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)
Tuesday, March 12, 2024
Nigeria Sets Aside $1 Billion for Port Rehabilitation
Nigeria's newly-built Lekki Port container terminal (NPA)
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has announced a massive rehabilitation effort for the country’s major ports. In a strategy paper released last week detailing measures to consolidate ports’ performance, NPA said it had put aside $1 billion for reconstruction of Tincan Island, Apapa, Rivers, Onne, Warri and Calabar Port complexes.
The authority also revealed that it had allocated and is mobilizing extra funds for development of new deep seaports, including Badagry Deep Seaport in Lagos State, Snake Island, Burutu and Ondo ports.
At a conference in Lagos last November, NPA Managing Director Mohammed Bello-Koko said that rehabilitation works at Nigerian ports was long-overdue, especially at Tincan and Apapa ports. Together, the ports handle about 70 percent of the country’s imports.
“The objective of the authority is to enhance the physical infrastructure of these ports to accommodate vessels of all sizes and increase draft by up to 14 meters,” added Bello-Koko.
Meanwhile, NPA announced in the strategy paper that ongoing reforms have seen its revenue surge from $226 million in 2022 to $314 million in 2023. Some of the recent changes include promotion of multi-modal transport, with NPA starting barge services to reduce pressure on the roads.
“Movement of cargo by barge has greatly enhanced port-hinterland connectivity as evidenced by meteoric rise in numbers from a total of 80,244 TEUs in 2022 to 118,046 TEUs last year,” said NPA.
Another major milestone is on the number of ship calls, as NPA continues with dredging of channels and improving security at the port entry points. The number of ship calls grew from 1,997 in 2022 to 2,179 by the end of 2023.
Last year also saw the opening of Lekki Port, which has dramatically changed the country’s shipping industry. With a capacity to handle over 2.7 million TEU in a year, Lekki Port is poised to win back more transshipment business for Nigeria. According to NPA, Lekki Port processed 6,076 TEU of transshipment cargo in the last year, which according to the agency is a major step in winning back “the cargo hitherto lost to our maritime neighbors.”
A re-organization of shipping services to West Africa by Maersk and CMA CGM has also put Lekki Port on the map. Early this year, the port celebrated the arrival of the 13,000 TEU Maersk Edirne, which is the largest containership ever to dock in Nigeria. It was followed on January 28 by CMA CGM Scandola, with a capacity of 15,128 TEU. NPA recently purchased two Damen-built ASD harbor tugs to help with the berthing of Post-Panamax-sized container ships.
Norway Gives $190M Boost to Floating Wind Farm for Eni's Goliat Platform
The Norwegian government's innovation agency will provide more than $190 million to support the construction of a floating offshore wind farm in the Barents Sea, off the coast of Hammerfest. Floating-platform technology is still nascent, but is essential for commercializing the higher power potential found further offshore, where water depths are too great for installing bottom-fixed turbines.
The future GoliatVind project came out first in a competitive grant process sponsored by technology funding agency Enova. Its backers include Japanese utility Kepco, wind developer Source Galileo and Norwegian offshore shipping company Odfjell. The project will take advantage of an existing power supply cable linking Eni's Goliat offshore oil platform back to shore.
"The government wants to make arrangements for floating offshore wind to become a new leg for the Norwegian supplier industry to stand on," said Norwegian energy minister Terje Aasland. "GoliatVind is a project that can also contribute to the development of our continental shelf while also helping to strengthen the power system on land."
GoliatVind will leverage a planned joint venture between Odfjell and Prodtex, Windsteel Technologies, which will manufacture floating wind platforms at scale. The first plant should open in 2027, in time to supply the wind farm.
"If floating offshore wind shall become a relevant source of energy in the future, we need to dramatically reduce the costs, but also increase the scale. And we need to do this without sacrificing quality," said Per Lund, CEO of Odfjell Oceanwind, in announcing the venture last month.
GoliatVind will be the second floating-wind project attached to an oil platform off Norway. Equinor, a pioneer in the space, brought its Hywind Tampen floating offshore wind project online last year. It was the first installation of its kind in the world, and it provides about one third of the power for Equinor's Snorre and Gullfaks fields.
