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Japan to strengthen shipbuilding industry

Intends to heighten the global competitive edge of Japan's shipyards The Japanese government is working with industry players to establish some basic guidelines in a move to strengthen the country's shipbuilding industry.The ministry of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism (MLIT) intends to heighten the global competitive edge of Japan's shipyards through industry restructuring and business revamp.The broad outline of the guidelines include corporate alliance and business consolidation, entering new market and new sector, and strengthening the maritime cluster.Shipyards that develop their business according to those directors would receive tax incentives or other regulatory benefits.Meanwhile, the Japan Ship Exporters' Association announced Tuesday that Japanese shipbuilders signed 18 newbuilding orders totalling 550,000 gross tonnes in May, down 41% year-on-year in gross tonnes terms.Source: Seatrade-Asia

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Fisheries Agency opposes plan to release water containing radiation

Although TEPCO told that it will release the water after removing radioactive substances Tokyo Electric Power Cos plan to release water containing traces of radioactive materials from the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daini nuclear power plant to the sea has been stopped due to stiff opposition from the Fisheries Agency, sources close to the mater said Wednesday.Although TEPCO told the agency that it will release the water after removing radioactive substances to an undetectable level, the agency is not approving the plan, leaving the fate of the 3,000 tons of the water accumulated in the nuclear power station, located 15 kilometers south from the crippled Fukushima Daiichi power plant, undecided.If the water remains in tanks for a prolonged time, the storage facility may be corroded by salt in the water.After being flooded by tsunami following a magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck northeastern Japan on March 11, the Fukushima Daini power station saw about 7,000 tons of water accumulate in its facilities.Of the water, 3,000 tons in the reactor, turbine and other buildings has been found to contain a small amount of radioactive materials such as cobalt.TEPCO initially planned to let the water stay in the tank, but changed its mind after seeing ...

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Maersk Line resumes services at two Japanese ports damaged by the earthquake on March 11

The Port of Hachinohe and the Port of Sendai Maersk Line, the world's largest container shipping firm, announced the partial resumption of services at two Japanese ports damaged by the catastrophic earthquake and tsunami that hit the northeastern part of the country on March 11.The Port of Hachinohe in Aomori Prefecture and the Port of Sendai in Miyagi Prefecture, will resume partial services, Maersk K.K., Maersk Lines Japanese subsidiary, said Monday.Maersk Lines services -- for both exports and imports -- had been completely suspended at the Port of Hachinohe, the Port of Sendai and the Port of Onahama in Fukushima Prefecture -- since the March 11 twin natural disasters.The three ports are all located on the Pacific coast of the Tohoku region, which bore the brunt of the disasters.Maersk Lines services at the Port of Hachinohe and the Port of Sendai have been suspended due to heavy damage to terminal facilities and barge and feeder service suspension caused by the huge earthquake and tsunami, Maersk K.K. said in a press release.Now that we confirm the operational feasibility after repair works and resumption of barge and feeder service, we are pleased to announce that Maersk Line partly re-opens acceptance at those ...

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Safe Bulkers enters into agreements with Japan for three Japanese newbuild vessels

$122.4 million credit agreements Safe Bulkers, Inc., an international provider of marine drybulk transportation services, announced that it has entered into three credit agreements with Japanese governmental financial institutions amounting to US $122.4 million to finance the acquisition of three Japanese Post-Panamax class newbuild vessels.The previously-announced vessel acquisitions from Japanese shipyards relate to one vessel which was delivered in 2010 and two vessels which are expected to be delivered in 2011 and 2012, respectively. The structure of the financing is in accordance with the Organisation for Economic Cooperationand Development-approved export credit schemes.The amount is repayable over twelve years with very competitive financial terms. The credit agreements were concluded with the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, (JBIC), and Citibank Japan, Ltd acting as lead arranger.The JBIC is the international wing of Japan Finance Corporation, a Japanese governmentalfinancial institution which conducts lending, investment and guarantee operations while complementing private sector financial institutions, promoting Japanese industry.Nippon Export and Investment Insurance, the official export credit agency of Japan, insured almost half of the amount.Safe Bulkers, Inc. is believed to be the first Greece-based shipping company to enter into financing arrangements of this kind with Japanese governmental financial institutions. The transaction expands the Companys strong ...

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Oil leaking into sea found near Fukushima nuclear plant

Possibly from nearby oil tanks damaged in the March earthquake and tsunami Oil has been found leaking into the sea near the crisis-hit Fukushima nuclear power plant, possibly from nearby oil tanks that may have been damaged in the March earthquake and tsunami, the plant operator said Tuesday, adding that it will set up oil fences to prevent the liquid from spreading into the Pacific Ocean.The oil slick was found at 8 a.m. by Tokyo Electric Power Co workers who were patrolling the premises of the plant on the Pacific coast, and is believed to be spreading at a 200-300 meter range inside breakwaters.As the leakage appears to have remained inside the breakwaters, the governments Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency spokesman Hidehiko Nishiyama said that the impact on areas outside the breakwaters is likely to be extremely limited so far.Tokyo Electric suspects that the oil may have leaked from tanks located near the water intake for the Nos. 5 and 6 reactors or pipes that deliver the oil, because the March 11 disaster took place when a tanker was supplying oil. One of the tanks was moved from its original location because of the tsunami.The tanks, each with a 960-kiloliter ...

