daily collection of maritime press clippings 2009 –...

DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2009 – 053

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Number 053 *** COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS *** Tuesday 24-02-2009 News reports received from readers and Internet News articles taken from various news sites.

The COSTA MEDITERRANEA seen arriving in Rio de Janeiro Photo : Edson Lucas ©



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Bahrain Denies Ban on Iranian ShipsSuad Hamada

Authorities in Bahrain have dismissed reports carried by some news agencies that Iranian ships had been banned from entering Bahraini waters. The reports attributed the move to a recent row between the two countries over remarks of a top Iranian official about kingdom’s sovereignty and integrity. The authorities also dismissed on Friday reports about a travel ban imposed on Iranian national coming to Bahrain. Commander of the Coast Guard at the Ministry of Interior Brigadier Alaa Siyadi said in a statement on Saturday that maritime traffic between Bahrain and Iran was going normal, though there were some security restrictions put in place on dhows to combat human trafficking and smuggling of goods. The restrictions were not Iran specific but came as part of a wide ban on boats entering the northern waters of Bahrain and would remain in force from sunset to sunrise, sources said and pointed out that same restrictions were also imposed last summer. The ban is applied only to small fishing vessels and aimed to combat trafficking along the northern coast of Bahrain. During the past five years coastguards seized 2,234kg of drugs, unearthed 14 human trafficking and five piracy cases as well as thwarting several attempts to smuggle alcohol and weapons into Bahrain. Those caught violating the ban would have to spend one month in prison or pay a fine of over BD100. The ban does not apply to large boats carrying merchandise as they follow the international trade treaties. Source : Khaleej Times

Mitropoulos urges Nigerian Government to act on piracy

IMO Secretary-General Efthimios E. Mitropoulos has urged the Government of Nigeria to intervene to help reduce the incidence of acts of piracy and armed robbery against ships in the Gulf of Guinea and in the waters off the coast of Nigeria. Mr. Mitropoulos took the opportunity of a wide-ranging meeting with Nigeria's new Minister of Transport, Mr.



Ibrahim Bio, which took place today (20 February 2009) at the IMO Headquarters in London, to stress that urgent action was needed to assure the international maritime community of Nigeria's commitment to address the problem on a priority basis. Mr. Bio pledged to pass the Secretary-General's message on the issue to the Nigerian President. He also informed Mr. Mitropoulos that, as part of Nigeria's efforts to resolve the problem, the Government had created a special Ministry - the Niger Delta Ministry - which had been given full powers to address, among other topics, the problem of militancy and piracy. He added that, in 2008, Nigeria had organized an international conference on piracy and armed robbery against ships in the Niger Delta region and that an action plan, agreed at the Conference, was currently being implemented. The visit, the first to IMO by the newly-appointed Transport Minister, was convened to help strengthen the working ties between Nigeria, an IMO Council Member, and the Organization. It covered a broad range of topics. Mr. Bio took the opportunity to outline some of Nigeria's key maritime programmes in the areas of safety, security, marine environment protection and the human element. He reiterated Nigeria's resolve to continue implementing and enforcing the IMO instruments which it had already accepted, as well as its intention to ratify all outstanding treaties. So far, Nigeria has ratified over thirty IMO conventions. Nigeria is, he said, working hard to implement the Long Range Identification and Tracking of Ships system and to complete the audit of its maritime training institutions, in line with the requirements of the International Convention on Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978. To help address the worldwide shortage of seafarers, Nigeria had also commenced training young school leavers to take up seafaring as a profession, under a National Seafarers' Development Programme. The Minister also confirmed that Nigeria had commenced a self-assessment and internal audit process, with a view to presenting itself for audit under the Voluntary IMO Member State Audit Scheme in the near future. Responding, Secretary-General Mitropoulos expressed his appreciation for the visit and confirmed the very productive working relationship between Nigeria and IMO. The Minister was accompanied on the visit by the Nigerian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, His Excellency Dr. Dalhatu S. Tafida. Source: IMO

Ms Kieldrecht from shipping my "van Ommeren" in Rotterdam. It is an image of the latest Oilpainting from Hans Breeman against the skyline of Rotterdam in the 60's . In the background the former headoffice of "van Ommeren"

can be seen.

www.hansbreeman.nl



www. No Fuelling The Authorities Two Singaporean-owned ships were impounded after being caught transferring their marine fuel cargo near the coast of Pengerang on Friday (20 Feb). Their crew, 19 Indonesians and an Indian national, were detained. Southern region maritime agency enforcement chief First Admiral Che Hassan Jusoh said the crew of the ships, MT City Group and MT Marina 99, were spotted carrying out suspicious activities by the Kilat 14 enforcement squad that was patrolling the area. The ships were anchored next to each other about three nautical miles south of Tanjung Setapa. Upon checking, the enforcement officers found that 290,000 litres of marine fuel from the MT City Group was being transferred to the MT Marina 99. The fuel transfer also caused oil spills in the water. Both ships were impounded as the crew had violated the Merchant Shipping Ordinance 1952. They were illegally transferring fuel, not following bunkering regulations, having safety boats with expired usage dates, failing to produce shipping documents and failing to pay duty charges. Both ships were registered at San Lorenzo, Honduras, and were owned by a Singapore-registered company. Source : ShipTalk

Coast Guard MSU Galveston responds to grounded tank ship

Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Galveston, in conjunction with Texas General Land Office, United States Mineral Management Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, O'Brien's Response Management, Titan Salvage and the Marine Spill Response Corporation, are working to free the 800-foot tank ship Yasa Golden Dardanelles that was grounded Friday, Feb. 20, 2009. The Yasa Golden Dardanelles was grounded on the north side of the Galveston safety fairway, which leads to the Houston Ship Channel. The tank ship was carrying 621,000 barrels of oil at the time of the grounding. The ship is not discharging oil or impeding other vessel traffic.

