It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Saturday, May 13, 2023
Video: Hybrid Powered Silver Nova Floated Out by Meyer Weft
Silver Nova emerging from the building hall in Germany (Silversea Cruises photos)
Royal Caribbean Group’s Silversea Cruises marked the float out of its new cruise ship at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany on April 28. The ship is being billed as the “first hybrid, luxury cruise ship free of local emissions at port,” thanks to incorporating advancements in the propulsion and power plant.
Named Silver Nova, the 54,700 gross ton cruise ship is the first ocean-going cruise ship designed for Silversea Cruises since the cruise line was acquired by Royal Caribbean Group between 2018 and 2020. It is the first of two luxury ships ordered from Meyer Werft continuing the industry’s focus on expanding the high-end ultra-luxury segment of the business. In the same week that the Silver Nova was floated out in Germany, Fincantieri in Italy delivered both the Viking Saturn and Oceania Cruises’ Vista, also smaller, luxury cruise ships.
The Silver Nova will be the first cruise ship for Royal Caribbean Group that will operate on LNG as its primary fuel source. She is scheduled to enter service in August 2023 as the twelfth ship in Silversea’s fleet. The corporation is also building the world’s largest cruise ship, the Utopia of the Seas, which will enter service at the beginning of 2024 also using LNG.
In addition to using LNG as its primary fuel, the Silver Nova incorporates other advancements including a power system of fuel cells and batteries designed to power the hotel operations while the cruise ship is in port. The fuel cell system will have an output of four megawatts and working with the batteries is designed to eliminate emissions in port when it is not possible for the ship to use shore power. In addition, the battery system permits peak load leveling to increase the overall efficiency of the power plant. Other cruise lines, including Viking, MSC Cruises, and Explora Journeys, are also testing prototype hydrogen fuel cell systems.
The hull of the Silver Nova also features a hydrodynamic shape as part of a design that Silversea reports exceeds the IMO’s Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) by 25 percent. They expect the hybrid plant will permit the ship to achieve a 40 percent overall reduction in emissions compared to their older Muse class cruise ships.
The float-out required several hours to reposition the cruise ship from the large building hall to the fitting out dock in Papenburg. During the process, the hull of the ship was cleaned, the funnel attached, and her LNG and radar masts installed. Final interior outfitting is proceeding and the Silver Nova is expected to make the 20-mile conveyance along the Ems to the ocean at the end of May.
Known as Project Evolution, construction on the cruise ship began with the first steel cut on November 18, 2021. The first steel cut for her sister ship, Silver Ray, took place on November 23, 2022, with the first block for the second ship positioned in the building hall dry dock on March 24, 2023. The section weights 230 tonnes and measured 155 feet by 27 feet. The Silver Ray is scheduled to enter service in the summer of 2024.
Both ships also feature the most spacious passenger spaces in Silversea’s history, with the highest space ratio per passenger and a crew-to-passenger ratio of 1:1.3. Each ship has accommodations for 728 passengers and will carry a crew of 556. Silversea has designed the ships using a horizontal layout and asymmetrical design that they say opens the ship to the outdoors with water and port views. They also feature the largest array of bars, lounges, and restaurants of any ultra-luxury ship.
The Silver Nova will spend her first season cruising in the Mediterranean. For the winter of 2023-2024, she will reposition for cruises to the Caribbean and South America.
First Commercial Self-Navigating Electric Ferry Launching in Stockholm
Zeam ferry an electric ferry designed to self-navigate in Stockholm harbor (Zeabuz)
A ferry that is being billed as the world’s first self-navigating electric ferry is due to start service next month in Stockholm. The pilot project is reported to be advancements both in autonomous navigating vessels as well as battery power that the companies behind the project hope to expand into global applications.
Known as the Zeam ferry, the vessel measures 39 feet and can carry up to 24 passengers as well as providing space for bicycles. There will be a covered passenger deck with boarding and disembarking at both ends. It will make a crossing of Stockholm harbor between the Kungsholmen region and S?dermalm approximately every 15 minutes and operate for up to 15 hours per day.
The ferry is powered by an electric motor and a 188 kWh Zem battery system developed by Zeabuz, a Norwegian start-up. According to reports, the battery system will be recharged overnight and the vessel will not require charging during peak travel times. It will also have solar panels to provide additional energy.
