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U.S. Gives Ukraine Two Cutters as Kerch Strait Tensions Grow

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The U.S. Coast Guard is preparing to transfer two Island-class cutters, the Drummond and the Cushing, to the Ukrainian government. In a sign of its significance for Kiev, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will be present at the transfer ceremony Thursday. The agreement comes in the context of broader American military assistance to Ukraine and the growing tensions between Ukrainian and Russian forces in the Sea of Azov.

When Russia seized the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, the United States responded with sanctions against Russia's energy industry and began to provide assistance to the Ukrainian military. This aid initially centered on training and non-lethal equipment for field operations, like UAVs, night vision goggles and light armored cars. Beginning this year it has also included weaponry, notably the sale and transfer of hundreds of Javelin anti-tank missiles for Kiev's ongoing battle with pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine.  

The Island-class U.S. Coast Guard cutters are lightly armed, with one 25mm deck gun and two .50-caliber machine guns. They are in post-retirement service with multiple militaries and law enforcement agencies, and are being replaced in U.S. Coast Guard service by the new Fast Response Cutter series. 

Maritime tensions between Ukraine and Russia

In May, Russian contractors completed a new bridge over the Kerch Strait, the narrow waterway separating Crimea from contiguous Russian territory. Its completion was followed closely by the imposition of new restrictions on Ukrainian shipping through the Strait, which connects Ukrainian ports on the Sea of Azov with the Black Sea. 

According to the U.S. State Department, Russian border patrol authorities have detained hundreds of passing merchant vessels – some on multiple occasions, and some for several days – since the bridge's highway span was completed in May. "Russia’s actions to impede maritime transit are further examples of its ongoing campaign to undermine and destabilize Ukraine, as well as its disregard for international norms," said U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert in a statement in late August. 

On Sunday, Ukraine sent two naval auxiliaries – one SAR vessel and one tug – through the Kerch Strait, according to Ukrainian media. The two vessels were bound for Berdyansk, a port on the Sea of Azov. Ukraine's Navy hopes to relocate its second-largest naval base to a new facility at Berdyansk and maintain a permanent flotilla north of the Kerch Strait. 

Source:maritime-executive

Maritime’s Journey to Digital

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The maritime industry has usually been slower when it comes to transformation. However in recent years, the digitalisation and automation of its supply chain has significantly changed shipping from the inside. Disruptive technologies are expected to take centre stage even more in the coming years to make improvements on issues of capacity, data integrity, connectivity and standardisation. For example, only last month Maersk and IBM introduced their global blockchain solution TradeLens with 94 organisations participating.

Big changes with big data and AI

Big data and artificial intelligence (AI) have become buzzwords due to their increasing applicability in improving vessel logistics and operations. They have the potential to transform challenges into opportunities by reducing risks, with companies like Microsoft or Google already working alongside maritime start-ups. Dr. Theodosis Mourouzis, cryptologist and information security professional, looks at where big data has made the biggest impact: 

“There are plenty of applications of Big Data in the shipping industry. Examples are voyage planning, energy consumption optimisation, fuel optimisations, operations efficiency, predictive maintenance etc. All such examples rely on collecting good quality data and there being sufficient knowledge to process and analyse this to derive patterns/insights.” 

Safeguarding tomorrow’s maritime organisations

The more machine learning, AI, or analytics evolve, the more security issues become critical. In fact, global spend on maritime cybersecurity is expected to rise to $1.7 billion by 2023, according to Safety4Sea. 

Chronis Kapalidis is the course tutor for Lloyd’s Maritime Academy, and previously was Lieutenant Commander in the Hellenic Navy, where he specialised in IT infrastructure, operations and intelligence analysis. He emphasises why organisations should take the lead in establishing a cyber culture: 

The biggest challenge for shipping regarding cybersecurity is raising awareness on the threats the cyber environment can introduce to the sector. Since it is becoming apparent that cybersecurity is no longer solely an IT issue, the challenge to change behaviours of staff and crew in the entire organisation is of the utmost importance. CEOs, members of the Board of Directors, staff in operations, crewing, finance, and administration, as well as crew on board ships should all understand the new threat and be motivated to develop a new cyber culture, as the industry has successfully achieved over the years for safety and security. This way what is known as ‘cyber hygiene’ will be achieved, and companies will minimise the risk of suffering from a cyber breach.