Two tugboats were on scene with the tank ship throughout the night, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009. The tugboats attempted to free the tank ship, but were unsuccessful. On Monday, Feb. 23, 2009, lightering operations are scheduled to begin. Lightering is a process that reduces the tank ship's weight by transferring some of its cargo to another vessel. Coast Guard personnel, Titan Salvage, the ship's



salvage team, and oil spill response organizations Marine Spill Response and O'Brien's Response Management, are creating a comprehensive lightering plan that will allow the transfer of the tank ship's cargo without causing pollution. Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Galveston is responding to the grounding of an 800-foot tank ship 22 miles off the coast of Galveston, which occurred Friday, Feb. 20, 2009. The tank ship Yasa Golden Dardanelles, ran aground on the north side of the Galveston safety fairway, which leads to the Houston Ship Channel. The tank ship is not discharging oil nor is it impeding other vessel traffic. The Yasa Golden Dardanelles reports having approximately 620,000 barrels of fuel oil on board. Coast Guard personnel conducted a preliminary investigation of the grounding late Friday night. An over flight conducted by an Air Station Houston MH-65 helicopter crew early this morning did not find any signs of pollution from the ship. Coast Guard personnel are working closely with the ship's owner, Texas General Land Office, United States Mineral Management Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, and Titan Salvage, the appointed salvage company, to devise a plan to minimize environmental impact and free the tank ship at the earliest opportunity.

Jan de Nul’s self-propelled suction-cutter dredge LEONARDO DA VINCI seen arriving at Botany Bay NSW from Port Hedland WA, a voyage of 3048 nm, to work on the container port expansion project.

Photo: Buster Browne ©

Rusland toont spijt voor gezonken Chinese boot

Rusland heeft spijt van de dood van zeven Chinese matrozen die afgelopen week omkwamen doordat de marine hun boot tot zinken bracht. Moskou meldde er zaterdagavond meteen bij dat de schuld van het incident bij de Indonesische kapitein van het schip ligt. ''De kapitein handelde extreem onverantwoordelijk door opzettelijk de wetten van Rusland te overtreden en de veiligheid van zijn bemanning op het spel te zetten'', aldus een woordvoerder van het Russische ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken. Het schip, de New Star, vertrok zonder toestemming uit de haven van Nachodka vlakbij Vladivostok Bron : Nu



A DryShips panamax bulk-carrier has been snatched by pirates off Somalia.

The master of the 75,700-dwt Saldanha (built 2004) radioed a nearby UK naval vessel to confirm it had been hijacked, the BBC reports. The incident involving the Malta-flagged vessel happened on Sunday but few details have emerged. Greece's ministry of merchant marine confirmed the ship was seized and said there were 22 crew on board. A source at the ship’s P&I insurer, the UK Club, had earlier confirmed to TradeWinds that there had been an unspecified “piracy incident” involving the vessel but was unable to confirm that it had been seized. The ship was travelling westbound with a cargo of coal destined for Slovenia but it is unclear if it was in the designated security corridor at the time of the attack. There is no word on the wellbeing of the crew and it is not known exactly where the ship was seized. Nobody was immediately available for comment at the Kuala Lumpur-based Piracy Reporting Centre on Sunday and there was no answer at the Athens offices of George Economou-led DryShips and Cardiff Marine. The Saldanha is the fifth Greek ship to be seized off Somalia since mid September last year. But in DryShips pirates have perhaps the highest profile shipowner to have a vessel snatched in the region to date. Nasdaq-quoted DryShips is the beneficial owner of the Saldanha which is managed by Economou’s private Greek company Cardiff. The nominal owner is Team-Up Owning of the Marshall Islands. DryShips bought the panamax from the private entity at a high $72m in August 2007. The first Greek ship to be seized was Navitrans’ 19,600-dwt bulker Centauri (built 1977). The ship was taken off Mogadishu on 18 September while en route to Mombasa with 25 crew and released on 27 November. Next up was Chartworld’s 74,100-dwt Capt Stefanos (built 2002) which was hijacked off Somalia’s east coast on 21 September with 19 crew. It was en route from South Africa with a full cargo of coal and was freed on 6 December. Mare Shipmanagement’s 9,014-dwt chemical tanker Genius (built 1992) was taken in the Gulf of Aden on 26 September also with 19 crew. It resumed its voyage from Europe to the Middle East with a cargo of petrochemicals on 20 November. The last Greek ship to fall was Drasis Shipping’s 9,064-dwt chemical carrier Action (built 1983). Twenty crew were onboard when it was seized in the Gulf of Aden on 10 October while en route from Southeast Asia to the Suez. It was released on 12 December.



