News

Kalyan Developers has enriched the tranquil lifestyle in Thiruvananthapuram with the addition of its prestigious ongoing projects namely - Kalyan Sapphire - Peroorkada, Kalyan Centrum -Petta and Kalyan Avanti - NH Bypass Kazhakootam. Designed by top architects, they are crafted with an aesthetic sense unmatched by other builders and developers in Trivandrum. First time home buyers and seasoned property investors will find wisdom in purchasing an apartment in Trivandrum from the most trusted brand in India. Explore location maps, local attractions, floor plans, amenities, walk through videos and construction progress, for more details.

Dutch dredging and offshore outfit Royal Boskalis Westminster has been awarded contracts in the United Kingdom and Romania worth a combined €85m ($94m). Portsmouth City Council has contracted Boskalis to construct new sea defenses in Southsea, near Portsmouth, in a joint venture with VolkerStevin. Boskalis will deploy a large trailing suction hopper dredger to replenish the beach and will construct revetments using rock barges. Project execution is expected to start early 2020 and is estimated to take five years.

The port in Northern Ireland has committed GB£254m of investment to deliver new marine and estate infrastructure. Belfast Harbour’s investment is part of a 2019-2023 Strategic Plan to boost Northern Ireland’s economy. The plan focuses on increased collaboration and partnerships with key city stakeholders to drive growth and regeneration in Belfast’s waterfront area and has been unveiled alongside an outlook through to 2035. Belfast Harbour’s chairman, David Dobbin, said: “Over the next five years Belfast Harbour intends to invest £254 million in new Port and estate infrastructure and facilities. This major investment programme is really only possible because of our Trust Port status which allows us to reinvest every penny of our net earnings back into the business.” Belfast Harbour will upgrade its cranes and material handling equipment, install new ramps to accommodate larger vessels and build new storage facilities. Work will also begin on digital ‘Smart Port’ initiatives to provide greater automation and a new unified system to coordinate cargo and shipping communications.

On the 9th of September 2019 the work for the contract “Dredging Het Nieuwe Diep”, commissioned by the Port of Den Helder, has started. Dutch Dredging is expected to carry out the remediation of 200,000 m3 of partially contaminated spoil until mid-December. The survey vessel “Hydrograaf” started the pre-dredge survey on the 9th of September, a so-called “baseline measurement” of the work. The work will then be carried out in 3 phases. In Phase 1, a bed leveller equipped with a so called dirt-plough will be employed. This is due to the fact that the top layer of silt contains a considerable amount of soil-foreign material. The specifically developed dirt-plough consists of long thin spikes that sink through the layer of silt and rake the dirt from the soil. The dirt will be ploughed to free locations where it can be dredged by means of a grab dredger and will be discharged into skips on the quay for removal and disposal. In the Phase 2, a bed leveller, trailing suction hopper dredger and a grab dredger will subsequently commence with the dredging works to the north and south of the Moorman bridge. They will restore the required depth. During Phase 3 the contaminated sediment will be removed. This phase is carried out by a grab dredger and several hopperbarges. The dredged material will be loaded in to the barges, which will transport the sediment to a depository for polluted sediment.

The fire in the engine room of the crude oil tanker Dubai Harmony moored at the Sture terminal in Øygarden municipality has now been extinguished, Equinor said in its release. At 1102 this morning, Equinor's alarm centre received reports of a fire in the engine room on board Dubai Harmony, which was loading at the quay at the Sture terminal. The fire has now been extinguished and the fire service is continuing to cool the area where the fire took place. The 102 people who were at the Sture terminal were evacuated from the terminal when the incident occurred as a precaution, while only personnel with emergency tasks remained at the terminal. The emergency organisation in Equinor will maintain dialogue with the public rescue service and other relevant authorities.