"Here comes the opportunity. A company in the maritime sector that can illustrate this level of cyber hygiene can only be seen as a leader in the sector. It is commonly understood that clients are increasingly using cybersecurity as part of their pre-requirements towards shipping companies. Any company that achieves a high score in this immediately acknowledges the ROI that cybersecurity brings with it. Hence, following a risk-based approach, companies should invest in cybersecurity, and practise indicates that this will be well received within the sector.” 

A digitally informed future 

Shipping still requires a more proactive and systematic approach to provide the return on investment and results organisations expect. This is where academia and the industry can work together to provide a digital vision and advance the benefits of digitalisation. Kapalidis continues:

“To meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that cybersecurity brings to the shipping industry, companies should initially invest in the human factor, which is the first part of the maritime cyber hygiene structure. Staff training is mandatory since the human factor is the biggest liability when it comes to cybersecurity. Almost 97 percent of malware is designed not to target a technical flaw, but to exploit human vulnerabilities. Staff training achieves a twofold goal; primarily to raise awareness about the threats that can be introduced to the organisation by a careless action of staff, and secondly to teach how the newly introduced cyber technology should be used in the most apt way to take advantage of the new equipment but also to minimise the potential disruption in methods and procedures used widely so far.”

Mourouzis added: “With training, the attendees will realise the potential of big data analytics and they will be equipped with the necessary mindset, skillset and methodologies needed in the entire data analytics lifecycle – from collection to processing, and analysing to applying. They will be taught fundamental frameworks applied in Big Data applications and they will understand how to apply it to solve problems.”

Lloyd’s Maritime Academy is the trusted brand for professional development, working with leading academic and industry bodies to provide accredited education and training where it is much needed. 

We continue to research new topics to provide you with the qualifications needed for a successful career; supporting a safer, cleaner and more efficient shipping industry for decades to come.

Source:maritime-executive

Construction Begins on Pasha’s First New Jones Act Container Ship

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Jones Act carrier Pasha Hawaii announced Tuesday that construction has begun for the first of two new LNG-fueled container ships for the U.S. West Coast – Hawaii trade. 

Steel-cutting for the future boxship George III began Tuesday at the Keppel AmFELS yard in Brownsville, Texas. The yard's president told local media that she will be the first deep draft vessel built in Texas in recent memory. (One important note: Orange, Texas was a major shipbuilding hub for deep draft vessels during World War II, and yards there still produce large vessels for the coastwise and offshore trades.)

The two new sub-Panamax ships for Pasha, valued at a contract price of about $200 million each, will have a capacity of about 2,500 TEU. They will be among the most hydrodynamically efficient hulls in the world, according to Pasha, thanks to optimization with computational fluid dynamics. Delivery is expected in 2020, and the contract contains an option for two additional ships.

“Three generations of our family’s vision exemplify our unwavering commitment to serving our customers and investing in the future of Hawaii,” said Pasha's president and CEO, George Pasha, IV. “We are marking the first production milestone of our new LNG ships, and honor the legacy of the Pasha ‘ohana. We also commend the remarkable talents and organization of the highly skilled shipbuilders on the Keppel team who are working hard to transform these steel plates into the most environmentally efficient vessels for the Hawaii trade.”

The construction of the new vessel class will create about 700 new jobs in the Brownsville area. Keppel AmFELS says that it has begun recruiting for the project, and it is sourcing all of its new hires locally. 

Source:maritime-executive

Maersk implements new dangerous goods stowage guidelines following tragic Maersk Honam fire

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Following the tragic fire on the Maersk Honam earlier this year that left five dead Maersk Line has new guidelines for the stowage of dangerous cargoes across all 750 vessels in its fleet.

The Risk Based Dangerous Goods Stowage have been developed with the aim of minimising risk to crew, cargo, environment and vessel in case a fire develops.