Partnership Trials Fish Farms in a Swedish Offshore Wind Project
As demand for coastal space is rising for a variety of uses, multi-use projects in offshore areas offer a novel solution. In the latest example, Freja Offshore, a joint venture between Hexicon and Mainstream Renewable Power, has teamed up with the Norwegian company Subfarm to enable fish farming within the Mareld offshore wind farm. The site is a proposed 2.5 GW floating wind farm in the North Sea, 25 miles off the coast of Lysekil in Sweden.
Lysekil Municipality, the research institute DHI and Norway’s Blue Maritime Cluster will also participate in the new project at Mareld site. According to Freja, this project aims to showcase that generation of offshore wind power could coexist with other important coastal interests, including the fishing industry and sea-based food production.
Previous studies have shown that offshore wind farms could act as artificial reefs and marine protected areas. This helps to attract fish and other marine biodiversity, which is a great benefit for ocean conservation. Additionally, offshore wind farms limit passage of large fishing vessels, presenting a good opportunity for fish farming.
“Seafood and offshore wind power are two industries that Sweden will need more of in the future, and the least needed is to strengthen preparedness. That is why we want to find ways to combine these two pieces,” said Magnus Hallman, CEO of Freja Offshore.
For this project, the fish farms will be placed between wind turbines’ foundations and anchored in place. The fish cages will be lowered to a depth of 50-70 meters and hoisted up to the surface for checks and harvesting.
Subfarm has been working on this submersible aquaculture cage system since 2018. According to the company, the technology has been developed to cope with tough weather conditions in the North Sea and is based on methods previously used in the oil and gas industry for decades.
In the North Sea particularly, spatial conflicts between the offshore wind industry and commercial fisheries are becoming increasingly common. Finding compatible uses for shared offshore development offers an opportunity for fewer conflicts.
MITSUI Performs World-First Hydrogen Test
Mitsui combusted hydrogen in a single cylinder of a 50-bore MAN B&W ME-GI engine
MAN Energy Solutions’ licensee, MITSUI E&S Co. Ltd., has announced that it has successfully tested a 50-bore MAN B&W two-stroke engine up to 100% load at its Tamano facility while running on hydrogen, a world-first for the maritime industry.
In collaboration with MAN Energy Solutions, MITSUI converted one of the four cylinders of an MAN B&W ME-GI (-Gas Injection) engine to hydrogen operation. The hydrogen was supplied from a hydrogen gas-supply system that MITSUI developed in 2023.
Stable operation was achieved at various loads and operating conditions, including successful hydrogen combustion up to 100% load. MITSUI also confirmed greenhouse-gas emission reductions of up to 95%, with the remaining fraction originating from the pilot-fuel employed during testing.
In its own press release, MITSUI stated: “This is the world's first successful hydrogen combustion test on a large, marine two-stroke engine. In achieving operation along with providing the hydrogen gas-supply system, we are now one step closer to developing a zero-emission ship that uses hydrogen as fuel.”
Gunnar Stiesch, Chief Technical Officer, MAN Energy Solutions, said: “This is a very interesting project and one of several activities related to hydrogen that MAN Energy Solutions is currently pursuing within both two- and four-stroke segments. My congratulations to MITSUI for achieving this world-first and pushing the envelope on decarbonisation.”
Brian Østergaard Sørensen, Vice President and Head of Research & Development, Two-Stroke Business at MAN Energy Solutions, said: “This exploratory work is illuminating and gives us much food for thought. MAN Energy Solutions continuously looks to support the decarbonisation journey within the maritime industry, and as often as possible with esteemed industry partners such as MITSUI.”
Bjarne Foldager – Country Manager, Denmark – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “We have worked closely with MITSUI on this research project and are very happy with the results achieved. This proves the advantages and the flexibility of two-stroke engine technology, and means that we are now also prepared for the future, not only for hydrogen derivatives but also for hydrogen as a fuel. MAN Energy Solutions closely follows the market to keep track of any significant developments and this test is a noteworthy progression.”
Thomas S. Hansen – Head of Sales and Promotion – MAN Energy Solutions, said: “MAN B&W-branded engines are flexible by nature and designed for an easy retrofit at a later stage to different fuel types. This is an encouraging milestone for hydrogen as a fuel. We will now take some time to evaluate the results and ensure that we are ready to take action if and when the market for hydrogen matures.”
The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.
