|  Pirates Boast That They Will Spend the Ransom Money on Staging More Kidnappings
Paul and Rachel Chandler of Tunbridge Wells, Kent were released by their pirate captors over the weekend after more than a year in captivity.
On October 23, 2009 the recently retired couple was sailing in the Seychelles, on what was meant to be a world voyage that the couple had always dreamed of. They were sailing about 60 miles form Victoria, when three boats came along side them. Paul says he was asleep when the pirates, armed with guns, came onboard. The pirates forced them to sail for six days towards the Somali coast before they ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Pirates Capture Cargo Ship & Crew
On Saturday, November 13, the MV YUAN XIANG was pirated in the Somali Basin, approximately 650 nautical miles East of Salalah, according to EU NAVFOR.
The EU’s anti-piracy force says the panama flagged cargo ship has 29 Chinese crewmembers onboard.
EU NAVFOR also reports that pirates are currently holding 21 vessels with 498 hostages.
Warship Disrupts Pirate Action Group
Also on Saturday, the EU NAVFOR warship SPS INFANTA CRISTINA responded to a suspicious whaler, initially spotted by an EU NAVFOR Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft. The whaler was found to be operating with a ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Ten activists and three port officials were released over the weekend after Greek authorities found they had committed no crime.
The activists were on a mission to deliver aid to Gaza and were reportedly detained after a dispute with the ship’s captain. Following the dispute the ship broke its moorings at the Libyan port of Derna on Wednesday leaving behind seventy volunteers and the aid group’s cargo. The vessel that was supposed to travel from Libya to El Raidin, Egypt, instead arrived in Piraeus, Greece on Friday. The ships captain and an official from the ship company were held overnight and face abduction charges.
The ship’s Greek managers say ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Platts reports that a dispute between two federal agencies over access to the Deepwater Blowout Preventer (BOP) was resolved over the weekend.
The Chemical Safety & Hazard Investigation Board (CSB), asked by Congress to investigate the incident, threatened to sue if it was not allowed access to the BOP.
The Joint Investigation Team (JIT) made up of the US Coast Guard and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, has hired Det Norske Veritas (DNV), a Norwegian firm to conduct a forensic examination of the BOP.
CSB expressed multiple concerns with the limited access they will have during the forensic investigation and threatened to ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  The Department of Justice, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the state of Rhode Island announced today that Bouchard Transportation Co. Inc. and its affiliates will pay more than $6 million to settle a portion of the federal and state natural resource damages claims for the April 2003 spill of up to 98,000 gallons of oil into Buzzards Bay. The settlement announced today is in addition to damage assessment costs for federal and state governments of almost $1.6 million.
“Today’s settlement holds accountable those responsible for the spill that impacted 100 miles of New England coastline,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Officials in St. Kitts reported to the Associated Press, that two masked gunmen held up a tour bus, robbing 16 cruise ship passengers from the Celebrity Mercury.
The robbers reportedly blocked the road with a fallen tree, as passengers were on their way to the Brimstone Hill Fortress. When the bus driver got out to clear the tree from the road, the gunmen stormed the bus, robbing everyone of their cash and cameras before disappearing into the woods.
Police are searching the area for the gunmen. Read More>>>Back to Top |  On Thursday, crewmembers from a New Bedford, Mass. bound refrigerated cargo ship, found two stowaways from Palestine hiding onboard.
The PRINCE OF SOUND was about 3 miles offshore of New Bedford when the crew discovered the two men in the forward crane pedestal during a sweep of the boat. Officials say the stowaways have been on the ship since at least November 2, when the ship was last docked in Gibraltar.
The FBI interviewed the stowaways and report they are not terrorist and pose no threat. The two men were reportedly trying to make it to Canada.
Scott Lang, the mayor of the port town of ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Under blue skies and the Florida sun, the Navy's newest Arleigh Burke Class Aegis Guided Missile Destroyer the USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) was commissioned today in Port Everglades, entering full status as a ship of the United States Navy.
Deb Dunham, ship sponsor and mother of Marine Corps Corporal Jason Dunham, stood on deck as she gave the command to “Man the Ship and Bring Her to Life!” Dan Dunham, father of Corporal Dunham, set the first watch and passed the long glass to LTJG Andrew Gray. The watch, which will now continue for the entire period of time the ship is in service, will ensure the safety and security of ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Members of new research consortium, which includes Lloyd's Register, Enterprises Shipping and Trading, Hyperion Power Generation and BMT, to examine the marine applications for small modular reactors (SMRs)
A consortium of British, American and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors as commercial tanker-owners search for new designs that could deliver safer, cleaner and commercially viable forms of propulsion for the global fleet.
The Strategic Research Group at Lloyd's Register, Hyperion Power Generation Inc, British designer BMT Nigel Gee and Greek ship operator Enterprises Shipping and Trading SA are to lead the research into nuclear propulsion, which they believe is technically feasible ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  The ICC International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has identified a series of potential documentary frauds related to purported shipments into North Africa.
The shipments, all for single-container consignments, appear to originate in several countries. At first glance the bills of lading appear genuine, although a number of enquiries made by the Bureau quickly identified irregularities that allowed them to alert their members to the potential fraud.
IMB enquiries found that several of the nominated vessels did not exist and, of those that did, many of them were not in the vicinity of the loading port at the stated time. Several of the vessels that did exist appeared to operate in ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Police in Italy have seized more than a ton of pure cocaine from a container ship worth more than $340 million.
Police in Gioia Tauro were tipped off by the British Serious Organised Crime Agency about the 2,200 lb load.
The drugs were reportedly stashed inside tractors travelling inside a container onboard a ship that arrived Tuesday from Brazil and were only found after a scan of the container. The name of the ship has not been released.
