Monday, April 08, 2024

Andrew Forrest urges China to demand greener nickel'

Reuters | April 7, 2024 |

Andrew Forrest, Fortescue Metals’ chairman. (Image by Fortescue, Twitter/X.)

Australian mining magnate Andrew Forrest has called on China to demand higher environmental standards from its global supply chain, particularly its companies conducting nickel processing in Indonesia, the Financial Times said on Sunday.

Forrest, the chairman of Fortescue Metals Group, said in an interview to the FT that electric vehicle manufacturers should be wary of Indonesian nickel, adding that it was being extracted at immense cost to the environment.

“China will need to enforce its own environmental standards on its global supply chains,” Forrest is quoted as saying by the newspaper during a visit to Boao, China. He further added that every buyer of nickel “needs to be really careful if they’re buying from that (Indonesian) source.”

Nickel is a key ingredient that is used in electric vehicle batteries.

Indonesia in February had launched a revised “taxonomy”, or green investment rulebook, categorising coal-fired power plants used in nickel facilities as part of the global transition to a green economy.

Environmentalists criticised the notion of categorising the financing of new coal power plants as sustainable, pointing out that such plants are a significant source of carbon emissions.

Indonesia has rapidly emerged as the new powerhouse of global nickel production but until now has not produced the metal in the high-purity form traded on either the LME or the Shanghai Futures Exchange.

China has become Indonesia’s top trading partner during the last decade, as its natural resources such as coal and nickel help to power the world’s second-largest economy.

(By Rishabh Jaiswal; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

ASA-SNEC Highlights Urgent Attention to Maritime Security in the Red Sea

[By: Asian Shipowners’ Association]

The Asian Shipowners’ Association Safe Navigation and Environment Committee (ASA-SNEC) urges shipping industry to continue to highlight the maritime security situation in the Red Sea. While the heightened geopolitical tensions in the region have resulted in increased military presence and maritime patrols to ensure the safety of vessels passing through the area,
there is a renewed threat of Piracy off the African coasts. The current situation is putting the lives of our seafarers and our vessels at high risk while we continue to serve the global economy. Collaborative efforts among regional stakeholders and international partners are crucial to effectively address these challenges and ensure the safety and security of navigating in the Red Sea and the surrounding areas.

The ASA-SNEC calls for an industry-wide support for ambitious net zero targets through the adoption of the Zero Emission Shipping Fund (ZESF), a pivotal tool for propelling the maritime industry towards sustainability. Proposed by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and the Republic of Liberia to the UN International Maritime Organization (IMO), the ZESF aims to accelerate the industry's transition to net zero emissions by 2050. It mandates contributions from shipowners based on emissions, raising substantial annual funds to drive the rapid development and adoption of zero-emission marine fuels and technologies, particularly in developing nations.

The ZESF promotes global cooperation, transparency, and inclusivity, fostering collaboration among shipowners, governments, and international organizations. By allocating funds to support developing countries, it ensures equitable access to resources for decarbonisation, contributing to both emissions’ reduction and socio-economic development.

Moreover, the ZESF is a strategic investment in the industry's future competitiveness and resilience, driving innovation and sustainable growth. Ensuring commercially viable clean fuel and technology adoption for all is paramount to its success, as it not only accelerates decarbonisation but also opens up new opportunities for businesses worldwide. Pending consideration by IMO Member States, this proposal represents a tangible pathway towards achieving ambitious GHG reduction targets, emphasising a unified approach to decarbonisation and inviting all stakeholders to join the journey towards zero emission shipping.

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

ClassNK Transition to Zero-Emission with Energy efficiency Improvement

[By: ClassNK]

ClassNK has extended its services to support concrete actions by customers towards a smooth transition to shipping zero-emission.

With the revision of IMO's GHG emissions reduction targets and the introduction of the EU climate policy package for the shipping sector, regulations towards zero-emission are becoming increasingly stringent. However, the infrastructure for supplying zero-emission fuels is still under development. Shipping industry players need to select and utilize the appropriate GHG emissions reduction measures based on their corporate situation and the specifics of their individual vessels to progress towards zero-emission.