The navigation system will consist of radar and a LiDAR system as well as an infrared camera, ultrasonic sensors to aid with docking, and GPS for positioning. During the initial runs due to start in Stockholm in June 2023, there will be a captain aboard to monitor operations in addition to the onshore operations center. After the initial period, the plan is to control all the operations from the onshore operations center.
Zeam ferry will test the autonomous system in commercial operation and provide a prototype for larger ferries (Zeabuz)
Construction of the vessel is underway at Brødrene, a Norwegian shipbuilder. The yard has emerged as a leader in the construction of fast ferries made of carbon fiber composites.
The technology for the ferry is being developed by Zeabuz, a Norwegian company that is a spin-off of earlier university research and since 2021 partially owned by Torghatten, a Norwegian shipping company that will operate the Zeam ferry. The research originated at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway. Zeabuz was launched in 2019. Zeabuz has already developed an autonomous test ferry that runs in Trondheim, Norway.
“We have learned a lot from our project in Trondheim, and now we are ready to take the next step in creating the world's first commercial autonomous city ferry,” said Erik Dyrkoren, CEO of Zeabuz. “The technology will mostly be the same, but in Stockholm, we will test the autonomy system in daily operation with passengers in a way that no one has done before.”
The Ports of Stockholm is also working on the project as part of their research into the safety aspects of autonomous transport. The Ports of Stockholm, together with several partners including DNV as the classification society, have been granted funds by the Swedish Transport Administration for research into autonomous maritime transport in urban environments. The two-year project is scheduled to run through February 2025.
Like many large cities around the world, Stockholm is challenged by congestion and the need to reduce emissions. The project organizers point to the potential of waterborne transport and believe the technology will provide the opportunity to broadly expand the use of small passenger ferries in cities.
Zeabuz in February 2023 reported it had raised a further NOK 20 million (approximately $1.9 million) in seed financing from a group of leading technology companies. Among the latest investors are Yinson Green Technologies and Statkraft.
“We recognize the enormous potential of autonomous vessels and see Zeabuz as well positioned to become a leader in this segment,” said Eirik Barclay, CEO of Yinson commenting on their investment in the company. He said that Yinson plans to incorporate Zeabuz's technology into its electric vessels and use the technologies to increase vessel safety and operational efficiency.
Marine Pilot Dies in Pilot Ladder Accident While Boarding Cruise Ship
The Japan Coast Guard is investigating the death of a marine pilot during a pilot transfer to a cruise ship off the port of Nagasaki last week.
On the morning of May 5, the cruise ship Diamond Princess was headed into Nagasaki and awaiting the pilot. At about 0530 the pilot boat approached and the pilot transferred to the rope ladder to board the ship. For reasons that are still under investigation, the pilot fell into the water while climbing the ladder.
Diamond Princess' crew deployed a rescue boat and launched a search for the pilot. He was wearing a life jacket and was recovered from the water, but was unconscious, and was pronounced dead two hours later.
Japanese media have identified the pilot as Yoshihiro Osuga, 69. He was an experienced pilot with 15 years in the trade.
Surface conditions were calm at the time, and the Japan Coast Guard is looking into the possibility that the pilot boat's motion may have been a causal factor.
The climb from a moving pilot boat up the side of a moving ship involves risk, and pilot ladder accidents are not uncommon. Every year, marine pilots suffer falls into the water or onto the deck of the pilot boat, and all too often these casualties are fatal. In 2020, the Sandy Hook Pilots Association lost two of its members to pilot ladder falls in less than a year, illustrating the danger.
Norway Supports Project to Build Ammonia-Fueled Coastal Shipping
Concept calls for three short sea ammonia-fueled bulkers (Skarv Shipping)
The Norwegian government is providing financing to support the development of a class of new short-sea vessels that will employ ammonia and other technologies to reduce emissions by at least 90 percent. The project has been identified as a way to demonstrate the path for short-haul shipping to adopt a wide range of zero-emission solutions.
The funding is being awarded by Enova, a state enterprise owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment. Started in 2001 to promote a shift towards more environmentally friendly energy consumption and production, the transport sector was added to Enova's areas of responsibility in 2015. Each year, Enova is investing approximately $275 million to support innovative projects, including several in the shipping sector.
