designed to operate in the expedition market. She will debut in Antarctica in January 2022 and in the spring and summer of 2022 will become the rst large, modern cruise ship to be sailing on the Great Lakes. A second, identical sister ship, Viking Polaris, joins the eet in August 2022 for journeys to the Arctic and Antarctica. “Today is a proud day for the entire Viking family as we welcome our rst expedition ship to the eet and usher in a new era of exploration. Our guests have asked us to build on our award-winning river and ocean voyages to take them further, and that is just what we have done,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking. “Leveraging our long history of destination-focused travel, enrichment, and innovative ship design, we are now perfecting expedition voyages and offering curious travelers the opportunity to visit the world's most pristine destinations in the most responsible way possible.” The new Polar Class Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris each accommodate 378 passengers in 189 staterooms. An integrated bow creates a longer waterline for the ships and U-tank stabilizers signicantly decrease rolling by up to 50 percent when the ships are stationary along with n stabilizers. The ships also are tted with engines with heat recovery systems and Azipod Electric Propulsion for quiet ship propulsion, minimizing underwater noise pollution. For the expedition market, the hulls are icestrengthened and the ships have special features including an enclosed, in-ship marina to embark and disembark excursion craft, onboard laboratory, and expedition equipment including a eet of military pro zodiacs designed for professional use, a eet of twoseater Arctic-tested kayaks, two 12-seater convertible Special Operations Boats and two six-guest submarines.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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SHIPBUILDING NEWS On December 21, 2021, AIDA Cruises also took delivery of its newest cruise ship the AIDAcosma in Bremerhaven from the Meyer shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. It is the company's second newbuilding powered by liqueed natural gas. AIDA will introduce the ship rst sailing from Hamburg beginning in February followed by cruises in the Mediterranean till the fall and then reposition the cruise ship to Dubai. The AIDAcosma marked the fourth cruise ship Meyer Werft in Germany has completed since the beginning on the pandemic. She was also the second cruise ship Meyer delivered between Papenburg and Turku, Finland to Carnival Corporation in less than three weeks. Meyer noted that its orderbook includes eight cruise ships for international customers until 2025, with the delivery of two more large ships, the Disney Wish for Disney Cruise Line and the Arvia for P&O Cruises, scheduled for 2022.
RUSSIA
Russia's Northern Sea Route Posts Record Year for Trafc Volume
Despite an early freeze-up that briey trapped multiple merchant vessels, Russia's Northern Sea Route posted its busiest navigation season ever in 2021. Discovery Princess recently underwent her rst sea trials (Princess Cruises)
In Italy, Fincantieri also recently completed sea trials for the Discovery Princess. The cruise ship sailed from the construction dock in Monfalcone and was put through a series of paces to test the steering, navigation equipment, and propulsion. After a successful ve days of trials, the Discovery Princess is now back in the shipyard for further exterior and interior nishing to prepare for her maiden, a seven-day cruise to Mexico sailing from the Port of Los Angeles on March 27, 2022. The 3,660 passenger Discovery Princess is the sixth and nal Royal-Class newbuild completed by Fincantieri for Princess Cruises. The same platform was also adapted for one cruise for Britain’s P&O Cruises. Despite the pandemic’s impact on the cruise industry, more than 70 cruise ships remain on order with deliveries scheduled till 2027. The new ships will add more than 150,000 berths to the industry. Orders for new cruise ships, however, largely came to an end with the pandemic with only a few ships ordered in the past two years.
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Russia's ambitious goal is to achieve total yearly trafc of 80 million tonnes by 2024 and 110 million tonnes by 2030. A warming Arctic is opening up new economic opportunities for the region, as the extent of average ice cover retreats and the average ice thickness declines. However, the high latitudes still hold unique risks for shipping, as shown by the sudden iceup along the NSR in late November. Multiple ships became stuck in earlier-than-expected ice along the route, prompting Atomot to dispatch several icebreakers to conduct a record-setting escort operation.
SRI LANKA
Debris Removal from X-Press Pearl Begins as Salvage is Contracted
Total trafc reached 33.5 million tonnes as of mid-December, compared to 33.0 million tonnes in all of 2020. The gure for the full year is expected to exceed 34 million tonnes - an increase of 350 percent over the past ve years. This is one of the many signs of economic growth in Russia's Arctic, particularly in the oil and gas industry. Liqueed natural gas and oil tankers make up the majority of total trafc on the route. The rst phase of the salvage efforts has begun at the wreck site of the containership X-Press Transit trafc (passing through the region) Pearl that sunk off Colombo, Sri, Lanka in June came to more than two million tonnes by 2021. This comes as the vessel’s owners mid-December, compared to 1.3 million reported that they have also contracted for the tonnes in 2020. This marks the third year removal of the hulk that remains partially in a row of through-trafc growth on the exposed while sitting in the bottom outside the NSR, which has seen its popularity as a harbor and compensation discussions are through route increase by more than 300 ongoing. percent since 2018. “In 2021, 79 of the 92 vessels that transited the NSR were non-Russian, demonstrating how international partners are increasingly viewing the NSR as a viable transport corridor," said Maxim Kulinko, the deputy director of Rosatom's Northern Sea Route Directorate. "As we expand seaport capacity along the route, we expect this growth trajectory to continue for many years to come."
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
Removal of the debris and the wreck was delayed during the monsoon season, but has now commenced with the government anxious for the cleanup to proceed. During the summer additional side scan sonar surveys were undertaken in the area around the wreck to identify the containers and other debris lost from the vessel during the reght and subsequent effort to tow it to deep water. Resolve Marine, which was appointed as caretakers of the sight, started the rst phase which is removal of debris from the ocean oor and around the wreck.
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS The efforts began in November, and images show large bins full of brunt and twisted metal debris being loaded onto the offshore vessel for disposal. X-Press Feeders contracted Shanghai Salvage Company for the removal of the wreck. They reported that a salvage team has already begin to mobilize but did not release a timeline for the operations to begin. During the operation, they plan to maintain a 24-hour watch for debris or pollution and will take regular water sampling.
They are working to develop new shing ports in the eastern part of the country and in the meantime provided cash compensation to the shing industry. The government also assured the shermen that it would take steps to prevent trawlers from India entering the new shing areas in the country’s territorial waters. The ship’s owners are still working with the Sri Lankan authorities to repatriate eight crew members that remain in Colombo. The company said it was eager to get them home. In June 2021, the government made an initial claim of $40 million while saying it was still accessing the long-term damage. They also retained an international law rm. X-Press Feeders and its insurers made an initial payment of $3.6 million to the Sri Lanka government to be used to compensate those affected by the re and sinking, while saying, “Discussions are ongoing on the payment of further claims and all legitimate claims will be considered.” Sri Lanka recently made a second claim against the owners for an undisclosed amount. X-Press Feeders said it is being reviewed and discussions are ongoing while the justice minister told Parliament that the country was prepared to take the company and its insurers to international court if they refused to pay the full compensation.