TRAINING Starts Ahead Of New Tugs Arriving CLYDE Naval Base has been hosting world class tug training ahead of the delivery of brand-new, state of the art tug boats. The training was part of the New Build Vessel programme which will see around 30 craft delivered over the next few years to support the Royal Navy, six of which are to be based on the Clyde. Keith Hodgson, maritime service support manager for navy contractor Serco Denholm said: “The new vessels will have much improved capabilities. The first tug to go will be Spaniel, which is due to be replaced by SD Mars in April this year; next will be Husky, which will go in July when SD Jupiter arrives. “Both these Dog-class vessels are around 40 years old and there will be a significant difference in what the new boats can do. The new tugs are ultra-modern with an increased bollard pull, better living conditions and automated systems.” Undertaking the training was Australian tug captain Arie Nygh of Seaways Consultants Pty Ltd, who spent four weeks at the Naval Base training four tug training masters so they could in turn pass their skills and knowledge to other captains. The training took place on Faslane tugs Impetus and Impulse and involved staff from Portsmouth and HM Naval Base Clyde. Keith continued: “There has already been a lot of interest within the towing and salvage maritime community. “We have had a visit from the Chief Admiralty Pilots of the other Naval Bases, who travelled to Faslane to witness the training during its final week.” A further two tugs are due to be delivered to Faslane in 2010, when SD Resourceful and Dependable take over from old boats Nimble and Dextrous. Source: Inverclyde Now.

POSH-Semco SALVIGOUR seen towing the BOHAI FPSO enroute Bohai Bay Photo : Capt Neil Johnston – Master Salviscount ©

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Silversea diverts ship from Sri Lanka 'war' Luxury cruise line Silversea had already chosen to re-route Silver Wind, currently operating an 11-day cruise in the Indian Ocean, to avoid sailing as planned to Colombo -- a day before Tamil Tiger rebel air pilots attacked the Sri Lankan capital's airport.

Two civilians were killed and at least 45 injured in the attacks on Friday. A statement to passengers on Silver Wind read: "For precautionary measures, due to an increase in political unrest in Sri Lanka, we are cancelling our call to Colombo." Silver Wind hotel director Norman Rafelson said the decision to re-route had been vindicated. Left : SILVER WIND Photo : Kees Bustraan © "We clearly made the right decision not to go to

Colombo," he said. "It shows Silversea has the safety of its passengers as its prime objective and, although many passengers on Silver Wind had been looking forward to visiting Sri Lanka, they appreciate that we made the right decision." Silver Wind was due to visit Colombo on Sunday but will now visit Tuticorin, a major port city in southern India, instead. Colombo airport was shut for a while but has reopened. Sri Lankan authorities have recently been stepping up efforts to wipe out the Tamil Tiger rebels and end the 30-year civil conflict. Source : ttglive

Spanish fishing crew rescued by Coast Guard

A Spanish fishing trawler has sunk off Newfoundland and all 22 crewmen have been rescued by a Canadian Coast Guard vessel in the area. A spokeswoman for the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Halifax says the crew of the 30-metre Monte Galineiro jumped into life-rafts or into the ocean after the vessel caught fire this morning. The coast guard vessel Leonard J. Cowley happened to be just 10 minutes away when it received the trawler's distress signal. The ship steamed to the area of the sinking about 400 kilometres east of St. John's, Nfld., and had all of the crew aboard by noon. Jeri Grychowski, a spokeswoman for the rescue centre, says the crew are in good condition, with only one fisherman suffering from hypothermia. She says it was "a bit of luck" that the coast guard vessel happened to be in the area.



Bad weather disrupting Iran's crude exports Iran’s crude exports at the main terminal of Kharg Island have been disrupted for a few days due to bad weather, shipping sources said on Sunday. The world’s fourth-largest oil exporter ships around 2.4 million barrels per day of crude, most of which through Kharg Island in the northern Gulf. High winds have caused intermittent exports since Wednesday, sources said. The terminal was shut early on Sunday, one shipper said. It was also shut on Wednesday and Thursday last week, two shipping sources said. Iranian officials were unavailable for comment on Sunday. An oil trader said another oil terminal at the port of Bandar Mahshahr was also shut. Source : Gulf News

Ship accident investigated as seaman fights for his life

A staff member aboard the Oceanic Discoverer is transferred to an ambulance after being crushed in a fire door aboard the vessel yesterday. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today

Two separate investigations have been launched into an accident on a cruise ship at the Port of Napier yesterday which has left a seaman fighting for his life. The 34-year-old Australian man, of Sri Lankan descent, was in a critical condition in Hawke's Bay Hospital this morning after he was crushed between a fire door and a bulkhead during a safety drill on board the Oceanic Discoverer. Sergeant Wendy Wright, of Napier police, said the man was trapped for five minutes

before being freed by crew and resuscitated. He has had surgery for crush injuries to his chest, abdomen and pelvis. The Oceanic Discoverer, which arrived in Napier yesterday, did not leave for the Marlborough Sounds last night as scheduled. It is a small cruise ship with 70 to 80 passengers, said Ken Lowe, a spokesman for agents ISS McKay. Passengers were ashore when the accident happened. "The ship is being held in port while the investigations take place and there is also a manning issue now," Mr Lowe told Hawke's Bay Today newspaper. Maritime New Zealand and the Transport Accident Investigation Commission have both launched investigations. TAIC chief investigator Tim Burfoot said it would be months before a report was completed. Source : NZPA

Yemen plans port to help combat piracy Yemen and France are planning an artificial harbor off Yemen’s Perim island to help the international campaign against piracy in the region, a French diplomat said yesterday. Speaking after French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner met Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the diplomat said: “This anchorage will facilitate the missions” of vessels helping in the counter-piracy fight.



