number 186 *** collection of maritime press ......2009/08/07 · systems, inert gas generators,...

DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2009 – 186

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Number 186 *** COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS *** Wednesday 08-07-2009 News reports received from readers and Internet News articles copied from various news sites.

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The KEVIN C seen operating in the port of Rotterdam Photo : Piet Sinke (c)

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Delivery voyage of new building AHT SEA MONARCH, of 450 GT and 4.400 BHP from Sibu (Malaysia) to Shanghai (China) free running, and now on her way from Shanghai (China) to Bahrain towing a 40.000 ton deadweight barge with a length of 125 meters, pictured while arriving at Singapore for bunkers. Tug & Tow are managed by Redwise

who conduct the delivery of both units on their maiden voyage. Photo : Tommy Chia (c)

Greek tycoons snap up secondhand ships

Greek shipping tycoons are snapping up secondhand vessels as cash-strapped ship owners around the world put their vessels up for sale.



According to ship researcher Clarksons, Greek owners forked out some US$500 million to purchase 46 used vessels in the first five months of 2009. Clarksons said that this represented ten percent of the total global trade of secondhand vessels. Majority of the vessels purchased were either bulkers or tankers. Greece now has some 4,000 vessels. Source : Baird-online

The 2008 built chemical/oil tanker CAPE TALLIN off Marsaxlokk Harbour, Malta approaching to enter Oil Tanking Facilities.

Photo : Cpt. Lawrence Dalli - www.maltashipphotos.com (c)

Nigeria rebels attack oil facility, hijack tanker

Nigeria's main militant group said on Monday it had sabotaged a Chevron oil facility and seized a chemical tanker and six crew members, the latest in a string of attacks in Africa's biggest energy producer. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) said it had attacked Chevron's Okan manifold late on Sunday in the southern Delta state, hours after it sabotaged an oil well head operated by Royal Dutch Shell. The military confirmed the attack. "The criminals attacked another pipeline in Delta state yesterday. The pipeline belongs to Chevron," said Colonel Rabe Abubakar, spokesman for the military task force. U.S. oil firm Chevron, which halted swamp operations in Delta state following attacks on its pipelines in May, said it was investigating the report. Chevron, Shell and Italian energy firm Agip have cut output by around 273,000 barrels per day in the last six weeks following the latest campaign of militant violence. The disruption to supplies have helped support global oil prices in the past few weeks. But prices fell on Monday to $64 a barrel as traders focused on the global economic recovery. MEND also said on Monday it had seized a chemical tanker and six crew members off the coast of Escravos in the Niger Delta. It said three of the hostages were from Russia, two from the Philippines and one from India. "Six crew members from the chemical tanker Siehem Peace was seized about 20 nautical miles from Escravos on Sunday ... and will be held until further notice," said MEND, who threatened further offshore attacks. The military said it was trying to establish contact with the kidnappers. Hundreds of foreigners have been seized in the Niger Delta since early 2006, most of whom have been released unharmed after a ransom was paid. Militants have launched at least four attacks against the oil industry in Nigeria in the last 10 days, dashing hopes that an amnesty offer by President Umaru Yar'Adua would buy a period of calm. Yar'Adua said on June 25 he would offer a 60-day



amnesty to gunmen to try to end unrest which has prevented Nigeria from pumping above two thirds of its installed capacity since early 2006, costing it billions of dollars in lost revenue. Some militant leaders have indicated they would be willing to accept the offer, provided they can negotiate the terms. But MEND, a loose network of various armed factions, has doubted the government's sincerity. The militant group has called for the release of its leader Henry Okah, who is on trial for gun-running and treason and could face the death penalty. MEND says Okah needs urgent medical attention for a kidney ailment. Yar'Adua ordered his interior minister last week to extend the clemency offer to Okah, but he has so far failed publicly to do so and Okah's trial continued last week. "The government should display the highest form of integrity and sincerity over the detention of Henry Okah at this period of his fading health," MEND said. Source : The Star

AVRA’s tug SOUTH arrived with a barge in Felixstowe Photo : Iain Forsyth (c)

Drybulk shipping stocks sink as charter rates slip; analyst says rates have

further to fall Drybulk shipping stocks fell Monday as the rates for the largest bulk ships fell, and fears surfaced that rates have more room to slide later in the year. The Baltic Dry Index, which is run by the Baltic Exchange in London, dropped 145 points Monday to close at 3,375. The index measures shipping rates on 40 routes throughout the world. Rates for raw materials shipments on Capesize vessels fell the most, while chartering prices for smaller ships also lost ground. Drybulk ships transport a variety of key raw materials around the world, including iron ore, coal cement and grain. Capesize vessels, the largest drybulk ships on the seas, are so named because they are too big to fit through the Panama or Suez Canals and must instead sail around the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn to travel between oceans. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Natasha Boyden said in a note to clients Monday that the market expects rates to fall further later this year. But chartering activity -- which is generally considered a kind of global economic indicator -- remains "relatively robust," she said. In afternoon trading, Diana Shipping Inc. shed 51 cents, or 4 percent, to $12.32. DryShips Inc. gave up 45 cents, or 8.3 percent, to $4.99. Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. lost 17 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $4.22. Danaos Corp. slipped 13 cents, or 4 percent, to $3.06. Source: Associated Press