SINGAPORE
The Government has taken steps to compensate the shing community which lost their livelihood in the disaster.
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Sumitomo notes that it has been exploring the opportunities for ammonia to support decarbonization worldwide. Earlier this year the company launched several initiatives supported by an in-house, cross-divisional project team. In an agreement with Oshima Shipbuilding, they plan to develop their rst ammonia-fueled dry bulk carrier to enter service in 2025. The two companies have been building dry bulk carriers since 1973. The new vessel is projected to be 751 feet long and 106 feet wide with a deadweight of approximately 80,000 tons. No details were provided on the propulsion system, only noting that the vessel is projected to have a speed of 14.3 knots. After the completion of the bulk carrier, Sumitomo Corporation says it will own and operate the vessel. They said it would be available for charter helping users of the ship’s transportation service to reduce their GHG emissions across their supply chains. Since March 2021, Sumitomo report it has also been exploring the launch of an ammonia supply business to fuel ships in Singapore. The company has been in discussions with the Singapore government for the development of operating guidelines and the necessary regulations. They are now reporting that they have signed a memorandum of understanding with Keppel FELS to explore the feasibility and implementation of various ammonia fuel applications in Singapore. Together, the companies will work on the implementation of ammonia bunkering in Singapore, with the aim to commence commercial operations in the mid-2020s.
Resolve Marine's current debris removal efforts began in November (The Pearl Protectors)
Environmentalists however remain concerned over the longer-term impact of what has been described as the largest plastics pollution incident. A study conducted on the site and the waters concluded that an estimated 70 to 75 billion nurdles (small plastic pellets) were released into the ocean. Many sh have died after eating the nurdles while the scientists expect long-term impacts from the pollution. The study, published in the Environmental Journal of the American Chemical Society, said that two types of pollution remain, the nurdles as well as burnt plastic which has changed in look and characteristics. The material remains widely spread on the ocean oor and in the ecosystems. In November, Sri Lanka’s Minister of Justice Ali Sabry told Parliament that 1,650 tons of plastic debris had washed ashore and been collected on Sri Lanka’s beaches. Debris reached from Colombo to Negombo approximately 20 miles to the north.
The company plans to launch an ammoniafueled dry bulk vessel within the next four years. They also plan to accelerate development efforts in Singapore through a partnership with Keppel FELS, a subsidiary of Keppel Offshore & Marine.
Sumitomo Plans Ammonia Launch by 2025 for Bulker and Singapore Bunkers
Japan’s Sumitomo Corporation announced several new initiatives designed to further support the adoption of ammonia for maritime and other industries.
They plan to pursue several different elements of the ammonia supply chain. Sumitomo and Keppel O&M will accelerate the development of an ammonia bunkering vessel in coordination with the relevant authorities, expediting the implementation of ammonia bunkering in Singapore, and contributing to the realization of zero-carbon shipping. Sumitomo Corporation and Keppel O&M will also work to expand the ammonia value chain in Singapore, exploring other business opportunities including the use of green energy such as ammonia for offshore power generation in Singapore. The marine applications for ammonia are part of Sumitomo’s broader programs. They are also exploring hydrogen, ammonia, storage batteries, forest resource and woodchip, and biomass businesses, and other next-generation energy-related businesses.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRAZIL
The voyage was Diadema's inaugural sailing from the port of Santos. She arrived on a transit voyage from the Mediterranean on December 20, then took on passengers and departed on an itinerary for Salvador and Ilheus, returning January 3.
ITALY
Brazil Halts Costa Cruise Ship's Operations After COVID Outbreak
Cruises from Italy to Resume While North America Delayed
On Friday, Brazil's National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) announced that it has suspended the operations of the cruise ship Costa Diadema, which docked recently at the Brazilian port of Salvador with 68 COVID cases on board. Anvisa and local health agencies have declared the outbreak a "community transmission of Covid-19, level 4" incident, according to CNN Brasil. Until the agency has completed an assessment of the situation on board, Costa Diadema will transit to her home port of Santos, where she will disembark the remainder of her passengers. T h e C OV I D - p o s i t i v e i n d i v i d u a l s h a v e disembarked in Salvador, along with passengers who are local residents. Brazil's Strategic Health Information Centers (Cievs) will monitor their onward travel. For the next leg of her voyage, "the vessel will continue under restrictions during navigation [and] all non-essential activities on board must be interrupted and the sanitary safety protocols inside the vessel must be complied with until its nal destination in Santos," Anvisa said in a statement. The Diadema arrived Thursday at Salvador with more than ve dozen conrmed COVID cases. The ship counted 56 crewmembers and 12 passengers infected out of a total complement of 3,800 people on board. According to Anvisa, the majority of the individuals who tested positive are asymptomatic. There are only a few passengers with mild symptoms, and no serious cases reported.
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Costa Cruises, which also suspended sailing on December 20, announced changes to its cruise program. Carnival Corporation’s Italian brand had resumed sailing in September with its cruise ship the Costa Deliziosa sailing from Trieste and then the Costa Diadema sailing from Genoa. They later started operating their larger agship the Costa Smeralda from Savona before suspending the cruises to Greece aboard the Costa Deliziosa. The 180,000 gross ton Costa Smeralda, with a maximum capacity of 6,600 passengers, was due to resume sailing on January 7. The line had announced it would also be dividing the weekly cruise into two short segments of three and four days departing from Civitavecchia. However, citing uncertainty regarding Covid19 restrictions in the coming weeks, Costa canceled the cruises until January 31. The cruise line now plans to offer the cruises aboard its smaller cruise ship the Costa Deliziosa. The 92,600 gross ton ship is considerably smaller that the agship with a capacity of 2,862 passengers. “The decision to operate the Costa Deliziosa will allow greater itinerary exibility to respond to any changes in the local COVID-19 scenario,” the company said in announcing the revised program. The cruises in Italy will be in addition to the cruise programs currently operated by AIDA and TUI aboard large cruise ships sailing in the Canary Islands. The only other large cruise ships currently sailing are the ones in Asia.
MSC and Costa Cruises both announced plans to restart their cruises from Italy in January after the Italian Government’s requested pause during the holiday season. The efforts to resume large ship cruising from Italy come as the North American cruise lines are continuing to delay their target dates for a resumption of service.