Container fires such as the blaze in March on the Mearsk Honam have been an all too common occurrance in container shipping leading to both loss of life and serious damage to vessels. The fires are also extremely difficult to extinguish and in the case of the Maersk Honam although the crew activated the vessel's CO2 system it did not put out the fire.

“All cargo aboard Maersk Honam was accepted as per the requirements of the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code and stowed onboard the vessel accordingly. Despite this, as the fire originated in a cargo hold in front of the accommodation which held several containers with dangerous goods, it had an unbearably tragic outcome,” said Ole Graa Jakobsen, head of fleet technology at Maersk.

“This clearly showed us that the international regulations and practices with regards to dangerous goods stowage needs to be reviewed in order to optimally protect crew, cargo, environment and vessels.”

Maersk evaluated over 3,000 UN numbers for hazardous cargo and called a workshop with classification society ABS and other industry stakeholders to validate the new guidelines.

Under the new guidelines cargoes covered by the IMDG code are no longer stowed next to accommodation and main propulsion plant, and below deck and in the middle of the vessel are also considered areas of low tolerance.

Maersk is also reviewing its rules policies on accepting dangerous goods.

“Container ship fires are a problem for our entire industry and we intend to share and discuss our learnings from this thorough review within relevant industry forums. We very much believe that discussions, views and insights among container carriers can further improve fire safety in our industry,” said Graa Jakobsen

The new stowage principles have also been presented to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Danish Maritime Authorities.

Source:seatrade-maritime

DNV GL puts Dutch platforms to the test

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Dutch/German transmission system operator TenneT has hired DNV GL to carry out project certification for two offshore substations for the 750MW Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind farms in the Dutch North Sea.

The contract award followed a tender process for the work on the Hollandse Kust Zuid Alpha and Beta offshore platforms.

It follows a previous agreement for DNV GL to certify the Borssele Alpha and Beta platforms, which are currently under construction. The certification will be carried out according to DNV GL guidelines DNVGL-SE-0073 and DNVGL-ST-0145.

DNV GL has issued a statement of conformity allowing the jacket installation of Borssele Alpha and expects to issue the full project certificate in 2019.

Project certificates are expected to be issued in 2020 for Borssele Beta, 2021 for Hollandse Kust Zuid Alpha and 2022 for Hollandse Kust Zuid Beta.

TenneT senior manager Marco Kuijpers said: “Ensuring that we are able to meet all technical requirements of international certification requirements, is crucial for our project development process.”

“We have worked together with DNV GL on several projects. That experience and continuity will help us in realising the new certification project.”

Source:renews

China’s Biggest Shipping Company Opens in Bosnia

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COSCO shipping lines, China’s largest state-owned international and domestic container shipping and related services company, is opening its first branch in Sarajevo.

This will add Bosnia to Croatia and Serbia, where COSCO already operates, to the countries that Beijing is investing in on the so-called “Maritime Silk Road,” a sea route connecting China, Southeast Asia, Oceania, Europe and North Africa.

“The company’s commitment is to make the One belt, One road initiative more recognisable in Bosnia and that the two countries continue to develop friendly and business relations. We are convinced this will bring economic progress for Bosnia,” Meliha Mujezinovic, head of the COSCO Shipping office in Bosnia, told FENA news agency on Monday.

COSTCO did not respond to BIRN’s inquiries regarding details of future plans by the time of publication.

The company said in a press release that it is currently transporting from the ports of Kopar in Slovenia, Rijeka in Croatia, Belgrade in Serbia, and from Piraeus in Greece. Sarajevo will now find its place on this map.

“One Belt, One Road” is the code name for a foreign policy launched in 2013, which aims to expand Beijing’s international influence and trade abroad in order to compensate for the slowdown in economic growth at home. In 2016, China set up a special 10-billion-euros fund to finance the projects.

At the heart of the plan is a “New Silk Road”, a modern transport, trade and economic corridor running from Shanghai to Berlin, via Eastern and Central Europe, running alongside the “Maritime Silk Road”.

By the end of June 2018, COSCO had a total of 393 container vessels, ranking in fourth place in the world and first place in Asia, covering 294 ports in 90 countries, according to the company’s website.

