Tuesday, April 30, 2024

Bibby Marine Orders First Battery and Methanol Powered eCSOV

electric offshore vessel — Bibby has ordered a CSOV that will use batteries and methanol fuel to be zero emissions in UK demonstration project (Bibby)

A shipbuilding contract has been completed for what is being called the “world’s first truly zero-emission, electric Commission Service Operation Vessel,” which is being built as part of UK sponsored demonstration project. The ship is expected to enter service in the UK in 2026 using a combination of a powerful battery system along with dual-fuel methanol engines.

A coalition of leading maritime companies led by Bibby Marine proposed the project as part of the UK’s Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure (ZEVI) project staged by the UK Department of Transportation. A total of £80 million was awarded to 10 projects in the 2022 round with the Bibby effort being awarded $25 million. They estimated the cost of the project for the vessel at $37.5 million total.

Bibby Marine reports that it completed a tender process and has selected Gondan to build the vessel. The Asturias shipyard in Spain won out of a variety of yards in the UK and internationally. Bibby cites the timeline, budget, and quality reputation as the deciding factors in the tender.

In the project proposal, the team called for a 295-foot vessel that would be primarily powered by electricity and batteries and have dual-fuel methanol-powered engines as backup. The ship will be ready for offshore charging and can recharge its batteries at night.

“The delivery of this vessel has the potential to be a game changer for our industry by accelerating our path to net zero, as well as showcasing marine innovation at its finest,” said Nigel Quinn, CEO of Bibby Marine. “This project will demonstrate that clean ships can be built at the same total cost of ownership as a conventional fossil burning vessel, coupled with significantly reduced operating costs.”

The eCSOV, which has been designed in collaboration with UK-based ship designers Longitude. To facilitate zero-emission operations, the eCSOV will feature high-voltage offshore charging facilities for rapid recharging. The vessel will have the capability to operate solely on battery power for over 16 hours between charging cycles.

Describing the project in their application for the funding grant, the team said they expect that it will be possible to operate the vessel with a two-week cycle onsite at an offshore wind farm emissions-free. Near shore and onsite the vessel will operate solely on battery power. For the longer transits between the shore homeports and the wind farms, the vessel will use its methanol fuel engines.

One of the challenges that ZEVI also looks to address is the need for offshore charging capabilities. In the application, the group said the CSOV would still achieve a 50 percent reduction in emissions compared to a conventional SOV, if offshore charging is not available

France’s TOWT Expands Sail Cargo Plans Ordering Six Additional Ships

sail cargo ship — TOWT's first two vessels are nearing completion to enter service in the coming months (TOWT)

French sail shipping company TOWT (TransOceanic Wind Transport) announced ambitious growth plans for its vision of carbon-free cargo shipping. Even before the company launches its first two dedicated vessels in the coming months, they report strong demand and supported by leading investors ordered six additional vessels. They also shared a grand vision of 500 ships by 2050.

The concept is to transport niche cargoes in dedicated vessels that will be large enough to be economically viable. They point out that while current sail cargo operations are 35-ton vessels, the two ships now under construction in Vietnam at the Piriou shipyard will each be 1,000 tons. Each vessel is 260 feet in length with two mats and will be able to carry 1,100 tons of cargo. TOWT forecasts that the vessel will carry up to 20,000 tons of goods per year.

Today they are reporting the order of six additional vessels also to be built by the Piriou group. Three vessels should be ready for service in 2026 and the others in 2027. By 2028, the company forecasts it could have annual revenues of €60 million and the capacity to transport 200,000 tonnes annually.

First two sail cargo ships will launch in June and July 2024 (TOWT)

"After two intense years of work, we are extremely happy and proud to take this significant step in the history of TOWT. With the construction of these 6 additional cargo sailboats, we are consolidating our position as a pioneer in the transport of goods by sail by increasing our fleet to 8 ships,” said Diana Mesa, co-founder and director general, and Guillaume Le Grand, co-founder and President of TOWT.

TOWT says each vessel will be moved by a set of sails with over 23,000 sq. feet of sail area providing speeds of approximately 10 knots. Operations will reduce carbon emissions by 95 percent compared to conventional cargo ships and they report strong interest from shippers.

The first two vessels, ordered in late 2021, are nearing completion with the masts having recently been raised on both ships. The company’s published schedule calls for Artemis to enter service in late June and Anemos in early July. The service will be primarily between Le Havre, France and New York as well as sailings to Colombia, Brazil, and Guadeloupe.