Kongsberg Maritime and EGGS Win IF Design Award for EcoAdvisor
The EcoAdvisor is an intelligent decision support system aimed at optimising vessel operations to reduce fuel consumption and carbon footprint
Kongsberg Maritime, a global leader in marine technology, and EGGS (part of Sopra Steria), a leading design consultancy, are thrilled to announce that their collaborative effort on the EcoAdvisor project has been recognised with the prestigious IF Design Award for 2024.
The EcoAdvisor is an intelligent decision support system developed by Kongsberg Maritime aimed at optimising vessel operations to reduce fuel consumption and carbon footprint. Working closely with the team from Kongsberg Maritime, EGGS ensured that the advanced technology behind EcoAdvisor was translated into a practical and user-friendly tool.
The EcoAdvisor functions as a digital application utilised by the Captain, DP operator, and Chief Engineer, with user interfaces located on the vessel’s bridge and engine room. Its innovative design facilitates a circular process, incorporating sensor utilisation to identify emission reduction opportunities, data analysis for optimising efficiency and safety, live feedback mechanisms to raise crew awareness on savings, and comprehensive reporting features to bridge communication between crew, managers, and charterers.
This groundbreaking project emerged from the 'Intelligent Efficiency' research initiative, a collaboration between Kongsberg Maritime, vessel operator DOF Subsea AS, Sintef, NORCE, and Innovation Norway. EGGS was brought on board by Kongsberg Maritime to guarantee the seamless integration of technology into a viable solution that meets the needs of maritime professionals.
Vanessa Lopes, Product Manager, Kongsberg Maritime played a leading role in the project. On receiving the award, she said: “Innovation requires sustained effort and determination to achieve results. Winning a prestigious IF Design award for our EcoAdvisor solution, underscores our commitment to driving sustainability and efficiency in the maritime industry through innovative design and technology. I am incredibly proud of my colleagues and this collaboration with the EGGS design consultancy.”
Paal Holter Innovation Director at Sopra Steria, added: “Kongsberg Maritime’s EcoAdvisor demonstrates what is possible when innovative minds in technology meet the creative force of design.”
The IF Design Award is one of the most esteemed design competitions globally, with 10,800 entries from 72 countries for the 2024 edition alone. The selection process involves rigorous evaluation by renowned design experts in a two-stage assessment.
The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.
Sanctions Enforcement Cuts Into Key Markets for Russian Crude
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with the head of his state-owned tanker operator, 2009. The firm is now under partial U.S. sanctions. (File image courtesy of the Kremlin)
When the G7 imposed a price cap on shipping services for Russian oil in December 2022, Moscow found plenty of Western partners who were willing to help it circumvent the threshold. By transferring old tanker tonnage to opaque front companies, falsifying or disabling AIS signals, and transferring oil at sea, certain shipping interests continued to facilitate transport for market-rate Russian oil. That is now changing, according to the analysts at Poten & Partners: ramped-up enforcement in the U.S. and the EU is pushing many gray-market facilitators out of the market, raising the cost of doing business with Russian oil exporters, and making Russian oil less competitive on the global market.
After the invasion in 2022, Russia lost access to its traditional European energy customers, and its biggest new markets for crude oil became China, India and Turkey. Refiners in these nations were unconcerned about sanctions and purchased discounted Russian oil in massive volumes: India alone increased its Russian energy imports 13-fold in two years' time, re-exporting much of the refined product to nations where Russian crude is banned.
However, the dynamic appears to be changing, according to Poten. As U.S. and EU officials began scrutinizing Western shipping interests' compliance with the price cap, more Western shipowners exited the Russian oil trade. At the same time, the U.S. began applying sanctions to "dark fleet" vessels that are involved in carrying Russian oil outside of the G7 price cap mechanism. In addition, the difficulties created by Yemen's Houthi rebels in the Red Sea have raised ton-mile transport costs for shipments from western Russia to India. These factors have prompted Indian refiners to dial back purchasing and switch back to traditional Middle Eastern suppliers.
Poten noted that Turkish and Chinese buyers are also showing less interest in Russian crude, though the effects are less pronounced. Sanctions have also made some Turkish interests skittish: earlier this month, Turkish terminal operator GTS told Reuters that it has decided to "cut all possible connections to Russian oil."