To more effectively support its customers’ ongoing efforts of GHG emissions reduction measures, ClassNK is extending "ClassNK Transition Support Services." ClassNK focuses on three types of GHG emissions reduction measures: the introduction of alternative fuels ships, energy efficiency improvement technologies, and the use of onboard CCS, considering customers’ needs together and leading to the implementation of the optimal solutions.

The service menu will be expanded in response to changes in circumstances, including the regulatory landscape, and technological trends. ClassNK will comprehensively support customers' pursuit of and transition to zero-emission. The details are available on the below page on ClassNK’s website:

Home > Information Services > ClassNK Transition Support Services
https://www.classnk.or.jp/hp/en/info_service/ghg/

The products and services herein described in this press release are not endorsed by The Maritime Executive.

Interview: How Safe Are Our Waterways?

In the days following the allision of the containership Dali with Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key, the question of port safety has come to the forefront across the country. Many ports have similar geographies with shipping channels passing under critical bridges and other infrastructure, raising the question of safety precautions and operations for major U.S. ports.

San Francisco has its challenges with a busy port. In 2007, for example, a containership hit a Bay Bridge tower in San Francisco’s port, which spurred the adaptation of improved safety systems

Public radio station KQED in San Francisco hosted a discussion with maritime experts about the area’s waterways and the safety protocols in place to prevent and react to disasters.

(Listened to the discussion)

Alexis Madrigal, the co-host of the Forum program, leads the discussion with:

• Scott Humphrey, executive director of the Marine Exchange San Francisco Bay Area Region; chairman of the San Francisco Harbor Safety Committee

• Captain Taylor Lam, captain of the Port for Northern California, US Coast Guard

• Tony Munoz, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Maritime Executive

The program explores port operations while asking the question whether a similar crash into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key bridge, which killed six people and spilled thousands of gallons of oil, could happen in the San Francisco area.

HD Hyundai Unveils a New R&D Center for Green Ship Technology

An LCO2 carrier design for Capital Maritime (HD Hyundai)

The South Korean shipbuilding giant HD Korea Shipbuilding& Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) has announced the launch of a new research and development facility dedicated for maritime decarbonization. The Marine Innovative R&D facility will be based at the HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) yard in Ulsan.

While KSOE has existing R&D setups for green technologies, they primarily focus on testing specific functions such as supply of LNG fuel to ships. However, the new facility is designed to simulate and test wide ranging processes including the full sequence of shipboard cargo operations - loading, ship operations, unloading - and technologies that could reduce carbon emissions.

This comprehensive approach will allow KSOE to predict performance of certain technologies from a land-based setting even before getting installed on actual ships. According to KSOE, this will improve safety and reliability of the new ship types using green technologies.

“As environmental regulations continue to tighten, the development of various technologies is under way, making it important to ensure their reliability. HD KSOE aims to utilize this new facility to pre-validate eco-friendly equipment to be installed in ships,” said an official from HD KSOE.

Among the first assignments of the new facility will be to test the performance of reliquefaction equipment for liquefied carbon dioxide carriers (LCO2). Reliquefaction reduces emissions and ensures that more of the cargo arrives at its destination.

HD Hyundai is currently building two of the world’s largest LCO2 carriers as part of an order the company received last year from Greek shipowner Capital Maritime Group. The two 22,000 cubic meter carriers are scheduled for delivery next year.

In addition, the R&D facility will also test a technology for producing dry ice in ship cargo holds, a function that could significantly improve transportation of perishable goods.

Meanwhile, KSOE said it aims to expand the range of green technologies and ship types tested at this facility by 2026. These include new propulsion systems for vessels such as ammonia and methanol-fueled ships, as well as hybrid electric systems.