Washington States Ferries has officially launched its new hybrid-ferry newbuild program at Vigor’s Seattle shipyard. Washington’s legislature authorized a contract extension earlier this year for Vigor to build up to five 144-car Olympic class, hybrid-electric ferries over the coming years for the Washington State Ferries, the largest ferry system in the United States. Vigor has constructed the last twelve ferries in the WSF system and has been actively engaged in the evolution of hybrid-electric solutions, including sending a team to Norway to meet with experts on best practices and available technologies for low carbon ferry systems. Vigor and WSF will again visit Norway as part of a second delegation in September 2019. The Olympic class hull form is one of the most efficient in the fleet with less drag through the water and a small wake for a positive environmental impact. The new hybrid vessels will utilize the existing Olympic class hull form, but will be capable of 100% electric operation on most routes once the infrastructure needed for charging is installed.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian which caused widespread devastation across the Bahamas, Norwegian oil giant Equinor is setting about cleaning up the spills from its South Riding Point oil terminal on Grand Bahama. The South Riding Point oil terminal has sustained damage from the hurricane and oil has been observed on the ground at the terminal site and in neighbouring areas. The size of the spill is not yet clear. Equinor has secured vessels and equipment for oil spill response in Port Fourchon, Louisiana, and from various ports across southeast Florida.

Grand Bahama Shipyard (GBS) has officially resumed operations and welcomed back its first commercial vessel following Hurricane Dorian. The 57,062-ton crude oil tanker Agathonissos, owned by Greece-based Eletson, returned to the yard to complete repair works that began before the hurricane arrived in the Bahamas earlier this month. The shipyard also said it remains on track for the next planned cruise ship visit, Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Ecstasy, scheduled to arrive on October 5.

The American port of Brunswick has reopened on a “case by case” basis after Sunday’s capsizing of a car carrier in a nearby channel. The Golden Ray overturned with 24 crew members inside sparking a dramatic, successful rescue mission over the weekend. Authorities are still assessing how to remove the vessel, which is stuck on St Simons Sound. A half-mile perimeter has been established around the Golden Ray, which sits half in the water with its starboard side pointing skyward. An oil boom has been placed around the ship. Salvage teams are likely to start taking the bunker fuel from the ship this weekend.

The US Coast Guard informed that it reopened the Houston Ship Channel, on September 13, after a protest demonstration near Baytown, Texas. Namely, on September 12, 22 Greenpeace US climbers created a blockade from the Fred Hartman Bridge in Baytown. The closure on the ship channel started on September 12, after Sector Houston-Galveston watchstanders received notification that about 11 individuals were suspended from the Fred Hartman Bridge. A US Coast Guard Station Houston 29-foot Response Boat-Small boat crew, a US Coast Guard Station Galveston 45-foot Response Boat-Medium boat crew and the crew of the US Coast Guard Cutter Tiger Shark were launched to the scene.

Last week, the Dutch multimodal operator Multi Modal Rail B.V. launched a new container rail service between Rotterdam and the French town of Ottmarsheim, Port of Rotterdam said in its release. Starting with one round trip per week, the shuttle connection is expected to swiftly expand to two round trips per week. The train calls on each of Rotterdam’s major terminals. After being loaded in Rotterdam on Thursday, the shuttle departs from the sea port on Friday and arrives/departs in Ottmarsheim on Saturday. The train is back at Maasvlakte for unloading on Sunday morning. The shuttle service is offered as a complement to the two existing container rail services between Rotterdam and Strasbourg.

Following the first steel cutting, MV Werften has officially started with the construction of the second 208,000gt Global Class cruise ship for Genting Hong Kong. This not-yet named unit will be delivered in 2022, following GLOBAL DREAM in 2021.

The UK government and the Port of Southampton have teamed up to launched the UK’s first Port Economic Partnership (PEP), a way of creating stronger links between ports and government in order to long-term trade and economic growth. For the partnership, the UK Department for Transport (DfT) will work with ABP’s Port of Southampton to focus on leveraging public and private sector investment and ensuring that planning processes are as efficient as possible. The unique partnership was launched this week during an event at London International Shipping Week. The creation of PEPs was outlined back in January as part of the launch of the UK’s ‘Maritime 2050 – Navigating the Future’ strategy, envisioning creating a strong business environment for ports which, in turn, will help trade and benefit the UK economy.