News of the plans to restart the cruises in Italy came as the lines marketing to North America once again announced delays in their programs. Norwegian Cruise Line canceled the planned March cruises aboard three of its ships from Miami and Port Canaveral. Today, several Carnival Corporation brands also announced delays. Carnival Cruise Line canceled all cruises through the end of March MSC plans resume cruises with its ship the while extending the delay into April for MSC Grandiosa. The cruise ship will start Galveston and deferring other cruises. sailing on January 24, after a temporary pause that started on December 20. Among the North American premium cruise C u r r e n t l y, t h e M S C G r a n d i o s a i s lines, both Holland America Line and Princess scheduled to operate weekly cruises until Cruises also extended their cancellations. March 21 from Genoa with stops in Holland America canceled all cruises through Civitavecchia, Naples, Palermo, and April and delaying some in Alaska till May and Malta. Guests can board the ship in any of June as well as delays for its Mediterranean and the Italian ports, but they are required to Canada New England programs. Princess test negative for the virus before boarding extended its cancelations until the middle of the cruise and each passenger will have a May. second test during the cruise. MSC Cruises also plans to start a second cruise ship, the MSC Magnica, for 11night voyages in the West and East Mediterranean. Those sailings are due to resume on February 14 visiting Italy, Greece and Malta.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
Several of the cruise ships, however, have returned to U.S. ports for the rst time since the summer. They are making reprovisioning stops and beginning the process to meet the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s requirements for recertifying to resume cruising.
www.seaandcoast.in
INTERNATIONAL NEWS DENMARK
Poland’s Maritime Ofce is conrming that it issued a detention order for a Russian general cargo ship after an incident early Saturday morning near the Polish port of Gdansk. The captain and ofcers of the vessel were found to be severely intoxicated, which the authorities believe caused the navigation hazard and dangerous operating conditions of the vessel.
Denmark Sees Increase in Number of Ships Sailing Under its Flag
Denmark is growing its position as a leading maritime nation: the number of ships sailing under the Danish ag reaching 779 last year, a 2.6 percent increase. Danish Shipping, the industry association for Denmark's shipowners, says that last year the number of ships ying the Danish ag set a record at 779, up from 764 since the turn of the year.
said Jacob Meldgaard, TORM CEO and The 7,750 dwt general cargo ship Ruslana chairman for Danish Shipping. registered in Russia was spotted by harbor He added that apart from looking at the authorities around 4:00 a.m. local time on nancial and operational conditions, Saturday, December 4 sailing directly toward choosing the Danish ag contributes to the shoreline at a speed of 11 knots. The vessel strengthening Denmark’s position as a top veered out of the sea lane at which time the maritime nation. This gives its voice more harbormaster and Maritime Ofce tried to call the vessel over the radio. Repeated calls went weight at IMO. unanswered, so the Maritime Ofce dispatched According to marine intelligence rm a fast patrol boat to investigate the cargo ship. Lloyd’s, Panama tops the list of ag states with a total of 9,596 vessels ying its ag in The boat also attempted to contact the vessel 2020, followed by China with 5,130 ships. and used its lights and sirens. When the Other top ags are Singapore with 4,914, Ruslana was approximately two-thirds of a mile the Marshall Islands with 4,313 and from the shoreline, the vessel made a sudden 180-degree turn before it ran up onto the Liberia with 4,295. beach. The vessel proceeded to the anchorage In terms of tonnage, Panama tops the list at Gdansk. with 234.7 million gross tonnage, followed by Liberia with 187.8 million and the The Polish Border Guard boarded the vessel to conduct an inspection and decided to do a Marshall Islands with 170.9 million. sobriety test on the captain and two crew members reporting they observed “unnatural behavior.” Blood tests showed that the captain had a reading of 1.0 ppm, equivalent to consuming half a liter of vodka, and considered POLAND to be severely intoxicated.
In terms of tonnage, the number of ships has increased from 22.34 million tonnes to 23.24 million tonnes, representing a four percent increase. The progress means that Denmark moves up one place on the list of largest ag states and now holds the 11th place in the world eet, when measured by gross tonnage. “We have had as a stated goal in our strategy that the Danish eet should grow by 10 percent in both number of ships and gross tonnage during the strategy period. At New Year, the period ended, and the goals were more than met with 14 percent more ships on the Danish ag and 43 percent larger tonnage,” said Anne H. Steffensen, Danish Shipping Adm. Director.
The other two ofcers were in worse condition with blood alcohol levels reported at 1.5 ppm. The vessel was ofcially detained and the owners in St. Petersburg have been notied that they must rectify the situation.
Russian Ship Detained After Drunken Crew Nearly Run Ship Onto Beach
Polish authorities said they will conduct a subsequent inspection and only when they are satised the situation has been corrected and will not happen again will they release the vessel.
She added that the Danish ag signals quality and decent conditions, and since 2000 both the number of ships and tonnage ying the ag have increased year by year. The increase in the number of vessels sailing under the Danish ag has been fuelled by the shipping company TORM. Last year, 16 of TORM's black and orange ships were agged. “We weigh the pros and cons every time we ag a ship in. And the conclusion for us is that Dannebrog can compete with other ags, and therefore it is attractive to us,”
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January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS KENYA
Kenya Opens New Shipyard Facility in Mombasa
The Kenya Defence Force (KDF) has been involved in developing the facility for the past two years, and it stands to benet from access to a local maintenance hub for Kenya's navy and coast guard. The facility is expected to save the country substantially in terms of the foreign exchange that goes into maintaining its ships in foreign shipyards. The new yard is one component of Kenya's plan to boost its status as a regional maritime hub. It follows the operationalization of Lamu port in May. The new port's rst three berths were constructed at a cost of $367 million. The Kisumu Port on Lake Victoria has also been refurbished at a cost of $30 million. However, plans to revive the defunct Kenya National Shipping Line remain in limbo over concerns that the line cannot compete on a global scale.
SWEDEN
Kenya is looking to tap into the lucrative shipbuilding and repair business af ter commissioning of the new Kenya Shipyards Limited facility in the port city of Mombasa.
“It is worrying that the re has not been extinguished,” said Jonas Holmstrand who is heading the operation of the Coast Guard, while noting “but it has not spread and the ship's condition is still good. Our efforts are therefore not fruitless, we are taking small steps forward while we also plan for and prepare for the situation to turn around and escalate.” Late yesterday and into Tuesday, December 7, the weather began to deteriorate at the site with southeasterly winds increasing to nearly 28 mph and temperatures falling to just below freezing. Forecasts are that the weather will continue unchanged for at least the next two days. The Coast Guard is bringing in additional staff and equipment as they report the harsh conditions are taking a toll on the crew and the operations. The increased winds have added additional stress for the crews and meant that it was not possible for the helicopters to continue their aerial support. They are however continuing to use drones to pinpoint the re and monitor conditions at the front of the Almirante Storni.
