There is no current information about the Bulgarian crew of hijacked Panega tanker, major general Buster Howes, head of Europes Operation Atalanta, has told Focus news agency. According to an interview with the British royal marines commando officer, once a vessel is hijacked by pirates, the mission has no contact with the crew, so as to avoid any interference in negotiations, Focus reported.International observers, over the past 20 or so months, have noticed that the Somali pirates scope of operations has expanded.In 2005, the pirates used to operate about 165 sea miles from the shore, while now they are operating at around 1300 sea miles from the Somali coast, Howes said.The commandant general of the royal marines is responsible for advising the First Sea Lord, with line responsibility for all RM units worldwide.European Union Naval Force Somalia Operation Atlanta is a military operation conducted by the European Union to help deter, prevent and repress acts of piracy and armed robberies off the coast of Somalia, as noted by the official mission statement.This military operation was launched in support of Resolutions 1814, 1816, 1838 and 1846, adopted in 2008 by the United Nations Security Council.To date, 17 ships and about 409...

British Armed Forces minister Nick Harvey has revealed that the coming Strategic Defense Review will see the armed forces shrink in size, and focus on quality. Nick Harvey told an audience at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) on Wednesday that Britains armed forces would have less emphasis on weight and more accuracy of firepower.He warned his audience, at a RUSI naval power conference, which contained many military and government officials, Let me be quite clear change is coming.The new British coalition government came to power after the inconclusive May 6 general election, which saw the ruling Labor party defeated after 13 years in power.The Conservatives, the largest polling party, and the third- party in British politics, the Liberal Democrats, formed a coalition which set its principal task as tackling the record public spending deficit, which this year is set to hit 153 billion pounds (about 240 billion U.S. dollars).The Treasury, the finance ministry, revealed over the weekend that most departments should prepare for budget cuts of up to 40 percent. However defense was told to prepare for cuts of between 10 percent and 25 percent.Harvey, a Liberal Democrat, ruled out scrapping Britains independent, strategic nuclear weapons system, based on...

Ireland Marine Notice - Sulphur content of marine fuels The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Marpol Annex VI regulates the sulphur content of fuel oils for ships trading internationally. Within the EU, there is further legislation, Council Directive 1999/32/EC and its amending Directive 2005/33/EC Irelands legislation - The Sulphur Content of Heavy Fuel, Gas Oil, and Marine Fuel Regulations 2008, S.I. 119 of 2008 brings this EU legislation into Irish law and amends existing law. All those concerned with shipping and the supply of marine fuel oil should be aware of, and fully implement, the requirements of these regulations. From 1 January 2010, important changes entered into force affecting shipping at berth or at anchor in ports of the State, and bunker suppliers supplying marine fuels to ships in port or at anchor in the State.Ships at berth or at anchor in the State shall not use fuels that exceed 0.1% sulphur by mass subject to Regulation 7 (4) and 7 (5) of the regulations.Bunker fuel suppliers in the State are required to register with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and provide certain information annually to SEAI, Regulation 8 (3) and 8 (4). Contact details for SEAI are given...

USCG guide to structural fire protection The US Coast Guard issued a new version of its Guide to Structural Fire Protection. It includes information on type approval procedures for both domestic and SOLAS fire test criteria, as well as the type approval processes under the US/EC and EFTA Mutual Recognition Agreements. Further, it assembles the Coast Guards recent guidance and interpretations on structural fire protection, with separate discussions for domestic vessels and for SOLAS vessels. NVIC 9-97, CH-1Source: USCG

ISF launches rest hour record software The International Shipping Federation (ISF) has launched an updated version of its ISF Watchkeeper computer program.Launched together with its partner, IT Energy, ISF Watchkeeper 3 is designed to allow shipping companies to maintain records of individual seafarers hours of work and rest as required by international regulations, including the latest amendments to the IMO STCW Convention that were adopted in Manila two weeks ago."The ISF program allows shipping companies to check, monitor and maintain records of compliance with the complex seafarers work hour regimes that have been adopted by IMO and ILO, and which are already bring enforced by port state control. explained ISF secretary general, Peter Hinchliffe.However, the mandatory requirement for ships to maintain individual records of seafarers hours of work on board ship will be given additional momentum by the entry into force of the ILO Maritime Labour Convention and the recently adopted amendments to the STCW Convention."Record keeping is now mandatory, and it will be vital for shipowners to comply with the requirement to maintain records which, due to the complexity of the rules, can be almost impossible to maintain without the use of such a program, he said.For the past...

