Netherlands to boost Philippine shipping competitiveness

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April 29, 2019

The Netherlands has expressed its support to the Philippines to strengthen the global competitiveness of the country's shipping industry. This announcement came on the sidelines of the 20th Philippines – Netherlands Joint Committee on Maritime Affairs (JCMA) meeting in Manila, in March.

MARINA officer-in-charge Vice Admiral Narciso Vingson Jr. said the Netherlands has committed to give its technical expertise on building infrastructures that are necessary for the implementation of MARINA's 10-year maritime industry development plan (MIDP).

The MIDP intends to attain a nationally-integrated and globally-competitive maritime industry in the Philippines by 2028 through the development, improvement and expansion of domestic shipping routes, tourist destination areas and coastal and inland waterways, and the enhancement of enabling policies and institutions.

Namely, the objectives of the plan include:

increasing domestic production capacity in ship-building and ship repair based on global and domestic demand for shipping, fishing, and maritime tourism;
development and implementation of best practices in maritime safety and security;
upgrading of higher maritime education and training programs that are compliant with international standards.

MARINA has allocated around PHP 94,57 billion (=USD 1,806 billion) within the next 10 years for the implementation of the following programs under the MIDP:

upgrading of domestic shipping in support of the nautical highway development;
development of shipping services for maritime tourism;
development of coastal inland and waterways transport system;
strengthening of safety operations of registered fishing vessels;
development of a global maritime hub;
modernization of maritime security and establishment of a maritime innovation and knowledge center.

The Philippines and Netherlands agreed to maintain an open line of communication to receive important reports on the country’s maritime industry until the 21st JCMA meeting in March 2020.

The Philippines-Netherlands JCMA was organized in 1999 to support high-level bilateral consultations on maritime affairs to strengthen maritime relations between the two countries.

Source:safety4sea

Maersk now offering digital ocean customs clearance

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April 29, 2019

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Maersk has launched an industry-first customs clearance online shipping management platform in seven European countries – Germany, France, Denmark, The Netherlands, Poland, United Kingdom and Spain – with the goal of expanding this offering across the world by the end of 2019.

“This new one-stop-shop allows us to timely and efficiently handle export and import declarations for our customers. The solution provides downstream benefits of full governance and compliance, eliminates the need to provide a quote as pricing is displayed online, saving three to five minutes per quote,” commented Vincent Clerc, chief commercial officer of A.P. Moller – Maersk.

In other words, it saves our customers time, money and headaches reducing the number of intermediaries they deal with from three or four to just one as well as paperwork which subsequently reduce the time spent on transactional procedures. Time saved they can then devote to grow their businesses.

Source:splash247

China Merchants takes over AVIC Weihai Shipyard

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April 29, 2019

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AVIC International Holdings has entered into an agreement with China Merchants Offshore Engineering Investment to transfer its entire 69.77% equity interest in AVIC Weihai Shipyard and the shipyard’s shareholders loan to the latter for a total amount of RMB620m ($92m).

According to AVIC International, AVIC Weihai Shipyard continues to suffer losses and its equity interests of shareholders have become net liabilities as at the end of 2018, which has brought tremendous pressure on the operations of the group. It has also lost its external financing ability and has to rely on loans from the shareholders to sustain itself.

The shipyard suffered a net loss of RMB471m in 2018 and net liabilities of the shipyard amount to RMB1.088bn.

China Merchants has been restructuring its shipyard assets, having integrated two ex-Sinotrans yards, Jinling Shipyard and Jiangdong Shipyard, into China Merchants Heavy Industry earlier this year. Last year, China Merchants also acquired Zhejiang Eastern Shipyard and integrated the yard into Yiu Lian Dockyard. It is now the fourth largest shipbuilding group in China following CSSC, CSIC, and Cosco Shipping Heavy Industry.

Currently AVIC Weihai has eight passenger roro ships on its orderbook while AVIC Dingheng has 22 ships on order, all of which are small clean tankers.

Source:splash247

Carnival Corporation’s AIDAnova first ship to be supplied with LNG in Mediterranean

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April 29, 2019

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Carnival Corporation & plc, the world's largest leisure travel company, its Germany-based AIDA Cruises brand and numerous representatives from politics, port-related businesses and tourism on April 26 celebrated the first-time arrival of the world's first cruise ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Barcelona.