The Bulgarian Bulk Carrier, KAPITAN GEORGI GEORGIEV 16,188 gt, 25,573 dwt, of NAVIBULGAR, Bulgaria, built 1980, entering Leith, 5th July 2009. Forth Tug Oxcar at bow, Fidra at stern.

Photo : Iain McGeachy (c)

150 people fall ill on virus-struck cruise ship in Scotland: official

About 150 people have fallen ill aboard a cruise ship berthed in Scotland following a suspected outbreak of the vomit-inducing norovirus, health officials said Monday. A 74-year-old English man has also died on board the Marco Polo,which is berthed near Invergordon in northeastern Scotland, but the ship's operators said his death was unrelated to the outbreak. Two people have been hospitalised and the others are being treated on board, according to Ken Oates, the local National Health Service (NHS) director of public health. "NHS Highland can confirm that around 150 people on board a cruise ship docked at Invergordon have become unwell with suspected norovirus," he said. "The Marco Polo docked today. This evening two people have been admitted to Raigmore Hospital who are showing symptoms of norovirus." Germany-based operators Transocean Tours said the man's death earlier Monday was unrelated to the outbreak, saying he had chronic heart and breathing problems and "suffered a fatal heart attack on board ship". It said 769 passengers and 340 crew were on the Marco Polo and its medical team had reported that 54 passengers and 21 crew "have an unconfirmed virus that causes a form of gastroenteritis". Norovirus is highly contagious and induces vomiting and diarrhea. It affects between 600,000 and one million people in Britain each year and outbreaks are common within contained environments. Passengers on the world-famous Queen Elizabeth II luxury liner were struck by an outbreak in 2007.

T&T BISSO Response Successfully Refloats Container Vessel



The T&T BISSO Response Network, an industry leader in vessel emergency response, salvage and marine firefighting services, successfully refloated a 5,700-teu container vessel in Brazil.

Led by Senior Salvage Master Ted Hosking, the T&T BISSO team safely lightered bunkers and used three high-horsepower local tugs in the operation. After pumping the bunkers back to the vessel and conducting an underwater survey, the crew safely delivered the vessel and cargo to its owners with no damage to

the environment. Photo : C.Neves (c)

“This operation marks a major milestone for T&T BISSO as we continue to strengthen our position in the worldwide emergency response market,” said W.A. “Beau” Bisso IV, president and chief executive officer of the company. Formed in 2005, T&T BISSO is a stand-alone response contractor servicing the maritime, shipping and offshore energy industries. T&T BISSO combines the resources and experience of T&T Marine Salvage, which was founded in 1957, and Bisso Marine Company, founded in 1890. T&T BISSO’s worldwide response network includes firefighting systems, inert gas generators, nitrogen generators, ship-to-ship pumping and lightering systems, pulling systems and diving systems. For more information, please visit www.ttbisso.com

The Vungtau (Vietnam) pilot vessel seen outbound - Photo : Capt Jelle de Vries (c)