IMO Secretary General receives Niki Award for 2010 The Niki Award for 2010 is to be awarded to Mr. Efthimios Mitropoulos, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of the United Nations. The award honors prominent Greeks, or scientists of Greek descent, who are recognized by the international community for their extraordinary contribution to their fields. It is awarded by the Friends of the Athens Information Technology Center of Excellence for Research and Education (www.ait.gr/niki2010).Mr. Mitropoulos is honored for his extraordinary contribution to the advancement of international law and technology for the safety of human life at sea and the protection of the marine environment worldwide.Mr. Mitropoulos was born in Piraeus, Greece, in a maritime family. He graduated from the Aspropyrgos Merchant Marine and Piraeus Naval Academies and started his career as a Merchant Navy Officer and, since 1962, as a commissioned Officer of the Hellenic Coast Guard. He also studied shipping economics in Italy and marine technology in the United Kingdom. Between 1966 and 1977, Mr. Mitropoulos attended various IMO bodies and the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea as representative of the Greek Ministry of Mercantile Marine. He was Harbour Master of Corfu, Greece...

Piracy Alibi Defense attorneys for a group of suspected Somali pirates are challenging the very heart of the governments case, arguing that in the history of the United States there has never been a piracy case that did not involve plundering or stealing a vessel.For that reason, the attorneys argue, the piracy case should be thrown out of court.In their most recent court filing, the attorneys argue that the 200-year-old piracy statute has never been updated and is not applicable to modern-day pirate suspects.Under that law, they say, Greenpeace activists who forcibly prevent a whaling ship from conducting its mission could be considered pirates. The filing is the latest in a string of challenges to one of two piracy cases pending here in federal court.In a flurry of motions filed over the past several weeks, defense attorneys have provided new details that they say raise more doubts about the intent of one group of six Somali nationals charged in the case.It was also revealed publicly for the first time that in the April 10 attack on the Ashland a Little Creek-based amphibious dock landing ship a seventh man was present and was killed when sailors returned fire, blowing up the...

A resting Breakthrough A breakthrough in working conditions for watchkeeping personnel was achieved at an International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Diplomatic Conference held in Manila, Philippines from June 21-25. The conference also adopted revisions to the International Convention and Code on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW).The Conference marked the first major revision to STCW since 1995, when the original 1978-Convention was completely revised.There was a need to harmonise STCW requirements on rest hours with the requirements of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006), expected to enter into force in 2011.Details of some of the provision are provided below.The current rest hour provisions are part of the STCW Convention:Section A-VIII/1 of the STCW Code (Mandatory)1. All persons who are assigned duty as officer in charge of a watch or seafarer on watch shall be provided with a minimum of 10 hours rest in any 24 hour-period.2. The hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods, one of which shall be at least six hours in length.3. The requirements for rest periods laid down in paragraphs 1 and 2 need not be maintained in the case of an emergency or drill or in other...

Two passenger-cargo vessels accidentally collided while docking along the wharf portion of Pier 5 along South Harbor in Manila recently. Lieutenant Commander Inocencio Rosario Jr., chief of the PCG Port State Control Center-Manila, said that based on the initial investigation made by the office showed that the M/V Medbay, a domestic carrier vessel owned by Aboitiz Transport System (ATS), has already docked and secured along Berth 1 of Pier 5 for the discharge of cargo when the ship captain of the vessel identified as Arnold Malazarte decided to transfer it to another berth upon receiving orders from officials of the ATS.While the vessel was moving around two nautical miles per hour, the ship captain ordered an emergency stop after he saw that they might accidentally hit the Panamanian-flagged vessel M/V Sun Glory. However, it was too late because the vessels front hull portion has already collided with (M/V) the Sun Glor.Source:shiptalk

Twin threats: Piracy and al Qaeda ADEN, YEMEN -- On a rocky volcanic outcrop set in the deep and treacherous waters of a vital strait linking Europe to Asia, Yemens coastguard is building a base to help secure one of the worlds busiest waterways.Somali pirates trawl the sea south of the Bab al-Mandab strait off Yemens coast, and in recent months have stepped up attacks on tankers, cargo ships, and fishing vessels in defiance of a major crackdown by navies from at least a dozen countries.But Yemen has deeper worries about security off its coast after a resurgent al Qaeda arm called for a blockade of the strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, through which 25,000 ships -- 7% of world shipping -- pass each year."The geographical nature of Bab al-Mandab, of the coast and the land, its beaches and islands, makes it very sensitive security-wise," Mohamed Mubarak bin Aefan, head of Aden port management, told Reuters.Militants would struggle to block the strategic strait, experts say, but the shipping industry is still worried about possible attacks off Yemens southwest coast. A Yemeni official said France was helping it build the base with the hope it would...