Stena Line today announced the latest addition to their Baltic Sea fleet. The 186 metre long Visentini RoPax vessel Stena Livia will initially join sister vessel Stena Flavia on the Nynäshamn-Ventspils route from mid-April. Later this year the pair will replace the existing tonnage on the ferry route between Travemünde and Liepaja, adding 40 per cent freight capacity and shorten the crossing time substantially.

During 2021 Stena Line is expanding their Baltic Sea operations with modern and large RoPax vessels being added to the two ferry routes from Latvia to Sweden and Germany. The routes, Nynäshamn-Ventspils and Travemünde-Liepaja, was acquired by Stena Line in 2012, and is today an important part of the European logistics network, connecting the Baltics, Russia and CIS countries with Germany and Sweden as well as the rest of Europe.

“We have seen an increase in demand from our customers across the Baltic Sea region. We are now strengthening our position and customer offer further with new modern vessels, more capacity and an attractive onboard experience on both our routes to and from Latvia during 2021. I am happy to welcome Stena Livia to the Baltic Sea fleet, says Johan Edelman, Trade Director Baltic Sea North.

Stena Livia was built in 2008 at the Cantieri Navale Visentini shipyard in Italy and is a modern large RoPax vessel with capacity of 750 passengers, 200 cars and/or 115 trailers. The vessel has earlier sailed under the names of Étretat and Norman Voyager.

Stena Livia will initially join sister vessel Stena Flavia on the Nynäshamn-Ventspils route from mid-April, replacing the chartered vessel Scottish Viking that is being returned to its owner. Later during the year the two large and modern RoPax vessels Stena Scandica and Stena Baltica will start operating on the Nynäshamn-Ventspils route, adding 30 % freight capacity to the route.

Adding 40 % capacity on Travemünde-Liepaja

Stena Line earlier announced that the ferry company will replace the existing vessels Stena Gothica and Urd on the Travemünde-Liepaja route in 2021. The ferry company can now confirm that it is the two vessels Stena Livia and Stena Flavia that will move to the Travemünde-Liepaja route during the year. The new modern vessel will increase the freight capacity on the route by 40 % and shorten the crossing time from 27 to 20 hours. This will enable a reliable transport service with a fixed timetable with 12 weekly departures, six in each direction. The new vessels will also offer improved onboard facilities and increase the number of cabins, making the route an attractive choice for transport and travel between the Baltic countries and Germany.

Stena Line has not yet announced the exact timing for the tonnage changes on the two Baltic Sea routes or disclosed any further plans for the two vessels Stena Gothica and Urd.

Source: seanews

LAUNCESTON, Australia, April 9 (Reuters) – China is paying a high price for its unofficial ban on coal imports from Australia, with the cost of domestic and alternative foreign supplies rising for both thermal and coking grades of the fuel.

China, the world’s biggest importer, producer and consumer of coal, has effectively ended imports from Australia, the biggest shipper of coking coal used to make steel and number two in thermal coal used to produce electricity, as part of an ongoing political dispute between the two nations.

The restrictions on imports from Australia came into effect in the second half of last year, resulting in China’s imports dropping to virtually zero in the first two months of this year from a 2020 high of 9.46 million tonnes in June, according to Refinitiv vessel-tracking and port data.

However, China’s consumers of imported coal have been facing higher costs, with prices for alternatives to supplies from Australia, both local and foreign, rising as the market adjusts to the unofficial ban.

In coking coal, the price of free-on-board Australian cargoes has been weakening since the ban was imposed, apart from the usual seasonal gain for the northern hemisphere winter.

The Singapore Exchange contract for Australian coking coal ended at $113.71 a tonne on Thursday, down 18.8% from the $140 that it reached at the start of October, just as the Chinese ban was coming into effect.

If a Chinese importer switched from Australian cargoes to those from the United States, the price difference has entirely reversed since the ban started to affect flows.

Coking coal free-on-board at the U.S. east coast port of Hampton Roads, as assessed by commodity price reporting agency Argus, has surged to $152.75 on Thursday from $114 a tonne at the start of October last year, a gain of 34%.

This means that U.S. coking coal is currently about $39 a tonne more expensive that supplies from Australia, and this doesn’t account for the higher shipping costs given the longer distance from the U.S. east coast to China.