British and Italian officials believe the cocaine came from Colombian drug cartels with ties to the ‘Ndrangheta.
Today’s seizure was the largest in Italy in ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Theme: Regulatory Changes and Safety Issues Impacting the Maritime Industry
December 8-9, 2010 at MITAGS, Linthicum, Maryland
The Ship Operations Cooperative Program (SOCP) cordially invites maritime industry representatives to attend and participate in our December meeting to be held at Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) in Linthicum, Maryland.
Congressman Elijah Cummings has accepted to be our keynote speaker. Also, ranking officers of US Maritime Administration and Department of Transportation have been invited to address this meeting. In addition, senior representatives from Federal and State Governments and the commercial industry will present a comprehensive discussion on the impact of regulatory changes in the areas ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Tows the 950 foot cruise ship safely to San Diego, CA
Harley Marine Services of Seattle, WA dispatched two tugboats on Tuesday, November 9th from Los Angeles, California to assist in the rescue of the cruise ship Carnival Splendor. The cruise ship was damaged by an engine room fire off Mexico and was dead in the water roughly 200 miles south of San Diego. Passengers were stuck onboard the cruise ship without power and ample food after the fire disrupted the main engines.
Wheelhouse of the Millennium Dawn
Harley Marine seamlessly mobilized the Millennium Dawn and Ernest Campbell within hours of notification. The Millennium Dawn is ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Improves Service Options for Customers
Crowley Maritime Corporation announced today that Jose "Pache" Ayala has been promoted to general manager of operations for the company's liner services group in Puerto Rico. In this role, he will direct port operations, equipment control, information technology and materials management, and he will have responsibilities in finance and administration. Ayala will be domiciled in San Juan and will report to Rudy Leming, Crowley's vice president of marine and terminal operations in Jacksonville, Fla.
In this new role, Ayala will have a primary focus of developing more service options for customers, including increasing the number of sailings to and from Puerto Rico, and for ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  This 2 Day workshop (December 14 - 15th, 2010) is an overview of important Safety Management topics. This course combines in-depth knowledge with a practical approach to provide a better understanding of the safety management system process.
Successful Safety Management – A Practical Primer
Has your safety management system grown into a monster that is difficult to manage and understand? Have we lost the meaning and intent by overcomplicating with special interest and bureaucracy? Can we reduce the paper and be safer? Together, let’s explore the benefits of getting back to basics to ensure successful safety management.
This course is recommended for: all sectors of the maritime industry ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Knowledge of Fish Populations to Assist Scientific Analyses of Future Platform Decommissioning Offshore California
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) today released the results from a six-year study of the different types of fish that reside around offshore oil and gas production platforms off the coast of California compared to the species that inhabit natural reefs in the same geographic area. Of particular note, the commercially depleted species of rockfish were found in abundance around oil and gas platforms.
The regional study, entitled Fish Assemblages Associated with Platforms and Natural Reefs in Areas Where Data are Non-Existent or Limited, finds that platforms harbor an abundance ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  12th Annual Capital Link Forum, Thursday December 2, 2010 - New York City
With a successful track record of 12 years, Capital Link's Greek Forum is an institution that fosters closer relations between the investment communities of Greece and the United States. Last year's attendance exceed 800. The global business and investment community regards it as a key platform that provides a complete and comprehensive overview of developments in Greece.
Focus in 2010
In these difficult times the need for extroversion and reliable communication to the global investment community is an absolute necessity. The Forum will update the business and investment community on the progress achieved ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  The UAE’s inaugural Naval Defence Exhibition confirms international participants; Raytheon, Navantia, MBDA and Elettronica
With naval spending around the region expected to reach around US$76.4 billion over the next 10 years, major technology suppliers have confirmed their participation at the United Arab Emirates’ inaugural Naval Defence Exhibition (NAVDEX).
Raytheon, Navantia, L-3 and Elettronica are the latest in the line-up of large international companies to confirm their presence at the event, which will take place in the marina area of the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates from 20-24 February 2011.
French companies MBDA and DCNS are also taking part, along with leading ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  “Friend of the Port” Award
The Seamen’s Church Institute of Philadelphia & South Jersey (SCI) will honor Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) and the Seafarers International Union (SIU) with its Friend of the Port Award for their contributions to the economy of the Delaware Valley at its Fall Gala November 19, 2010. The theme of the Gala is the Year of the Seafarer - 2010 and will be held at the Downtown Club in Philadelphia.
The Rev. Canon James D. Von Dreele (pictured), SCI’s Executive Director said, “OSG’s decision to build 12 product tankers at the Aker Philadelphia Shipyard has significantly impacted the economy of the region with several thousands ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  Seadrill has entered into a turnkey contract to build up to four new ultra-deepwater drillships at the Samsung yard in South Korea. The first two drillships are firmly ordered with delivery in the first and second quarter 2013, respectively. Total project price per rig is estimated to be less than US$600 million, which includes a turnkey contract with the yard, project management, drilling and handling tools, spares, capitalized interest and operations preparations. The contract further includes a fixed price option for further two drillships to be declared during the first quarter 2011.
The dual derrick drillships are of an improved design compared to the three previous drillships Seadrill has taken delivery of ... Read More>>>Back to Top |  The Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) today released a fact sheet, Atlantic Coast U.S. Seaports, highlighting the major Atlantic container ports of New York/New Jersey, Virginia, Savannah, GA, and Charleston, SC. These ports are the largest of the Atlantic Coast seaports from Eastport, MA, through Key West, FL, that are preparing for an expected increase in cargo generated by an expansion of the Panama Canal scheduled for completion in 2014.
The fact sheet can be found at http://www.bts.gov/publications/bts_fact_sheets/2010_002/html/entire.html. For the latest maritime-related BTS data products, please visit the BTS Maritime Program website. Read More>>>Back to Top | | |
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