"It will be a challenge to replace the volumes of India and Turkey if these countries decide to cut back their purchases. Much higher discounts may be needed or more Russian crude risks being stranded," predicted Poten.
It remains to be seen whether these efforts will have an effect on the Kremlin's finances. Overseas crude oil sales drove government tax earnings to a record $320 billion in 2023, and about one-third of that funding went to finance the war in Ukraine, according to CNN. The Russian federal government forecasts that revenue will hit another all-time record ($390 billion) in 2024.
CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M
U.S. Navy Contracting Officer and IT Exec Charged for Bribery Scheme
The U.S. Justice Department has charged a U.S. Navy contracting officer and a software executive with bribery over a scheme to steer lucrative contracts to a specific company.
James Soriano, 63, was a civilian engineer and project leader at the Naval Information Warfare Center in San Diego. According to prosecutors, he strayed from his role as a neutral arbiter and began to tilt the scales in favor of Russell Thurston, 51, then an executive with a defense technology firm headquartered on the East Coast.
According to the indictment, Thurston and his subordinates gave things of value to Soriano, including free meals and jobs for Soriano's friends and family. One of these friends appears to have held her job without performing any responsibilities, and gave half her salary to Soriano in the form of a monthly cash payment, prosecutors alleged. This amounted to a matter of about $2,000 per month.
In return, according to charging documents, Soriano allowed Thurston to draft the procurement documents for competitive contract tenders. In this manner, Thurston's company won a major contract worth up to $300 million, and Soriano proceeded to approve about $100 million worth of work under the terms of the agreement.
Both men are charged with bribery. Soriano was also charged with three counts of filing false tax returns, as he did not declare the illicit cash that he was receiving from his friend as income, prosecutors said.
“Using a position of public trust as a means to fraudulently grant access to federal programs for personal gain will not be tolerated,” said the Small Business Administration's Western Region Special Agent in Charge Weston King.
“Using a position of public trust as a means to fraudulently grant access to federal programs for personal gain will not be tolerated,” said SBA OIG’s Western Region Special Agent in Charge Weston King. “Our Office will remain relentless in the pursuit of fraudsters who seek to exploit SBA’s vital economic programs. I want to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and commitment to seeing justice served.”
Two Charged With Manslaughter for Illegal Charter Accident
The operators of an unlicensed charter boat face charges of seaman's manslaughter in connection with the deaths of two passengers in a capsizing in 2022, the Coast Guard announced Friday, and could be sent to prison for up to 10 years if convicted.
Richard Cruz and Jaeme Pinella Gomez were the owners and operators of Stimulus Money, a small speedboat that they operated as a for-hire passenger tour vessel. Neither had a merchant mariners' credential, and they did not have a COI for the boat.
On July 12, 2022, Stimulus Money departed the pier with 13 people on board for a tour on the Hudson. The number of passengers exceeded the boat's rated capacity. According to federal prosecutors, Gomez was not experienced and "piloted Stimulus Money in a dangerous manner." At about 1440 hours, he rapidly increased the throttle for one of the engines, and the boat capsized. Gomez was not wearing an auto-shutoff lanyard, so the engine continued to run.
All 13 people aboard were thrown into the water, and 11 survivors were rescued by the NYPD, FDNY and good samaritan vessels. The other two - a seven-year-old boy and his aunt, 48 - drowned underneath the boat. The FDNY Dive Rescue Team recovered the victims at about 1445 hours.
Cruz and Gomez are being charged each with one count of misconduct and neglect of ship officer resulting in death, which carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.
The U.S. Coast Guard investigated the case and passed it over to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for prosecution. Charges were revealed last week.
“We offer our deepest condolences to those affected by this tragic accident,” said Capt. Zeita Merchant, Captain of the Port of New York. “We can’t stress enough how important it is for owners and operators to know your vessel’s limits and how to safely navigate the waters where you are operating. It is just as important for passengers to understand and ensure those requirements placed upon vessel operators for credentialling are in place before getting underway.”
Vale ex-president could escape Brumadinho
homicide charges
Staff Writer | March 7, 2024 | Vale’s former Chief Executive Fabio Schvartsman. Photo by Vale.
Former Vale (NYSE: VALE) president Fábio Schvartsman may escape criminal charges for the 2019 Brumadinho dam collapse after a second judge in a Minas Gerais court voted to dismiss them.