China’s domestic coking coal price has also been gaining since the restrictions on imports from Australia, with Dalian Commodity Exchange futures rising 16% from 1,353 yuan ($206.56) a tonne at the start of October to end at 1,573 yuan on Thursday.

This price isn’t directly comparable to the free-on-board prices in Australia and the United States, as it includes freight and other costs as well as import taxes and duties.

However, it does show that Chinese domestic prices have been pushed higher, partially reflecting the higher cost of imports from sources other than Australia.

China’s neighbour Mongolia has become its biggest supplier of coking coal, meeting 61.7% of imports in the first two months of this year, up from just 17.7% in the same period in 2020, according to official data.

Australia’s share of imports came down to zero from 68.4% in January-February 2020, according to the data, while the United States boosted its share to 9.1% from under 2%, and Canada went to 12.1% from 6.1%.

While coking coal supplies from Mongolia are cheaper than those from seaborne alternatives, it’s believed that they tend to track Chinese domestic prices, meaning it’s likely that they have risen sharply as well, especially once transportation and washing costs are factored in.

Source: gcaptain

The Fijian shipping company that’s under investigation over the alleged mistreatment of foreign workers claims it has had to cancelled ferry routes because of new manning requirements.

Goundar Shipping announced on its Facebook page this week that it has cancelled two ferry routes because the Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji had issued new manning rules.

But in its first public comments on the issues surrounding Goundar, MSAF said it “had not issued any new manning requirements as claimed by Goundar Shipping”.

“The Fijian maritime law is clear and it states that it is the ship owner and master’s responsibility to ensure that ships are properly manned at all times,” MSAF said in a statement.

“The Authority is only requiring the minimum safe manning requirements that needs to be met by operators”.

The cancellations come while Fijian police, immigration and human rights authorities investigate allegations Goundar sacked Filipino crew members and left them stranded in the country without the means to return home after they raised concerns over their pay and working conditions.

Source: abc

As part of COVID-19 safety measures, the US has introduced new safety requirements in the maritime transportation system. This requires all persons, including crew members on board ships trading in the territorial and inland waters of the US, to wear a face mark while boarding, disembarking and for the duration of the travel, according to BIMCO’s release.

As part of the new safety requirements, crew members and port facility personnel may be exempt from wearing a mask only when actively performing a task that would create a health or safety risk if performed wearing a mask, and should immediately wear a mask when the task is complete. This exemption does not apply to passengers.

On 21 January, the US President issued an executive order on promoting COVID-19 safety in Domestic and International Travel, which required wearing of masks on certain domestic modes of transportation. This order requires masks to be worn on all “public maritime vessels, including ferries”.

Following this order, the Centre of disease control and prevention (CDC) issued an order that requires wearing of masks by all persons while boarding, disembarking, and for the duration of travel on commercial ships. It also requires operators of all transport hubs to ensure that all persons wear a mask when entering, or on the premises of the transportation hub.

This requirement applies to both passengers and crew working on ships that trade in the territorial and inland waters of the US.

The CDC Mask Order exempts the following categories of persons:
A child under the age of two years.
A person with a disability who cannot wear a mask, or cannot safely wear a mask, because of the disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.).
A person for whom wearing a mask would create a risk to workplace health, safety, or job duty as determined by the relevant workplace safety guidelines or federal regulations.

Vessel or facility operators, owners, or companies should provide clear guidance as to when wearing a mask would create a risk to workplace, health, safety or job duty for crew members and facility personnel. The company guidance should address specific tasks that cannot be accomplished safely while wearing a mask. A blanket policy cannot be issued to exempt all persons from wearing a mask at all times. Crew members and facility personnel may be exempt from wearing a mask only when actively performing the task and should immediately wear a mask when the task is complete. Since passengers should refrain from instances where wearing a mask may present a risk, this exemption does not extend to passengers.

USCG has issued Maritime safety information bulletin 02-21 and 02-21 CH-1 on this topic.

The requirement to wear a mask shall not apply under the following circumstances:
While eating, drinking, or taking medication, for brief periods.
While communicating with a person who is hearing impaired when the ability to see the mouth is essential for communication.

If, unconscious (for reasons other than sleeping), incapacitated, unable to be awakened, or otherwise unable to remove the mask without assistance, experiencing difficulty breathing or shortness of breath or feeling winded may temporarily remove the mask until able to resume normal breathing with the mask. Vomiting or other illness may also require removal of the mask. Other medical conditions and equipment may interfere with the ability to wear a mask.

