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Since September 2016 Jan De Nul Group, as part of the Joint Venture Sas van Vreeswijk, has been working on the construction of the third Princess Beatrix lock near Utrecht in the Netherlands, the company said in its release. On 6 February 2019 the Dutch Princess Beatrix officially inaugurated the lock in the presence of the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, Cora van Nieuwenhuizen. The Princess rang a ship’s bell, giving the go-ahead for the first official passage of ships through the new lock. The official opening of the lock closes a construction period of 2.5 years. The two lock heads are each 30 x 60 meters. Each lock head contains two lock gates, each weighing 490,000 kilos and measuring 28 meters wide, 14 meters high and 6.25 meters thick. In total, 44,875 m³ of concrete and 17,900 tons of reinforcement were used to build this new lock. Sas van Vreeswijk was also responsible for the excavation of 2 million m³ in order to widen the access to the locks.

The Freeport of Riga says it held a ceremony at the beginning of the year to commission two piers, ZO-1 and ZO-2, after the redevelopment, which took almost two years. The project included extension of both piers. ZO-1 received two newly built mooring posts and new lighting. For the extension of the ZO-2 pier, a new underwater sheet pile was built and dredging to 12 m depth mark was done. For the needs of the new extended pier, soil excavation was performed in the area of 3,710 m2 and about 7,746 m2 of the water area were dredged. Storm sewer with local water treatment units and output to the water area was built.

In cooperation with Svitzer, Sohar Port and Freezone, recently signed a charter agreement for five new tugboat vessels to replace the existing tugboat fleet and provide 24/7 operational support for vessel movements in and around the rapidly expanding port. The marine service agreement was signed at the annual business reception on January 23, between Dr Mohammed Nasser Ali Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Board at Sohar Port and Freezone, and Henriette Hallberg Thygesen, CEO of Svitzer.

Fluxys and Titan LNG have joined forces to build the FlexFueler 002, a bunkering pontoon to make liquefied natural gas (LNG) more widely available as shipping fuel in the Antwerp port and region. The pontoon will be commissioned by mid-2020 and support the shipping industry in its switch to cleaner operations.

LUKOIL says it is interested in construction of a dry cargo terminal for transshipment of coke, coal and pellets in Vysotsk, says press center of the Leningrad Region Government. The terminal design has been discussed at the meeting of Leningrad Region Governor Aleksand Drozdenko and LUKOIL President Vagit Alekperov. The first turn of SPK Vysotsk terminal able to handle up to 7 million tonnes of cargo per year is to be completed by 2021. When fully operational the terminal will handle up to 15 million tonnes per year. The project foresees generation of about 160 jobs.

Gujarat may offer an additional 50% stake in Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. (GSPC) LNG Ltd to Adani Group, which already holds a 25% stake in the company, after Indian Oil Corp. Ltd decided to opt out of the race, said three state government officials close to the development, requesting anonymity. The Gujarat government, which owns 50% in GSPC LNG, had been looking to induct a third partner for the remaining 25% stake. It may now allow the Adani Group to pick up the 25%, and offload up to 25% of its own stake in the company.

FRANKFURT, Jan 25 (Reuters) – German utility Uniper on Friday said ExxonMobil had signed a preliminary deal to take a substantial share of the regasification capacity at a liquefied natural gas (LNG) floating terminal planned for Wilhelmshaven. “The heads of agreement (a non-binding draft) is an important step towards the realisation of the Wilhelmshaven floating storage and regasification (FSRU) project,” said Keith Martin, Uniper’s chief commercial officer. “The FSRU will provide LNG companies from the United States, but also other countries from around the world, with the opportunity to deliver LNG into the German and European markets,” he said. LNG is seen helping the German government diversify away from pipeline gas arriving from Russia, Norway and the Netherlands.

Port of Brisbane Pty Ltd (PBPL) has announced the principal contractors for its $158 million Brisbane International Cruise Terminal, paving the way for construction to begin in the coming months. Wharf construction will be undertaken by Brady Marine & Civil, a specialist marine infrastructure and engineering contractor headquartered in Brisbane, the company said in its release. The civil works and terminal building will be delivered by Hindmarsh, a leading Australian construction company.

Skids, jacks, booms and a big helping of smart thinking from some of the best minds in the crane upgrades business – that’s been the recipe for success at MSC Terminal Valencia. When the terminal was planning an ambitious project to upgrade all eight of its ship-to-shore (STS) cranes ready for handling today’s new generation of super-sized vessels, there was only one partner who could deliver the goods.

A new marine terminal will be built in the Poti, due to which the port will be able to receive 2.5 million tons more cargo per year. This was announced on February 4 by the Prime Minister of Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadze, during the signing of the relevant agreement. The relevant agreement was signed between the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the Georgian-American transport company PACE Group in Tbilisi.

APM Terminals has signed a memorandum of understanding with Sahathai Terminal PLC (PORT) and Mitr Phol Sugar to develop a 345,000 TEU capacity greenfield container terminal in Bangkok, Thailand. Bangkok River Terminal Limited (BRT) will accommodate Thailand’s rapidly-growing containerized import and export trade. Sahathai Terminal PLC (PORT), Thailand’s leading container terminal and logistics company formed a Joint Venture with Mitr Phol Sugar to develop this Container Terminal in October 2018. With over 35-years’ experience in Thailand with container operations in Lat Krabang and Laem Chabang, APM Terminals’ participation will further strengthen the joint venture. Completion of the transaction is subject to receiving applicable regulatory approvals and licenses.

Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) has further increased performance at its largest container terminal in the Port of Hamburg with a comprehensive expansion of its rail terminal. Two extra tracks and two new rail gantry cranes have been added to the rail terminal at the Container Terminal Burchardkai (CTB).

Port operators have begun shipping out empty containers clogging the Manila International Container Port (MICP) and the Port of Manila (POM), Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero disclosed. Guerrero, a former military chief, said the Asian Terminals Incorporated (ATI), which operates POM, has already transferred empty containers from Manila to Batangas Port last January 14. The shipping lines are also set to send their sweeper vessels to move out empty containers to the Ports of Batangas and Subic to free up space at the two Manila ports.

CMA CGM Short Sea Lines Med announced the deployment of a new Intra Med service in which CMA CGM will operate 1 vessel. This new service called Med Pendulum Service (MPS) will have the following features: Rotation and terminals: Salerno (Amoruso Container Terminal) - La Spezia (Terminal del Golfo) - Genoa (San Giorgio Terminal) - Algeciras (TTI) - Casablanca (Somaport) - Leixoes (TCL) - Setubal (Sadoport) - Marseille (Mourepiane) - Genoa (San Giorgio Terminal) - La Spezia (Terminal del Golfo) - Salerno (Amoruso Container Terminal) - Piraeus (Piraeus Container Terminal) - Mersin (Mersin International Port) - Lattakia (Lattakia Terminal) - Beirut (Beirut Container Terminal) - Alexandria (Old Port) - Salerno (Amoruso Container Terminal) Duration: 40 days Frequency: 10 days Vessels: 4 vessels of 1,700 TEU (1 provided by CMA CGM) Starting date: January 29th, 2019 in Salerno (WB)

Chairwoman of the Executive Board of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), Angela Titzrath, comments on the company’s preliminary unaudited fig-ures for the 2018 financial year: “HHLA has performed very successfully over the past financial year, despite the deterioration of the market environment in the second half. The challenging targets we set for ourselves one year ago have been achieved and partially exceeded. These results confirm our strategy of strengthening the creative power and future viability of HHLA. We will continue to follow this path going forward. HHLA aims to be the gateway to the future.” According to preliminary unaudited figures, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) increased its Group revenue by 3 percent to € 1.29 billion in the 2018 financial year (previous year: € 1.25 billion). The Group’s operating result (EBIT) of € 204 million (previous year: € 173 million) represents an increase of 18 percent. The listed Port Logistics subgroup generated revenue of € 1.26 billion (previous year: € 1.22 billion) and an operating result (EBIT) of € 188 million (previous year: € 157 million, that include one-off expenses of approximately € 25 million for organisational restructuring and for the harmoni-sation of the existing pension schemes).

The Meridian Ports and Services Limited (MPS) on February 1, 2019, received the second batch of gantry cranes ordered for the Tema Port Expansion project. The delivery follows the purchase agreement signed in August 2017 between Shanghai Shenhua Heavy Industry Co. (ZPMC) and MPS led by Mr Kweku Ofori Asiamah, Minister of Transport, for the total of 27 gantry cranes; seven Ship-To-Shore gantry cranes (STS) on the water front and 20 electric Rubber Tyre Gantry cranes (eRTG) in the yard. The STS cranes are Super Post Panamax with 65 meter outreach capable of handling containers on board vessels up to 23 rows and 10 on deck while the eRTGs are capable of stacking containers seven wide and one over five high in the container yards.

At the Georgia Foreign Trade Conference, Georgia Ports Authority Executive Director Griff Lynch unveiled GPA’s Big Berth/Big Ship program that will allow the Port of Savannah to simultaneously handle six 14,000 TEU vessels by 2024. “No other single container terminal in North America has the ability to expand berth capacity at this rate,” said Lynch. Currently, Savannah’s Garden City Terminal is equipped to handle two of these vessels and by April of this year that number will increase to three. During his presentation titled “2019: The Triple Crown?” Lynch told an audience of 350 logistics professionals that the Port of Savannah had just last week achieved the busiest month ever in its history, moving 433,975 TEUs, a whopping 28 percent jump over the previous year.

New energy-saving, low-emission technology at the Port of Hamburg: two straddle carriers with environmentally friendly hybrid engines are now transporting containers between the ship, the yard, the rail terminal and the truck gate at the HHLA Container Terminal Tollerort (CTT). The two prototypes are expected to use at least 15 percent less diesel than their predecessors. This will significantly reduce emissions of CO2, nitric oxide and particulate matter, the company said in its release.

Magellan Midstream Partners LP has begun talks with companies developing crude transportation assets in Freeport, Texas, as it considers building a U.S. crude export terminal there instead of its previously planned spot off Corpus Christi, an executive said.

With support from the European Union’s CEF Program, Port of Barcelona partners with energy suppliers, ship owner-operators, port equipment manufacturers and technological innovators to pilot and measure the efficiency of LNG on land and at sea as an alternative fuel source. The aim is to reduce NOx, SO2 and PM emissions using alternative fuels throughout the ports nautical and intermodal chains for cargo ships, ferries and cruise ships. The Port of Barcelona’s energy transition towards a more environment-friendly business model is gaining momentum, as it completes pilot operations using LNG and CNG as alternative fuels throughout its nautical and intermodal supply chains.