According to the Federal Regional Court of the Sixth Region in the Brazilian state, prosecutors did not meet the minimum standards to prove the former Vale president’s involvement in the dam breach at one of the company’s iron ore mines.
The court consists of three members. On Dec. 13, federal judge Boson Gambogi was the first to vote to dismiss the charges. This Tuesday, federal judge Pedro Felipe Santos followed his colleague’s decision, as reported by Folha de São Paulo.
However, votes can be changed until Mar. 12.
Fifteen other individuals, including executives from Vale and the consulting firm Tuv Sud, are defendants in the case. All are accused of qualified homicide and environmental crimes.
According to a report presented by the Federal Police in February 2021, the breach occurred after liquefaction of the tailings during drilling on the dam.
Schvartsman’s lawyer, Maurício de Oliveira Campos Júnior, said that the executive was unaware of that drilling.
The Mission to Make South Carolina's Coast the Cleanest in the U.S.
Thanks to its pristine beaches, the South Carolina coastline is a popular sailing destination. It is home to the Grand Strand, a 60-mile stretch of sandy shore that includes the world-famous Myrtle Beach. This is one of the country’s most popular vacation hotspots, attrracting over 17 million visitors annually.
But over the past 30 years, derelict boats and debris have been accumulating in tidal areas and marshes along the coast. These are a hazard to navigation and the environment, and they are impacting local marine life.
In 2010, one man said “enough” and began a mission to make the South Carolina coastline the first in the nation to be 100 percent free of this hazardous marine debris. 14 years later, he has nearly achieved his vision.
But one major issue threatens the project, which could otherwise be completed within the next 12 months.
Boat By Boat
The 19-foot SeaArc pounds through the choppy waters towards a sailboat. The derelict vessel is listing heavily to one side, its mast swinging wildly with the waves.
The center-console craft shows wear from its previous life as a border patrol boat, but the engine runs smooth. Another small battle-scar accumulates as it bumps up against the sailboat.
The captain, former US Marine Rudy Socha, waves at a man onboard a nearby boat. TowBoatUS is emblazoned on the side. The man gives a wave and a thumbs up.
“Just about ready now,” Socha says under his breath.
“Here we go,” Socha says, louder now. The man on the other boat turns a dial and the quiet whir of an air compressor increases to a roar.
A diver breaks the surface near the TowboatUS vessel and crawls back onboard. The sailboat is lifting in the water now, floating freely, the diver-installed airbag filling the space inside the cabin.
Socha clutches in and the SeaArc moves slowly forward while Jones pays out the slack until the towline is tight. Then, carefully, they begin towing the decrepit old sailboat across the choppy harbor towards a nearby boat launch. There, a team awaits with Sawzalls, a dumpster, and a one-ton dually ready to drag the hull onto land for the last time.
“This one is relatively easy,” says Socha. “When they are half-sunk in open water like that we just need to float ‘em, tow ‘em in, and pull ‘em out with the truck, or maybe a backhoe.” He checks the compass and adjusts course slightly. “Now all that's left is to chop it up and get rid of it”.
A Complex Operation
A 30-foot sailboat creates a lot of trash. It contains up to 9,000 pounds of fiberglass, 2,000 pounds of wood, and another 1,000 pounds of metal, not to mention the motor and any fuel tanks that need to be removed.
The fiberglass breaks down over time, leaching into the seawater. The wood fittings swell. The metal rusts. The fuel slowly seeps into the ocean, damaging the environment and playing havoc with local sea life.
Getting it out of the water and into a dumpster is just one step in a long line of logistical issues. You’ve got to work with law enforcement to establish ownership and get it cleared for removal. Skip this step and the owner could come back and file a claim against you.
You’ve got to engage stakeholders in government, raise awareness and - most importantly – raise funds. Recovery of one sunken boat can run upwards of $25,000, depending on the complexity and equipment required.
Many of the resources, such as those committed by TowboatUS, come through donations or volunteer efforts.
Then you need to find a place to get rid of it.
Fuel needs to be pumped out. Moran Environmental Recovery is another South Carolina-based partner that helps with this. The gas and oil goes to their recycling center. The metal goes to a scrapyard, with any money received given entirely to the volunteers. The wood and fiberglass goes to the landfill.
