PUBLISHED OCT 11, 2021 5:09 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

The U.S. Coast Guard is deploying more assets into the Western Pacific, giving America a new “white-hull” presence in contested waters. This effort includes the service’s “black hulls,” too: the Coast Guard’s sturdy buoy tenders are ranging far from home on new fishery-patrol and sovereignty missions.

On Friday, the crew of the Coast Guard buoy tender Juniper returned to Honolulu after a 45-day patrol out to Samoa, where they supported a patrol-and-partnership mission dubbed Operation ‘Aiga. During the 10,000 nm patrol, the cutter’s crew conducted operations to counter IUU fishing “while promoting the collective maritime sovereignty and resource security of partner nations in the Indo-Pacific.” (“Aiga” is the Samoan word for “family.”)

“During our deployment in Oceania, Juniper conducted fisheries enforcement in an effort to counter and deter illegal fishing activities in the Central Pacific,” said Cmdr. Chris Jasnoch, the Juniper’s commanding officer. “We were able to establish a presence on the high seas and in the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in American Samoa while also patrolling our partner nation’s EEZs.”

The Juniper’s crew worked under the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC), an intergovernmental agency that works to protect the region’s fish stocks on the high seas. 18 of the WCPFC’s members have enforcing authority (including the United States).

During the patrol, the Juniper embarked a Mandarin linguist from the U.S. Marine Corps. With this assistance, the crew interacted with 11 foreign fishing vessels and boarded four of them, gathering information on IUU fishing activity in the region.

The crew also conducted joint operations with a French Navy Falcon-200 aircraft to identify and intercept vessels on the high seas – an important symbolic step, given the recent diplomatic tensions between the United States and France over Indo-Pacific policy. The crew also conducted a fueling evolution with the Coast Guard Cutter Oliver Berry, another participant in Operation ‘Aiga.

The Juniper’s crew also carried out their everyday mission, servicing aids to navigation in Pago Pago Harbor and neighboring islands. In addition to normal buoy maintenance, the Juniper carried out the first Waterways Analysis and Management System Report for Pago Pago since 2003. This report uses the input of the harbor’s regular users to review existing aids and evaluate where new aids would be useful.

Juniper’s crew also put together a donation box for children in Pago Pago, including sporting equipment, books and toys for the Boys and Girls Club of American Samoa. “Despite COVID restrictions preventing an in-person event, it felt good to know that we made a difference,” said Ensign Elaine Weaver, the Juniper’s community relations officer.

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PUBLISHED OCT 11, 2021 4:58 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

California’s first at-sea, long-duration wave energy pilot is getting underway with a unique fully submerged technology. Developed by CalWave Power Technologies, the system was deployed on September 16 off the coast of San Diego and will be tested for six months with the goal of validating the performance and reliability of the system in the open ocean.

Operating fully submerged, CalWave believes its xWave architecture has unique capabilities that will contribute to the commercialization of wave energy technologies. The company says that its system achieves high performance while being able to control structural loads in rare but destructive storms on all parts of the system. Further, because it sits below the surface the system eliminates visual impact.

“CalWave’s long-duration deployment is a novel open water demonstration of a wave energy technology with active load management features,” said Jennifer Garson, Acting Director of the Department of Energy’s Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO). “WPTO is pleased to recognize this accomplishment as a major milestone for unlocking the potential of wave energy from our oceans and providing access to clean energy for the growing blue economy in the US.”

Wave energy devices work on the same principles as wind turbines or other hydro turbines the company explains. It’s a kinetic device that captures a renewable resource to produce electricity. Wave farms export power using the same electrical infrastructure as offshore wind farms. However, unlike conventional technologies that extract wave energy at the ocean surface, CalWave’s patented xWave architecture operates fully submerged at a range of different water depths and distances to shore. Its unique approach enables it to survive stormy seas and extreme conditions and allows for unique control of structural loads by eliminating excessive loads during storms.

“Wave power is the largest unused renewable resource and the third-largest after wind and solar globally,” says Marcus Lehmann, CEO and Co-Founder of CalWave. “Wave power can provide power at night and during wintertime where other renewables can’t, and so far it is completely unused.”

The Department of Energy recently published a study including an updated resource assessment and found that wave power can provide up to 30 percent of the 2019 energy consumption in the US. CalWave believes that the wave energy industry is at an inflection point has the potential to complement existing renewable energy forms to provide reliable power when no other renewables are available.

Utility-scale units can be co-located with offshore wind farms using the same electrical export infrastructure and achieve a significantly higher joint capacity factor due to the complementary production profile of wind and wave power. According to the company, the CalWave x1 is well suited for the needs of end-users of the blue economy with applications in offshore inspection, aquaculture, ocean science, and others that require access to power and data offshore.

Following the current demonstration, CalWave plans to prepare for the deployment of a larger unit at PacWave, the first commercial-scale, utility grid-connected wave energy test site in the US rated at 20 MW.

This project is supported by a US Department of Energy award. Partners including the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, DNV GL, and UC Berkeley have all collaborated with CalWave on the project.