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2010 to be 'The Year of the Seafarer' The Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), meeting for its 102nd session in London (29 June to 3 July 2009), agreed that next year’s theme for World Maritime Day will be “2010: Year of the Seafarer”, endorsing a proposal from IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos. The theme - to be celebrated throughout the year and also at a World Maritime Day parallel event in Argentina - was selected to give IMO and the international maritime community the opportunity to pay tribute to the world’s seafarers for their unique contribution to society and in recognition of the risks they shoulder in the execution of their duties in an often hostile environment. In proposing it, Secretary-General Mitropoulos said that “the unique hazards confronting the 1.5 million seafarers of the world - including pirate attacks, unwarranted detention and abandonment - coupled with the predicted looming shortage of ships’ officers, make it ever more incumbent to take immediate and effective action to forestall a situation from developing in which ships are not manned with sufficient skilled personnel”. The theme complements IMO’s ongoing “Go to Sea!” campaign to attract new entrants to the shipping industry, which was launched in November 2008 in association with the International Labour Organization, the “Round Table” of shipping industry organizations and the International Transport Workers’ Federation. It is also in line with the comprehensive review, initiated in 2006, of the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) 1978 and its associated Code, updated texts of which are due to be considered by a Diplomatic Conference scheduled to be held in Manila, Philippines, in mid-2010. Once adopted, the proposed amendments to the STCW Convention and Code will provide the necessary global standards for the training and certification of seafarers to man technologically advanced ships, today and for some time to come. The Council also endorsed the proposal of the Secretary-General to recognise, through the award of certificates, the exceptional services rendered to shipping and mankind by the Commanding Officers, Officers, Petty Officers and Crews of the navy ships from a wide range of countries that have converged in the Western Indian Ocean area, since late 2008, in an unparalleled demonstration of international solidarity to prevent and repress piracy off the coast of Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden. Mr. Mitropoulos told the Council that the actions of “these courageous men and women, and those of their Governments in sending them to the area, have contributed to making international shipping transiting these troubled waters safer and more secure while, at the same time, greatly contributing to the safe delivery of vital humanitarian relief supplies to the people of Somalia. The actions of these individuals deserve to be publicly recognized and honoured by IMO, which has been entrusted by the international community with the responsibility of promoting the safety and security of international shipping. Our doing so will signify not only our profound appreciation for their actions but will also, hopefully, encourage even more Governments to participate in the international efforts, spearheaded by IMO, to reduce the scourge of piracy off the Horn of Africa.” Source : The Motorship



Pilot boat rescues two men in the water The pilot boat Pacific Pathfinder (Owned by the Pacific Pilotage Authority of Canada) recovered two sport fisherman from waters near Prince Rupert British Columbia Canada.

The pilot vessel was steaming to the pilot station at Triple Island, when the Captain caught a glimpse of an orange colored object in the water, closer examination revealed two men in the water hanging onto an overturned skiff. Photo : Shane (c) The pilot boat crew went into recovery mode and successfully recovered the two fellows who were suffering hypothermia, the pilot boat made a high speed run for port where the men were transferred to

hospital for treatment and later released. The men indicated their boat flipped over in the swell and they were ejected and they hung onto the boat they had been I the water for 1.5 hours and five boats had passed without seeing them. Authorities indicated that it was fortunate that the pilot boat spotted them as the water temp in the area was 51 degrees and survival times for these two men was quickly running out.

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Iran deploys two more warships to Gulf of Aden to fight pirates

Iran has sent two more warships to the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden to protect merchant vessels, Iran's English-language satellite channel Press TV reported Monday. Iran's Deputy Naval Commander Gholam-Reza Khadem was quoted as saying on Monday that the dispatched warships were set to replace aging vessels and protect Iranian merchant containers and oil tankers from Somali pirates. "Pirates have stepped up attacks on Iranian merchant vessels in the Gulf of Aden, so we have decided to send two more warships to patrol the area and help keep everything under control," Khadem said. He said Iran's decision to join the international fight against piracy in the key shipping-lanes off the coast of Somalia has been "rather positive." In November last year, Somalian pirates hijacked a Hong Kong cargo ship loaded with 36,000 tons of wheat, which was chartered by an Iranian company, in the Gulf of Aden near the coast of Yemen. In December, an Iranian warship was sent to the Gulf of Aden in Somalia waters on a mission to protect Iranian ships and fight pirates. In late June, Iran's navy prevented an attempt to hijack an Iranian oil tanker by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, the official IRNA news agency reported. According to a report by the Public Relations Department of Iran's Navy Force, pirates in the Gulf of Aden had planned to hijack an Iranian oil tanker named "Hadi," but Iranian warship



arrived in the scene on time to rescue it, IRNA said. Each year about 20,000 vessels pass through the Gulf of Aden, which links Indian Ocean with Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea. Source: Xinhua

Royal cover-up over Libya boob

Officers on a cruise ship which called at Libya this week were in a panic over a topless lady ... the ship's figure head. The sailing ship Royal Clipper has an ornate carving on her prow, modelled on owner Mikael Krafft's daughter Marie. Before sailing from Malta to Tripoli, crew had to cover her ample bosom with a burkha-like shroud, leaving only her face showing. Other rules imposed by the Libyan authorities included a ban on alcohol sales, and no American passport holders. Source : The Sun

Recovery of ship begins off Doha coast A salvage team yesterday began recovering the UAE-registered ship that sank last week with 35 people on board. The Demas Victory, a utility vessel registered in Dubai, capsized in heavy winds about 10 nautical miles off the coast of Doha on Tuesday morning. Twelve bodies were recovered on Friday, bringing the total retrieved to 19. Five survivors, including the captain, have been rescued. The crew was made up of 19 Indians, 12 Nepalis, three Indonesians and a Bangladeshi. Juma Mubarak, the managing director of Mubarak Marine, the Dubai salvation and towing company that was given the contract to recover the vessel, said more than 50 of his staff started the recovery at 5am yesterday. “We expect to recover the vessel by Sunday,” he said. “It would be the fastest way of retrieving the bodies.” He said his team was using three tugboats and a floating crane in its salvage operations, as well as specialist divers. However, he said his company would not break open the vessel to remove the bodies. Meanwhile, divers from the coastguard and Qatar Petroleum continued to search for the missing crew. George Mathew, the general manager of the Midgulf Offshore Ship Chartering in Dubai, the vessel’s operator, had earlier said the 34-metre Demas Victory was in “perfect condition” after being fully serviced in Dubai in January. He said it was the first accident in the history of the company, which was founded in 2003.