Upon arrival in Europe's biggest cruise port, AIDAnova – the newest vessel from AIDA Cruises, Germany's leader in cruising – was fueled for the first time in the Mediterranean with LNG, the world's cleanest burning fossil fuel. Currently, alongside Palma de Mallorca, Barcelona is the second start-and- end destination for AIDAnova's seven-day cruises in the Mediterranean. With Carnival Corporation's partnership with Shell Western LNG B.V. (Shell), the cruise ship will be regularly supplied with LNG at the Spanish metropolis.

Commissioned on Dec. 12, 2008, with four dual-fuel engines and three gas tanks on board, AIDAnova is the world's first cruise ship that will be operated in port and at sea with low-emission liquefied natural gas. Emissions of particulate matter and sulfur oxides are eliminated almost completely, while nitrogen oxides and carbon dioxide emissions are sustainably reduced. Two of the tanks each have a length of around 35 meters, a diameter of 8 meters and a capacity of 1,550 cubic meters. A third, smaller tank with a diameter of 5 meters, is 28 meters long and has a capacity of approximately 520 cubic meters.

It has been over 10 years since Carnival Corporation and AIDA Cruises started investing in LNG propulsion technology. Two additional ships of this new AIDA generation will join the AIDA fleet in 2021 and 2023. Carnival Corporation leads the industry with the adoption of LNG, with a total of 10 next-generation "green" cruise ships able to be powered by LNG in port and at sea on order with delivery dates between 2019 and 2025.

Highlights onboard AIDAnova, which marks an exciting new generation of ships for AIDA Cruises, include new culinary and entertainment offerings such as the Time Machine Restaurant, a street food mile with culinary treats and a floating TV studio. Guests can also enjoy the popular 360-degree Theatrium, the Four Elements adventure deck, complete with three water slides and a climbing garden under the dome of a retractable glass roof and the Beach Club for relaxing on board. AIDAnova also features a 3,500-square meter large wellness area, an outdoor fitness studio, a penthouse suite with two decks, individual staterooms, 17 restaurants and 23 bars.

Until the beginning of November 2019, AIDAnova will be sailing seven-day cruises, calling at some of the Germans' most popular travel destinations in the Mediterranean – Civitavecchia (Rome), La Spezia (Florence), Marseille and Barcelona.

Source:portnews

Ocean governance is an important issue rising in shipping industry

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April 29, 2019

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The Inaugural World Congress on Maritime Heritage, that was conducted on March 13-15, addressed current issues concerning ocean governance mechanisms, both from how the oceans have been used as a pathway to project governance systems on land, and as well as governing the oceans themselves. The Congress discussed the important role of the shipping industry in the world, the oceans and sustainability.

Mainly, for many years now, people have created means to facilitate trade through the ocean, to use its resources and govern the conduct of nations on the vast waters. Therefore, the Governance of these valuable resources has become increasingly important for trade as well as to meet geopolitical interests.

As Frederick Kenney, Director of Legal Affairs and External Relations at the International Maritime Organization commented…"Today, the need for all people to have a greater understanding of the oceans; their impact on the global economy and everyday lives, and how to govern the oceans in a sustainable manner has never been greater."

Therefore, in order to establish Sustainable Development Goal 14 of the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda – Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development, it is crucial to carefully consider the ocean governance mechanisms in place.

The Congress was attended by IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim, while Former Secretary-General Koji Sekimizu opened the Congress.

In the meantime, additional matters that were discussed during the conference, were how the ocean is a pathway to commerce and the global economy, a sustainable future, and cultural diversity.

Whereas, additional features include 'Why we must explore the past to navigate the future', undersea commerce, tourism and maritime heritage in the global context, and regional breakout opportunities.

Concluding, the Congress was organised by the Consortium for International Maritime Heritage and Resorts World Sentosa with support from the IMO, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), International Congress of Maritime Museums (ICMM), Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), and North American Marine Environment Protection Association (NAMEPA).

Source:safety4sea

Singapore suspends Southernpec bunker craft licence over mass flow meter tampering

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April 29, 2019

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The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has temporarily suspended the bunker craft operator licence of Southernpec (Singapore) effective 25 April until further notice due to the use of magnets on its bunker tanker to tamper with the accuracy of mass flow meter.

The suspension came about after a MPA enforcement check on the 4,710-dwt bunker tanker Southernpec 7 operated by Southernpec. During the period of licence suspension, Southernpec is not allowed to operate as a bunker craft operator in Singapore port.