When necessary to temporarily remove the mask to verify one’s identity such as during Transportation Security Administration screening or when asked to do so by a ticket or gate agent or any law enforcement official.

Operators of vessels and seaports that fail to implement appropriate public health measures, including the mask wearing order above, may be subject to civil or criminal penalties.

Source: en.portnews

In the darkness, a pilot boarded a passenger ship to assume the con through a restricted waterway. The pilot discussed the speed and rate of turn (ROT) required with the OOW. When the Master arrived on the bridge the three conducted their information exchange and agreed on the passage plan for the transit. The vessel’s speed was increased to 12 knots, and the pilot took the con.

About 14 minutes after assuming the con, the pilot ordered a turn to port into the restricted waterway. A 2° ROT to port was ordered to begin. In the following, two and a half minutes the pilot ordered successive increases in the ROT through 5°, 10°, 15° and 20° to port. The vessel was by now well to the south of the intended course. The pilot, realising this, ordered a 30° degree ROT to port.

At this point, the OOW became aware that the vessel was close to the shore. He moved to the starboard bridge wing and looked aft to see if the stern of the vessel was clearing the shoreline.

Source: marineinsight

The Philippine Coast Guard responded to the scene of a collision between a product tanker and a dry bulk carrier in Manila Bay overnight. Both vessels sustained damage but remained seaworthy and are now being detained while an investigation is ongoing into the circumstances of the accident.

According to the reports from the PCG, the two vessels made contact approximately three nautical miles from Cavite City in Manila Bay at approximately 9:50 p.m. local time on Wednesday, April 7. Weather and sea conditions appeared to be calm at the time. The Coast Guard responded deploying personnel from the Coast Guard Station Manila, as well as the Special Operations Group, and Marine Environmental Protection Unit to ensure the safety of the crew and to gather additional information regarding the collision.

Source: maritime-executive

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) said vessels should be easily accessible from docksides to prevent seafarers from injury or death after falling into the sea.

MAIB investigators also recommended tug operators conduct regular man-overboard drills to ensure crew work effectively to recover seafarers that have fallen. These warnings and recommendations come from the MAIB’s accident investigations involving tugs in the last three years which includes the death of a tug chief engineer who fell from a fender while attempting to return to a vessel following unmooring operations. In another accident, a seafarer fell between an aggregate barge and a quayside, but was recovered from the sea without major injury.

“In many similar incidents, including a number investigated by the MAIB, people have been killed or seriously injured,” said the MAIB. “When berthing or unberthing, shore-based linesmen should be employed,” it recommended. “Access to and from an unmoored vessel is a very dangerous activity, and should be avoided.”

However, if shore-based linesmen are not available and crew need to conduct line operations, there are procedures to follow – which do not include jumping over distances and taking unsafe risks.

“Jumping any distance to get ashore or onto another vessel is extremely dangerous, even more so when the landing surface is slippery,” said the MAIB. “Stepping across a small gap may be acceptable provided the vessel is stopped and held alongside securely, but the crossing should be level.”

In his safety digest introduction, MAIB chief inspector of marine accidents Andrew Moll said these are common accidents that can be avoided. “We have seen accidents many times before involving unsafe access,” he said. “As mariners we take pride in our ability to get the job done, but many of the accidents reported here could have been avoided had those involved taken a little more time to assess the risks before getting on with the job. Doing your job should not involve putting yourself in danger.”

Quayside infrastructure, such as ladders and gangways would make access to workboats, barges and tugs easier and safer to access.

Guidance on safe access ashore is given in MGN 591 (M+F) and the Code of Safe Working Practices for Merchant Seafarers (COSWP).

In addition, “all methods of access to vessels must be robustly risk assessed,” said the MAIB, “and it is the owners’ and masters’ responsibility to ensure that safe access is provided, and used correctly, every time.”

Accident investigators warned vessel operators not to allow unsafe access methods to become normal practice. “Just because something has become normal practice does not make it safe. If you think something is unsafe, speak up,” the MAIB said.

But if an accident does happen, having a well-drilled crew can be the difference between life and death.

Source: rivieramm

Iran released on Friday a South Korean ship and its captain detained since January after South Korea promised to try to secure the release of Iranian funds frozen in South Korean banks under U.S. sanctions, a South Korean official said.