NAVY NEWS Work begins on aircraft carriers

The Princess Royal has cut the first steel for Britain's biggest new warship to mark the start of construction work. She performed the "steel cut" on the main hull of the HMS Queen Elizabeth at the BVT shipyard in Govan. The carrier is one of two ships being built as part of a £5bn order for the Royal Navy. The work has secured thousands of jobs on the Clyde, though there are doubts about the yards' future when these ships are finished. HMS Queen Elizabeth and the second ship, HMS Prince of Wales, will be the biggest ever to enter Royal Navy service. The Govan yard is to fabricate much of the hull, the deck support and the propulsion system, with propellers weighing 33 tonnes each. Work on the vessels will also take place at Portsmouth, Devonport and Tyneside. They will then be assembled at Rosyth in Fife. The vessels will be capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft and will be used for a wide range of tasks, including supporting peacekeeping operations and conflict prevention. HMS Queen Elizabeth will come into service in 2014, followed by the HMS Prince of Wales in 2016. Each ship will be a similar size to the QE2 ocean liner, with a flight deck the size of three football pitches. The work represents job security through the recession for nearly 4,000 shipyard workers on the Clyde. However, leaked documents from the yards' owners, BVT, showed a plan to close some yards in the UK after the carriers are complete. The government has insisted the Scottish yards have enough work to secure their future for 15 years. Source : BBC

Seen on the Clyde was the RN Patrol boat HMS RAIDER. She was far from her "adopted" Cambridge home. Photo : Tommy Bryceland. SCOTLAND ©



SHIPYARD NEWS

www.tos.nl TOS Rotterdam (+31)10 – 436 62 93 E-Mail [email protected]

Saturday the 4th of July did see the aunching of the tanker "Wisby Wave" on the Ferus Smit Yard te Foxhol Photo : Kees de Vries ©

China yards face cancellations Some 152 orders canned in 8 months to May

Shipyards in China, the world's second-biggest shipbuilding nation, had 152 orders scrapped in the eight months to May and may face more cancellations because of slumping global trade. Ships equivalent to about 4.39 million metric tonnes were canceled since October, the China Association of Shipbuilding Industry said in a statement on its web site. Of the total, orders for 2.32 million tonnes, or 55 vessels, were scrapped in the first five months of this year, based on preliminary figures. 'The current trend won't recover in the second half of this year and ship prices will drop further,' the association said. Order cancellations will worsen and demand for new vessels will remain weak, it said. Contracts for new vessels slumped since the third quarter of 2008 as the credit crisis and economic recession prompted shipowners to cancel orders or delay taking deliveries.



The World Trade Organisation has forecast global trade may shrink the most since World War II this year. Shipyards in China won 1.18 million tonnes of vessels in the first five months, 96 per cent less than a year earlier, according to the association. Order backlogs dropped 6 per cent this year to 192.3 million tonnes at the end of May and may drop further to 165 million tonnes by the end of this year, it said. A total of 1.5 million tonnes of ships were ordered in the first five months worldwide, 98 per cent less than a year ago, according to Clarkson Plc, the world's biggest shipbroker. 'This is just a third of the number of contracts that were reported in a single month in May 2008,' Clarkson said in its monthly report. Source : Bloomberg

Construction of super shipyard in Kronshtadt to commence in 2010 provided that VEB grants credit

The construction of a super shipyard in Kronshtadt (Kotlin island, Leningrad region) is to commence in 2010 provided that Vnesheconombank (VEB) grants a credit, PortNews IAA learnt from Georgy Poryadin, BoD Chairman of Vyborg Shipyard. According to Poryadin, VEB Credit Committee is to meet on July 25, 2009 and to decide upon disbursement of the first tranche to the amount of RUR 1.5 bln. Poryadin says the shipyard has already been designed to the expenses of Vyborg Shipyard shareholders. According to him the construction is likely to commence in 2010 and to be completed in 2013 provided that VEB finances it. The construction of the shipyard is valued at RUR 38.5 bln. As it was reported earlier, the general meeting of the shareholders of Vyborg Shipyard held May 22 approved a large transaction according to which the company stands as a guarantor for VEB loan to Primorskaya Verf LLC to the amount of at least RUR 27.2 bln. Source: Port News