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PUBLISHED OCT 10, 2021 5:21 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

A U.S. Navy engineer and his wife have been arrested on charges of attempting to sell some of America’s most valuable nuclear secrets to a foreign government.

Jonathan Toebbe, an employee of the Department of the Navy, served as a nuclear engineer and was assigned to the Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. He had access to so-called “Restricted Data,” a specific legal term for automatically-classified nuclear secrets.

On April 1, 2020, Toebbe allegedly sent a package to a foreign government containing a sample of restricted data about the reactor for the Virginia-class submarine, the U.S. Navy’s latest-generation attack sub program. The package contained an offer to sell additional information, along with detailed instructions for making contact via encrypted email.

Using undisclosed methods, the FBI received the package and set up a sting operation to catch Toebbe. An FBI agent began a correspondence with Toebbe, and over a period of several months, they allegedly negotiated an agreement on highly affordable terms. For less than the price of the average car, Toebbe allegedly agreed to sell some of America’s most valuable nuclear secrets to a foreign power – secrets that cost the Navy tens of billions of dollars and seven decades of R&D to refine.

On June 8, the FBI agent transferred $10,000 in cryptocurrency to Toebbe as a “good faith” advance payment. On June 26, Toebbe and his wife Diana traveled to a prearranged “dead drop” location in West Virginia. Together, they allegedly deposited half a peanut butter sandwich containing an SD card. The FBI agent retrieved the sandwich, extracted the SD card and sent Toebbe an additional $20,000 in cryptocurrency. In exchange, Toebbe allegedly sent back a decryption key for the contents of the SD card. After decrypting the card, the agent found that it contained restricted data related to submarine nuclear reactors.

The price for the next delivery went up slightly, though still below the six-figure mark. The agent made arrangements with Toebbe for a second SD card drop on August 28, this time at a location in eastern Virginia. A $70,000 payment allegedly purchased a decryption key, and once again the SD card allegedly contained restricted data on submarine systems. “Specifically, [a] U.S. Navy subject matter expert determined that the document contained schematic designs for the Virginia-class submarine,” prosecutors wrote in charging documents.

On the third scheduled drop, on October 9, the FBI swooped in and arrested the Toebbes. In total, Jonathan Toebbe allegedly sold the FBI several thousand pages of restricted data on submarine reactors. “The information was slowly and carefully collected over several years in the normal course of my job to avoid attracting attention and smuggled past security checkpoints a few pages at a time,” Toebbe allegedly wrote in his correspondence.

“The complaint charges a plot to transmit information relating to the design of our nuclear submarines to a foreign nation,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The work of the FBI, Department of Justice prosecutors, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Department of Energy was critical in thwarting the plot charged in the complaint and taking this first step in bringing the perpetrators to justice.”

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https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/u-s-navy-engineer-charged-with-selling-nuclear-sub-secrets

PUBLISHED OCT 11, 2021 6:24 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

In an effort to expand the availability of LNG marine bunkering along the U.S. Gulf Coast, Stabilis Solutions has entered into an agreement with the Port of Port Arthur, Texas to facility LNG at the port. This will be the fifth LNG marine bunkering location that Stabilis supports on the Gulf Coast.

Under the terms of the MOU, Stabilis and the Port of Port Arthur (POPA) will work together to provide turnkey LNG fueling solutions to marine vessels calling at the port. The two organizations will work together to identify suitable dock space for shore-to-ship fueling operations, obtaining the necessary permits and approvals, identifying, and educating potential customers, and executing LNG fueling events.

Stabilis will deploy its existing fleet of mobile cryogenic assets, including LNG transportation and distribution equipment, and provide LNG from its George West liquefaction facility to support LNG fueling operations. LNG bunkering services are expected to be available at the Port in early 2022.

“Port Arthur looks forward to working with Stabilis on this important development,” said Larry Kelley, Port Director and CEO of POPA. “The partnership with Stabilis will provide added sustainable options for fueling vessels on the Sabine Neches Waterway and another example of our commitment to our community. With significant daily vessel activity for the movement of energy and the products that support the global economy, it makes great sense to consider Port Arthur as a location for this initiative.”

Port Arthur’s port facilities are strategically located on the Gulf Coast near Beaumont, Texas with access to both the Gulf and the intercoastal waterways. The port currently features over 3,000 feet of docks and is currently working towards adding 1,000 feet with a new Terminal 6 project due for completion in 2023. The port is equipped to handle any type of breakbulk general cargo, including, forest products, iron and steel products, dry bulk cargoes, bagged and bailed goods, and military cargo. It also handles Ro-Ro traffic.

“The Port of Port Arthur is a world-class port serving the global shipping industry and we are excited about our partnership,” said Westy Ballard, President and CEO of Stabilis. “We see the ship-to-shore LNG fueling model as a key first step to attracting LNG powered vessel traffic to the Gulf Coast and is an exciting opportunity for Stabilis.”

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https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/stabilis-adds-lng-bunkering-capabilities-to-gulf-coast-at-port-arthur