The East Africa nation says that the new yard will have the capacity to handle vessels of more than 4,000 tonnes and 150 meters in length. It is a strategic infrastructure asset, enabling the country tap into the multi-billiond-dollar global shipbuilding and repair market.
Cargo Fire Expected to Burn for Days on Bulker of Sweden
“The key sub-sectors of the blue economy, which include maritime transport and logistics, sheries, as well as ship-building and repair, represent low hanging fruits that must be exploited,” said President Uhuru Kenyatta at the facility's commissioning.
The plan remains to ght the re in place and the ship’s crew, Coast Guard, and remen remain aboard the ship. The Coast Guard believes that the ship is in no immediate danger, although on Monday the oil on board was prepared to be removed from the tanks and pumped over to another vessel. The Coast Guard said this was a precaution to avoid an environmental threat if the oil leaks into the Swedish authorities are reporting that they water. expect the cargo re to burn for days on the bulker Almirante Storni off Gothenburg. The owner of the vessel remains responsible for While the situation remains stable at the the ship and the Swedish Transport Agency and site, they are however expressing concern Coast Guard are awaiting a savage plan from r e g a r d i n g d e t e r i o r a t i n g w e a t h e r the owners. The goal is to extinguish the re conditions and the inability to reach the and move the ship to port but before that, the heart of the re in the tightly packed cargo. plan must address the ship's condition, who will salvage it, how the ship will be able to leave the The Coast Guard's two largest vessels, KBV current site off Gothenburg, and then where, in 001 Poseidon and KBV 002 Triton, which port, it will be placed. continue to pour large amounts of water over the part of the cargo where it is burning. Together, the vessels can spray almost 5,000 cubic meters of water per hour at full power. In addition, there are several tugboats hired by the owner of the ship that are also spraying water over the re. However, the water is only dampening the timber cargo to prevent the spread of the re to other parts of the vessel.
The new KSL Mombasa Shipyard facility has the country's longest slipway for construction, repair, retting and maintenance. It also has two ship-building hangers, one 150 meters long and 30 meters high and a smaller one 120 meters long, 20 meters high and 13 meters wide. The shipyard has four main workshops - an electronic repair workshop, a marine and general engineering workshop, a tting and carpentry workshop and a hull and superstructure repair workshop. The country has already trained teams of specialized workers in shiptting and welding to meet the yard's labor needs. “The direct, indirect and induced impacts of the Mombasa Shipyard will create many jobs, generate diverse investment opportunities and raise revenue for the country,” said President Uhuru.
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INTERNATIONAL NEWS VENEZUELA
Petroleum ministry ofcials have said they are condent most output could be restored within a month. On Sunday, head of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Mohsen Khojastehmehr said the private sector is contributing greatly to the country’s current oil sales.
China’s imports of Iranian oil hit record since 2018 sanctions
He said Iran’s oil revenues have increased signicantly over the past few months and the country has received the payment for all its crude oil sales since the new government administration.
SPAIN
Maersk launches new reefer train service between Algeciras and Marin
“In the thirteenth government, part of the country’s lost oil markets has been revived and we have received the payment for all the oil we have sold so far,” Khojastehmehr said. Oil swap with Venezuela
China’s imports of Iranian crude oil last year hit a record high since the US imposed sanctions on the Islamic Republic in 2018 with the aim of bringing the country’s oil sales down to zero, Bloomberg reports. Chinese reners brushed off the risk of the sanctions to take in 324 million barrels from Iran and Venezuela in 2021, about 53% more than the year before, data from market intelligence rm Kpler cited by the news provider showed. “That’s the most since 2018, when China took 352 million barrels from the two nations,” it added. According to Braemar and industry consultant Energy Aspects Ltd, Chinese imports of sanctioned crude should stay elevated around current levels early this year. China’s private reners are main customers of Iran’s oating oil cargoes through spot purchases. Crude from Iran stored in tankers offshore Asia is an attractive option given that it can be delivered quickly. There are millions of barrels of crude oating off China and around Singapore and Malaysia that include Iranian oil. Rising crude prices have incentivized the private reners, known as teapots, to snap up more oil from Iran and Venezuela without worrying about the risk of the sanctions because they don’t have US-based businesses and do not need the American nancial system for trade. Oil markets are closely watching negotiations underway in Vienna between Iran and the remaining parties to an international nuclear agreement for a breakthrough to resume purchases from the countr y. Petroleum Minister Javad Owji has said Iran will return to its pre-sanctions crude production level as soon as the US sanctions are removed.
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On Tuesday, a Reuters report said Iran has the chance of more oil swap with Venezuela which is resuming exports of diluted crude oil (DCO) for the rst time in nine months. US trade sanctions imposed on Venezuelan state-run oil rm PDVSA in 2019 had hurt its ability to produce exportable grades from its largest production region, the Orinoco Belt. The extra heavy oil extracted from the Orinoco Belt has to be diluted with naphtha or condensate for transportation and exports. With international companies eschewing deals with Venezuelan oil, Iran has stepped in and struck swap arrangements with the South American which holds the world’s largest supply of crude oil. PDVSA has been receiving about 2.1 million barrels per month of condensate, a high-value light oil, in exchange for supplying NIOC with some 3.8 million barrels of its agship Merey 16 crude. Reuters on Tuesday cited an internal PDVSA schedule report showing that a Panama-agged supertanker has loaded about 1.9 million barrels of DCO bound for Malaysia which is sometimes used to transship Venezuelan crude bound for China. The last time PDVSA had shipped DCO was in April, when it sent two cargoes to Asia, it said. Shipping DCO to Asia could allow the resumption of the Venezuela-Iran swap, which was mostly fullled in the second half of last year before deliveries were paused in December, the news agency added.
1 day and 12 hours is the transit time for the new rail service for reefer cargo that connects Algeciras and Marin. The new service departs from Algeciras port in Cadiz and ar rives at Marin port (Pontevedra) every Friday at midday. This new train service is intended to give Galician rms with agility, exibility, and resiliency.” It facilitates cargo delivery to Galicia ahead of schedule, allowing for weekend deliveries and distribution to nal retailers. Furthermore, it helps to reduce environmental effect, which is a hot topic among many customers committed to reducing CO2 emissions. Diego Perdones Montero Maersk Managing Director for South West Europe and the Maghreb The carbon footprint of cargo ows is one of the most important topics on the agenda of many enterprises around the world and Maersk is committed to achieving net zero emissions for all its activities by 2040, helping this way customers to full theirs ESG strategies. One of the primary benets of this new service for us is the ability to carry our reefer cargo through rail for the rst time.” Rail travel is one of the most environmentally friendly routes of goods transportation and we are glad to have this transportation option thanks to our collaboration with Maersk. Representatives from Grupo Ibérica de Congelados SA Maersk is launching this new service with a weekly call from Wednesday to Friday, but it expects to be able to scale the service up in response to rising demand for environmentally friendly transportation modes. For project coordination, Maersk has relied on the involvement and support from Algeciras port authority, Marin port authority, Ria de Pontevedra, Marin Container Terminal, Temarin -Grupo Pérez Torres and the health ministry regulations.