“Following feedback from our regular industry engagements, MPA has stepped up enforcement checks since April 2019. Arising from these checks, MPA is investigating the bunker craft operator and supplier, Southernpec (Singapore) Pte Ltd, for using a magnet to tamper with the MFM of its bunker tanker, Southernpec 7, during a bunkering operation. Based on our current findings, MPA has suspended the bunker craft operator licence of Southernpec. MPA has also suspended the bunker tanker, Southernpec 7, from conducting bunkering operations in port,” MPA stated.

“MPA is working with the Singapore Shipping Association (SSA) to raise awareness of MPA’s hotline for bunker malpractice. We are working with various industry stakeholders to curb the use of magnets on MFM,” the port authority added.

Southernpec, meanwhile, maintains the use of its bunker supplier licence in Singapore.

Recently, reports on use of magnets have surfaced in the Singapore bunkering market. This malpractice involves the use of powerful magnets to disrupt MFM meter readings, thereby potentially influencing the volume of supplied bunkers in favour of the supplier.

In addition to potentially influencing the delivered stem volume, the MFM exposed to the magnetic field could lead to permanent errors on the meter’s readings such that the sensor could read flow when no flow is present or vice versa.

Singapore port is the first in the world to mandatorily enforce the use of MFM during all bunkering operations within port limits. The compulsory use of MFM is implemented to stem out malpractices of short delivery of fuels as well as to offer greater operational transparency and efficiency.

Singapore is the world’s largest bunkering port selling close to 50m metric tonnes of bunker fuel in 2018.

Port of Rotterdam Deploys Blockchain for Green Power

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April 29, 2019

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The Port of Rotterdam's blockchain incubator, BlockLab, is beginning to launch its first applications, according to the seaport.

In a network without central leadership, trust is often lacking, but it is needed for large-scale data sharing that can simplify and accelerate business processes. Blockchain provides that trust because transaction data is recorded in a secure way on a huge number of computers.

"Blockchain is certainly not the solution to everything, but it can tackle the problem of trust that stands in the way of solutions," said Aljosja Beije, logistics lead at BlockLab.

Facilitating green power

Two use cases in Rotterdam could benefit from blockchain-enabled solutions, according to the port. The first is the electrical grid, which is supplied by a few dominant power suppliers with coal-powered plants. In and around the port there are now numerous wind turbines and solar panels supplying power to the grid, resulting in an increasingly decentralized network.

A decentralized grid faces a number of significant challenges. The supply of sustainable energy sources is extremely irregular, and it requires a smart network that continuously aligns supply with demand. "Blockchain is the technology that can facilitate such a smart, decentralised gird and help achieve the promise of the energy transition," said Janjoost Jullens, BlockLab energy lead. "The focus on blockchain is an offensive strategy, geared towards increasing the share of sustainable energy."

To help out, Jullens' team is working on an application to trade price incentives to use energy efficiently. "With blockchain we can design such a trading platform safely and efficiently. Moreover, we can automate the trade by establishing ‘smart contracts’ . . . a collection of logical rules that enables decision-making processes to be automated. For instance, the option of using energy automatically from a charged battery if the energy price exceeds a certain value," he says.

The application is ready to go, and testing at the port will begin this year.

Improving logistics efficiency

According to the port, an average of 28 parties are involved in a containerized freight transaction, and they have to exchange data about 200 times in order to ensure that a container reaches its destination.

"For existing parties in decentralized networks, cooperation is the only option they have to improve their efficiency," said Beije. "In this network, deploying blockchain is much more of a defensive strategy, focusing on retaining market share."

BlockLab's contribution to this problem is a blockchain application that securely tracks the ownership and location of a cargo shipment's bill of lading. "We can play the role of civil-law notary, but also prove that there is just one copy of a document and from which source that document originates. As civil-law notary we ensure validated and thus reliable data. This creates unparalleled opportunities for automation and transactions and even new business models," said Beije.

Source:maritime-executive

One Killed in Harbor Crane Fire in Kolkata

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April 29, 2019

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One worker was killed Saturday after jumping off a burning harbor crane at the port of Haldia, a dock complex downstream from Kolkata. He sustained serious injuries in the fall and died later at a hospital.

The crane's operator, identified as Dravin Rai, 28, was using a large mobile harbor crane to unload coal from a bulker at Haldia's Berth 13. A fire broke out on the crane, and to escape it, Rai leapt from the top of the crane's counterweights onto the dock. Some of his coworkers held out a net to try to catch him, according to eyewitnesses, but the effort did not succeed. The distance of the fall was estimated at about 50 feet. Bystander video captured the scene.