France, Yemen and Djibouti are preparing a letter of intent on an “agreement in principle” to create the harbor at Perim, which lies in a strategic location at the entrance to the Red Sea between Yemen and Djibouti, the diplomat added. Kouchner said he and Saleh explored ways their countries could join forces to battle against high-seas piracy. “We had very sincere talks,” that centered on increasing visits to Yemeni ports by foreign ships battling piracy and on helping train coast guards, the French foreign minister said. “We must look at stepping up regional cooperation to avoid security problems,” said Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr Al-Kurubi, noting that humble fishermen have been targeted by foreign vessels on counter-piracy operations. Yemen wants to create an operations coordination center, since “we must help the fishermen to earn their living,” Al-Kurubi said. The country currently operates only a small anti-piracy monitoring center. Yemen will allow foreign warships to chase suspect vessels into its territorial waters, on a case by case basis and when Yemen is unable to act itself, a French diplomatic source said. It is “progress compared to a few months ago,” the source added. Kouchner is expected in Djibouti today for talks with the presidents of Djibouti and Somalia. More than 130 ships were attacked in the area in 2008 alone. The heavily armed pirates operate high-powered speedboats and sometimes hold ships for weeks before releasing them for large ransoms paid by governments or ship owners. They are estimated to have raked in $120 million in ransom money last year. Source : Arab News

The tug SMIT POLEN arrived back from Yemen in Rotterdam with the TAKLIFT 7 Photo : Jan Oosterboer ©



NAVY NEWS Chinese Navy To Attend Joint Military

Exercise In Pakistan The Chinese navy will participate in a ten-day multinational naval exercise in the seas off Pakistan in March, a Ministry of National Defense official said Thursday. A task force, composed of the destroyer Guangzhou, a helicopter and 10 members of the marine corps will take part in the "Peace-09" exercise, said ministry spokesman Huang Xueping. The drill, slated for March 5 in the port city of Karachi, was initiated by the Pakistan navy and will be attended by 11 countries. It includes search-and-rescue exercises, anti-piracy operations and fleet formation defenses. The purpose for attending the operation is to allow the Chinese navy to gain useful experience from foreign counterparts, strengthen its communication capacity, learn how to cooperate with foreign navies in handling new threats and challenges at sea and maintaining regional peace and stability, Huang said. The Chinese navy, together with task forces from France, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States, attended a Pakistan navy-initiated joint military exercise in March 2007. Source : defense-technologynews

Iran navy moves to international waters Iran's navy builds up its presence in international waters to protect the country's "national interests". Iran has deployed naval ships to the high seas as part of a full-fledged campaign initiated by the highest level of government. Iranian Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari on Friday indicated that Tehran had overcome the self-imposed barrier of warship deployment in its own territorial waters to establish a powerful naval presence in international waters. "We have a right to have a naval presence in international waters. Our initiative will work to protect the national interests of the Islamic Republic and will hoist the Iranian flag with pride," explained the navy commander. Ordered by Leader of the Islamic Revolution and Iran's Commander-in-Chief Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the newly-launched initiative will ensure that Iranian warships remain stationed in a large area of the Indian Ocean. Iran in late 2008 opened a naval base in the eastern part of the strategic Hormuz waterway. Military officials then described the base as a protective barrier against enemy infiltration at the main entrance to Iranian waters. Dubbed as a "defense front", the Jask base was said to be part of plans to make the area "impenetrable" for a non-regional enemy. Rear Adm. Sayyari said Friday that the Jask naval base plays a major role in the new push into high seas. "With this presence, we seek to convey the message of peace and friendship of the Iranian nation to the entire world, to help instruction and to pass on our experiences to our young generation," he continued. According to the official, Iran is working on further strengthening its presence in international waters by improving its naval infrastructure and adding new destroyers to its fleet. An Iranian warship has already ended a one-month mission in the Indian Ocean as part of the initiative. Source : presstv.ir



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Singapore's Stealth Frigates Display Power In Navy Drill

Singapore's six radar-evading stealth frigates displayed their firepower for the first time at a military exercise held by the country's navy and air force, local media reported on Thursday. The Formidable class multi-role stealth frigates are the latest platforms to enter into service with the Republic of Singapore Navy, and are multi-mission derivatives of the French Navy’s La Fayette class frigate. The frigates are key information nodes and fighting units, and are “by far the most advanced surface combatants in Southeast Asia". The six ships form the 185 Squadron of the Navy. According to Chinese Language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao, some 800personnel participated in the two-day military exercise to end on Thursday in the South China Sea. The newspaper said it was arranged by Singapore's Defense Ministry on board the RSS Steadfast in the

South China Sea, 185 km north-east of Singapore, to observe the joint military drill. Besides six radar-evading stealth frigates, the navy also sent three missile corvettes, one Landing Ship Tank, one submarine. And the air force sent two F-5 Tiger jets, four F-16 fighter jets, oneE-2C surveillance aircraft and one Super Puma helicopter for the mission. During the two-day drill, the stealth frigates and other vessels demonstrated how to hunt and destroy enemies on land, at sea and in the air. Source : defense-technologynews