Skarv Shipping Solutions, a joint venture between Norwegian short-sea operator the Peak Group and the environmental group Greig Edge, plans to develop three low-emission cargo ships for operation on the Norwegian coast. They are receiving approximately $12 million from Enova for the project. Each vessel will have a cargo capacity of 4,000 tonnes and they will operate between the northern ports in Norway and the Oslo Fjord.
“With Enova’s decision, we are eager to move forward and accomplish our next goals,” said Jan Øivind Svardal, CEO of Skarv Shipping Solutions. He said the company is seeking “firm commercial agreements with our clients and initiating the contracting and construction of ships.”
The design calls for employing a range of innovative technologies. Propulsion will primarily be from an ammonia-fueled engine. Skarv says it will consider different technologies, including rotor sails, which, together with the hybrid electric system and a new hull design, will drastically reduce energy use. The vessels will also have electrical equipment for cargo handling.
They anticipate that the vessels will use an ammonia engine developed by Wärtsilä. They highlight that the engine manufacturer has previously tested the engine technology at the Sustainable Energy Catapult Center in Stord, and aims to deliver it towards the end of 2024. The decision to employ ammonia is based on the consideration that together with hydrogen, it is considered to be an important alternative in cases where batteries cannot ensure a good enough range.
The company reports that the grant will permit them to speed up the process in its zero-emission roadmap. Skarv was founded in 2022 to focus on the advancement of new technologies for coastal shipping.
BC
Prince Rupert Cruise Port Celebrates the Start of 2023 Cruise Season
Prince Rupert Cruise Port GM Kevin D’Costa attends a plaque exchange ceremony onboard Carnival Miracle on May 3, 2023, to mark the ship’s inaugural call and the start of the 2023 cruise season.
Prince Rupert Cruise Port (PRCP), operated by Global Ports Holding, the world’s largest cruise port operator, celebrated the start of its 2023 cruise season with Carnival Miracle, as part of its 14-day Alaskan itinerary. Carnival Miracle, with 2,018 passengers onboard, and Prince Rupert Cruise Port marked the occasion of the inaugural call with a plaque exchange ceremony onboard the ship.
Kevin D’Costa, Prince Rupert Cruise Port GM presented the plaque to Captain Roberto Costi, together with Hereditary Chief Alex Campbell, Councillor Reid Skelton-Morven, Paul Vendittelli – Director, Economic Development & Transportation, Carl Simpson – COO Lax Kw’Alaams Business Development, John Farrell – Board Member, Prince Rupert Port Authority, Jeff Stromdahl – Manager, Trade Development, Prince Rupert Port Authority and Erika Tache – VP of Business Development, Shorex & Landside, GPH.
As the only municipality in The Great Bear Rainforest, with a population of 13,000, Prince Rupert offers visitors breathtaking panoramic vistas and views of the mountains of British Columbia, coupled with rich culture and history, all supported by a warm local community.
This year, Prince Rupert has added to its shore excursion offerings for passengers visiting this scenic area, including a Trolley tour experience, which travels around the entire city offering information on local Ts’msyen culture and a historical overview of the city. PRCP has also added a new feature with The ShoreX Hub, which allows shorex teams from cruise lines to facilitate last-minute tours for cruise passengers.
Kevin D’Costa, General Manager of Prince Rupert Cruise Port, shared his excitement for the start of the season saying “The response from the community has been overwhelming, and it has been so exciting to gear up for the 2023 cruise season. GPH, PRCP, our partners, stakeholders and the community have been looking forward to the first call and we have been delighted to have had the opportunity to share with the cruise passengers what Prince Rupert has to offer.” He continued, “Everything has been about supporting and promoting this amazing destination. The Great Bear Rainforest is an incredibly special corner of the world, and Prince Rupert is at the heart of it all.”
Hereditary Chief Alex Campbell commented “I remember meeting the first ship that ever came here, when the ships first started to visit Prince Rupert. Visiting the ship yesterday was good, the captain and crew were very nice, friendly people. The area of Prince Rupert is a tribal area, and 9 tribes agreed to cruise tourism. We are looking forward to continuing and having different people coming to experience Prince Rupert and talking to them and teaching them about the area.”