The government of the Panama has officially approved the modification of the Panama Canal tolls structure, following a recommendation from the Panama Canal board of directors and a period of consultation with shipping line clients. The approved modifications include the tolls charged to neopanamax dry bulk vessels carrying iron ore, neopanamax dry bulk vessels transiting in ballast, the vehicle carrier/roro segment, and for the liquid bulk segment (including oil and product tankers, chemical tankers, LPG and LNG vessels).

The US Coast Guard is continuing efforts on containing an oil spill on the Mississippi River in New Orleans. First assets were deployed on September 11 after a helicopter aircrew from Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans observed a sheen on the water earlier in the day during a routine overflight. Fifteen hundred feet of boom has been deployed to contain the sheen while oil spill response company OMI Environmental Solutions has been contracted to contain and recover the product. The Coast Guard is yet to provide details on the cause or source of the spill. The incident is still under investigation. In addition to US Coast Guard assets, Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office has joined the response effort and six oil spill response boats have been on site as of September 13.

Cyprus continues to address every facet of its maritime offering to lure more shipowners to the island. The country’s deputy minister for shipping Natasa Pilides has revealed plans to abolish initial ship registration fees to boost one of Europe’s fastest growing flags. Members of parliament will vote on the issue later this month with a view to making the regulation official in time for Cyprus’s shipping week, which kicks off on October 6. The Cypriot register today is the 11th largest in the world with 24.4m gt on its books.

Napier Port, the third largest port on New Zealand’s North Island, has placed an order with Damen Shipyards Group for an Azimuth Tractor Drive (ATD) Tug 2412 Twin Fin for delivery later this year. The contract was signed by Sjoerd de Bruin, sales manager Pacific for Damen and Napier Port CEO Todd Dawson at Napier Port main office. Napier Port is currently developing a sixth wharf which, at 350 metres long, will be capable of handling the larger vessels that are expected to access the port in the near future. As a key transport hub for the Hawke’s Bay region of the North Island, the port already hosts a wide range of vessels including container ships, cruise ships, cargo and timber carriers. The ATD Tug 2412 Kaweka will join two existing Voith-type tugs at the port; the Te Mata and Ahuriri. Tractor tugs work best at Napier Port due to their ability to operate effectively in a swell, to tow indirectly, and their manoeuvrability, the last particularly important due to the tight berthing arrangements in the harbour. Just 24-metres in length but with 72 tonnes of bollard pull, the ATD Tug 2412 delivers just the combination of power but compactness that the Napier Port management team is seeking.

ABP announces that it will be welcoming the Royal Navy’s HMS Grimsby, into the Port of Grimsby on Sunday 15th September. For one day only, HMS Grimsby will be lowering her gangway at ABP's port and allowing the public to come aboard to learn about the important work the Royal Navy does in protecting the UK, as well as the host of other roles it performs across the world. The vessel will open for public viewing between the hours of 12.00 – 16.00 for one day only, at The Port of Grimsby, Cleethorpe Road, Grimsby DN31 3LL.

Sodraco International, a French subsidiary of Jan De Nul Group, has signed a contract to transport and install 80 offshore wind turbines on the Saint-Nazaire offshore wind farm offshore France. The contract was awarded by Parc du Banc de Guérande, a joint venture between the French renewable energy company EDF Renewables and the Canadian energy infrastructure company Enbridge. It is the first offshore wind contract in France for Jan De Nul. “We are excited to contribute to the further development of renewable energy, and offshore wind in particular, in France. Next to that we are looking forward to working again with EDF Renewables and to confirm our skills and competencies by making the installation of the Offshore Wind Turbines in collaboration with GE a great success,” said Philippe Hutse, offshore director at Jan De Nul Group. The turbine installation works are planned to commence in spring 2022 and will be completed by the end of 2022.

(Sept. 8, 2019) – As Carnival Cruise Line continues to work closely with its partners to deliver relief to the people of Grand Bahama and Abaco islands recovering from Hurricane Dorian, it also plans 41 calls to Nassau, Half Moon Cay and Princess Cays for the remainder of September as those destinations eagerly await cruise guests. Bahamian officials have expressed great appreciation for the support Carnival and its employees and guests have provided but also stressed that the other parts of The Bahamas are open for business and stand ready to welcome guests.