Maersk Tankers, HHI & DNV joint CO2 ship design Maersk Tankers, Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Det Norske Veritas (DNV) have agreed to collaborate on the design and risk assessment of tankers for shipping CO2. Maersk Tankers is already in a partnership with Maersk Oil and Finnish utilities Fortum and Teollisuuden Voima (TVO), aimed at developing a joint carbon emissions abatement project in the area of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).Shipping CO2 in tanker vessels is a cost effective and flexible way to get CO2 from power plants to offshore storage sites, which makes it a suitable solution for large CO2 emission sources such as coal-fired power plants, especially in the emerging phase of CCS. says Anders Schulze, Head of CO2 Shipping in Maersk Tankers.
Maersk Tankers and HHI already have the initial blueprints to build tanker vessels for the transport of CO2 from emission sources to storage sites. The vessels will be semi-pressurised and semi-refrigerated, keeping the CO2 liquid. HHI has designed the vessels together with Maersk Tankers, based on years of experience with transportation of liquefied petrochemicals and natural gas, and in accordance with global standards.
The further development of the CO2 carrier design shall mainly focus on the safety...

MT MOTIVATOR hijacked in the southern Red Sea In the early hours of 4 July, the MT Motivator reported it was under small arms fire from a pirate attack in the northern Bab Al Mandeb area in the southern Red Sea. After notification of this attack, attempts were made to make contact with the Motivator but to no avail. The hijack was confirmed early on 5 July.The MT Motivator, deadweight 13,065 tonnes with a crew of 18 Filipino nationals on board, is a Marshall Islands Flagged chemical products tanker loaded with lubricants oil. EU NAVFOR is monitoring the situation.EU NAVFOR Somalia Operation ATALANTAs main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Programme (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM and to protect vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy. EU NAVFOR also monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.Source:eunavfor

DOT use of Alcohol Testing Forms The Department of Transportation (DOT) amended a previous rule so as to authorize continued use of the earlier edition of Alcohol Testing Forms through December 31, 2010. Use of the new form is permitted now and will become mandatory on January 1, 2011. 75 Fed. Reg. 38383Source:edocket

Australia air emissions from vessels The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) issued a notice reminding the maritime community that revised Annex VI to the MARPOL Convention entered into force on 1 July 2010. The notice also summarizes current and projected air emission standards for vessels. Marine Notice 14/2010Source:amsa

Ireland sulphur content of marine fuels The Irish Department of Transport issued a notice reminding the maritime community of new restrictions relating to the sulphur content of marine fuels. EU legislation on this issue has been brought into Irish law. Ships at berth or at anchor in Irish waters may not use fuels that exceed 0.1% sulphur by mass. Bunker fuel suppliers in Ireland are required to register with the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Vessels entering Irish ports are required to maintain adequate records of fuel changeover operations. Marine Notice 17-2010Source:transport

Fishermen Released Somali pirates released five Yemeni fishermen after they had been for 90 days in custody at Somali Qarad area, the Interior Ministry has reported.The fishermen told the authorities after their arrival in Mukalla city, Hadramout, that the Somali pirates had attacked their ship in April while on its way from MuKalla to Aden.We were 9 members when they attacked us, they said as they hoped that the pirates would release the four other fishermen in the coming days.First we were taken to Qarad area and in June we were transferred to Bosaso port from where we were deported, they said.Source:shiptalk

Joining In Four new organisations have announced their support for www.endpiracypetition.org, the global e-petition that demands concrete action to end piracy.The ASF (Asian Shipowners Forum), ECSA (European Community Shipowners Associations), the ICMA (International Christian Maritime Association) and ICSW(International Committee for Seafarers Welfare), are now also promoting the initiative to their members and beyond.So far over 53,000 people have signed the petition, which will be used to put pressure on national governments to tackle piracy, and which is intended to attract half a million signatures by IMO World Maritime Day, September 23.The petition is a joint campaign by BIMCO, ICS, IFSMA, IMEC, IPTA, Intercargo,InterManager, International Group of P&I Clubs, INTERTANKO, ISF, ITF, IUMI and SIGTTO as well as national shipowners associations and trade unions worldwide.Source:shiptalk

Boston vessel grounds, passengers evacuated The US Coast Guard issued a news release stating that a 125-foot vessel with 168 passengers and six crewmembers ran hard aground near Deer Island, Massachusetts. The passengers are being evacuated. A second news release reports that everyone has been evacuated. There is a report of one back injury and one knee injury. A salvage plan is being developed. The incident is under investigation.Source:USCG

InterManager gathers Far Eastern views face-to-face Far Eastern ship managers aired their views on the industry and current economic climate and were keen to learn about InterManagers pioneering industry-wide KPI Project during the associations recent tour of the region.Meanwhile seafarers are concerned about job security, piracy and working conditions, reports InterManager General Secretary who has just returned from a two-week visit to the Philippines, Hong Kong and Singapore at the request of the associations membership.Attending the IMO Diplomatic Conference in Manila, Captain Szymanski took part in debates to produce amendments to the STCW 1995 regulations. He said: These discussions were very important, particularly from the seafarers point of view. Issues of concern included hours of rest and medical conditions. The medical conditions were smoothly agreed but hours of rest were discussed at length and a consensus was reached.He praised the impressive calibre of questions from the more than 1,000 seafarers and cadets who took part in the Year of the Seafarer conference in Manila during his visit. Their concerns included global piracy, working conditions (such as hours of rest and conditions of contract), and fears for job security.Captain Szymanski also visited a number of Philippine-based InterManager members and other organisations...

Carbon clean-up: curbing carbon emissions in the maritime sector The maritime sector, a key generator of global trade and economic activities, is undergoing structural changes influenced by many trends, factors and developments. They include political, economic, social, technological, financial, environmental and legal forces that have transformed and will continue to influence the landscape of the sector in many ways. In addition to these, concerns over carbon emissions have emerged as a key driver that is reshaping the way industry players think, plan, invest and operate. There is growing pressure for the sector to clean up its act amid growing demand for maritime-related services such as shipping, port operations, shipbuilding, ship repairing and host of other ancillary services. Players in the maritime sector simply cannot maintain the status quo and hope for the problem of global warming to go away. As demand for services in the maritime sector grow in line with growing global seaborne trade, offshore oil and gas activities and other economic activities requiring ships, ports and other maritime components, emissions from the maritime sector is expected to be on the rise.To underscore the gravity of the question at hand for the maritime industry, take the case of merchant...