Atlantic crossings between Le Havre, France and New York are expected to take about two weeks. In addition to the cargo, the vessels will be able to carry up to 12 passengers and operate with a crew of seven.

The company has been operating chartered sailing ships for 13 years and reports it has already transported more than two million products. They report having chartered 20 vessels and operating 70 trips. Recently they completed a new round of funding from well-known investors including Révolution Environnementale et Solidaire fund, Atlante Gestion, the Caisse des Deposits and Consignments, CIC, and Bpifrance. The general public also contributed €5 million coming from around 2,000 individuals.

The company reports the additional vessels will permit it to increase capacity and accelerate the frequency of departures. Their target is weekly sailings. They also look to open new routes with dedicated additional ships to Asia, Africa, and additional countries in South America.

Qatar Orders 18 World’s Largest LNG Carries in $6B Deal with China's CSSC

Qatar Energy and China State Shipbuilding Corporation are heralding an order for 18 of the world’s largest LNG carriers as the next phase in their relationship and support of the expansion of Qatar’s LNG operations. With the order valued at nearly $6 billion, it is being cited as possibly the largest single LNG order and one of the largest ever placed in the industry.

The new vessels will be part of an expanded QC-MAX size LNG carrier with a capacity of 271,000 cubic meters in five tanks. The current Q-Max vessels operating for Qatar have a capacity between 263,000 and 266,000 cubic meters of LNG. Qatar recently highlighted the bulk of the shipbuilding orders, which reached a total of 104 vessels, are the conventional size with a capacity of 174,000 cubic meters. Qatar Energy has also called the program the largest shipbuilding and leasing program in the history of the industry.

The order expands on the earlier reports in January 2024 that Qatar was building eight of the QC-Max class vessels in China. The order signed today calls for the first eight vessels to be delivered in 2028 and 2029, The other 10 vessels added to the order will be delivered in 2030 and 2031. All of them will be built by China’s Hudong-Zhonghua Shipyard. They also highlighted that the yard is already building 12 conventional-size LNG carriers with the first of the vessels due for delivery to Qatar in the third quarter of this year.

Each of the vessels will measure 1,128 feet (344 meters) with a design draft of just over 39 feet (12 meters). CSSC has previously highlighted that these dimensions mean the vessels will still be able to dock at 70 percent of the world’s LNG terminals.

They will use dual-fuel low-speed engines and they are highlighting a range of technological features. While they will increase the carry capacity by 57 percent. The design is optimized with a double skeg line and a lower evaporation rate, which means the vessels’ energy consumption of cargo transportation per ton per nautical mile is 9.9 percent lower than the conventional ships. They are also employing technology with a real-time sloshing monitoring system and a hull configuration stress monitoring system. CSSC says the carbon intensity index (CII) will be 23 lower than the conventional LNG carriers.

The countries highlighted that Qatar Energy is already a large supplier of LNG, crude oil, and other products to China. In 2023, Qatar shipped China 17 million tons of LNG. Sinopec. The Chinese energy company, last year acquired a small stake (less than 2 percent) in two sections of Qatar’s North Field Expansion.

Qatar Energy has also moved to expand relations with other majors including Total, Shell, Eni, and Petronet in advance of the launch of the North Field Expansion. Qatar which has been competing with the United States to be the largest exporter of LNG reports it will expand production by 85 percent by 2030 to a total of 142 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). Earlier this year Qatar Energy announced further expansion plans for the North Field reporting it holds 10 percent of the world’s LNG reserves.

International Group: Russian Oil Price Cap is Unenforceable

Tankers at the Kozmino oil terminal on Russia's Pacific coast. The ESPO blend sold from Kozmino has traded above the price cap since it began (file image)

The International Group of P&I Clubs has informed the British Parliament that the G7 nations' partial sanctions on Russian oil shipping has become "unenforceable." It confirms longstanding warnings about the "price cap" on the Russian oil trade: it has given rise to a parallel tanker industry outside the cap's boundaries. In this "shadow fleet" of aging ships and murky ownership, there is little oversight of standards and safety - and insurance may only exist on paper.