Vyborg Shipyard launches first section of semi-submersible drilling unit for Gazflot

Vyborg Shipyard (VSZ OJSC, Leningrad region) has launched the first section of the semi-submersible drilling within the framework Gazprom program aimed at development of the Shtokman field. As PortNews IAA correspondent cites Gazflot Director General Yury Shamalov, the unit is to be joined with its upper structure in November 2009 in Murmansk and is to be put into operation in the forth quarter of 2010. A RUR 59-bln contract for construction of drilling rigs was signed by VSZ and Gazflot in autumn 2007 for implementation of the Shtokman project. According to the contract, VSZ will build the hulls and the upper decks of the rigs designed for operation in severe weather conditions with low temperature, 32-meter high waves and capable of probe and production drilling of up to 7,500-meter gas and oil wells with depth from 70 to 500 meters.



The Shtokman field lies in the central part of Russian sector of the Barents Sea, 600 kilometres north of the Kola Peninsula. Its reserves are estimated at 3.8 trillion cubic meter of natural gas and some 31 million tons of gas condensate. The Shtokman development project is of a strategic importance for Gazprom. This field will be a resource base for supplies of Russian gas through application of both pipelines and LNG technologies. Vyborg Shipyard was founded in 1948. Today it specializes in construction of sea platforms for development of the fields at the shelf as well as in construction of small and average capacity vessels. unit being built for Gazflot

Aker Arctic to design Caspian icebreaker tugs

STX RO Offshore Braila SA shipyard in Romania has awarded Aker Arctic a $3.5 million contract for the technical project and class approvals on three plus two shallow draught icebreaker tugs. The vessels will be used by Caspian Offshore Construction group for work on its North Caspian Kashagan oil field developments. The 66 m x 16 m (217 ft x 52 ft) vessels will feature 50-ton (45-metric-ton) minimum bollard pull, an independent icebreaking performance in up to 1-m (3.3-ft) level ice, rubble ice clearing capability, as well as capabilities for ice management, fire fighting, rescue, and evacuation in an H2S cloud. The vessel will push and tow barges to the Kashagan field. The vessels will be built in Bureau Veritas class Tug/Fire Fighting Ship 1 and have ice class 1A Super Special Service – North Caspian Sea Icebreaker with ice breaking capability up to 0.6-m (2-ft) level ice thickness. Source: Offshore News

The ACQUAMARINA seen moored in Ijmuiden Photo : Kasper Kools (c)



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The 1993 built SUN ROAD (former EVER ROYAL), one of the EVER GX series of vessels seen arriving in Rotterdam, the liner is one of the vessels which are bound for the breakers soon

Photo : Frans Sanderse (c)

Mermaid acquires DP 2 DSV from Aquanos

Mermaid Offshore Services, a subsidiary of Mermaid Maritime in Thailand, is to acquire a newbuild DP 2 DSV from Aquanos in Norway.



Construction is close to near completion with delivery targeted for the fourth quarter of 2009. The vessel will to be named Mermaid Endurer and will be the third newbuild subsea vessel to be added to Mermaid’s subsea fleet in the next six months. The vessel is under construction in Bergen, Norway at Bergen Group BMV. Source : Offshore Shipping Online

Jumbo Shipping and Volgo-Baltic Logistic

The new Russian alternative in heavy lift & transport solutions LC Volgo-Baltic Logistic (VBL), one of Russia’s biggest freight agencies, has signed an exclusive agreement with Dutch Heavy Lift shipping company Jumbo Shipping. Jumbo Shipping has appointed VBL as its exclusive commercial agent for Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). By joining experience and fleet-possibilities, the two companies will be able to meet customers’ needs for lifting, shipping, pre-carriage and on-carriage of oversized and overweight cargoes to and from the Russian (inland) waterways and seaports throughout the world. For market leader Jumbo Shipping this is both the logical outcome and continuation of its strategy to enter new markets. The same goes for VBL’s strategy of increasing its already solid market-share in transporting project cargo. Jumbo Shipping owns and operates a specialized fleet of heavy lift vessels. These vessels have shallow draft and crane capacities ranging from 500mt to 1800mt. Two of four J1800-class vessels are equipped with DP2, making them suitable not only for transportation but also for offshore installation in water depths in excess of 3,000 meters. A key feature of their Huisman mast cranes is their large outreach: at 27,5 meters these cranes can lift 1800mt. LC Volgo-Baltic Logistic manages a fleet of 149 sea-river going vessels and a large number of tugs and barges. With these the company offers the full spectrum of transport services on inland waterways and international seaways. Furthermore VBL is an affiliated undertaking of J.S. “North Western Shipping Company”, the biggest inland waterway transportation enterprise in the Russian Federation.