“Today’s arrival of the Carnival Miracle signifies a number of exciting milestones for the Prince Rupert Port Authority. The vessel’s call marks the first day of the Port of Prince Rupert’s 2023 cruise season and the first vessel to call under the cruise terminal’s new management, Global Ports Holding, after signing a terminal operating agreement last year,” said Shaun Stevenson, President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority. “Global Ports Holding is well positioned to elevate cruise tourism in the area to meet Prince Rupert’s vision of growing a thriving cruise sector as a world-class destination, with significant economic benefits for the local community and surrounding region. Hats off to GPH and all of the community partners and businesses for the steps they’ve taken toward achieving that vision by growing the cruise visitor experience in Prince Rupert through new offerings. We look forward to continuing to work with all stakeholders involved to ensure another successful cruise season.”
Prince Rupert Cruise Port is keenly focused on strengthening and expanding the shore excursion capabilities of the destination, while supporting the development of related opportunities for local entrepreneurs. Prince Rupert Cruise Port looks forward to a successful cruise season and promoting the history and culture of the city of Prince Rupert and The Great Bear Rainforest. Global Ports Holding currently manages 27 ports in 14 countries.
While there have been significant advancements in developing lifesaving equipment, the Container Ship Safety Forum says there are far too many injuries to crewmembers aboard cargo ships while launching lifeboats. The industry association, which has a goal to improve safety performance in the container shipping industry, says the time has come for the lifeboat to be reinvented to improve crew safety.
Over the years, many seafarers have been injured – some of them fatally – while launching the lifeboat during evacuations or evacuation drills. Not because the lifeboats have not been compliant with safety standards, but simply because the launch of a lifeboat is a dangerous task to perform.
They point to a 2017 report from the UK Chamber of Shipping as recognition of the problem. The UK article identified 60 fatalities during the testing of lifeboats over a 10-year period. The article suggested that the use of simulation training could improve safety. Last year, Canada's Transportation Safety Board released a report on a serious lifeboat-drill accident, illustrating the continuing hazards of this routine SOLAS safety exercise.
A similar report for the UK P&I Club a decade ago pointed to the range of incidents. A lot of them were related to the launching of the boats during drills with the report saying that a sixth of all seafarers killed were injured in incidents directly related to lifeboats and their launching systems. A lot of the problems they related to the launch mechanism although they also cited instances of poor maintenance leading to failures.
“Everyone knows we have a problem,” says Aslak Ross, Chairman of the CSSF. “Seafarers are scared to launch lifeboats; however, no one has offered a plausible path towards a solution to the problem for cargo vessels. A change is needed to provide a safe environment for seafarers and to regain trust in lifesaving equipment.”
The group says that there is too much focus on compliance and training and not enough focus on the root cause of the problem, which is that the design of the equipment is too complicated and in the case of containerships lags behind other segments of shipping which have focused on improving safety systems.
“Simulation and use of new technology is one way to conduct drills in a safer environment, and we support the intent to reduce the risk of accidents, however, it does not solve the core of the problem,” says Ross. “Launching a lifeboat is too dangerous. And even though simulation has its advantages, it should only be used as a supplement to well-conducted onboard abandon ship drills where crews are familiarized with the ship specific equipment.”
The CSSF points to alternative designs that are already available for offshore installations and for passenger evacuation on passenger and cruise ships through Marine Evacuation Systems (MES).
“Such systems should also be made available to cargo vessels without delay. It is long overdue to change the current environment and innovate to eliminate the risk of lifeboat accidents. We need approved systems that can be fitted to newbuildings – we need to safeguard our seafarers,” said Ross.
The CSSF is encouraging the industry, classification societies, flag states, and suppliers to launch innovation to replace current lifeboats with a safer technology.
Disabled Boxship Being Towed to Sheltered Bay After Repeated Problems
Disabled containership Shiling is being towed back to New Zealand during her fourth failure in a year (Carl Babe photo courtesy Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter)
A disabled Singapore register containership, Shiling, is under tow heading back to New Zealand after earlier in the day issuing a Mayday distress call. Maritime New Zealand is reporting that the situation is under control and they have released the rescue teams that had been on standby as well as ending the Mayday, but the investigation into the ongoing problems with the Shiling is just beginning.