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MBC anticipates the recovery of dry bulk market after Japan s disaster

Increase in steaming coal imports Malaysian Bulker Carriers (MBC) is anticipating the dry bulk market to recover over the medium-term with an increase in steaming coal imports in place of Japan's decommissioned nuclear power plants.The reconstruction of Japan's devastated areas are also likely to spur demand in the dry bulk sector, it added. In the short-term, the dry bulk sector will be adversely affected by the Japanese disaster as cargo volumes are taken off the market due to plant shutdowns and logistical slowdowns, the company said in a statement.As with many other dry bulk owners, MBC has experienced weak charter rates that have affected its bottomline. The Kuala Lumpur-listed firm managed to post a marginal increase in net profit in the first quarter while revenue dipped due to a 28% fall in the hire rates. MBC recorded net profit RM52.7m in the quarter ended 31 March 2011, edging up from RM51.4m in the same quarter last year as operating expenses were reduced. Revenue declined by 25.8% to RM84.9m compared to RM114.4m in the previous year's quarter.The company raised concerns over an over-tonnage market as newbuildings continue to flood the market. Managing overcapacity will remain a challenge in coming years, it ...

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Norway and Japan signed cooperation agreement on maritime technology

At Nor- Shipping 2011 May 24-27 The Norwegian and Japanese governments have signed a co-operation agreement on maritime technology at Nor-Shipping.Norwegian state secretary Rikke Lind and the Japanese transport minister Hideo Kubota signed the agreement in a special ceremony at the the week-long maritime technology exhibition in Oslo.The two countries have agreed to co-operate in technology areas such as LNG, offshore wind technology, ship recycling and environmental technologies.At the ceremony were representatives from Wilh. Wilhelmsen, Grieg Shipping, Statoil, the Norwegian Shipowners Association and the Norwegian research institute, Marintek. From Japan there were representatives from Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Japan Marine Science and the Japanese National Maritime Research Institute.Source : Seatrade Asia

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Japanese Shipbuilding strong recovery in fiscal 2010

Orders increased 95.9 percent in fiscal 2010 Japanese export ship orders made a strong recovery in fiscal 2010, which ended on March 31, after sinking at their fastest pace in 17 years in the previous fiscal year.According to figures released by the Japan Ship Exporters' Association, orders swelled 95.9 percent in fiscal 2010 to 12,421,600 gross tons, compared with 6,340,591 gross tons in fiscal 2009.Japanese shipbuilders received orders for 302 ships -- 282 bulk carriers, 12 oil tankers and eight general cargo vessels -- in fiscal 2010, compared with 119 ships in fiscal 2009.Early in 2010, Japan started providing official financial support through the government-affiliated Japan Bank for International Cooperation to shore up slumping vessel exports driven down by the global recession.Ship orders rose for the 16th consecutive month in March on a year-on-year basis, increasing 10.9 percent to 1,029,340 gross tons for 25 ships. But the year-on-year pace of growth slowed for the second month in a row.An official at JSEA told The Journal of Commerce last month that the earthquake and tsunami that hit the northeastern part of the country on March 11 "will have no impact on future export ship orders at all."The official explained at the ...

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Guideline for measurement of dose rate for ships in Japanese ports

Information on radiation dose rate The need for the information on radiation dose rate for ships from Japan has been on the increase at the ports outside Japan since the aftermath of damage on the Fukushima nuclear power plant caused by the earthquake on 11 March 2011 and subsequent Tsunami.In the face of this need, Japanese Government (MLIT: Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) has developed the guideline on radiation measurement for ships in order to provide foreign port authority with proper access to accurate data.Attestation for radiation dose rate will be issued if the measurement is conducted based on the guideline. ClassNK is requested by MLIT to issue an attestation in case where the measurement is conducted in Port of Keihin Yokohama Area. In this context, ClassNK issues the attestation for ships of which radiation dose rate is measured in line with the guideline in Port of Keihin Yokohama Area. ClassNK is also ready to issue an appraisal report for ships that measurement is carried out in Japanese ports other than Yokohama area. The attestation issuance procedures are shown below.A) The radiation dose rate measurement operator is to be arranged by the applicant.B) The applicant requests ClassNK (the ...

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Revision of IMO Circular Letter 3175 Rev1

Navigation in the sea area surrounding Japan The IMO Circular Letter No. 3175 Rev1 - Subject: Navigation in the sea area surrounding Japan in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami of 11 March 2011 - issued on 1 April 2011 has been revised.Revision 2 advisesthat on 12 April 2011, the accident assessment was revised from Level 5 to Level 7 following updated information regarding the estimated amounts of radioactive material discharged to the atmosphere. Radiation monitoring around airports and seaports in Japan continues to confirm that levels remain well within safe limits from a health perspective.In addition, monitoring of passengers, crew and cargo from Japan carried out to date in other countries, in accordance with national policies, does not suggest health or safety risks. Therefore, screening for radiation at airports and seaports around the world for health and safety purposes is currently considered unnecessary.To view Circular Letter No. 3175 Rev2 click hereSource : IMO

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