Navigation, communication and electronics News

Colombia has joined the International Transport Forum (ITF) as the organisation’s 63rd member country. Ministers of transport from the 62 current member states, meeting virtually for their Annual Summit on 27 May, agreed unanimously to admit Latin America's third-most-populous nation to the world's only intergovernmental organisation with a mandate for all transport modes. Colombia is the organisation’s fourth member state from Latin America. The other member countries from the regi...

NAUTIS Simulators will take the maritime training suite a step further in 2021 by introducing autodidactic tools to aid in maritime training.  Maritime training methodologies have been evolving radically over the past couple of years and the reliance on autodidactic or self-training techniques has gained substantial admiration.  NAUTIS team at VSTEP is collaborating with Smart-Ship, a Delft-based start-up that specialises in Haptic Feedback technology Hence, the NAUTIS team at...

John O’Keeffe has been appointed as the new Head of Renewables, Americas. O’Keeffe, a former maritime Captain with vast experience in the U.S. offshore wind industry, will join Blue Water’s office in Houston after serving as Head of Marine Affairs North America at Orsted. Work experience John was an integral part of America’s first offshore wind farm at Block Island. Following that success, he built the first Marine Affairs team in the US offshore wind market to facilit...

Hapag-Lloyd successfully closed the acquisition of the Dutch container shipping company Nile Dutch Investments B.V. (NileDutch). After signing a sales and purchase agreement in March, Hapag-Lloyd has now formally acquired all shares of the company after all responsible antitrust authorities had approved the transaction. Authority comment Hapag-Lloyd is noticeably increasing the number of employees on the ground in Africa “We are very excited about closing the deal and look forward to...

Speaking at Space Comm in Farnborough, United Kingdom, Rajeev Suri, Chief Executive Officer of Inmarsat, the front-runner in global, mobile satellite communications, will call on the UK space sector to innovate, to work together and across borders, to commit to sustainability and to use procurement decisions to grow the industry. Among five key recommendations to the gathered UK space sector, Mr. Suri will call for a ‘Net Zero’ equivalent for space to ensure the sustainability of th...

MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company takes its commitment to decarbonisation extremely seriously. However, this is a complex endeavour that requires commitment and a long-term vision. To reach net-zero future is a long journey that will take years and significant investments with strategic partners and enablers. Despite the disruptions to the supply chains and the huge demand for cargo transportation in an extremely challenging, congested and evolving market, the company continues to focus on...

ZIM Integrated Shipping Services Ltd. and Seaspan Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Atlas Corp. announced a new strategic agreement for the long-term charter, with a monetary value of over $1.5 billion, of ten 7,000 TEU liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel container vessels, to serve across ZIM's various global-niche trades. In addition, in February 2021, ZIM and Seaspan announced a long-term charter agreement for ten 15,000 TEU LNG-fueled vessels.  Maintaining operational agilit...

“We are honoured to have a person of Ali Shehab’s stature joining our global team,” says Trond Hodne, Sales and Marketing Director, DNV. “Ali is joining us after a very successful 36-year career at KOTC, where he started as a cadet on board ships up to Chief Engineer and later ashore as a Superintendent then as Site Manager at HHI before taking on senior positions up to the role of acting CEO. DNV will benefit a lot from his extensive experiences, knowledge, and unique i...

Tokyo-based renowned classification society, ClassNK has announced that their Current Senior Executive Vice President, Hiroaki Sakashita has been appointed as the new President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), as well as a Representative Director, effective on 18 March, 2020. Current Senior Executive Vice Presidents - Tetsuya Kinoshita, Junichiro Iida, and Dr. Toshiyuki Shigemi will continue in their present roles on the team, joined by Hirofumi Takano and Taira Narisawa as the new Executive...

On World Marine Aids to Navigation Day, which falls on Thursday, July 1, the Board of the International Foundation for Aids to Navigation (IFAN) is reminding the world’s ship owners that Aids to Navigation (AtoN) are imperative to keeping the Middle East Gulf region safe for vessels and crew, but that they must be paid for. Aids to Navigation (AtoN) services The Middle East Navigation Aids Service (MENAS) has been providing AtoN services since 1911 The Middle East Navigation Aids Servic...