Eight Missing in Collision off China's Hainan Island

SAR crewmembers recover debris from the wreck site (Hainan Maritime Administration) — SAR crewmembers recover floating debris from the wreck site (Hainan Maritime Administration)

Eight fishermen have gone missing off the coast of Hainan Island after their vessel collided with a feeder ship, according to regional search and rescue officials.

The fishing vessel Yuenan Aoyu 36062 sank Wednesday night after colliding with the 1,000 TEU boxship SITC Danang about 20 nm to the south of Yinggehaizhen, a town on the southwestern corner of Hainan. SAR authorities have searched nearly 6,000 square nautical miles with 21 rescue vessels and five aircraft, but as of Saturday night, no survivors have been found.

The vessel has been located using sonar and remotely-operated vehicles (ROVs), and a rescue detachment from the PLA Navy's Southern Theater Command obtained video imagery of its hull markings for confirmation. However, the wrecked vessel is surrounded by its own loose fishing nets, and when combined with rapid currents on scene, the conditions are too dangerous for divers to approach for a search, officials told China Daily.

The cause of the collision is under investigation. SITC Danang remains at anchor at the nearby port of Sanya, Hainan.

Why MARAD Needs to Preserve the History of SASH Abuses in Maritime

I’m a maritime #MeToo trailblazer, and I've asked the Maritime Administration to create a section on its website sharing the history of sexual harassment and assault in the maritime industry. I made the ask as a former Maritime Administration Chief Counsel, and I asked that my papers be included on it.

I began collecting papers the moment I became a maritime #MeToo trailblazer in 2011. I kept a copy of the letter that triggered the Department of Transportation Inspector General (IG) investigation I requested into sexual harassment and sexual assault at the US Merchant Marine Academy. I kept a copy of the letter I sent to the IG and I kept a copy of the Department of Transportation’s response to my request.

When I testified twice in 2014 before a Congressionally mandated panel, I kept copies of the transcripts. I kept a copy of the article that I wrote in 2013 that triggered the invitation. I kept a copy of the 2014 Maritime Executive article I wrote sharing information about my testimony. I wrote the Maritime Executive essay to shine a light on the problem. I kept the essay because I knew that someday historians would want to read it.

Fast forward to 2019, I kept the transcript of the US Commission on Civil Rights hearing wherein I discussed what triggered the 2011 request. I kept the 2023 essay I wrote for CNN and the 2023 essay Fox wrote about me.

When I started building the library, no one had heard of #MeToo. No one knew about Midshipman X. The lack of knowledge about either didn’t mean that crimes weren’t occurring. They were, and that’s why I testified, sought Congressional oversight, and recommended IG investigation.

When I became a maritime #MeToo trailblazer in 2011, I didn’t know what was in front of me. I didn’t know that a distraught mother would call me asking for help for her son who was sexually assaulted. I didn’t know that it would take decade for the maritime industry to opening talk about a crime that has devastated lives. I didn’t know who would help me advocate for maritime sexual assault survivors or where the help would come from.

What I did know was that sexual harassment and sexual assault don’t belong in the maritime industry. I also knew that sexual assault is a crime which should be prosecuted.

My goal in placing the library I created on MARAD’s website is to help historians understand that individuals like myself have been using and will continue to use our voices to help sexual harassment and sexual assault survivors. We’re each given a voice, and there is a choir of voices in 2024 singing for change.

The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.

Samoa Grants USCG Expanded Enforcement Powers in its EEZ

U.S diplomacy in the South Pacific region has receive a major boost after Samoa expanded the powers of U.S Coast Guard (USCG) personnel within its exclusive economic zone. It is the latest in a series of agreements in the Pacific Islands that empower American officials to enforce partner nations’ maritime laws.

On Friday, the government of Samoa and the U.S signed an update to their existing 2012 maritime law enforcement agreement, commonly known as the Shiprider Agreement.

The update grants the U.S Coast Guard an enhanced operational reach within Samoan waters, especially in dealing with illegal fishing activities. In this case, Samoa could request the U.S Coast Guard to inspect vessels and enforce its coastal state regulations without a Samoan officer (shiprider) present. However, the new agreement does not replace the joint patrols conducted with Samoan shipriders.