Huge Royal Navy Task Force Sets Sail HMS Bulwark, which is spearheading the biggest Royal Navy Task Force to deploy to the Far East in more than a decade, set sail from Plymouth today, Wednesday 18 February 2009. The Taurus deployment has been 18 months in the planning. It aims to maintain the Royal Navy's fighting capability as well as develop the UK's capacity to operate with key partners and allies from NATO countries and other nations to enhance interoperability. It will also demonstrate the UK's commitment to the stability and security of the Mediterranean, Middle East and South East Asia. In exercising its ability to deploy globally, the Task Force will conduct a wide range of activities, including maritime security operations, and exercising amphibious and anti-submarine warfare. The Task Force comprises 12 ships, including a US Navy destroyer and a French Navy frigate, two nuclear-powered submarines, Royal Marines, the Fleet Diving Unit, elements of 820 and 857 Naval Air Squadrons from RNAS Culdrose, 847 Naval Air Squadron and Commando Helicopter Force Sea Kings based in Yeovil and Support Helicopter Force Chinooks from 18 Squadron, RAF Odiham. It will be joined by ships, troops and aircraft from other nations as it transits towards South East Asia. At its height, 3,300 personnel will take part in the 20,400 mile (32,831km) round-trip deployment, interacting, training and building relations with 17 nations. Spearheading the deployment from his Command Ship HMS Bulwark, Royal Navy Commodore Peter Hudson, Commander UK Amphibious Task Group, said: "Taurus is a great opportunity for the Royal Navy to demonstrate and practise a wide range of skills, specifically anti-submarine and amphibious warfare. Everybody involved is looking forward to this deployment, which has real opportunities for all. Deploying a maritime force across the globe for prolonged periods defines a premier Navy's capability. It is what we do and we do it well. It is important for UK defence that we can take such a commitment in our stride." The Taurus deployment will be split into two phases. Phase One will involve amphibious training with nations in the Mediterranean, culminating in a series of amphibious landings in Turkey as part of Exercise Egemen - a joint and combined exercise. Phase Two will see part of the Task Group deploy through the Suez Canal, culminating in a multi-national training package in the primary jungles of Brunei. Riverine training will also be conducted with the Bangladeshi Navy, the first such interaction in more than a decade. The UK-mandated deployment will remain available for a range of potential missions as required, such as humanitarian aid and disaster relief. Speaking as the Task Force prepares to deploy, Minister of State for the Armed Forces Bob Ainsworth said: "In addition to the Royal Navy's contribution to current operations, exercising its open ocean and amphibious capability is vital to demonstrating its global reach and maintaining its capacity to deliver maritime security. This deployment illustrates the Navy's versatility. It is a world class service and deploying this task group will hone its warfighting skills." The Task Force is expected to return in August 2009. The ships involved in the Taurus deployment are: - Landing Platform Dock HMS Bulwark*



- Landing Platform Helicopter HMS Ocean* - Type 23 frigate HMS Argyll - Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset* - United States Navy Guided Missile Destroyer USS Mitscher* - French Navy Georges Leygues-class frigate FS Dupleix - RFA Mounts Bay - RFA Lyme Bay - RFA Wave Ruler* - RFA Fort Austin - Two Trafalgar Class submarines * denotes units involved in Phase Two Engagement/Exercises will be conducted with countries including: Malta, Gibraltar, Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Brunei. Source : defencetalk

Australian Navy to spend $15bn on subs

THE Federal Government will spend $15 billion on a new Australian-built fleet of submarines under a 15 to 20 year project. The project codenamed SEA 100 will replace the Royal Australian Navy's fleet of six Collins-class subs based at Garden Island near Perth, the West Australian reports. The submarines will be built in Adelaide, be non-nuclear and use a combination of Australian, European and US technology. The acquisition was expected to create thousands of jobs and interest from international submarine outfitters. It would also have major strategic and diplomatic consequences, a defence expert told the West Australian. New technologies being developed by China and Russia would make the Collins-class subs obsolete, Andrew Davies from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute said. "This weaponry will make life much more difficult for surface warships, so if a middle power like Australia wants to have a credible long-range naval influence, new submarines are going to be better than surface ships," Mr Davies said. The six new submarines were expected to cost between $1.5 billion to $2 bilion each with project overheads possibly reaching another $3 billion. Source : theaustralian

U.S. warships handover to Ukrainian Navy doubtful

"The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has not considered any mechanisms of the transfer [of the U.S. frigates] to the Ukrainian Navy," the deputy head of the military cooperation department in the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, Ivan Kharchenko, told a briefing in Kyiv on Friday. According to earlier reports, in January U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor said he doubted that the issue of Ukraine purchasing U.S. Navy ships had been resolved. He recalled that Ukrainian and U.S. defense departments had started consultations before the economic crisis began to tell. Taylor said that U.S. warship maintenance was very expensive. Taylor said he doubted Ukraine had sufficient funds to purchase U.S. ships. He said he doubted these talks would conclude with any specific decision in the near-term. Source : kyivpost.com