It is a logistically-complex project, but one worth doing. And Wounded Nature is just the organization to do it.
A History of Complex Cleanups
Captain Rudy Socha has been tackling complex disposal problems for decades.
In 1979 he was hired by Nuclear Metals to clean up a massive amount of depleted uranium machine turnings. It was the first radioactive waste cleanup of this size at the time, and he completed it two years ahead of schedule and $2.7 million under budget.
Socha founded Wounded Nature Working Veterans in 2010 to focus on his passion of cleaning up rural and hard-to-access beaches, tidal marshes, and coastlines in wildlife-critical areas. He chose Charleston, South Carolina as his homebase due to its central location on the coast. He then proceeded to remove over 2,800 abandoned crab traps from the coastline.
Next, he turned his sights on the derelict boats washing up on beaches and clogging up the harbors. In the last five years the government really started to take notice of his efforts, and helped accelerate the cleanup.
Where Do They Come From?
The source of these boats is a complex problem in itself.
Many are abandoned by owners who are no longer able - or have just lost the desire - to keep up the maintenance. They give them away for free for people to live on, or they just walk away.
This is an issue around the nation. The median home price in Charleston is $528,471 as of January 2024[6], and other coastal cities are similar. This has led to a growing rise in liveaboards as rents increase and home ownership becomes more difficult.
Free boats are typically poorly maintained boats. They slowly take on water, which the bilge pump needs to stay ahead of. Eventually the whole thing becomes waterlogged and is abandoned by the second “owner”.
Other sources are hurricane wrecks, failed companies, and downright negligence.
You’d think that the government would be responsible for these, rather than private industry. But they also have limits on what they can do.
Plenty of Red Tape
The biggest issue is liability. For example, when a derelict boat washes against (or under) a cruise dock, it can totally shut down navigation in the channel and stop the cruise ship from tying up.
Kind of like offering first aid, once you get involved you need to stay involved. Because the derelicts don’t have insurance, this can include assuming the financial liability of the cleanup. Wounded Nature carries a $2 million environmental liability policy. This, combined with their experience in these removals, helps to de-risk the project.
Establishing ownership of these boats is a key first step, and Wounded Nature works closely with local law enforcement to figure this part out. They will first try to get the owner to clean up their mess, but failing that, law enforcement will give it the thumbs-up for removal.
Full Inventory of the Coast is Complete
The most exciting recent development is a complete inventory of everything that remains on the South Carolina coast. This was a joint effort by Wounded Nature and the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.
They found 90 wrecks in total, including recreational boats, barges, old shrimp boats - even a navy ship sunk in place since the 1940’s.
If managed by the government the project would have to go through a lengthy and expensive tendering process, which would drive the price up to a level that couldn’t be covered - even if their entire annual budget was allocated.
Because Wounded Nature stands apart from this process as a private organization, the cost to perform the cleanup is much lower - estimated at just $5 million.
And the best part? This could be completed within the next 12 months.
A Generational Legacy
Government budgets won't cover this work. Less than three percent of all funds and personnel in the marine non-profit sector are dedicated to fixing problems through remedial action.
There is plenty of money to go around for research, advocacy, and legal fees, but very little for the front-line workers with their boots in the muck getting their hands dirty.
And those are the men and women who will make this cleanup a reality.
Wounded Nature relies on donations from companies, organizations, and individuals to fund these removals. Plus the efforts of volunteers to do the work.
Considering the scope, the dollar amount isn’t unreasonable for a large company or trust to make South Carolina the first state in all of the USA to have a coastline free of derelict boats and debris.
Final Cleanup
Socha walks the dock, stopping to pick up a small piece of fiberglass. He tosses it into a nearby garbage can.
The dumpster, full of a chopped-up boat hull and interior fitting, was just loaded onto the transport truck. A pile of metal, including the mast and small outboard motor, sits off to one side. The dock is otherwise clear.
It’s like the sailboat never existed.
Socha does a final sweep with his eyes as the dumpster and the last of the volunteers drive away. Satisfied there is no trace of the derelict boat left behind he walks back to his truck.
“One less piece of trash on our beaches,” he says, squinting into the setting sun overlooking Charleston Harbor.