“In partnership with Samoa, the United States stands committed to safeguarding and ensuring security of Samoa’s exclusive economic zone. This is by preserving its marine resources and environment,” said Noriko Horiuchi, Charge d’Affaires, U.S Embassy Apia.

The new agreement comes days after the Coast Guard cutter Harriet Lane completed a three-months long deployment to the Pacific Island countries. During the inaugural patrol to the region, the 270- foot cutter visited pacific countries including Samoa, Fiji, Vanuatu, Australia, Papua New Guinea and Nauru.

The vessel’s commander, Nicole Tesoniero, said the patrol carried out 28 vessel boardings under shiprider agreements with Pacific Island countries. In Vanuatu’s EEZ, Six Chinese fishing boats were allegedly found to be violating the country’s fisheries law, with the infringements including failing to record the fish caught in the log books. During the inspection, Vanuatu fishery department officers and the police were onboard the USCG cutter.

Other states which have allowed the USCG to board vessels within their waters include Micronesia, Papua New Guinea and Palau.

The USCG has said it will use medium endurance cutters like the Harriet Lane to increase its presence throughout the Indo-Pacific and Oceania. Such ships are especially suited for longer-range six to eight week joint patrols, taking pressure off shorter range Hawaii-based cutters, which are more suited to service closer to home port.

With vast EEZs and limited capacity for patrols, Pacific Island nations rely on help from Australia, New Zealand and the U.S to police their waters. But China has also expanded its diplomatic efforts in the region, sparking concerns of rising Chinese influence in the South and Central Pacific.

South Korea’s Busan Port Launches First Automated Container Terminal

South Korea’s Busan New Port has further extended its capacity with the launch of a seventh container terminal. The terminal’s opening ceremony held on Friday was attended by President Yoon Suk Yeol, who lauded the facility as a milestone in turning Busan Port into a world-class smart port and hub for global logistics.

The new facility is the first fully automated terminal in the country featuring remotely controlled ship to shore cranes built in Korea. The automated transfer of cargo from ships is expected to raise the port’s productivity by up to 20 percent compared with other terminals and significantly lower the risk of safety-related incidents.

The Busan New Port opened back in 2006 as older terminals at the Busan Harbor were unable to handle the exponential growth in trade at the key transshipment port. The development was carried out in phases, and the new port expansion is scheduled to last up to around 2040-2050. According to Busan Port Authority, the overall expansion project will cost $32 billion when completed.

Last year, container traffic at the Port of Busan hit a record 22.75 million TEU, representing a 3.1 percent increase compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, President Yoon pledged to extend the tonnage taxation system ahead of its expiration at the end of the year. The tonnage tax is applied to shipping companies instead of ordinary corporate taxation, meaning companies pay taxes based on the net tonnage of their fleet as opposed to their profits. (Critics of the tonnage tax system argue that it is discriminatory as it does not uphold tax equity.)

South Korea reviews the tonnage tax system after five years, and the president’s guarantee to maintain it signals the government’s commitment to revitalize the domestic shipping industry. In this regard, Yoon also pledged $4 billion in government funding for national shipping companies to expand their fleet and aid in their green transition.

The Dangerous Reality of China's Megaprojects in Pakistan

CPEC-built Kas-Pul Bridge, Battagram (IamAnisurrahman / CC BY SA 4.0)

[By Syed Fazl-e-Haider]

The killing of five Chinese engineers in a 26 March suicide attack in Pakistan’s northwest has renewed concerns about the safety and security of Chinese personnel and projects in the South Asian country. The attack – in which an explosives-laden vehicle rammed into a bus transporting staff from Islamabad to the Dasu dam project in Shangla district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province – sent a ripple of anxiety all the way to Beijing.