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
Hon'ble Vice President Visit To Iac (P-71)/ Vikrant Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu, Hon’ble Vice President visited the Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) ‘Vikrant’ under advanced stage of construction at Cochin Shipyard Ltd at Kochi, on 02 January 2022.
The Hon’ble Vice President of India was briefed on the uniqueness of the project and progress of construction during the visit. He was also briefed about efforts being made towards ship’s delivery and commissioning prior August 2022 to commemorate ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’. Hon’ble Vice President was appreciative of the Nation’s capability in designing and constructing an Aircraft Carrier and lauded it as a shining example of our quest for ‘Atma Nirbharta’ or self-reliant India. Indian Navy is a formidable resident maritime power in the Indian Ocean Region; and the Aircraft Carrier Battle Group remains central to its concept of operations. Vikrant will provide the Indian Navy with the requisite exibility, mobility, reach and combat power in pursuance of our national interests and also serve as a strong catalyst for peace and stability in the Indian Ocean Region. An Aircraft Carrier also holds a position of strategic and technological eminence, and is rightly considered the pinnacle in the domain of warship design and construction. With the construction of Indigenous Aircraft Carrier, India will enter into select band of countries having niche indigenous capability for designing and building of an Aircraft Carrier. The Indian shipbuilding industry has come a long way since the 1960s with the IAC Vikrant being the hallmark of India’s indigenous industrial capability. The indigenous content in construction of IAC is close to 76% of overall project cost of Rs 19341 Crs. The ship has large number of indigenous materials such as steel, besides other equipment and systems manufactured by Indian industrial houses and about 100 MSMEs.
The indigenous construction of the carrier has generated employment opportunities not only within the shipyard but also for many other industries supporting the project externally. This has resulted in a “plough back” effect on the domestic economy. Close to 2000 shipyard and 13000 non-yard personnel have been employed per annum towards construction of IAC. During the visit, Hon’ble Vice President was accompanied by the Hon’ble Governor of Kerala Shri Arif Mohammed Khan, Chief of Staff Southern Naval Command Rear Admiral Antony George, NM, VSM, CMD Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL) Shri Madhu S Nair, and other senior ofcials of Navy and CSL. The Hon’ble Vice President was briefed about the contribution of the indigenous technologies and capabilities during the walk around of the carrier and he expressed satisfaction and appreciated the efforts of the Indian Navy and Cochin Shipyard towards strengthening our Indigenous warship building capabilities. Hon’ble Vice President also expressed satisfaction at the progress of work made so far despite COVID related imponderables. Later, the Hon’ble Vice President visited Naval Physical & Oceanographic Laboratory as part of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ and unveiled Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Memorial. He also laid the foundation stone of a Towed Array Integration Facility and handed over an Automated Sonar Trainer to the Navy. The Hon’ble Vice President is on a three-day visit to Kerala and arrived at Kochi Naval airport on Sunday morning, after his tour of Lakshadweep. Earlier on the day a ceremonial 100 men guard was paraded at INS Garuda in honour of the Vice President.
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
Director General VS Pathania takes over as DG Coast Guard
Director General VS Pathania, took over as the 24th Chief of Indian Coast Guard on 31 Dec 21. He is an alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington and National Defence College, New Delhi. The Flag Ofcer is a qualied helicopter pilot and holds a Master’s Degree in Defence & Strategic Studies from the University of Madras. He has also undergone specialization in Search and Rescue and port operations with US Coast Guard. In his illustrious career spanning over 36 years, he has held several key appointments aoat and ashore, prominent among them are Commander Coast Guard Region (North West) at Gandhi Nagar, Commander Coast Guard Region (West) at Mumbai, Deputy Director General (HRD), Deputy Director General (Policy &Plans) at Coast Guard Headquarters, New Delhi. The ag ofcer has also commanded all class of Coast Guard ships namely Inshore Patrol Vessel ‘Ranijindan’, Offshore Patrol Vessel 'Vigraha' and Advanced Offshore Patrol Vessel 'Sarang'. He has also held various appointments viz Principal Director (HRD), Principal Director (Policy & Plans) at Coast Guard Headquarters, New Delhi, Chief of Staff at Headquarters, Coast Guard Region (North West),
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Chief Staff Ofcer (Operations) and Chief Staff Ofcer (Personnel & Administration) at Headquarters Coast Guard Region (West), Commanding Ofcer, Coast Guard Air Station at Chennai, Director (Personnel) and Joint Director (Aviation) at Coast Guard Headquarters and also as Squadron Commander of 848 Sqn at Chennai. The Flag Ofcer was elevated to the rank of Additional Director General in Nov 2019 and took over the reins as Coast Guard Commander (Eastern Seaboard) at Visakhapatnam. The period under his apex watch on Eastern Seafront saw surge in major operations that included apprehension of gold and tons of drugs/narcotic substance worth thousands of crores, pollution response operations, joint exercises with Foreign Coast Guard, anti-poaching operations, mass rescue operations and humanitarian assistance during cyclones/natural calamities and strengthened Coastal Security. He is also the recipient of President’s Tatrakshak Medal for Distinguished Service, Tatrakshak Medal for gallantry and Director General Indian Coast Guard Commendation.
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
NGOs Say Refugees on Shell Oil Platform Returned to Tunisian Navy
The crew of activists and volunteers aboard the Louise Michel reached the area near the Shell oil platform and began bringing the refugees aboard. They were able to get 31 people aboard, but an additional 70 scrambled toward Shell’s Miska oil platform for safety.