The construction of the tunnel link between Denmark and Germany is coming along. Blue Water has been aboard from the very beginning with local warehouse solutions and port services. Now, they have entered an agreement with Fehmarn Belt Contractors (FBC) winning more activities. “We are very proud that FBC has chosen Blue Water, and we are certain that our local roots in the community and experience with large international projects will contribute positively to the project,” says Kl...

To meet the booming demands of shipping space and the shortage of export logistics supply chain resources, CULINES adheres closely to market trends and customer demands. Trans-Pacific Express Service (TPX) Five 1,700-4,400TEU container vessels will be deployed on the TPX service, which trades directly from Shanghai Through coordination and deploying of containerships and equipment, CULINES will launch its first Trans-Pacific Express Service (TPX) on July 18 linking China to the West Coast of...

Neste, the provider of renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel and the 4th most sustainable company in the world, launches Neste MY Renewable Diesel™, in the Belgian market. The fuel, produced from 100% renewable raw materials, is brought to the Belgian market in collaboration with the channel partner EG Group. Neste MY Renewable Diesel enables customers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 90% over the fuel’s life cycle compared to fossil diesel. Another important st...

DNV, the world’s renowned classification society, has released the latest updates to its rules for ship classification, with a raft of new class notations that are designed to enable the maritime industry to tackle the decarbonisation challenge. The new updates include ‘Fuel Ready’, a class notation that offers ship owners the option to prepare for a later conversion to multiple different alternative fuel options, and ‘Gas fuelled ammonia’ for ammonia fuelled vesse...

MetOcean Telematics is pleased to announce it will be exhibiting at NATIA 2021 in Tampa, Florida, USA, from July 12th to 14th, 2021. They are looking forward to connecting with NATIA members and showcasing their latest products and technology. Visit the MetOcean Telematics team at booth 826 at the NATIA 2021 event. MetOcean Telematics at NATIA 2021 event NATIA is comprised of over 3,500 law enforcement, intelligence, and support personnel, who provide electronic surveillance, technical operat...

In line with the earlier correspondences on the strategic expansion of the Unifeeder Group, they are pleased to announce the final approval from the relevant authorities has been obtained and the transaction between Unifeeder and Transworld Feeders, Avana Logistek and Avana Global has closed on 1st of July 2021.   Having Transworld Feeders, Avana Global and Avana Logistek, joining the Unifeeder Group, Unifeeder is further enhancing the logistics capabilities of the group and thus delive...

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) has ordered 6 x MAN B&W 11G95ME-GI Mk10.5 main engines in connection with the building of 6 x ultra-large, 23,500+-TEU container vessels for Hapag-Lloyd, one of the world’s foremost liner shipping companies.   The new order stems from an option associated with an identical order for six such vessels originally announced in December 2020, where Hapag-Lloyd also chose the environmentally-friendly ME-GI engine. Production and del...

The first batch of female crew members of SITC International boarded the SITC Makassar and officially embarked on the ship for work. Two female crew members graduated from Shanghai Maritime University with a major in nautical technology and are outstanding graduates of the class of 2021. These are the first batch of female crew members recruited by SITC who have obtained three certificates of competency. Principle of gender equality SITC International adheres to the principle of gender equal...

A consortium of 26 companies and associations, led by DNV, has launched the “Handbook for Hydrogen-fuelled Vessels" to address the uncertainties surrounding hydrogen as ship fuel. The MarHySafe joint development project (JDP) aims to create a knowledge base for safe hydrogen operations in shipping. Decarbonisation Green hydrogen could play a crucial role in the maritime industry’s journey towards decarbonisation. Many in shipping recognise hydrogen’s potential as a fuel, but...

Hapag-Lloyd has announced opening a new office in Ukraine. The country is located on the northern shores of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, and is the second largest European country by area, covering a strategic geographic position between the European Union (EU) and Russia. Key Market for Hapag-Lloyd Various mineral resources and the world’s largest agricultural production make Ukraine an attractive export market for Hapag-Lloyd. The country is also an important import country, i.e....

