Norwegian offshore vessel owner Eidesvik Offshore has signed a cooperation agreement with the technology group Wärtsilä to retrofit an offshore supply vessel (OSV) with an ammonia-fuelled combustion engine along with the required safety system and fuel supply.
The conversation project, named Apollo, will be the first of its kind in the world, Eidesvik reported on Friday. The provisional completion target for the project is late 2023.
Jan Fredrik Meling, CEO & President of Eidesvik commented on the use of ammonia to fuel the ship’s engine: “Using ammonia as a fuel is seen as a key future contributor to shipping’s energy transition, and we’re excited to be the first offshore shipowner taking this step.”
In a first between a maritime union and an autonomous technology company, American Maritime Officers (AMO) has entered into a labor agreement with Sea Machines Robotics, a developer of autonomous command and control systems.
As explained, the partnership signals the recognition by both entities that a prosperous future for the maritime sector is built on a firm relationship among workers, technology and business.
Named The Machine Odyssey, the voyage marks a pivotal moment for autonomous transportation and is slated to prove that the world’s waterways are primed and ready for long-range autonomy.
The U.S. Coast Guard has considered and reportedly set aside the possibility that the boxship Rotterdam Express was responsible for the San Pedro Bay Pipeline oil spill off Orange County, California. After a port state boarding and an examination of her logbooks, the vessel has been released and allowed to proceed to her next port of call, according to operator Hapag-Lloyd.
On Wednesday, the Associated Press reported that AIS data from MarineTraffic appeared to show the Rotterdam Express passing over the affected area of the pipeline three times. Hapag-Lloyd vigorously denied that the the AIS data reflected the vessel’s true position, and after the Coast Guard boarding, a company spokesman said that the ship was “no longer under investigation.”
The pipeline spilled about 125-145,000 gallons of crude oil into San Pedro Bay over the weekend, and oil has been washing up on Orange County’s beaches and wetlands ever since. About 800 people are involved in cleanup efforts and more than 5,000 gallons of oil have been recovered.
Federal, state and local law enforcement officials have launched a criminal investigation into the spill, centered on pipeline operator Beta Offshore and its parent company Amplify Energy. The inquiry follows revelations that the pipeline’s operator may have waited more than three hours in between the time of the first low-pressure alarm and the time of pipeline shutdown. The first alarm sounded at 0230 on Saturday; shutdown occurred at 0601; and regulators were notified at 0907.
This timeline does not appear to be consistent with previous public statements from Beta’s parent company, Amplify Energy; at a press conference Tuesday, Amplify CEO Martyn Willsher told the OC Register that his firm became aware of the potential leak at about 0800 – more than five hours after the alarm and two hours after his firm had shut down the pipeline.
Amplify is part of the unified command managing the spill response effort, as is customary for a significant marine casualty, but Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer has asked the Coast Guard – the lead agency and Federal On Scene Coordinator – to stop appearing in public with Amplify officials and to cut Amplify out of the process of examining the pipeline.
“We don’t let criminals conduct their own investigation into their crimes – why would we allow the owner of the oil pipeline to conduct its own investigation into the oil spill?” Spitzer said in a social media post. “Our beaches and coastline are what draw people from around the world to Orange County and the people responsible for endangering our wildlife and marring our picturesque beaches and shorelines must be held accountable.”
Late Thursday, the U.S. Coast Guard announced that it will treat the spill as a major marine casualty, citing the possible involvement of a vessel and the severity of the resulting economic damages. The decision puts the USCG in the lead of a marine casualty investigation, with support from NTSB, PHMSA, BSEE and California Department of Fish and Wildlife. NTSB is conducting its own parallel inquiry.
Activists from the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior intercepted a tanker transporting fish oil from West Africa as the vessel entered the English Channel earlier today. The vessel was delayed but able to proceed without incident while the protestors sought to call attention to what they said is an alarming growth in the export of fishmeal and fish oil from West Africa. Greenpeace is demanding action by importers and regional governments to end this trade.
“This is big business stripping life from our oceans and depriving our fishing communities of their livelihoods. The science is clear, it will soon be too late. They must stop now,” said Dr. Aliou Ba, oceans campaign manager for Greenpeace Africa.