www.jumboshipping.nl - www.vblc.ru

En toen waren er tien MSC Splendida voegt zich bij modernste vloot ter wereld Tijdens een traditionele ceremonie heeft MSC Cruises vrijdag officieel het nieuwe vlaggenschip de MSC Splendida ontvangen uit handen van de STX Europe scheepswerf in Saint-Nazaire (Frankrijk). De ceremonie betrof het laten zakken van de Franse vlag en die van de scheepswerf, gevolgd door het hijsen van de MSC Cruises-vlag en de Italiaanse driekleur. Hierbij werden tevens de Franse en



Italiaanse volksliederen ten gehore gebracht. De gebeurtenis ging gepaard met het symbolisch knippen van een lint, het stukslaan van een fles champagne en uiteindelijk het drie keer laten klinken van de scheepshoorn van het schip. Aanwezig bij de ceremonie waren onder meer Jacques Hardelay, algemeen directeur van STX Europe, MSC Cruises-eigenaar Gianluihi Aponte, de algemeen directeur Pierfrancesco Vago, landmanager Erminio Eschena en de kapitein van het schip, Giuliano Bossi. Het lint werd doorgeknipt door Rafaela Aponte, de vrouw van Dhr. Aponte en de ware 'ziel' achter elk schip van de MSC Cruises-vloot. Zij is nauw betrokken geweest bij elke fase van de bouw van het schip. Van het allereerste ontwerp tot het kiezen van de kleuren en materialen. "We zijn dolblij om dit fabuleuze nieuwe vlaggenschip in ontvangst te mogen nemen", Aldus Vago. "Niet alleen is de MSC Splendida een baanbrekend voorbeeld van een milieuvriendelijk cruiseschip, maar als tiende schip beeldt de MSC Splendida tevens een belangrijke mijlpaal uit van de groei van MSC Cruises. Het investeringsprogramma van 5,5 miljard euro dat we gestart zijn in 2003 is bijna voltooid. We kijken nu vast uit naar de komst van de MSC Magnifica in 2010." De komst van de MSC Splendida in de MSC Cruises-vloot bevestigt de status van het bedrijf als modernste vloot ter wereld. De MSC Splendida en haar zusterschip de MSC Fantasia, dat gedoopt werd in december van het afgelopen jaar, zijn de grootste cruiseschepen die ooit gebouwd zijn door een Europese rederij. Beide schepen zijn ruim 333 meter lang, bijna 67 meter hoog en bieden plaats aan 3.959 passagiers. Vanuit Saint-Nazaire zal de MSC Splendida vertrekken voor cruise langs de Spaanse haven van Vigo, Lissabon, Málaga, Palma en Marseille. Eindbestemming is Barcelona. Daar zal op zaterdag 11 juli de officiële doop van de MSC Splendida plaatsvinden.

Sportive launch “TOS was here” On a regular basis TOS receives spectacular and unique pictures of employees dressed in TOS gear working around the globe. In order to provide employees with a platform for these pictures, TOS initiated a project called “TOS was Here”. From week 28 onwards it will be possible to upload remarkable pictures and movies of yourself with TOS gear with some text. These pictures and text will be displayed on our website using the banner “TOS was here”. All employees of TOS can participate. There are two restrictions:

• You have to be on the picture yourself • TOS has to be visible (TOS gear, creativity is allowed)

This project is launched Monday July the 6th. Two climbers Vincent Schrijvershof (working for TOS) & Bas van Eijk who are sponsored by TOS were heading for the top of the Mont Blanc on Friday the 3rd of July. Unfortunately the weather changed drastically on the last part of the track on a height of 4510 meters. With the top in view and with only a one-hour climb to go they had to stop due to the weather. Their expedition was spectacular and gave TOS a perfect kick-off for “TOS was here”. You can read a daily report about their expedition on our website using the banner “TOS was here”.

Join the worldwide photo collage of TOS

On this part of our website you use the tab “Add yours” to upload your photo, title and text and join our worldwide photo collage. Read all the stories from your colleagues and our different projects. Source : Transport & Offshore Services