Yet despite China’s call for a “thorough investigation” into the incident, Islamabad and Beijing remain optimistic about the US$62 billion China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian reportedly said, “Our two countries are all-weather strategic cooperative partners. Our iron-clad friendship is deeply rooted in the two peoples. No attempt to sabotage China–Pakistan cooperation will ever succeed.”

However, the ministry’s statement did little to allay fears among Chinese nationals working on dam projects in Pakistan’s northwest. Chinese companies suspended civil works on both the Dasu and Diamer–Bhasha dam projects in the aftermath of the suicide attack. Almost a thousand Chinese engineers working on both projects have stopped work.

Just two days after the bombing, a Chinese company suspended civil works at the Tarbela 5th Extension Hydropower Project and laid off more than 2,000 workers due to “security reasons”. In 2021, Pakistani authorities had awarded a US$355 million contract to Power Construction Corporation of China Ltd for civil works on the project. The 1,530MW Tarbela dam was scheduled to start power production before 2026.

Hardly a week before the suicide attack, insurgents targeted Chinese interests in the country’s southwest by storming the Gwadar Port Authority (GPA) complex and Turbat naval base near China-run Gwadar Port, which is a key component of the CPEC, in southwestern Balochistan province. Security forces thwarted both attacks and killed the insurgents. The assaults were claimed by the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), a separatist group fighting for an independent Balochistan against the state of Pakistan. Operationalised in 2017, Turbat naval base was built to provide a vital link for air transportation to support the CPEC.

“The audacious attacks on the GPA complex and Turbat naval base reflect the enhanced operational capacity of the BLA to storm the heavily guarded areas in Balochistan,” Jan Muhammed Baloch, a political analyst and researcher, told this author. “By attacking the GPA complex – the highly sensitive area in Pakistan’s Belt and Road hub of Gwadar – the group has sent a message of ‘vulnerability’ to China having ambitious plans for transport of Middle Eastern oil through Gwadar Port,” said Baloch.

The BLA, which has conducted numerous attacks on Chinese citizens in Pakistan, has demanded that China close down the CPEC and quit Balochistan. The group repeatedly warned Beijing against signing more CPEC deals with Islamabad.

Most insurgent attacks in Pakistan’s northwest and southwest are carried out by the proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) or Pakistani Taliban, along with the BLA in the southwest. In late 2022, Baloch separatist groups including the BLA and TTP declared that they had joined ranks against the state of Pakistan.

These three high-profile attacks on Chinese interests have dealt a severe blow to the myth of foolproof security for Chinese personnel and projects in Pakistan. The attacks further aggravate security concerns for Beijing, which is the largest foreign investor in the country. Pakistan blamed “foreign elements” for the terrorist attacks on Chinese citizens, which it says are aimed at harming the China–Pakistan relationship and damaging the CPEC.

Pakistan accuses its neighbours, Iran and Afghanistan, of harbouring the anti-Pakistan militant outfits. There is, however, a background to the recent attacks. On 18 March, Pakistan conducted air strikes inside Afghanistan to target the sanctuaries of the TTP. In January, Pakistan carried out air strikes inside Iran targeting the hideouts of the BLA and other Baloch rebel groups. The BLA vowed to avenge the killing of its members in the air strike, as did the Taliban. Pakistan has been under attack by both the TTP and BLA since.

Meanwhile, the CPEC has been proceeding at snail’s pace, not just due to security threats. A combination of political instability, local stakeholder issues, the Covid-19 pandemic, and technical challenges have contributed to the low implementation rate of China’s megaprojects in Southeast Asia. CPEC projects face similar issues, but security is the number one challenge in Pakistan. Unlike Southeast Asian countries, Pakistan has been reeling from separatist insurgency and Islamist militancy for two decades.

Syed Fazl-e-Haider is a contributing analyst at the South Asia desk of Wikistrat. He is a freelance columnist and the author of several books, including The Economic Development of Balochistan.

This article appears courtesy of The Lowy Interpreter and may be found in its original form here.

Top image: CPEC-built Kas-Pul Bridge, Battagram (IamAnisurrahman / CC BY SA 4.0)