The 66,500 dwt containership (5,028 TEU) had just been released from a 24-day detention in Wellington, New Zealand after its previous power failure. The ship has a history of failures over the past year which have raised concerns among both the maritime services and elected officials that the vessel’s problems could lead to a larger incident causing harm to the crew or an environmental disaster in New Zealand. After last month’s problem, the Wellington Harbourmaster called into question the ship’s reliability.
The Harbourmaster lifted the detention order on Wednesday, May 10 after testing and with the understanding that the containership would proceed to Singapore for additional repairs. This came after the Shiling blacked out and lost steering in Wellington harbor on April 15 causing it to draft across a sandbar and dangerously close to grounding. It also had a brief engine stoppage in February in Wellington Harbor and a power failure in July 2022.
After departing Wellington, the ship reported rough seas near the Cook Strait and as it was heading into the Tasman Sea. Waves were reported up to 26 feet with the news media saying the Shiling was taking shelter to wait out the weather. However, early Friday morning the ship contacted the government agency Maritime New Zealand and an hour and a half later issued the Mayday call. The master told Maritime New Zealand that the vessel had again blacked out and lost steering, drifting, and rolling in the seas. Reports said the vessel was listing with the crew preparing to abandon ship.
Rescue teams were dispatched with an air force plane to monitor the situation and a helicopter from the Nelson Marlborough Rescue Helicopter squad. One of DOF’s offshore anchor handlers also happened to be nearby in port as it is working on a contract for the oil and gas industry. They were able to secure its services to head to the containership.
The master later reported that the situation had stabilized and the crew was comfortable to stay aboard the disabled ship. Media reports said the seas had calmed with waves now at 16 feet and expected to fall to 6 to 7 feet by Saturday morning. Winds however were still at 15 mph.
The DOF vessel Skandi Emerald reached the Shiling at approximately 4:30 p.m. local time on Friday about five and a half hours after the Mayday call. They were able to reposition the Shiling into the wind and secure the tow line. Her AIS signal shows that she is proceeding at approximately 2.7 knots bound for Tasman Bay on the north coast of New Zealand’s South Island.
“The Skandi Emerald will tow the Shiling to a safe location, where it can anchor and be assessed for repairs,” Maritime New Zealand said in its update. They will continue to monitor the situation and begin a further investigation into the situation while reporting that rescue response teams had been released.
Elected officials had called into question the situation last month after the vessel broke down in the sheltered harbor and its previous history with two other power failures in the past year in New Zealand waters. They are now saying that they were lucky that the Skandi Emerald happened to be in New Zealand on assignment while calling for efforts to expand rescue resources and closely enforce maritime security.
Rescuers Responding to New Mayday Call from Problem Plagued Boxship
Rescue teams are heading toward the stricken vessel which is reportedly listing
Maritime New Zealand is responding to a Mayday call issued midday Friday, May 12 from a problem plagued containership that has been the center of a controversy at the Port of Wellington. They are reporting that the ship has once again lost power and steering and is drifting, but that while it is listing there is no immediate danger. Conditions improved after they issued the Mayday call and an ocean-going tug has been dispatched. A police launch is also standing-by as a precaution while reports indicate that an Air Force Hercules and a rescue helicopter have also been dispatched to the scene.
The Singapore-registered containership Shiling (66,500 dwt) is no stranger to problems in New Zealand. Built in 2005, the 18-year-old vessel had only been released on Wednesday after a 24-day detention. During her previous power failure, she was maneuvering in the main channel in Wellington shortly after leaving her berth. She drifted across the harbor coming dangerously close to grounding.
After the vessel was brought back to the dock, the Regional Harbourmaster for Wellington restricted the ship’s movements until engine repairs and tests had been undertaken and then maneuver tests were completed to the satisfaction of the pilot. In addition, the vessel was restricted to calm weather and required to be escorted to sea by a tug when she was finally permitted to sail.
Local elected officials however had questioned the safety of the vessel, highlighting that the Shiling had also had a brief engine stoppage on February 11 in Wellington Harbor. She also suffered an engine failure on July 4, 2022. After the April incident, they speculated if there was a risk of a more serious accident.
During her time at the pier, Shiling which has a capacity of 5,028 TEU was offloaded. The Harbourmaster permitted her to depart on May 9, with the understanding that she would be proceeding directly to Singapore for further repairs.