Bosnia is counting on China for four other projects: the Stanari thermal power plant, the thermal power plants in Tuzla and Zenica, as well as the Banja Luka–Mliniste–Split highway.

In 2018, China Machinery Engineering Corporation and Emerging Market Power Fund is also expected to invest in the thermal power plant Gacko 2 in Bosnia’s Serb-dominated entity, Republika Srpska.

Once implemented, all these projects, built through Chinese financing and equipped with Chinese technology, will propel China to the top of Bosnia’s admittedly short list of investors and creditors.

Source:hellenicshippingnews

ESPO: More data harmonisation needed for less administrative burden

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Despite welcoming the European Commission’s proposal for a Regulation establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment (COM2018 278 final), ESPO noted that it wants more ambition on the harmonisation of data definitions and data sets, while maintaining the existing reporting systems. This would further reduce the administrative burden and would facilitate trade.

As such, ESPO issued a position paper in response to the Commission’s proposal for a Regulation establishing a European Maritime Single Window environment, published on 17 May.

For European ports, the first priority should be to simplify administrative procedures by ensuring that the same data sets can be reported to each competent authority in the same way. In this context, ESPO welcomes the establishment of a harmonised data set. However, there is still work to be conducted to define the data set in detail – both data elements and data definitions.

Meanwhile, ESPO agrees with the proposal to allow Member States to introduce or amend data requirements, as in some cases ports might need to ask additional data to respond to exceptional circumstances. In this respect, this flexibility should also be extended to individual competent authorities.

Namely, ESPO welcomes that the proposal builds upon the existing National Single Windows, while also allowing the reporting to be carried out through the Port Community Systems (PCS).

The proposal rightly acknowledges the well functioning of PCS’s and the investments already made. European ports highlight that any solution should be technology neutral and should focus on data harmonisation.

Furthermore, ESPO notes, a governance mechanism for the National Single Window should be established giving it the competence to store and redistribute data to the respective authorities. Otherwise, the proposal would not result in trade facilitation and simplification, but would just shift the burden from the ship side to the competent authorities.

Finally, ESPO considers the “reporting once principle” a valid means to achieve the objectives of the proposal, provided that it covers the re-use of data that do not change between subsequent port calls and takes into consideration the limited amount of data to be reused between authorities at a given port call.

"We believe that working on harmonised data standards is the only way forward to make the reporting more efficient. Common standards are far more important than harmonised systems. Technology is moving fast. We need a legislative framework that allows the use of already well functioning systems and the uptake of new technologies. A reporting environment should not undermine the ongoing digitalisation processes, and encourage the uptake of new solutions in a technology neutral way",…says ESPO’s Secretary General, Isabelle Ryckbost.

The proposal is currently being discussed in the Council and the European Parliament.

Source:safety4sea

Poland to build Baltic Sea canal to bypass Russia

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Poland wants to build a canal through a narrow strip of land that blocks the Vistula Lagoon on the north-east coast from the Baltic Sea. The president of Poland's ruling party noted the canal will be built through a split of land near the Russian border.

Currently, Polish ships leaving from the port of Elblag have to pass through Russian waters to get to the open sea. The canal will show the Russians the days they dictated to Poland are over, Jaroslaw Kaczynski said.

Earlier this month Russia made a complaint to the European Commission about the canal. Namely, in a letter to the Commission’s environment and maritime affairs commissionaire, Russia said that it had not been consulted over the canal and that the construction of the waterway threatened the ecology of the lagoon.

Commenting on this letter, Mr. Kaczynski said that Russia has always been opposed to it, with Poland also dismissing Russia's complaints as an 'attempt to block this strategic investment for Poland'.

The canal will be 1,100 yards long and 16 feet deep, and its construction is expected to begin later this year. It is due to be completed by 2022.

Source:safety4sea

Poland to build Baltic Sea canal to bypass Russia

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Poland wants to build a canal through a narrow strip of land that blocks the Vistula Lagoon on the north-east coast from the Baltic Sea. The president of Poland's ruling party noted the canal will be built through a split of land near the Russian border.