The Iranian foreign ministry said the chemical tanker, Hankuk Chemi, was released after an investigation into environmental pollution, and at the request of the South Korean government and its owner, state news agency IRNA reported.

The seizure of the tanker in the Strait of Hormuz off Oman in January had triggered a diplomatic dispute after Iran demanded that South Korea release $7 billion in funds frozen in South Korean banks under U.S. sanctions.

The IRNA report made no mention of the frozen funds, but other Iranian media quoted an unnamed Iranian official as saying Korean officials had given assurances that “they are trying to solve the problem and to strengthen ties.”

The South Korean ministry said in a statement the ship had left Iran after completing administrative procedures. It made no mention of the demand for the release of funds.

“The captain and sailors are in good health,” the ministry said.

A South Korean foreign ministry official told reporters that both sides had agreed the ship and the funds were not related issues and South Korea promised to help get the money released.

“We have expressed our firm willingness to resolve the fund issue,” said the official, who declined to be identified.

Iranian authorities had accused the tanker of polluting the waters with chemicals, a charge denied by South Korea. The South Korean official said Iran dropped a plan to pursue seek criminal charges against the shipping company.

“Iran, with long coastlines in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, stresses full compliance with maritime regulations, including environmental protection, and monitors every violation in this respect,” said Saeed Khatibzadeh, a foreign ministry spokesman quoted by IRNA.

Iran agreed to free all of the ship’s 20 crew members except for the captain in February, after a South Korean vice foreign minister visited Tehran.

Iran has denied allegations that the seizure of the tanker and its crew constituted hostage-taking, saying it was South Korea that was holding Iranian funds hostage.

The freezing of the funds is linked to U.S. sanctions that Washington reimposed on Tehran in 2018 after then-President Donald Trump withdrew from Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

Under the Biden administration, the United States and Iran have begun indirect talks over a return to the accord.

The United States has recently agreed to allow Iran to use the funds for non-military purposes and it has spent some on coronavirus vaccines secured via the global COVAX initiative, the ministry official said, without giving a precise amount.

Source: marinelink

SAFEVUE.ai provides assurance of safety and compliance by promoting positive crew behaviour change. The system’s near real-time safety operations monitoring capabilities, integrated permits to work management and crew wellbeing solution provides a more holistic approach to improving safety outcomes and “human reliability”. In addition, the standardisation of best practices can increase operational excellence fleetwide, saving approximately 4,600+^[1] man hours per vessel annually.

“We are pleased to be given the opportunity to partner with Eaglestar to meet the maritime industry’s ever-increasing demands for operational excellence, crew wellbeing, safety and compliance assurance. Today, 2 out of every 3 incidents and accidents in the maritime industry can be attributed to human factors. A paradigm shift is required to materially improve health and safety outcomes.”

“At SOL-X, we are pioneering Behavioural Based Safety 4.0. Our approach to enhancing the control of work with near real-time line-of-sight, improving crew situational awareness and wellbeing is unique to the market. As a result, our customers have experienced increased crew productivity, improved safety culture, and business competitiveness.” said Nigel Koh, SOL-X chief executive officer.

Managing director and CEO of Eaglestar, Captain Raja Sager, said: “We are proud to deploy SAFEVUE.ai across our managed fleet of over 67 vessels. Technology combined with the right expertise in the industry of ship management is pivotal in marking a new benchmark especially in the way we advance ourselves digitally. We are also confident that SAFEVUE.ai can further heighten crew operational excellence with an integrated solution centred around human factors.”

Number is approximate and may differ depending on customer’s current practices. Based on data collected from customer usage of SAFEVUE.ai.

Source: thedigitalship

Nasdaq-listed Greek owner Castor Maritime has entered into an agreement to purchase 2011 Japanese-built panamax dry bulk carrier Xi Jiang Yue from Hong Kong’s Ocean Broaden Shipping for a purchase price of $18.48m.

Delivery of the 74,900 dwt vessel should take place in Q2 2021.

Petros Panagiotidis, CEO of Castor, said: “We are pleased to announce our ninth vessel acquisition in 2021 with the addition of another Panamax dry bulk vessel to Castor’s fleet. Our focus remains on deploying our capital and growing our fleet through timely acquisitions of vessels across shipping segments.”

On a fully delivered basis, Castor Maritime will have a fleet of 15 vessels consisting of 1 capesize, 5 kamsarmax and 7 panamax dry bulk vessels and 2 aframax LR2 tankers.

Source: splash247