Dirkzwager en Arcadis tekenen samenwerkingsverband

Onder het motto “Samen sterk in maritiem werk” hebben Arcadis Nederland en Koninklijke Dirkzwager onlangs een samenwerkingsovereenkomst getekend voor een gezamenlijke consultancy- en adviesactiviteit in de haven en scheepvaart. Nadat in de praktijk is bewezen dat Arcadis en Dirkzwager een prima combinatie vormen in maritieme en

nautische optimalisatietrajecten, is besloten deze combinatie een meer structureel en formeel karakter te geven. de initiatiefnemers: Vlnr.: Ed van Dort (Dirkzwager), Mar Verkiel (Dirkzwager), Gerrit Jol (Arcadis), Cor Beenhakker (Arcadis). Op de voorgrond: Pieter Bloemendaal (Dirkzwager) en Frank Heezen (Arcadis) De beide bedrijven vullen elkaar uitermate goed aan en bieden gezamenlijk een unieke combinatie van civieltechnische, logistieke en maritiem-nautische kennis. Arcadis en Dirkzwager zullen zich met name richten op duurzame efficiency verhogende projecten bij havenautoriteiten, overheidspartijen, nautisch operationele dienstverleners, terminals, rederijen, binnenvaart en andere haven en scheepvaart gerelateerde bedrijven.

Arcadis en Dirkzwager. U hoort nog van ons!

India’s big container port faces rail jam India’s Jawaharlal Nehru Port (JNP) in Maharashtra, which handles 60% of the country’s container traffic, has been suffering from severe congestion since March because of a growing shortage of railcars, according to The Economic Times of India. The three container terminals at JNP, have seen a pile-up of 18 000-TEUs of imports against 7 000-8 000 in normal times, an unidentified official told the paper. The situation is aggravated because inland container depots have stopped receiving containers, the report added, a situation worsened by a national shift from foreign to domestic cargo movement in the current global downturn. Deepak Tiwari, chairman of the Container Shipping Lines Association (India), said the shortage of container rail freight capacity has hindered cargo movement from JNP for three months. On average, the three container terminals can together handle 1 800-TEUs a day - or 20 trains, each carrying 90-TEUs. Container train operators can run 25 trains daily, but only 18 trains are being operated to and from the port because operators prefer to service domestic lines. This has resulted in the daily container evacuation rate declining 15%-20% in the last two months. Source : cargoinfo.co.za



Fewer ships sold for scrap in June; Value of demolition deals stood at $1 billion in first half 09

Ships sold for scrap were fewer during June compared to previous months, according to figures released in the latest monthly report of shipbroker N.Cotzias. Still, during the first half of the year a record of 487 ships of all types have been sold for scrap worldwide. They represent a total capacity of 15.8 million tons removed from the supply part of the market, while scrapyards payed a total of 1$billion for these ships. As was expected, dry bulk carriers took the lion’s share, since 186 bulkers were scrapped, while tanker owners chose to sell 61 vessels. Second place was occupied by containerships , since 167 of them left the market. RO-Ros and passenger ferries scrapped amounted to 60 units, while an additional 13 reefers completed the “scrap puzzle” of the first half of the year. Hellenic shipping companies proved to be the most active in the demolition market, once again showing their responsible face, among their piers. They sold a total of 88 ships of various types, while second place is occupied by Chinese ship owners who sold for scrap 57 vessels. In third place came both Indian and Japanese ship owners, by decomissioning an aggregate of 29 ships each. Among the latest owners to conclude scrap deals were Capital Ship Management of Mr. Evangelos Marinakis, which sold an ’86-built tanker and Target Marine of Mr. Antonis Komninos, scrapping a containership built in 1978. But the rise of the freight market, both in the wet (tankers) and the dry sector during June proved to be too hard to resist for many owners around the globe. They chose to keep their older vessels on service, trying to exploit the improvement of rates for one more time. As a result a mere 50 ships were sold for scrap during the previous month. Still, the first half of 2009 proved to be record-breaking, suprassing the relative scarp number of the same period of 2008 by almost four times. During the first half of 2008 a total of 113 ships with a capacity of 3.9 million tons had been demolished. “For container ships, there’s no employment — or what owners do get is less than it costs to run,” Quentin Soanes, director of Braemar Shipping Services, a ship broker, said. “If an owner ... can’t afford to lay off a ship, [he] turns to demolition.” Almost every part of a ship can be recycled, with equipment often resold and the steel used in construction. Mr Soanes said that scrapping started to pick up in November last year and that the first three months of 2009 were extremely busy. Tom Peter Blankestijn, who looks after ship recycling for A.P. Moller Maersk, said that he expected to scrap more than 20 ships this year, compared with 27 over the past eight years. It is obvious among members of the shipping industry that the rate of scrap deals will determine the speed (together with other factors of course) of the sector’s recovery, especially when one considers the element of the new building deliveries. The more ships leave the market, the more space will be created for new ones to take their place and allow for some room for freight rates to return to firmer levels. This is apparent across all ship markets, but it is even more obvious in the dry bulk market, which holds the biggest orderbook. Source : Nikos Roussanoglou, Hellenic Shipping News



The New Zealand flagged trawler San Enterprise arriving at Lyttelton to take on fuel. Originally built as Navarin in 1990 for Russian owners by the Norweigian builder Sterkoder at Kristiansund she is now operated by Sanford