Currently, Polish ships leaving from the port of Elblag have to pass through Russian waters to get to the open sea. The canal will show the Russians the days they dictated to Poland are over, Jaroslaw Kaczynski said.

Earlier this month Russia made a complaint to the European Commission about the canal. Namely, in a letter to the Commission’s environment and maritime affairs commissionaire, Russia said that it had not been consulted over the canal and that the construction of the waterway threatened the ecology of the lagoon.

Commenting on this letter, Mr. Kaczynski said that Russia has always been opposed to it, with Poland also dismissing Russia's complaints as an 'attempt to block this strategic investment for Poland'.

The canal will be 1,100 yards long and 16 feet deep, and its construction is expected to begin later this year. It is due to be completed by 2022.

Source:safety4sea

Key safety issues addressed at IMO CCC5

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The 5th session of IMO's Sub-Committee on Carriage of Cargoes and Containers (CCC), held on 10-14 September 2018, addressed key shipping safety issues related to dangerous cargo. Among the highlights was that the Sub-Committee agreed amendments to IGF Code and IMSBC Code, as well as draft interim guidelines for the safety of ships powered by methanol.

–>IGF Code-related matters

Gas and other low-flashpoint fuels provide for a cleaner atmosphere as they emit very low levels of air pollutants, but they also pose their own safety challenges. The International Code of Safety for Ships using Gases or other Low-flashpoint Fuels (IGF Code), which entered into force on 1 January 2017, aims to minimize the risk to ships, their crews and the environment, given the nature of the fuels involved.

New ships using gases or other low-flashpoint fuels are required to comply with the IGF Code, which contains mandatory provisions for the arrangement, installation, control and monitoring of machinery, equipment and systems using low-flashpoint fuels, focusing initially on LNG.

The CCC Sub-Committee has been tasked with keeping the IGF Code up-to-date and developing amendments or other guidelines in relation to other types of fuel.

–>Interim guidelines for ships using methyl/ethyl alcohol as fuel

The Sub-Committee agreed, in principle, to draft interim guidelines for the safety of ships using methyl/ethyl alcohol as fuel. The MSC was invited to refer specific paragraphs to other technical sub-committees for consideration and advice to CCC 6.

The detailed interim guidelines are intended to provide requirements for the arrangement, installation, control and monitoring of machinery, equipment and systems using methyl/ethyl alcohol as fuel to minimize the risk to the ship, its crew and the environment, taking into account to the nature of the fuels involved.

Specific sections to be referred to other sub-committees for consideration concern:

  • location of cargo and methyl/ethyl alcohol fuel tanks (Sub-Committee on Pollution Prevention and Response (PPR);
  • limit for safe location of fuel tank(s) (Sub-Committee on Ship Design and Construction (SDC));
  • fire safety (Sub-Committee on Ship Systems and Equipment (SSE));
  • ventilation, for review regarding control and monitoring of fire detection system in machinery spaces containing methyl/ethyl alcohol engines (SSE); and
  • drills and emergency exercises (Sub-Committee on Human Element, Training and Watchkeeping (HTW)).

–> Safety provisions for ships using fuel cells

The Sub-Committee agreed to develop safety provisions for fuel cells as interim guidelines, to cover installation, fire safety and other relevant matters and instructed the correspondence group on safety of ships using low-flashpoint fuels to develop relevant draft interim guidelines.

–> Draft amendments to IGF Code agreed

The Sub-Committee agreed draft amendments to the IGF Code relating to the protection of the fuel supply for liquefied gas fuel tanks, aimed at preventing explosions. The draft amendments had been referred back to the Sub-Committee by the MSC 99 for further review.  The Sub-Committee agreed the final proposed text for approval by the Committee.

–> Use of low flashpoint diesel as marine fuel

The correspondence group was also instructed to discuss a proposal to carry out a formal safety assessment study for ships fueled by low-flashpoint diesel (i.e. diesel fuel with a flashpoint of less than 60°C) and report back to CCC 6.

–> Next set of IMSBC Code amendments agreed

The Sub-Committee agreed the next comprehensive set of draft amendments to the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code (amendment 05-19), to be submitted to the MSC 101, in mid-2019, for adoption, following finalization by the Editorial and Technical (E&T) Group.