Hours after the Shiling headed out to sea, it was reported she was sheltering after encountering rough seas. Waves are reported to be running up to 26 feet north of Marlborough Sounds where the vessel had reached after her departure. Current reports place her approximately 22 nautical miles North-Northwest of Farewell Spit at the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island.
Maritime New Zealand reports they were advised at 0827 this morning that the vessel was encountering problems and two and a half hours later the Shiling issued an official Mayday call. The captain said they were preparing to abandon ship. New Zealand’s Transport Accident Investigation Commission confirms that it has received reports that the vessel is listing and that they were monitoring events. However, about an hour later, Maritime NZ said the master advised conditions had improved and that at this time they were not abandoning ship.
“Due to where the vessel is, there is no risk of it running aground prior to the arrival of the ocean-going tug,” Maritime New Zealand said in its advisory. They are reporting that there are 24 crew aboard.
Maritime NZ’s Rescue Coordination Centre NZ has placed assets from NZ Police, Coastguard, and St John Airdesk on standby and will be tasking the assets as required. The police launch Lady Elizabeth IV is standing by to provide assistance. They are currently expecting the ocean-going tug Skandi Emerald to arrive from Taranaki by approximately 1700 to 1800 local time. The AIS signal for the offshore anchor handler, owned by DOF, shows she is sailing at near maximum speed of 13.6 knots to reach the containership.
Maritime New Zealand reports this continues to be a developing situation and that further updates will be provided as events develop.
Study: Cost to Plug Old Gulf of Mexico Offshore Wells Could be $30B
In a new study published in the prominent journal Nature Energy, a team of researchers from UC San Diego and Louisiana State University put together a cost estimate for what it would take to plug and abandon the huge inventory of non-producing wells in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The expense comes to an estimated $30 billion, with a surprising distribution between near-shore and offshore infrastructure.
According to the authors, there are an estimated 14,000 non-producing, unplugged oil and gas wells along and off the Gulf Coast (including the inland waterway and wetland wellheads commonly found in Louisiana's bayous.) The good news for ease of access is that 90 percent of these wells are in shallow, inshore waters. The bad news is that the small-scale operators of many of these wells have gone out of business, leaving no one to pay except for the taxpayer.
These wells are also the most hazardous for coastal communities: since they are closer in, any leakage is likelier to find its way back to shore. Hurricane Ida illustrated this problem in 2021: in the wake of the storm, multiple oil slicks were spotted off the coast of Port Fourchon, and NOAA recorded 55 different spill reports. Satellite imagery analyzed by the Times showed slicks emanating from 10 different near-shore platforms and other infrastructure off the coast.
The Biden administration's mammoth 2021 infrastructure bill includes about $5 billion for remediating wells, which will go some distance towards addressing the problem.
The remaining 10 percent of the wells are located offshore in federal waters, where operators are required by federal law to pay for well abandonment. The overwhelming majority of these wells were drilled by well-funded supermajors, which are flush with profits from supercharged oil and gas prices. This may be a good thing, since 75 percent of the $30 billion total expense would be for plugging non-producing wells that are located in federal waters, and most of this fraction expens should be (in theory) recoverable from solvent oil companies.
Pipelines and platforms are an additional pollution hazard. About half of all pipeline segments are abandoned or inactive, along with three quarters of all platforms (the majority in shallow water). Pipelines can be legally abandoned, and about 18,000 miles of aging, disused pipeline sits below the waters of the U.S. Gulf. Environmental officials note that these unremediated lines can be breached by a hurricane or a dragging anchor.
Audit Finds Fault With Tender Process for Australia's Frigate Program
The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) has released a much-anticipated report on flaws in the country’s ambitious program to invest US$30.8 billion in a fleet of new frigates, which will be at the center of its future naval capabilities.
In an audit report of the Hunter-class frigate procurement processes, ANAO contends that Australia might not get value for money due to failure by the Department of Defence (DoD) to conduct an effective tender process for the frigate’s design.
The audit also found that the program has not been effective in delivering on project milestones. The first-in-class vessel is currently running 18 months behind and has been incurring additional costs, due in large part to design immaturity.
“DoD did not conduct an effective limited tender process for the ship design. The value for money of the three competing designs was not assessed by officials, as the Tender Evaluation Plan (TEP) proposed that the government would do so,” found the auditors.
