The San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA), which operates the San Francisco Bay Ferry Service, has won a $14.9 million grant from the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). It will be used to develop a high-frequency network connecting some of San Francisco’s fastest growing neighborhoods with battery-electric zero-emission ferries.

The grant will fund the construction of ferries and shoreside charging infrastructure to support the San Francisco Clean Ferry Network, which will use zero-emission ferries to connect waterfront San Francisco neighborhoods including Downtown, Treasure Island and Mission Bay.

This grant, awarded through CalSTA’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), is the latest in a series of grant awards that have been secured to support the new service. In 2020, WETA was awarded $9 million from CalSTA to design and build its first zero-emission ferry along with shoreside infrastructure. In early 2022, WETA won a $3.4 million Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant to add an additional battery-electric vessel to the network.

This $14.9 million award funds construction of a third vessel for what will eventually be a four-vessel network. The grant also includes funds for the charging infrastructure needed to operate the service.

“San Francisco’s waterfront is home to some of the region’s fastest-growing new neighborhoods and this grant will help reduce traffic and improve air quality by connecting workers and residents with the country’s first high-speed, zero-emission ferry service,” said WETA Board of Directors Chair Jim Wunderman. “We owe thanks to Governor Gavin Newsom, CalSTA Secretary Toks Omishakin, our tireless Bay Area Legislative Caucus, and our strong support coalition for sharing our vision for a world class clean ferry network for the region.”

Wunderman will be keynoting Marine Log’s FERRIES 2022 conference in San Francisco on November 1-2.

The S.F. Clean Ferry Network will be a major milestone in WETA’s transition to zero-emission ferry service. The agency is currently completing a two-pronged study, investigating both clean marine propulsion technology and shoreside infrastructure needs, that will inform policy decisions going forward. Ferries aging out of San Francisco Bay Ferry service will be replaced with new zero-emission vessels. WETA may also convert some current ferries to zero-emission propulsion systems over the next decade.

• More than 3 million passengers rode WETA’s San Francisco Bay Ferry service in 2019. WETA has delivered eight new ferries with a combined 3,255 seats since 2017, with three more vessels under construction. Under WETA’s Pandemic Recovery Program, San Francisco Bay Ferry’s ridership in June 2022 reached 63% of pre-pandemic levels.

Source: https://www.marinelog.com/news/weta-awarded-14-9-million-to-develop-san-francisco-zero-emission-ferry-network/

New York City headquartered Foremost Group yesterday signed an order with Namura Shipbuilding for two new 185,000 dwt capesize dry bulk carriers that will be among the most eco-friendly in the world. Foremost also signed a charter party agreement with NYK for each ship to be time chartered to NYK for seven years

The newbuilding order and the charter agreements were signed in a ceremony at the Harvard Club in New York that was attended by the Foremost Group’s founder, maritime industry icon Dr. James Chao. Others in attendance included top officials from both Foremost and Namura, the Japanese Consul General to the U.S., Ambassador Mikio Mori, and senior management from NYK (the charterers), and the president and CEO of Sumitomo Corp. of Americas Group, Tomonori Wada.

“We are pleased to sign this agreement with Namura Shipyards, which will build on our track-record of having a fleet of state-of-the-art dry bulk carriers built to our specifications,” said Foremost Group Chair and CEO Angela Chao. “We welcome this partnership and look forward to working with Namura for many years to come.”

“Today indeed marks a wonderful day in the U.S,-Japan relationship – between our two countries, among our three companies, and the multilateral cooperation we have to deliver the world’s goods in the most environmentally friendly way possible – and that is shipping,” she continued. “Today also marks our first newbuilding orders with Namura Shipbuildpng. As you all know, Namura shipyard has an impeccable reputation and builds some of the finest capesize bulk carriers in the world. With a strong family tradition, now being led by its fifth generation under the strong leadership of Kensuke Namura san, Namura continues to innovate and develop, building the world’s most eco-friendly, lowest carbon footprint, lowest NOx emitter capesize bulk carrier in the world. We are proud to add these beautiful new ships to our fleet, ensuring that Foremost remains on the forefront of environmental friendliness. Thanks to Sumitomo, led by President Wada here in the U.S., for acting as a bridge between Namura and Foremost, and for facilitating trade and cooperation between our two companies, as well as between our two countries.

“Today marks a deepening and strengthening of a decades long relationship with NYK, one of the leading and largest shipping companies of the world. We have a number of ships chartered to NYK, now and in the past, but this new project marks a joint commitment to their new “Green Policy”, and these two ships will be built to environmental standards on NOx emissions and carbon emissions, 2 or more years in advance of what is regulatory required. This is a strong demonstration of our value alignment and mutual commitment to our environment and the generations that will come after us. Hamazaki san and your team, we look forward to working together with you for many years to come.

“We are also delighted and proud to have the opportunity to receive a first shipbuilding contract from the Foremost Group and with these vessels having long time charter agreement with NYK, we are confident that this new partnership will definitely lead the project to a successful conclusion,” said Mr. Kensuke Namura, President of Namura Shipbuilding.

“We are very pleased to conclude a long-term charter contract for the new Capesize bulk carriers built by Namura Shipbuilding with the leading shipowner Foremost,” said Mr. Koichi Hamazaki, General Manager of Tramper Group of NYK. “We believe that these two vessels will symbolize the long-term good relationship between Foremost and NYK.”

ALREADY IN COMPLIANCE WITH EEDI PHASE III

The ships will be delivered in 2024. The freight will be major dry bulk commodities like iron ore and bauxite. As their long term time charterer, NYK will determine what each ship carries and where and also plans to also engage the ships on the spot freight market.