“We are yet to trace the cause of fire. We have shut down all operations at the berth and an investigation has started,” the general manager of Haldia Port told Hindustan Times.

According to The Telegraph India, eyewitnesses reported that the fire started during refueling of the crane.

Berth 13 is operated by a subsidiary of a Kolkata-based company. In 2016, the firm acquired two 100-ton cranes like the model shown in bystander video for an undisclosed price.

Source:maritime-executive

IMO 2020: Total Plans NY Event

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April 27, 2019

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As the IMO 2020 Global Sulfur Cap draws nearer, confusion among shipowners remains. To help inform, experts from Total Lubmarine and Total Marine Fuels Global Solutions (TMFGS) are embarked on a global conference tour, with the next event coming soon to New York City on board the USS Intrepid, which now serves as a museum and a coveted event space.

Following a series of successful events in Europe during March, Total Lubmarine and Total Marine Fuels Global Solutions (TMFGS) will be visiting industry professionals in the U.S. on May 9 to discuss how Total is meeting the challenge of next year’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) imposed Sulfur Cap regulation.

With the IMO 2020 Global Sulfur Cap deadline fast approaching, shipowners and operators are currently in the process of finalizing their compliance strategies. While Total is a provider of marine fuels and lubricants, it is also a customer. As a shipowner, operator and charterer, Total understands its customer’s perspectives and is therefore able to offer them support tailored to individual needs.

To this end, Total Lubmarine and Total Marine Fuels Global Solutions, in addition to the refining, trading, shipping and LNG divisions of Total, have come together as part of the “One Total” initiative to deliver a series of global forums. These forums will provide a holistic overview of the full-spectrum of products, services and solutions that Total can deliver. "

The New York forum on May 9 will examine the Sulfur Cap regulation and the challenges it poses, before presenting the solutions Total is providing to ensure customers experience an efficient transition in 2020 and beyond.

Speaking on the forum, Serge Dal Farra, Marketing Director, Total Lubmarine, said he looked forward to the event, but stressed the importance of audience participation, commenting:

“While experts from Total will be leading conversation on the key challenges of the IMO 2020 Sulfur Cap and the subsequent solutions Total provides, the forum is designed to facilitate a two-way conversation. We want to provide a space where members of the audience are able to ask questions to our experts.”

The forum will be held aboard USS Intrepid. While now a museum, Intrepid spent three decades in service to the US Navy, playing an important role in World War II, the Cold War and the Space Race. Decommissioned in 1974, Intrepid was saved from the scrapyard and reopened as the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in 1982, becoming a National Historic Landmark in 1986.

Following the forum, attendees will have the chance to explore the vessel, including an opportunity to experience a special space pavilion tour to commemorate the 50 year moon landing anniversary. In addition to this, there will be a drinks reception, providing those present with the chance to discuss the key takeaways from the forum and to network with their industry peers.

Total invites those interested in attending its New York, or subsequent forums across Asia, Nice and Dubai, to register:
https://ms-globalcap2020.events.total.com/registration/index

Centaurus takes up starring role

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April 27, 2019

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Acta Marine has taken delivery from Ulstein Verft of a new walk-to-work vessel called Acta Centaurus.

Acta Centaurus has a 1000-square-metre cargo area, with a container skidding system and space for 24 containers.

It also has a helideck, an SMST motion compensated gangway and integrated elevator tower to provide safe and stepless transfers of people and cargo in wave heights of up to three metres.

SMST also provided a 3D motion compensated knuckle boom crane which can handle six-tonne cargo in sea conditions up to Hs 2.5 metres.

The vessel can accommodate up 120 people, and also includes office and work spaces.

Acta Marine managing director Rob Boer said: “Building on experience with our first Ulstein walk-to-work construction support vessel Acta Auriga delivered to us last year, we are highly confident that Acta Centaurus will be very well suited to operate in the offshore, and specifically the renewable market."

We will now get ready to bring her out to the offshore wind farm to commence work.

Ulstein Verft managing director Kristian Sætre said: “We know how important it is to get a vessel completed on time. This has been achieved through good cooperation between Acta Marine and Ulstein on all levels."

We feel certain that the Acta Centaurus will be a good work platform for the owner and their clients.

Source:renews