The International Group represents 12 of the world's most reputable insurers, covering about 87 percent of all oceangoing merchant tonnage. Its members are subject to the G7 price cap, and since it was implemented, they have lost about 800 tankers in the Russia-serving fleet to less-established insurers outside the G7 - many of which have uncertain financial strength.

One of the reasons, according to the International Group, is the complicated structure of the cap itself. The price cap allows Western service providers to work with Russian oil cargoes, so long as the cargo is priced below $60 per barrel. Since the P&I insurance provider has no direct knowledge of the cargo's sale price, they are allowed to rely upon the oil trader's attestation alone. If the trader says that the oil was purchased for $59 per barrel, that is good enough for compliance, at least in theory.

In practice, Russian oil is worth more than $60. Market data shows that the Russian ESPO and Sokol grades have traded above $60 per barrel since before the price cap began. The benchmark Urals grade breached the $60 mark last summer and has largely stayed above it, save for a few brief dips.

Since all these grades are averaging above $80 per barrel in the aggregate data, there may be reason to question a trader's attestation of a sub-$60 deal. But the details of how the insurer should check up on the accuracy of the attestation are unclear, leading some G7 insurers to turn down Russian oil cargoes even when they appear compliant.

"The attestation is a flawed regime which potentially exposes both the P&I Club and a shipowner, operator, charterer to a breach," the International Group said. Further, the lack of clarity and possible liability have "resulted in a migration of trade activities outside of the jurisdiction of the G7 and its coalition."

The mechanism only applies to companies within the G7, so the 800-strong "dark fleet" has found safe havens elsewhere. In these new overseas venues, tanker operators and less-established insurers can continue business without trouble from sanctions or safety regulators.

"The [oil price cap], therefore, appears increasingly unenforceable as more ships and associated services move into this parallel trade," the group concluded.

These shadowy tankers may still claim to have P&I cover from reputable G7 insurers, even if they do not. "The little piece of paper a dark ship may have that says it’s insured is not worth the paper it’s written on," Simon Lockwood, an executive with insurance broker WTW, told Politico last year.

In confirmation, Danish authorities recently found that a shadow fleet tanker provided false insurance paperwork after a collision in March.

Report: Sovcomflot is Renaming and Transferring Flags on More Tankers

Russian shipping company Sovcomflot has reportedly resumed the practice of shuffling around sanctioned tankers in an effort to protect the business. According to a new analysis by Bloomberg, at least four of the tankers have changed names and flags as part of the effort after the recent U.S. sanctions in the enforcement effort of the G7 Price Cap on Russian oil. Sovcomflot has regularly used overseas holding companies that make it difficult to track its fleet.

The report highlights that vessels are swapping flags some going international and others going into the Russian registry all to keep the oil flowing. Analysts have said that Russia is trying to keep the oil on its ships to earn the freight monies. Sovcomflot management had noted while reporting its year-end financial results that the sanctions were complicating the business. Reuters quoted Sovcomflot CEO Igor Tonkovidov as saying that the sanctions were "limiting our geography and commercial prospects."

The U.S. Treasury Department began in late 2023 imposing sanctions and listing vessels that were regularly breaking the price cap. The effort also cited ship managers in locations such as Dubai known to be working with Sovcomflot and then in February directly listed the Russian shipping company. Bloomberg calculates that a total of 21 Sovcomflot tankers have been designated including the 14 named in February.

The Bloomberg report cites transfers between the Russian flag and Gabon as well as ships moved into the Russian registry. For example, four tankers, Kemerovo (109,900 dwt), Belgorod (156,700 dwt), Kaliningrad (110,000 dwt), and Krasnoyarsk (109,800 dwt) can be seen in databases swapping between the two flags. They are using alternate names of Columbus, Bravo, Captain, and Creation while registered in Gabon. The vessels were built between 2006 and 2010. Lloyd's List reports Gabon also moved to deflag sanctioned Russian tankers.

Data also shows a strong increase in tonnage for the registry in Gabon. Clarksons highlights that Sovcomflot remains the largest owner of Aframax tankers but the rankings chart shows tonnage registered in Gasbon went from just over 1 million in 2022 to 3 million in 2023 and as of April 1, 2024, is now at 7.4 million GT. They report the number of vessels registered in Gabon has gone from 126 in 2023 to 217 as of April.