These will be some of the first ships that are in compliance with IMO’s EEDI phase three requirements. The engines will be the latest state of the art electronically controlled MAN B&W engines, built by Mitsui E&S and complying with the latest Tier III NOx emission reduction standards.

There are many other energy saving devices and design elements incorporated into hull optimization and the design of the ship. Namura has trademarked some of the technologies such as the Namura Flow Control Fin, Flat-FIN, Rudder Fin, as well as adding a Pre-swirl Stator Fin to greatly improve the Vessel’s propelling efficiency by more than 10%. The vessels are upgraded to the latest energy-saving paint and the design has been upgraded to safely consume bio-fuels. Burning biofuel can further reduce CO2 emissions by as much as 20% compared to conventional heavy marine fuel oil on the life-cycle, well-to-wake basis.

“In terms of IMO’s technical energy efficiency measure EEDI (Energy Efficiency Design Index), the vessels are ahead of compliance with EEDI phase III requirement, which would only apply to newbuildings ordered from year 2025 and onwards. Thus these Vessels are 3 years ahead of the EEDI requirement. In terms of IMO’s operational energy efficiency measure CII (Carbon Intensity Index), these vessels’ CII rating is expected to stay at the highest level for many years after delivery, although this will also depend on how the charterer, NYK, trades the vessel. “But given NYK’s commitment to carbon neutrality and eco-friendly ships, we believe NYK will work with us to keep the vessels at that the highest CII rating possible,” says Foremost.

Foremost enjoys a decades long relationship with NYK, one of the leading shipping companies in the world. It has a number of vessels on time charter to NYK, which seeks reliable owners who deliver superior performance for the medium and long-term, not just the short-term. Foremost says these latest newbuildings signify a deepening and strengthening of the mutual cooperation between the two companies, adding that “a seven year contract is longer than the average, again demonstrating the trust and confidence NYK has in Foremost, its management and its ships.”

Source: https://www.marinelog.com/legal-safety/shipping/foremost-group-orders-two-eco-friendly-capesizes-at-namura/

General cargo ship WILSON BLYTH ran aground in river Clyde at around 0900 UTC Jul 19 in Old Kilpatrick area, while sailing upstream to Glasgow from Greenock. The ship was refloated about an hour and a half later with tug assistance, and resumed sailing, She was berthed at Glasgow at around 1140 UTC.

New FleetMon Vessel Safety Risk Reports Available: https://www.fleetmon.com/services/vessel-risk-rating/

Fire broke out on board of tanker ANTARES, docked at Puerto Bolivar, Colombia, on Jul 19. Four personnel on board who have been carrying out repairs and maintenance duties, alarmed Port Captaincy. Port firefighters and emergency team responded, fire was extinguished after several hours of firefighting. Extent of damages unknown. tanker is docked in port for some 3 years already, understood because of some juridical issues, but she was undergoing repairs to resume trading. AIS is off for some 3 years.

New FleetMon Vessel Safety Risk Reports Available: https://www.fleetmon.com/services/vessel-risk-rating/

California is awarding a grant to support the development of one of the nation’s first high-frequency electric ferry networks servicing the fast-growing neighborhoods around San Francisco. The grant is the latest in a series of steps being taken to support the development of the San Francisco Clean Ferry Network, which is designed to be a major milestone in the efforts to transform to zero-emission ferry service in the region.

The California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) awarded a $14.9 million grant to the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA). Tracing its roots back more than 20 years, WETA was tasked by the California State Legislature with planning new and expanded ferry service in the region. A decade ago, WETA absorbed the ferry services previously run by the Cities of Alameda and Vallejo, starting efforts to expand and enhance service in the region.

“San Francisco’s waterfront is home to some of the region’s fastest-growing new neighborhoods and this grant will help reduce traffic and improve air quality by connecting workers and residents with the country’s first high-speed, zero-emission ferry service,” said WETA Board of Directors Chair Jim Wunderman.

The grant will fund the construction of battery-powered ferries and shoreside charging infrastructure to support the San Francisco Clean Ferry Network, which will connect waterfront San Francisco neighborhoods including Downtown, Treasure Island and Mission Bay. According to WETA, they plan to use the grant to fund the construction of a third vessel for what will eventually be a four-vessel network. The grant also includes funds for the charging infrastructure needed to operate the service.

The agency is currently completing a two-pronged study investigating both clean marine propulsion technology and shoreside infrastructure needs that will inform policy decisions going forward. Under the agency’s long-term plan, ferries aging out of San Francisco Bay Ferry service will be replaced with new zero-emission vessels. WETA may also convert some current ferries to zero-emission propulsion systems over the next decade. WETA has taken delivered on eight new ferries with a combined 3,255 seats since 2017, with three more vessels currently under construction.

The new grant, which was awarded through CalSTA’s Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), is the latest in a series of grant awards that have been secured to support the new service. In 2020, WETA was awarded $9 million from CalSTA to design and build its first zero-emission ferry along with shoreside infrastructure. In early 2022, WETA won a $3.4 million Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant to add an additional battery-electric vessel to the network.

The agency is moving forward with its strategy for the zero-emission ferry network as it also works to build back its service and ridership after the pandemic. In 2019, WETA served a record 3.2 million passengers and with a newly launched Pandemic Recovery Program in July 2021 WETA created sustained ridership growth, positioning San Francisco Bay Ferry as the regional system with the highest percentage of pre-pandemic ridership. By the end of 2021, they have recovered to over 100,000 passengers boardings each month and San Francisco Bay Ferry’s ridership reached 63 percent of pre-pandemic levels in June 2022.

Source: https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/sf-bay-receives-grant-to-establish-battery-electric-ferry-network