For the First Time, a U.S. Navy Carrier D e p l o y s Wi t h a Female CO
A spokesperson for the oil company conrmed, “On January 3 at 8 pm (Tunis time), a boat carrying people reached our platform. They were assisted and provided water, food, and dry clothes.” Fourteen hours later, Louise Michel Tweeted an update saying that the people remained on the platform and urgently needed a safe place. They were calling on the Maltese authorities to provide immediate shelter for the 100 refugees. Several NGOs operating rescue operations in the Mediterranean are accusing oil industry giant Shell and the government of Malta of a failure to properly safeguard approximately 70 refugees who had sought refuge in bad weather at a Shell-operated oil platform in the Mediterranean. The refugees were removed from the platform by a Tunisian naval vessel and according to the NGOs are being returned to unsafe circumstances in Africa. The current incident began on January 3 when the NGO Sea-Watch International, which also operates a reconnaissance airplane Seabird, spotted a group of approximately 100 refugees in distress in the Mediterranean with weather conditions worsening. This latest report came after a particularly busy period during the days between Christmas and New Year holidays when three NGO vessels reported rescuing over 1,100 people in the western Mediterranean attempting the crossing from Libya primarily heading toward Italy and Malta. The Seabird issued a warning and was able to coordinate with a German NGO Louise Michel which dispatched its “homemade emergency vehicle,” a former French Navy boat operating under the same name to the scene. The vessel, which is 98 feet long and capable of up to 28 knots, has become famous in part because she is painted bright pink and because funding from the operation came from the sale of artworks by the elusive British artist Banksy. The artist also supplied work that decorates the exterior of the rescue vessel.
On Monday, the USS Abraham Lincoln departed San Diego with her escorts, becoming the rst nuclear-powered carrier to deploy under the leadership of a female commanding ofcer. Capt. Amy Bauernschmidt, the rst female carrier CO in Navy history, took command of Lincoln last August, relieving Capt. Walt "Sarge" Slaughter. Bauernschmidt was also the rst woman to serve as the executive ofcer aboard an aircraft carrier, a position she held Shortly after issuing that update, a from September 2016 to January 2019 on Tunisian warship arrived at the oil board the Lincoln. platform, conrmed in messages and photos from the NGOs. Shell also reported, Bauernschmidt graduated from the United “Shell had infor med the Tunisian Stated Naval Academy in May 1994 - the rst authorities and worked closely with them to graduating class in which women were allowed ensure the safety of the people on board the to serve aboard combatant ships and aircraft. boat. They have since been safely She was designated as a naval aviator in 1996 transferred to the Tunisian navy vessel.” and served with several helicopter squadrons throughout her career, racking up more than The NGOs remain incensed at Shell and 3,000 ight hours. She has previously the Maltese authorities for the failure to commanded Helicopter Maritime Strike protect the individuals and sending them Squadron (HSM) 70 and the amphibious back to Africa where they content their transport dock USS San Diego. lives will be in danger after the failed escape effort. 2021 saw a dramatic increase in the numbers of people attempting the Mediterranean crossing from northern Africa. A report on asylum rights by the Migrants Foundation of the Italian Episcopal Conference released in November estimated that "about 56,700 refugees and migrants managed to arrive in Italy or Malta using the central Mediterranean route,” since the start of the year. The UN’s International Organization for Migration however says that an additional number set at over 32,400 people were intercepted at sea and returned to Libya in 2021. The NGOs estimate that the number of interceptions in the central Mediterranean last year almost tripled compared to 2020.
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January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
Capt. Bauernschmidt addresses the press before Lincoln's departure, January 3 (USN)
“[Lincoln's] sailors are incredible professionals who have trained exceptionally hard to ensure they are ready for any operational obligations required of us on deployment,” Bauernschmidt said in a statement Monday.
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS “They are absolutely prepared for today’s deployment, and I have no doubt they will represent our nation proudly as we defend our national interests.” For the rst time, Lincoln is deploying with a squadron of Marine Corps F-35C ghers, bringing stealth technology to her air wing. It is the Marine Corps' rst deployment aboard a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier with the F-35C, according to Major Zachary P. Hartnett (USMC).
Last week, the Public Prosecutor's Ofce of the Court of Cagliari announced that it has concluded its preliminary inquiry into the grounding after an investigation by the Italian Coast Guard. According to the prosecutor's ofce, the root cause of the casualty was "negligent conduct" in the vessel's navigation, including "maintaining highly dangerous routes in the presence of strong winds [which] pushed the vessel towards the nearby leeward coast."
Lincoln's last deployment was in 2019, and it turned into a marathon 295-day voyage - the longest for any carrier since the Vietnam War. She was dispatched to the Middle East as a deterrent to Iran in May 2019, remaining in the region until December. She spent the 20202021 pandemic in ret and training in San Diego.
Italian Coast Guard Blames "Negligence" for CDRY Blue Grounding
Prosecutors in Cagliari, Italy have concluded an initial investigation into the grounding of the bulker CDRY Blue on the coast of Sardinia, nding that negligence was the primary cause of the vessel's loss.
The vessel departed Cagliari on December 20, 2019, bound for Spain on a ballast voyage. According to a statement, she was operating at reduced power because of technical problems - allegedly not reported to Italian authorities before her departure and when she ran into difculties off the coast, she was unable to make it back to a sheltered anchorage. As a result of this chain of errors, she went aground and "spilled into the sea large quantities of hydrocarbons of various types," the Guardia Costiera concluded.
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These deployments were conducted in solidarity with India’s extended Maritime Neighbourhood and highlights the importance accorded by India to these special relationships. 500 Tons of food aid has been shipped by INS Kesari to support the efforts of Government of Mozambique to cope with ongoing drought and concurrent challenges of pandemic. India also remains committed to supporting the capacity building efforts of the Armed Forces of Mozambique. To this end INS Kesari is carrying two Fast Interceptor Craft and self defence equipment to be handed over to the Armed Forces of Mozambique. INS Kesari, a Landing Ship Tank (Large) had undertaken similar mission in May – June 2020 to provide humanitarian and medical assistance to Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros, including deployment of Medical Assistance Teams of the Indian Navy in multiple locations.
Prosecutors contend that the vessel's navigation was conducted in a manner suggesting "seafaring inexperience, imprudence and negligence," resulting in "environmental crimes of disaster and pollution." In addition to potential penalties for the crewmembers, the prosecutor's ofce said that it would consider administrative measures for the shipowner and shipmanager.
MISSION SAGAR
On December 21, 2019, the CDRY Blue went aground on a shoal between Porto Sciusciau and Capo Sperone, in the Sant'Antioco area of southwestern Sardinia. Upon receiving a report of the grounding, the Cagliari Harbor Ofce dispatched two patrol boats and one helicopter from the Guarda Costiera to the scene. Due to foul weather conditions and 50 knot winds, the helicopter aircrew was not immediately able to hoist the seafarers off the vessel, and the rescue had to be postponed to the following day. The vessel could not be reoated from the rocky coastline, and she was declared a total loss. Lightering operations to remove her fuel commenced, followed by a wreck removal tender and an extended demolition process.
This is the eighth such deployment in consonance with the Hon’ble Prime Ministers vision of Security And Growth for All in the Region and is being conducted in close coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs, and other agencies of the Government of India.