Submarines - The Russian Navy Crawls Out Of The Cellar

The Russian Navy has not only shrunk since the end of the Cold War in 1991, but it has also become much less active. In the last three years, only ten of their nuclear subs went to sea, on a combat patrol, each year. Most of the boats going to sea were SSNs (attack subs), the minority were SSBNs (ballistic missile boats). There were more short range training missions, which often lasted a few days, or just a few hours. But the true measure of a fleet is the "combat patrol" or "deployment." In the U.S. Navy, most of these last from 2-6 months. In the last three years, U.S. nuclear subs have carried out ten times as many patrols as their Russian counterparts. Currently, Russia only has 14 SSBN (nuclear ballistic missile sub) boats in service, and not all of them have a full load of missiles. Some lack full crews, or have key systems in need of repair. Russia has only 14 modern, 7,000 ton, Akula SSNs (nuclear attack subs) in service. These began building in the late 1980s and are roughly comparable to the American Los Angeles class. All of the earlier Russian SSNs are trash, and most have been decommissioned. There are also eight SSGN (nuclear subs carrying cruise missiles) and 20 diesel electric boats. There is a new class of SSGNs under construction, but progress, and promised funding increases, have been slow. Currently, the U.S. has six of the new, 7,700 ton, Virginia class SSNs in service, four under construction and nine on order. The mainstay of the American submarine force is still the 6,100 ton Los Angeles-class SSN. Sixty-two of these submarines were built, 45 of which remain in front-line service, making it probably the largest class of nuclear submarines that will ever be built. The Seawolf-class of nuclear attack submarines stopped at three from a planned class of twenty-nine. The 8,600 ton Seawolf was designed as a super-submarine, designed to fight the Soviet Navy at its height. Reportedly, it is quieter going 40 kilometers an hour, than the Los Angeles-class submarines are at pier side. The peak year for Russian nuclear sub patrols was 1984, when there were 230. That number rapidly declined until, in 2002, there were none. Since the late 1990s, the Russian navy has been hustling to try and reverse this decline. But the navy budget, despite recent increases, is not large enough to build new ships to replace the current Cold War era fleet that is falling apart. The rapid decline of Russia's nuclear submarine fleet needed international help to safely decommission over a hundred obsolete or worn out nuclear subs. This effort has been going on for nearly a decade, and was driven by the Russian threat to just sink their older nuclear subs in the Arctic ocean. That might work with conventional ships, but there was an international uproar over what would happen with all those nuclear reactors sitting on the ocean floor forever. Russia generously offered to accept donations to fund a dismantling program that included safe disposal (of the nuclear reactors). Since the end of the Cold War in 1991, most of the ship building money has gone into new nuclear subs. Six Akulas have been completed in that time, but the first of a new generation of SSBNs, the Borei class was delayed by technical problems, a new ballistic missile that wouldn't work, and lack of money. The first Borei class boat, after many delays, is finally ready for service, and ended up costing over two billion dollars. The Russian admirals made their big mistake in the early 1990s, when the dismantling of the Soviet Union left the second largest fleet in the world with only a fraction of its Cold War budget. Rather than immediately retire ninety percent of those ships, Russia tried to keep many of them operational. This consumed most of the navy budget, and didn't work. There were too many ships, not enough sailors and not enough money for maintenance or training at sea. The mighty Soviet fleet is mostly scrap now, or rusting hulks tied up at crumbling, out-of-the way naval bases. While Western nuclear subs can last for about thirty years, Russian models rarely get past twenty. That means two new SSN or SSGN has to be put into service each year to maintain a force of forty boats. Unless the sub construction budget get billions more dollars a year, that is not going to happen. Right now, the priority is on producing a new class of SSBNs (11 more Boreis are planned or under construction). These Boreis are critical, because they carry SLBM (Sea Launched Ballistic Missiles) that provide a critical (they are much harder to destroy in a first strike than land based missiles) portion of the nuclear deterrent. The rest of the Russian armed forces, like most of the navy, is in sad shape, and unable to resist a major invasion. Only the ICBMs and SLBMs guarantee the safety of the state. So the way things are going now, in a decade or two, Russia will end up with a force consisting of a dozen SSNs and a dozen SSBNs.



The current fleet of nuclear subs is tiny, and the Russians would rather keep them tied up at dock most of the time. The crews can do a lot of training at dockside, and only go to sea a few times a year to check on their state of training. Given the number of accidents their subs have had in the past decade, the training the crews are getting now is not sufficient. Source : strategypage

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Above seen at the CSBC Dry-Dock in Kaohsiung (Taiwan) the 1970 built TSHD Inai Anggerik of the Malaysian Dredging Company, this dredger is the former Delta Queen of Bagger Maatschappij Blankevoort

The dredger is powered by 2 Smit-Bolnes V20 mainengines of 4400 HP each, and driven by two Lips Propellers /

Hub-type: 4LWH890 Photo : Marco De Niet – Wartsila Propulsion ©

New shipyard at Aarhus harbour Within the last ten years it has become more and more difficult to run a shipyard in Aarhus. At first it was Aarhus' floating dock which went bankrupt in 1999 and eight years after Aarhus Shipyard suffered the same fate. Now, a new shipyard is due to be build in Aarhus.



Aros Maritime is now kick starting the work on the dock with a brand new theory. "We have seen the opportunity to start a maintenance and repair shipyard", says the director of the new shipyard, Michael Oestergaard. According to Aros Maritime, which is the name of the new shipyard, Aarhus harbour is well fitted for this type of shipyard, as it is a good match to the ships which port here. Therefore, Aros Maritime hopes to avoid loosing the ships to other harbours. Michael Oestergaard hops to hire app. 50 employees, plus the double at the shipyards under suppliers. Source: maritimedanmark.dk

Samsung Heavy signs MOU with Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation

Samsung Heavy Industries of South Korea on February 19th signed a memorandum of understanding with Russia for the cooperation for Russian shipbuilding industry's modernization, after a naming ceremony for an icebreaking tanker held in Samsung Heavy's Geoje Shipyard. Vladimir Pakhomov, president of United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC), Russian state shipbuilding holding, and Samsung Heavy's vice-chairman Kim Jing-wan inked the MOU. Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Igor Ivanovich Sechin who is also the chairman of USC, and the Russian Ambassador to South Korea Gleb A. Ivashentsov also participated at the MOU signing ceremony. USC is seeking to modernize Russian shipyards and unite them in three regional groups (west, north and Far East). Main provisions of the MOU include development of new business and promotion of joint-investment project, co-development of design technology, overall cooperation for improvement of shipbuilding technology, etc. USC and Samsung Heavy will organize a special committee in March to discuss detailed plans for cooperation. With the MOU signing, Samsung Heavy expects to jointly receive orders for construction of ships, receive technology services charge such as new shipyard construction technology and ship design technology, etc. Also it could join the construction works of ports, roads and oil pipeline in Russia. Russia, for its part, expects to enhance its shipbuilding productivity through the cooperation with Samsung Heavy. Russian shipbuilding industry has been focusing on defense industry orders and its productivity in commercial ship building sector is very low. Samsung Heavy said it will transfer some of globally generalized merchant ship building technology to Russian shipyards and construct offshore units, which require high technology, in South Korea to prevent high value-added technology from leaking.