The 2019 amendments include updates to various schedules, such as new individual schedule for BAUXITE FINES as a Group A cargo, as well as editorial amendments.

The amendments will be incorporated into a consolidated IMSBC Code, to include all amendments to date, since the IMSBC Code was first adopted in 2008.

–> Carriage of ammonium-nitrate based fertilizer

The Sub-Committee agreed to divide the existing schedule for ammonium-nitrate based fertilizer into two schedules:

  • MHB Group B (cargoes which possess a chemical hazard which could give rise to a dangerous situation on a ship); and
  • Group C (do not possess chemical hazards), based on limits for nitrate and chloride content values.

Ammonium nitrate content below 20% or chloride content below 2% have been proposed as a criteria for dividing the existing schedule.

Potential problems with ammonium-nitrate based fertilizer had been identified following accidents involving the MV Purple Beach (2015) and MV Cheshire (2017). The recommendations arising from the investigation into the MV Cheshire casualty were presented to the Sub-Committee.

The issue will be further considered by CCC 6 in 2019 and the revised schedules could be included in the  future IMSBC amendments (06-21).

–> Cargoes which may liquefy and other related phenomena

The Sub-Committee discussed amending the IMSBC Code definition of Group A (cargoes which may liquefy) to include phenomena other than liquefaction.

This follows research by the Global Bauxite Working Group, which identified a newly identified phenomenon affecting some bauxite cargoes, known as dynamic separation, which can cause instability of  cargo and ship.

The Sub-Committee agreed that the definition should be amended and instructed the E&T Group to further consider this issue, with the aim of incorporating related amendments in a future set of amendments to the IMSBC Code after 2019 (amendment 06-21).

–> IMSBC model course to be developed

The Sub-Committee agreed draft terms of reference for the development of a model course for the IMSBC Code intersessionally, with a view to its validation at CCC 6.

–> Interim guidelines on steel for cryogenic service agreed

The Sub-Committee agreed draft interim guidelines on the application of high manganese austenitic steel for cryogenic service, for submission to MSC 100 in December 2018 for approval.

LNG is cooled to very low temperatures for carriage. The interim guidelines are aimed at ensuring the safety of ships carrying or fueled by LNG, by specifying the requirements for the utilization of high manganese austenitic steel in the design and fabrication of cargo and fuel tanks complying with the IGC and IGF Codes.

Austenitic steels, known to resist corrosion, are non-magnetic stainless steels that contain high levels of chromium and nickel and low levels of carbon.

The Sub-Committee also approved draft amendments to the IGC and IGF Codes concerning tensile tests for materials other than aluminium alloys, with a view to approval and subsequent adoption by the MSC.

A correspondence group was re-established to look at the procedure for considering and approving alternative metallic material for cryogenic service in the IGC and IGF Codes; and gather and evaluate information and data on any practical experience gained with design and production when using high manganese austenitic steel for cryogenic service. The group will report back to CCC 6.

–> Unified interpretations of IGF and IGC Codes

The Sub-Committee agreed, for approval by MSC, draft unified interpretations of the IGF and IGC Codes related to the categorization of gas admission valves at dual fuel engines and gas engines (section 12.4 of part A-1 of the IGF Code).

–> Weather-dependent lashing

The Sub-Committee discussed potential draft amendments to the Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing (CSS Code) related to weather-dependent lashing, aimed at ensuring the highest level of cargo securing, taking into account expected weather and other factors. The amendments would concern chapter 13 of the CSS Code, related to Methods to assess the efficiency of securing arrangements for non-standardized cargo.

It was agreed, following discussion in a working group, that further detailed consideration of the matter was needed since the proposed amendments could have consequential implications for other cargo-related IMO instruments.

A correspondence group was established to further consider the reduction curve for basic accelerations due to significant wave height regarding weather-dependent lashing; further consider draft amendments to annex 13 to the CSS Code; identify cargo-related IMO instruments, if any, which might be impacted; and submit a report to CCC 6.

Source:safety4sea

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