Fishing,New Zealand. Photo : Alan Calvert (c)

Hamburg Sud, Alianca raising bunker surcharges

Hamburg Süd and Aliança have announced that they will increase bunker surcharges on their East Coast Americas trade routes by $25 per TEU, effective at the beginning of August. Company officials said while they regretted the need to increase prices to customers, especially in today’s challenging economy, the changes were necessary in the face of a renewed rise in bunker fuel costs – one of the largest cost factors in service delivery. Source: WWShipper

The ESTELLE MAERSK seen passing their fleetmates Maersk Buton and Maersk Danbury in Felixstowe Photo : Krispen Atkinson ©

TOP Ships Announces Redelivery of its Last Leased Vessel

TOP Ships Inc., a global provider of marine transportation services, announced yesterday it has redelivered the MT Relentless (DWT 47,081) to its owners and paid a termination fee of $2.5 million. The termination fee and redelivery of the vessel were part of the termination agreement signed in April, 2009. This was the last leased vessel in TOP Ships' fleet. Additionally, TOP Ships announced that it has filed its Annual Report on Form 20-F, on June 29, 2009, for



the year ended 2008. The Annual Report is available for download on the Company's website, www.topships.org. Any shareholder may receive a hard copy of the Company's complete Annual Report, which includes the Company's complete 2008 audited financial statements, free of charge upon request. The audit opinion of Deloitte, Hadjipavlou, Sofianos and Cambanis S.A. regarding the 2008 financial statements of the Company which were included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F, are unqualified. However, the opinion includes an explanatory "going concern" paragraph which states: "The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As discussed in Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company's inability to comply with financial covenants under its current loan agreements as of December 31, 2008 and its negative working capital position raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Management's plans concerning these matters are also discussed in Note 3 to the financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty." Investors are urged to read the full text of the Company's Report on Form 20-F, including Note 3 to the consolidated financial statements referred to above. Evangelos Pistiolis, Chief Executive Officer of TOP Ships, commented: "The redelivery of the M/T Relentless marks the completion of our fleet renewal strategy that started almost two years ago. The company is now left with very young tonnage and good charters which is the right mix to have during these difficult market conditions." Source: Top Ships Inc.

Above seen the 129,000T Chevron tanker "Altair Voyager" as she entered Botany Bay in a three meter swell, assisted by the 1983 built tug Willara, along side. Afraid I didn't get the name of the Svitzer tug who picked up her stern line. She used to be the "Condoleezza Rice". Photo : Chris de Jong ©

The "Altair Voyager" used to be one of the most visible reminders of the Bush administration's ties to big oil - this double-hulled, Bahamian-registered 129,000-ton Chevron tanker used to be the "Condoleezza Rice". The White House had faced questions over the appropriateness of the tanker's name. The vessel was part of the international fleet of the San Francisco- based multinational oil firm, christened in honor of Rice, a long-time Chevron board member. Rice, a former Stanford University provost, served on Chevron's board from 1991 until Jan. 15 2000, when



she resigned after Bush named her his top national security aide. The tanker's name also raised more serious questions of possible conflict of interest for Rice because Chevron does business on six continents and 25 countries and has been sued for alleged human rights abuses in Nigeria. Chevron officials argued the ship's name had been entirely appropriate because it was a special honor for Rice -- part of a longstanding tradition of naming ships after members of the Chevron board. Source : sfchronicle

Zim announced the end to its cooperation with MSC on the Adriatic route

The cooperation which began in January 2009 was arranged in order to serve the Israeli agricultural season which officially ended at the end of June. Zim Integrated Shipping Services, Ltd. announced last week the end of its cooperation with MSC to and from Adriatic ports. The cooperation which began in January 2009 was arranged in order to serve the Israeli agricultural season which officially ended at the end of June. Throughout the six months both companies operated two containerships to and from Adriatic ports, providing the Israeli shipping public with regular two sailings per week. Zim Integrated Shipping Services, Ltd noted that as from July 09 the company will continue to provide weekly service with two of its containerships "Odessa Star" and "Novorossiysk Star". Both vessels will call Israeli ports on regular days: Haifa on Sundays and Ashdod on Mondays. The schedule will remain unchanged – Haifa, Ashdod, Koper, Treiste, Venice, Ravenna. MSC will also continue to provide weekly sailing with two containerships "MSC CAITLIN" and "MSC PROVIDER". The vessels will call Haifa on Sundays and Ashdod on Tuesdays. . MSC schedule will also remain unchanged – Haifa, Ashdod, Koper, Treiste, Venice, Ravenna. Source: Port2Port

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number 186 *** collection of maritime press ......2009/08/07 · systems, inert gas generators,...

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