It has decided to cooperate with Russia to benefit each other rather than let other countries cooperate with Russia and threaten South Korean shipbuilding industry, Samsung Heavy added. Samsung Heavy plans to secure more global shipbuilding bases in Southeast Asia, Central and South America, and Africa as well as Russia to open up new markets with its new products such as ice-class drillships, LNG-FPSO and icebreaking commercial vessels. Meanwhile, the icebreaking tanker named TIMOFEY GUZHENKO on the same day was delivered to shipowner forthwith. The ship was the third of three ships ordered by Russia's Sovocomflot for $430m in 2005. Two of them were already delivered to the owner last year. Source: Vinamaso

At the Damen yard in Galati the SMIT SEINE was lowered into her element Photo : Peter Aerts ©

Indian govt set to revive subsidy scheme for shipbuilding companies

The government is all set to revive the subsidy scheme for shipbuilding companies such as ABG Shipyard, Bharati Shipyard, Hindustan Shipyard and Pipavav Shipyard, where a part of the cost of manufacturing the ship is reimbursed at the point of sale. The finance ministry has also agreed to release the pending subsidy amount to shipbuilding companies under the scheme, which lapsed on August 15, 2007, amounting to nearly Rs 5,000 crore, a government official said. Shipbuilding companies in the private sector got very little subsidy under the scheme, added the source. The finance ministry’s in-principle approval has, however, come with riders. It will now not be an open-ended scheme and the subsidy component would be worked out on the basis of latest projections of global orders that the home-grown shipbuilding companies are expected to generate.



some conditions. They have asked us not to keep the scheme open-ended, which means that there will be no further extension to the scheme. Following this, we are reviewing the earlier proposal and are in the process of finalising a fresh scheme,” a government official, who did not wish to be named, told ET. According to an industry estimate, the domestic shipyards currently have an order book of Rs 22,000 crore compared with an order of just Rs 816 crore in 2002. In a bid to promote the domestic shipbuilding industry, the government has extended the subsidy scheme to private shipbuilding companies. Earlier, only state-owned companies were eligible for the subsidy. As per the scheme, the government provided a 30% subsidy on all ship sales to foreign companies and ocean-going vessels of more than 80 m in length sold in the local market. Following the expiry of the earlier scheme, the shipping ministry proposed an extension of the scheme for another 10 years. The finance ministry, however, turned down the proposal saying that the shipbuilding industry had come of age and was in the position of stand on its own. The finance ministry finally agreed to extend the scheme with riders. Source: The Economics Times

Croatian shipyards go on sale The Croatian Government is having trouble trying to put together international tenders to sell off its state owned shipyards in a way that would be approved by both the European Commission and trade unions. In order for Croatia to join the European Commission, the shipyards, must be sold, but Croatia is now under pressure from unions to ensure that the new owners would not be allowed to close the docks or change the nature of the business. The Commission, on the other hand, has said that it did not want a clause in the tenders that would deter such decisions by new owners. Sources close to the department handling the sell-off process have said that Croatia is hoping to call for tenders in late February or March. This process was scheduled to have been completed by December 2008. Source : Baird Online Tsuneishi still confident in the Philippines

A slipway at Tsuneishi Heavy Industries' yard in Cebu, the Philippines Japanese shipbuilder Tsuneishi Heavy Industries has revealed that it will pump a further US$227 million into upgrading its shipyard facilities in the Philippines. The company said that the expansion would mean the yard would be capable of building vessels up to 250,000DWT. The shipyard would then aim to build tankers, bulkers, containerships and car carriers for owners in Japan and Europe. The expansion involves some 90 hectares of land at the West Cebu Industrial Park in Balamban.

The MAERSK BATAM seen approaching Rotterdam-Europoort Photo : Jan Oosterboer ©



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No sale of Nordic Tankers tonnage According to stock exchange release no. 44 of 2 February 2009 by Nordic Tankers, the former Supervisory Board of Nordic Tankers A/S had endeavoured to sell tonnage and had lifted Board approval for sale/bareboat charter of the LR1 newbuilding and 1-2 chemical tankers. The Supervisory Board of Nordic Tankers A/S is of the opinion that the company has not entered into any binding agreement on the sale of the above tonnage, and the board has informed the potential buyer with whom the former Supervisory Board had negotiations of this. It has been definitively decided that the sale of the LR1 new building will not be completed. The Supervisory Board is still considering the case regarding the alleged sale of the two chemical tankers, and we will inform the market when the clarification process is over. It appears from the company's stock exchange release no. 44 that the former Supervisory Board was of the opinion that the sale of the LR1 new building and the two chemical tankers would generate a positive return. However, according to the company's calculation, this is not correct. Source: Nordic Tankers