Maersk has become the latest large shipping company to plan a trial using air lubrication as a tool to help improve vessel efficiency and reduce emissions. An established technology that has been deployed in other segments of the shipping industry, including cruise ships, it is becoming of increasing interest in commercial shipping. Recently, MSC places a record 30-unit order for Silverstream Technologies’ air lubrication system.
The technology group Wärtsilä, in cooperation with Silverstream Technologies, will install Silverstream’s proprietary Air Lubrication System on a trial basis on a large container vessel owned by A.P. Moller – Maersk. The Wärtsilä / Silverstream equipment will be delivered during the second quarter of 2022.
During the trial, the companies will work together to examine possible improvements to the ship’s overall efficiency, focusing on the reduction of fuel consumption and associated emission levels. Among the applications they plan to explore is the use of the system for Maersk’s newly-ordered Methanol-fueled containerships. In July, Maersk ordered a smaller 2,100 TEU capacity feeder ship due to enter service in mid-2023 equipped to operate on methanol and followed that a month later with an order for eight 16,000 TEU boxships which will also be fitted with MAN dual-fuel engines to be powered by methanol.
“Everything that we do today inevitably sets the future for coming generations, so we need to act in a positive way to ensure that decarbonizing vessel propulsion is an effective priority for the industry. This is a view that is shared by Maersk, a company with whom we have worked closely for many years. Silverstream’s Air Lubrication System is an important stepping stone along this path,” says Bernd Bertram, Vice President, Propulsion, Wärtsilä Marine Power.
To support the development of marine electrification and accelerate the rollout of marine battery solutions in Southeast Asia, Singapore’s Yinson Holdings Berhard announced that it invested in Canada-based energy storage solutions. The companies said the new agreements build upon their previous business relationships and believe that they can play an increasing role in working to lower or eliminate dependence on fossil fuels in marine and industrial applications.
In addition to the investment in Sterling PBES, Yinson has also entered into a binding Memorandum of Understanding with the intention to form a joint venture collaboration. The companies plan to work together to accelerate the large-scale rollout of SPBES’ solutions within selected countries in Southeast Asia and beyond.
The September Crew Change Indicator shows that the number of seafarers onboard vessels beyond the expiry of their contract has slightly decreased from 9.0% to 8.9% in the last month.
To remind, the Neptune Declaration Crew Change Indicator is published monthly to provide reliable data regarding the crew change crisis and the way it evolves. It is based on data from 10 ship managers, who are collectively responsible for more than 90,000 seafarers across all the major segments.
The number of seafarers onboard for over 11 months has similarly slightly decreased from 1.3% to 1.2%. After a significant deterioration of the situation since May, the August and September Indicators point to a stabilization of the situation.
What is more, the Indicator shows that 21.9% of seafarers from the sample have been vaccinated. This corresponds to an increase of 6.6 percentage points since August.
Queensland will become the first Australian jurisdiction to administer COVID vaccines to all international seafarers arriving in local ports.
Under a trial program commencing in the coming weeks, Australia aims at reducing the risk of serious illness and community transmission.
According to local media sources, Maritime Safety Queensland and QLD Health developed a vaccination program that will commence with high risk vessels, ships that visit Australian ports on a regular schedule, those that carry liquid fuels, and finally all other vessels arriving at QLD ports.
The International Transport Workers’ Federation, along with employer organisations including Maritime Industry Australia Ltd and Shipping Australia, have welcomed the initiative that will not only protect the health of seafarers, but strengthen Australia’s supply chains.
One of the most sophisticated submarines in the world, the USS Connecticut, sustained an underwater collision five days ago at an undisclosed position in the South China Sea, according to USNI News and other sources. At least 11 crewmembers sustained minor cuts, scrapes and bruises in the incident, and Navy Times reports that Connecticut has had to transit on the surface due to damage.
“USS Connecticut (SSN-22) struck an object while submerged on the afternoon of Oct. 2, while operating in international waters in the Indo-Pacific region,” Pacific Fleet spokesman Capt. Bill Clinton told USNI News. “There are no life-threatening injuries. The submarine remains in a safe and stable condition. USS Connecticut’s nuclear propulsion plant and spaces were not affected and remain fully operational. The extent of damage to the remainder of the submarine is being assessed.”
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