The audit brings to light the challenges that Australia is encountering in its quest to build new frigates for its navy, which currently depends on eight Anzac class warships that are nearing the end of their lifespan. The first-in-class ship, HMAS Anzac, was commissioned in 1996.
Under the new shipbuilding plan, the Australian government is investing US$30.8 billion in a fleet of nine new future frigates, which will be larger than the Anzac class vessels. The Hunter-class frigates will be designed and equipped with a strong emphasis on antisubmarine warfare, including active towed-array sonar.
The government contends that the new warships offer a maritime combat capability that will underpin the country’s security for decades to come. The ships will be designed by BAE Systems and built by ASC Shipbuilding, part of the government's goal to support the domestic shipbuilding industry and create local jobs.
The Hunter class are projected to begin entering service in the late 2020s, replacing the Anzac frigates. Delivery of the final ship is planned in 2044 but is subject to BAE Systems recovering the schedule delay over the life of the project.
Australia's Department of Defence has admitted that the program is running into problems with cost growth.
“As of March 2023, while DoD had advised portfolio ministers that the program is under extreme cost pressure, it had not advised the government of its revised acquisition cost estimate, on the basis that it is still refining and validating the estimate,” the report said.
A case in point is a decision by the Australian government in June 2021 to grant DoD and BAE Systems more time to improve design maturity and develop a contractable offer for the first batch of ships, which increased the contract price by US$286 million.
“Design immaturity has affected DoD’s planning for the construction phase, led to an extension of the design and productionization phase at additional cost to DoD, and diverted approved government funding for long lead time items to pay for the extension and other remediation activities,” stated the report.
DoD has also come under criticism for making milestone payments without all exit criteria being met and extending milestone due dates in response to project delays.
Marine Mammal Bycatch Could Cost Ecuador Access to U.S. Seafood Market
Dolphins off the Galapagos, Ecuador (Gregory Smith / CC BY SA 2.0)
A group of conservation NGOs has called on the Ecuadorian government to prevent whale and dolphin bycatch in its fisheries, warning that it could risk losing the legal right to export to the U.S. seafood market if it does not improve regulation and monitoring. Seafood exports to the U.S. account for about one percent of the small nation's GDP.
A U.S. law enacted in 2016 gives foreign nations until January 1, 2024 to implement the same marine mammal protection standards required of U.S. fishermen. If they do not, the National Marine Fisheries Service is to required to ban their products.
“Ecuador had more than six years to get its fisheries and marine mammal programs up and running in time to show results, but it failed to do so. U.S. fishermen and consumers shouldn’t suffer from that failure; Ecuador's non-compliant seafood should be banned," said Zak Smith, the biodiversity conservation director at NRDC.
Ecuador enacted a fisheries reform law in 2020, but it has no stipulations for marine mammal bycatch, according to NRDC and the Center for Biological Diversity. Ecuador's waters are home to 30 different species of marine mammals, and bycatch is known to affect several dolphin populations - but the extent is not fully known, because the Ecuadorian government keeps no data on this question. Gillnet entanglement and bycatch from artisanal fishing also regularly affect coastal populations of humpback and sperm whales.
"Ecuador’s government needs to build on its new fishing law by tracking and limiting bycatch to save marine mammals and their export fishing industry," said Sarah Uhlemann, international program director for the Center for Biological Diversity. "We’re also worried for Ecuador’s hardworking fishers. If they can’t sell their fish products in the lucrative U.S. seafood market, it will be a huge economic blow."
In the meantime, the NGOs believe that some Ecuadorian fishermen are putting their whale and dolphin bycatch to use, cutting it up and using it for bait in fish aggregating devices (FADs). This is an emerging threat to dolphins, and at least six different species are used for this application. This practice should be halted, the groups said.
“The Ecuadorian government must do all it can to ensure that dolphins, whales and sea lions are not used as bait in any of its fisheries, including FAD fisheries,” said Kate O’Connell, marine wildlife consultant with the Animal Welfare Institute.
The Ecuadorian government has also come in for criticism on its mixed approach to shark fishing, which is technically banned in the country's waters. Ecuador takes a stringent approach to foreign fishing vessels with sharks found aboard; however, sharks caught by Ecuadorian fishermen are treated as allowable bycatch, and they are a lucrative part of a mixed-species commercial fishery. This is a common enough practice that Ecuador has become the largest shark-fishing nation in the region.