Possible penalties prevent collection of containers in Lagos

Nigerian importers are refusing delivery of their goods from fears of demurrage charges and fines, reported Nigeria's Business Day. This, the report added, is said to be the reason why only a 100 of the 20 000 un-cleared TEUs have been cleared by the port's decongestion taskforce in Lagos. The activities of the economic and financial crimes commission (EFCC) are also causing further anxiety - with many avoiding clearance for fear of arrest. And it is greedy foreign lines which are imposing the high charges, according to Tony Iju Nwabunike, chairman of Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarders of Nigeria (CRFFN). He said it is foreign shipping operators that are “milking” Nigerian importers in increased rental and demurrage costs. Source : cargoinfo.co.za



HAL’s Volendam has been based around Australia and New Zealand for several months during the summer cruise season. She is due back again in Sydney on the 2nd and 19th March and this will be the completion of this season's cruises down this part of the world . The above image shows her passing the Opera House just about to pass under

the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Photo : Ian Edwards- Sydney ©

$1.8bn Oman port on track despite turmoil Oman will build a 692 million Omani rial ($1.8 billion) port at Duqm as part of its economic development plan despite a global downturn and a projected drop in oil revenue, Minister of National Economy Ahmed Mekki said. The government expects "reasonable growth" this year despite the financial crunch in part because it aims to pursue all the major state-led development projects it has launched, using surplus oil revenue or state reserves, if needed, he said. "The 2009 outlook is relatively good ... we expect a reasonable growth since we are going ahead with all major plans," Mekki said. Oman plans to diversify its economy away from oil income dependency, which makes up about 75 per cent of national revenue, and is pursuing a number of large-scale infrastructure projects. The government has already awarded 220m rials worth of infrastructural projects since the beginning of the year, according to the state figures. Last week, Oman said it has shortlisted six companies for the construction of the $1.5bn Muscat airport terminal building. The Duqm development in central-eastern Oman aims to create a new city to serve as a key administrative, industrial and commercial centre. The first phase of the Duqm project calls for the port and a dry dock expansion. Phase 2 includes an airport, an extensive road network and a free trade zone for industries. "Phase 2 will be the development of various projects whose funds will come from huge foreign and local investments," Mekki said.



Mekki said oil fetched 7.75bn rials in revenue in the first eleven months of this year, according to preliminary figures, compared to 5.8bn rials in the same 11 month period in 2007. That helped drive a government budget surplus of 1.98bn rials for the first 11 months of the year, he said. "This indicates an overall healthy surplus for the overall year once the 2008 statistics have been finalised," Mekki said. This year's budget has been based on the average oil price of $45 per barrel. Source: Gulf-Daily-News

Norden battles one of its costumers Norden has at a court in New York been granted the permission to confiscate archives for up to 98 million dollars. This is enforced as security to ensure, that one of the shipping company's biggest costumers, the Russian Rusal Trading International, will fulfil a number of transport contracts. "It is a big case for us, and I have no further comments. We have shown both empathy and flexibility with RTI, but there comes a time where enough is enough and where one has to have some sort of security for coverage of what they owe us", says Norden's CEO Carsten Mortensen. The case is on 4-5 quantity contracts for the navigation of bauxit, which Norden doesn't think RTI has fulfilled. The confiscated archives consist of deposits in banks and supposedly cover the amount of money Norden believes to still have left in RTI. The court in New York alone has approved that the archives are frozen but the question of whether Norden actually has the claimed amount of money left over in RTI will be solved later by a court of arbitration. Rusal, according to Bloomberg News, calls Norden's demands 'unfounded' and states that they will appeal the court's decision. Source: maritimedanmark



The CAPPADOCIAN seen anchored off Algeciras Photo : Dirk van Wolveren ©

Seoul ponders bailout plan for delicate shipping firms

In yesterday’s emergency meeting presided over by President Lee Myung-bak, the shipping industry emerged as the next target after the construction and shipbuilding industries, where government-supervised and creditor-led restructuring efforts have already begun.The government is considering debt rescheduling for the shipping industry, as the industry’s profitability deteriorates along with worldwide trade volume in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. Late last year, Park Road Corp., a midsize shipping company, went bankrupt. Samsun Logix, another midsize shipping company, applied for court receivership early this month. The nation’s top four shipping firms - Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., Hanjin Shipping Co., STX Pan Ocean Shipping Co. and Korea Line Corp. - are also seeing their net profit decline. “If the economic recession continues, earnings at shipping companies will be worse this year than last year,” said Song Jae-hak, an analyst at Woori Investment and Securities. “In such conditions, some small and midsized shipping companies could collapse.” Since shipping companies borrow vessels from each other, if one goes bankrupt it directly affect the others, he added. The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs and the Financial Services Commission announced they are discussing details for the industry’s eventual overhaul. “We are deliberating on whether to arrange restructuring in the shipping industry in the same way that we did in the construction and shipbuilding industries or to take other routes,” said Chin Dong-soo, chairman of the Financial Services Commission. A ministry official who refused to be identified said, “Even if a builder is restructured [and is forced to sell the apartments it has been building], the apartments will still be in Korea. But if a shipping company is restructured, in many cases, it will have to sell the ships to foreign companies at dirt-cheap prices.” “The government should take into account these unique characteristics,” the official added. The government announced it would conduct a follow-up study on a second group of 94 midsize builders and four newly-established shipbuilders, in the aftermath of a recent credit risk study and corporate restructuring of firms in the two industries.



Companies in industries outside those specified will have to restructure on their own with their creditors, the government said. But further industry-wide restructuring efforts are not out of the question, and guidelines decided upon by a committee of related ministries will govern any such efforts. Source: JoongAng Daily

…. PHOTO OF THE DAY …..

Vroon’s POOL EXPRESS Photo : Joop Marechal ©

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