IAG Cargo, the cargo division of International Airlines Group, completed its first sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) charter chain of 16 flights from Stuttgart to Atlanta recently. Net-zero carbon emissions Working with their partner Kuehne+Nagel, IAG Cargo sourced 1.2 million litres of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™ from Neste. This collaboration marks the first time that passenger-freighter charter flights are operated with net-zero carbon emissions. The last of the British Airways...

In June 2021, the largest aircraft landed at Aalborg Airport. First, a Boeing 777-300ER carrying 60 tonnes of personal protection equipment from Malaysia, and then another air charter followed. This time, it was a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner with 37 tonnes of more equipment. Blue Water manages the logistics Blue Water managed the transport from the Malaysian manufacturer and the following domestic distribution Both deliveries were ordered by Stadsing A/S, based near Aalborg in Denmark, who had as...

Swedish ferry company - Stena Line is strengthening its position and expanding services in the Baltic Sea Region, by deploying two new large and modern ferries on the route between Ventspils in Latvia and Nynäshamn in Sweden in 2021. The first of the two vessels, Stena Scandica entered Ventspils port on Tuesday 29 June 2021 to get ready for its maiden voyage on the route within a short. The vessel adds another 70% cabin capacity compared to the existing vessels, as well as increased freigh...

HMM has signed new building contracts with Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) for twelve 13,000 TEU container vessels, at a total cost of USD 1.57 billion. Under the agreement, DSME and HHI will build six vessels, respectively, scheduled for delivery in the first half of 2024. All ships will be installed with hybrid scrubbers and designed to be LNG-ready. Energy-efficient technologies An HMM official said, “Our newly ordered conta...

Inmarsat announces the appointment of Fredrik Gustavsson as the company’s Chief Strategy Officer (CSO). The new role sees the former Head of Strategy & M&A at easyJet brought in to further strengthen the company’s executive leadership team and accelerate growth. Fredrik is Inmarsat’s third executive-level appointment in three months and follows a wide-ranging review of the company’s performance and effectiveness undertaken by Inmarsat CEO Rajeev Suri since jo...

In conjunction with their airtime service partners - SD Government is buoying up DataWave™ Ku-band network throughput to deliver faster transmissions for all maritime communications.  Maritime customers already optimising the DataWave Ku services will now benefit from highly customisable satellite services, access to the latest real-time weather and nautical information, and the ability to stream video applications including Zoom, Skype, or other internet broadcasts. Unlimited data...

Global survival and safety solutions provider, Survitec, has announced that it has completed a £15 million Bank Guarantee Facility with Barclays Corporate Banking. This bank guarantee complements the company’s recently announced £270 million refinancing, as well as a new £27.5 million Super Senior Revolving Capital Facility. All three of the agreements are part of Survitec’s growth plans for its survival technology products and services. Survitec attains bank guar...

Wan Hai Lines Ltd. held ship naming ceremonies for WAN HAI 287 and WAN HAI 288 accompanied by a charity donation on 29th June, 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a physical ceremony was replaced by an online one. WAN HAI 287 and WAN HAI 288 are the 4th-5th vessels in a series of 2,038 teu containerships, built by China Shipbuilding Trading Co., LTD., and Guangzhou Wenchong Shipyard Co., LTD. Ms. Bin Li, General Manager of Midea International Logistics Technology Co., Ltd., and Ms. Li Gui Lan,...

SBM Offshore is pleased to announce it has completed the project financing of FPSO Prosperity for a total of US$1.05 billion. The project financing was secured by a consortium of 11 international banks. The Company expects to draw the loan in full, phased over the construction period of the FPSO. The financing will become non-recourse once the FPSO is completed and the pre-completion guarantee has been released. The project loan has a tenor of two years post-completion, in line with the du...

Neste, the provider of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), has set up a supply of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™ at Cologne Bonn Airport. By doing so, Neste is helping to meet increasing levels of demand from air freight and corporate customers at Cologne Bonn Airport. AFS, Germany's provider of aviation fueling services, supports Neste in serving this market. The first flight fuelled with Neste MY SAF was a cargo flight in early June operated by ASL Airlines on behalf of Amazon. SAF f...