As part of yet another deployment undertaken by Indian Navy since May 2020 under Mission SAGAR, Indian Naval Ship Kesari entered Port of Maputo, Mozambique on 25 December 2021.
Since May 2020, the Indian Navy has deployed ships to 15 Friendly Foreign Countries under SAGAR missions. These deployments spanned over 215 days at sea have delivered a cumulative assistance of more than 3,000 MT of food aid, over 300 MT LMO, 900 Oxygen Concentrators and 20 ISO containers. Whilst undertaking, these missions Indian Naval Ships have traversed a cumulative distance of close to 40,000 nm which is nearly twice the circumference of earth. With a steadfast intent of making such high quantum of humanitarian assistance reach its destination in time, personnel from ships and shore organisations of Indian Navy have invested close to a million man-hours to deliver succour to our friends overseas.
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
Report: Russian Sub Hit Royal Navy Frigate's Sonar Array
U.S. Navy Relieves Destroyer's XO for Refusing COVID Vaccine
The UK Ministry of Defence has conrmed that a Russian submarine collided with a towed sonar array connected to the frigate HMS Northumberland during a patrol in 2020. The run-in was lmed by a TV crew for BBC Channel 5 who were on board for the series Warship: Life at Sea. It was not previously reported. "In late 2020 a Russian submarine being tracked by HMS Northumberland came into contact with her towed array sonar," the UK MoD said in a statement. "The Royal Navy regularly tracks foreign ships and submarines in order to ensure the defence of the United Kingdom." The frigate's helicopter had spotted the sub's periscope on the surface shortly before the impact. The contact disabled the towed sonar array, forcing Northumberland to return to port, according to the BBC. The incident was not reported at the time. HMS Northumberland was attached to Carrier Strike Group 2 for an exercise when the event occurred, and in a statement in late 2020, the Royal Navy said only that she had called at three ports in Scotland. Though physical contact between NATO vessels and Russian warships was an occasional occurrence during the Cold War, the run-in is the rst time that such an incident has been reported for a Royal Navy vessel since the fall of the Soviet Union. Russian submarine patrols in the North Atlantic and the North Sea have been on the rise for years, raising the chances of interactions with the Royal Navy. Northumberland operates a Type 2087 towed low-frequency sonar array, capable of both passive and active operations. It is manufactured by Thales, and it is designed to detect subs before they are within range of attack.
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The U.S. Navy has removed a destroyer's executive ofcer from command for refusing both COVID-19 vaccination and COVID-19 testing, according to multiple media sources.
The U.S. Navy has a particular interest in adding the COVID-19 vaccine to its extensive list of vaccination requirements.
The sailors deployed on its ships and submarines live together in cramped Cmdr. Lucian Kins, the XO of the Arleigh conditions for weeks or months, and an Burke-class destroyer USS Winston outbreak on board can disrupt operations, with Churchill, was relieved of command on implications for national defense. Friday. The ofcial statement from Naval Surface Forces Atlantic indicated that he The Navy sustained the largest single outbreak was removed for refusing a "lawful order" of COVID of any of the service branches - the and "loss of condence" in his ability to well-publicized 2020 incident aboard the USS command, without going into detail. Theodore Roosevelt, which resulted in the rst recorded COVID fatality in the military. Over According to the AP, Navy sources indicate the course of the past year, it has had to that Kins has become the rst senior Navy implement rigorous (and costly) quarantine ofcer removed from his post for refusing measures to keep the disease off its ships. the COVID-19 vaccine. He also reportedly refused COVID-19 testing. Navy leadership hopes that 100-percent vaccination will nally bring an end to these Lt. Cmdr. Han Yi, the ship’s plans and operational risks, though the emergence of new tactics ofcer, has been temporarily vaccine-resistant COVID variants may pose promoted to the post of executive ofcer new challenges. until a permanent relief is identied, the Navy said in a statement. Kins has been reassigned to the staff of Naval Surface Squadron 14, pending further action. T h e N a v y i m p l e m e n t e d a C OV I D vaccination requirement in October, in line with Department of Defense policy for all of the service branches. Sailors had until Nov. 28 to complete a full course of vaccination, and the Navy has outlined steps towards separation for those who fail to comply. The service says that only about 5,700 members of its 330,000-strong active duty force remain unvaccinated as of early December. About 450 exemptions (temporary and permanent) have been granted.
January 2022 | SEA AND COAST
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NAVAL SECURITY NEWS
US Navy Saves Five Iranians from Burning Boat and Seizes $14M in Drugs
Sailors from the Sirocco came alongside and took aboard ve individuals from the burning vessel and searched the area around the ship for a missing person. The injured mariners, who identied themselves as Iranian citizens, were later transported to the expeditionary mobile base platform ship USS Lewis B. Puller. Two were own by helicopter to Oman for medical treatment, and the other three mariners were later transported to Oman for eventual repatriation. The U.S. Navy said that its sailors were also able to recover possibly half of the narcotics aboard the vessel with the others having been lost in the re and when the craft sunk. They seized over 3,850 pounds of hashish, 1,100 pounds of methamphetamine, and 66 pounds of heroin valued at $14.7 million by the U.S. Navy. The Sirocco was operating as part of Combined Task Force 150, one of three task forces under Combined Maritime Forces, the world’s largest naval partnership. CTF 150 conducts maritime security and counter-terrorism operations outside the Arabian Gulf.
U.S. Navy patrol craft USS Sirocco came to the aid of a burning shing vessel in the Gulf of Oman rescuing ve individuals. On closer investigation, the U.S. Navy reports that the individuals were Iranian citizens and they were smuggling drugs at the time of the incident. The USS Sirocco was on a counter-narcotics patrol in the Gulf of Oman on December 15 when sailors aboard the American vessel observed the mariners in distress aboard what appeared to be a burning shing boat. The U.S. Navy came to the assistance of the small craft noting that they have observed an explosion aboard the vessel caused by the re. Before the re, international maritime forces had identied the vessel on suspicion of transporting illicit drugs. Suspecting that they had been spotted, the people on the shing vessel are seen in a video released by the Navy pouring uid over parts of their cargo. The U.S. Navy is now speculating that the crew attempted to burn their cargo and that the re spread to the vessel.
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Pioneer Sailing Services Pvt Ltd has won the Indian Achievers Award 2021 for Promising Company in recognition of Outstanding Professional Achievement and Contribution in Nation Building in the Shipping Services category .