Israel's transport ministry is sending a delegation of officials to Cyprus to look into the possibility of buying a port complex. The idea behind the state-backed investment would be to secure infrastructure to support Israel's national security, and provide a controlled location for staging relief and future reconstruction supplies for Gaza.
The United States has launched an effort to build a temporary pier on the shores of northern Gaza, providing a landing point for emergency aid supplies for the civilian population. Gaza faces a humanitarian crisis due to the shutdown of truck deliveries over its borders, which are controlled by Israel, and the White House has mobilized forces to prepare for Joint Logistics Over the Shore (JLOTS), the well-rehearsed process of installing and operating a barge-based finger pier from an unimproved beachhead. Up to 1,000 personnel and multiple vessels will be involved in the project.
Israel's Ministry of transport has dispatched Israel Ports Company Uzi Yitzhaki to buy a terminal in Cyprus to facilitate the inspection and approval of cargoes for this aid corridor, according to YNet. The estimated cost for the terminal is in the range of $140 million, though any final decision will have to have approval from the Israeli government.
The Cyprus site would also serve as a backup in the event of renewed hostilities with Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militia that controls much of Lebanon. If tensions with Hezbollah began to threaten the security of the seaport at Haifa - the primary container-freight gateway for Israel - a port in Cyprus could provide a temporary transshipment point to reroute cargo to Eilat or Ashdod, according to YNet.
The port project appears to align with recent reports that the U.S. maritime aid corridor has support from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - and may even have been his idea, according to the Jerusalem Post. Cyprus' foreign minister, who has been advocating for the corridor's creation, pushed back Monday and told the Cyprus Mail that "for much of the [journey] we were on our own."
WAR IS ECOCIDE
Ukrainian Air Force Strikes Russian Vessel on Dnipro Estuary
Debris falls back to earth after a Ukrainian strike on a vessel on the Crimean Peninsula (Ukrainian Air Force)
On Monday, Ukraine's air force carried out a strike on a Russian-occupied merchant ship that has been grounded on the Dnipro Estuary for months. The Ukrainian military claims that the vessel has been in use as a listening post by Russian forces; Russia has not confirmed the attack.
The force of the blast appeared to send a lifeboat soaring skyward, and it tumbled back into the water off the starboard side.
The unnamed ship is located on a spit that extends from the north side of the Crimean Peninsula, an area held by Russia since 2014. Naval analyst H.I. Sutton dates the vessel's presence at the grounding site back to early June 2023.
The strike is the latest in a long and growing list of Ukrainian attacks on Russian vessels, from corvettes to landing ships to the occasional submarine, cruiser or tanker. According to UK intelligence, Ukrainian maritime strike capability has pushed the Russian Navy out of the western half of the Black Sea, ensuring the security of merchant traffic to and from the port of Odesa.
Over the weekend, Russian state media reported that the commander in chief of the Russian Navy has been removed and replaced with a new commander, Adm. Aleksandr Moiseev. At the regional level, the Black Sea Fleet has had three commanders in two years.
The Russian Navy's Commander-in-Chief Has Been Removed and Replaced
Russian state media has confirmed the dismissal of the Russian Navy's top officer, Adm. Nikolai Evmenov. He has been removed and replaced by the commander of the Northern Fleet, Adm. Aleksandr Moiseev.
Evmenov began his career in the Russian Navy's nuclear-submarine community, and he came up through the ranks in the Pacific Fleet's ballistic-missile submarine division. After a series of staff assignments, he took command of the Northern Fleet in 2016, and was appointed commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy in 2019.
Evmenov kept his role through the first two years of the invasion of Ukraine, despite a string of damaging losses in the Black Sea. Ukraine's navy lacks a fleet, but it has destroyed or damaged more than a dozen Russian warships using only long-range missiles and suicide drones. The Black Sea Fleet has gone through two commanding officers in this time period, Adm. Igor Osipov (dismissed August 2022) and Adm. Viktor Sokolov (dismissed February 2024).
He will be replaced by Admiral Aleksandr Moiseev. Like Evmenov, Moiseev is a submariner by background and has a background in the Northern Fleet. He also spent a year commanding the Black Sea Fleet from 2018-19; during this period, Ukraine accused him of involvement in the Kerch Strait Incident, a maritime skirmish between the 2014 seizure of Crimea and the full-scale invasion of 2022.