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Marina Academy of Maritime Research Centre & Charitable Trust (MTI No. 212075) (APPROVED BY D.G.SHIPPING, GOVT. OF INDIA)
JOIN THE MERCHANT NAVY & HOSPITALITY Name of the Course
Eligibility
G.P. Ra ng – 6Months (Including Basic Safety Training and STSDSD) Batch start from JULY and JANUARY With Sponsor
C.C.M.C - 6Months (Including Basic Safety Training and STSDSD) Batch start from JULY and JANUARY With Sponsor
Pass with aggregate 40% marks in 10th std. from recognized board with Math, Science & English as subject and with minimum 40% marks in English language either 10th or 12th std. Age: 17. 1/2 to 25years Pass with aggregate 40% marks in 10th std. from recognized board with minimum 40% marks in English language either 10th or 12th std. Age: 17. 1/2 to 25years
For Booking
Basic Safety Training (PST,PSSR, EFA & FPFF)
10th pass
S.T.S.D.S.D
10th pass
Campus Address:- At- Vadavswami (Isand), Taluka- Kalol, Distt- Gandhinagar,State- Gujarat – 382721
O.T.C.T
10th Pass
Office Address:- B-604, 6th Floor, Great Eastern Summit, Plot No.66, Sec-15, CBD Belapur, Navi Mumbai
Tel :- 02227577865 Mob:- +919328535553 / 9712905357/ 8983309005
Tel :- 02227577865 N DIVI E
Dr. ABHIJIT MEDICAL CENTRE D.G SHIPPING (govt. of India) Approved Medical Practitioner
ISO 9001 : 2015 Reg. No RQ91/6643
Divine Medical Centre MARGAO - GOA (ISO 9001: 2015 CERTIFIED)
DR. ABHIJIT S. MADHIWALA M.B.B.S, A.F.I.H Reg. No. G-41171 COMPANY APPROVED DOCTOR
Approved Doctor by Directorate General of Shipping, Govt. of India & Norwegian Maritime Directorate All Diagnostic facilities under one roof undertaking Seafarer Pre-Joining Medical Exam
ILO Medicals American P&I Club Skuld P&I Club Standard Club West of England P&I Club
Dr. Abhijit Medical Centre 11, Ayodhya Nagari, Near mora Tekra Char Rasta, Suvali Road, Moragam, Hazira, SURAT- 394517. (Mob):- +919979890774
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Also arranging Covid-19 test for seafarers joining onboard Ships Address: - S1, S2, S5 & S7 Kamat Commercial, Above Women’s Look, Near Old Hari Mandir, Margao, Salcete, Goa-403601. Ph.: 0832-2711140 Mob.: 9011412574 / 9673113296 Email:- medicalsdivine@yahoo.com / drdivinemedicals@yahoo.co.in Website:www.divinemedicalcentre.in
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laughter club 1. How do pirates know that they are pirates? They think, therefore they ARRRR!
A seaman goes up to his captain He says “Captain there is an enemy ship on the horizon.”
2. Why don’t pirates shower before they walk the plank? Because they’ll just wash up on shore later.
The captain says “ Bring me my red shirt.”
3. A captain notices a light in the distance, on a collision course with his ship. He turns on his signal lamp and sends, “Change your course, 10 degrees west.” The light signals back, “Change yours, 10 degrees east.” The captain gets a little annoyed. He signals, “I’m a US Navy captain. You must change your course, sir.”
After the battle, the seaman is taking to the captain. “Captain, why did you tell me to bring you your red shirt?” “If I was shot, the crew wouldn’t notice and continue ghting.” Then someone shouted “20 enemy ships on the horizon!” The captain tells the seaman, “Bring me my brown pants.”
The light signals back, “I’m a Seaman First Class. You must change your course, sir.” Now the captain is mad. He signals, “I’m an aircraft carrier. I’m not changing my course.” The light signals back a nal message: “I’m a lighthouse. Your call.”
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Why Do They Call Camels The Ships Of The Desert? Because of Arab seamen inside of them.
Seaman A seaman meets a pirate in a bar, and they take turns to tell their adventures on the seas. The seaman notes that the pirate has a peg leg, hook, and an eye patch. Curious, the seaman asks "So, how did you end up with the peg-leg?" The pirate replies "I was swept overboard into a school of sharks. Just as my men were pulling me out, a shark bit my leg off". "Wow!" said the seaman. "What about the hook"? “Well...", replied the pirate, "We were boarding an enemy ship and were battling the other sailors with swords. One of the enemy cut my hand clean off." "Incredible!" remarked the seaman. "How did you get the eye patch"? "A seagull dropping fell into my eye", replied the pirate. "You lost your eye to a seagull dropping?" the sailor asked. “Well..." said the pirate, "That was my rst day with the hook."
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laughter club Why do pirates bury their treasure 18 inches under the ground? Because booty is only shin deep What do the Bermuda Triangle and a blonde have in common? They both swallow a lot of seamen. A cruise ship is sailing past a desert island when they see an old man with a long beard and an eyepatch waving his arms at them and jumping up and down.
Why do young pirates always fail when saying the alphabet in kindergarten?
A Russian, an American, and an Englishman catch a goldsh while shing on a boat The goldsh pleads to them: “C’mon guys, I have a family down there, don’t eat me! Here’s what I’ll do for you, wherever you want to go, just say the place and jump off of the boat into the water, the very next moment you’ll be there.”
Because their fathers insist that there are seven Cs!!!!
The Russian comes forward and says: “I’ve missed my dear motherland, I want to go back to Saint Petersburg.”
What's a pirate's favorite letter? You may think it's the RRRRR, but it's the C that they're in love with! Aye.
Someone asked a ship captain if the rumor that he can't swim is true. “Yes," he replied. "Can pilots y?” There are three guys on a boat, and they have four cigarettes, but nothing to light them with – what do they do?
“Captain," asks a passenger, "Who is that man?" "I have no idea," says the captain, "But he goes crazy every year when we pass him."
They throw one cigarette overboard, and the boat becomes a cigarette lighter.
He approaches the edge of the boat, yells “Saint Petersburg!”, jumps into the water, and goes back to St. Petersburg. Amazed, the American approaches next, “I want to see the great Empire State building again.” he says, and yells “New York!”, and in the same fashion as the Russian, ends up in New York. Finally, the Englishman approaches the edge of the boat, as he thinks about where to go and prepares to jump, he slips and exclaims “Bloody hell!” And away he went…
Sudoku #1
Sudoku #2
2 5 5 1 4 9 3 2 9 8 1 2 5 3 3 5 6 9 7 1 3 8 5 4 8 7 5 8 6 4 9 8 3 6
8 6 1 5 6 7 1 8 4 5 7 9 8 1 3 8 2 5 6 9 4 1 9 5 7 5 9 6 7 2 1 4 1 9 7
6
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Amit Kumar info@seaandcoast.in
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9555039039
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Behind JIMS, Vasant Kunj, Mobile No : +91-9555039039
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January, 2022 January 2022
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