After the sanction effort began there were reports that Russian tankers had stropped trips and that India’s refineries, one of the biggest customers were reported pausing shipping on Russian vessels. India’s refineries however have resumed receiving the Russian oil. A report surfaced yesterday that one of the prominent P&I Clubs, International Group, told the British Parliament that the G7 Price Cap has become unenforceable.

Despite the efforts to increase the pressure with the sanctions, Sovcomflot reported for 2023 its net income was just short of $1 billion up by a third. Tonkovidov told reporters that only eight percent of the fleet transporting Russian oil was under the sanctions. Much of the effort has hit at the shadow fleet which consists of older, marginal vessels beyond the Sovcomflot fleet.

WWIII

China Coast Guard Damages Two Philippine Vessels With Water Cannon

PCG water cannon — Courtesy Philippine Coast Guard

On Tuesday, Chinese forces water-cannoned two Philippine patrol vessels near Scarborough Shoal, a longtime flash point in the South China Sea. It is the latest in a string of near-conflict encounters between China's "gray zone" government ships and the Philippine military, driven by China's ownership claim to a large section of the Philippines' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

According to the Philippine Coast Guard, the cutter BRP Bagacay and the fishery patrol vessel BRP Bankaw were under way near Scarborough Shoal when they encountered a small flotilla of China Coast Guard and Chinese maritime militia ships. China maintains a constant presence at Scarborough Shoal, which it has controlled since 2012.

At about 0950 hours, the China Coast Guard cutter CCG-3305 used its water cannon to target the starboard quarter of BRP Bankaw, spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela said. Though not confirmed by Philippine officials, a reporter's video footage appears to show that CCG-3305 also shouldered the Bankaw and used its water cannon at close range to break the radome off Bankaw's satcom terminal.

At about the same time, as BRP Bagacay approached to within 1,000 yards of Scarborough Shoal, two other Chinese cutters used their water cannons to target the Philippine Coast Guard vessel. The PCG cutter reported damage to its topsides, including railings and a cloth canopy, but no personnel were injured. An embarked reporter from UK paper the Telegraph added that the cutter sustained interior flooding and damage to a radar system.

One of the Chinese cutters involved, CCG-5303, is familiar from previous encounters in the South China Sea. It was part of the Chinese presence in Indonesian waters in the Natuna Islands in 2021 and at Second Thomas Shoal in 2022. It has been tailing Philippine vessels near Scarborough Shoal for weeks, according to PCG spokesman Commodore Jay Tarriela.

Under its "nine-dash line" policy, China claims sovereignty over the vast majority of the South China Sea, including waters and land features located hundreds of miles from the Chinese mainland. Most of these claimed areas are located within the exclusive economic zones of neighboring countries, and none have formally accepted it. In 2016, an international tribunal ruled in Manila's favor and found that China's sweeping claims were invalid under international law.

Fisherman Floating in Java Sea Saved by Viken Tanker Managed by Wallem

Wallem is recounting the heroics of the crew aboard one of the newest tankers it manages. The 110,000 dwt Angleviken, a newly built LNG-fueled crude oil tanker, came across a fisherman floating in the Java Sea for two days in a life ring.

They miraculously found the man in the water 12 nautical miles from land. The reports are that he told them he jumped from the fishing boat he was working on because he had been working without pay. He was brought aboard safely and both conscious and uninjured.

The master of the Avgleviken, Captain Bhanu Kundi, reportedly sighted an object floating in the water approximately 2.5 nautical miles ahead of the tanker while they were sailing in the Java Sea. He maneuvered the massive 820-foot (250-meter) tanker and sounded the general alarm with a man overboard announcement when they realized it was a person floating in the water.

The crew of Indian, Ukrainian, and Filipino seafarers started the rescue operation. They successfully recovered the man in just 45 minutes from when the alarm was sounded.

“The crew of Angleviken acted with exemplary speed and discipline to rescue a fellow seafarer in distress within an hour of the first sighting,” said Alexander Ostrovskiy, Senior Marine & Safety Manager, Wallem Group. “We thank them for their professionalism throughout this incident, and for once more demonstrating their over-riding commitment to the protection of life at sea.”

Wallem has been managing the tanker which is registered in Liberia since it entered service in 2023. As an LNG-fueled crude oil tanker it is one of the newest and most advanced vessels in the fleet.

PDQ

Salvors May Remove Baltimore Container Ship in Less Than Two Weeks

Salvors use a diamond wire-cutting rig to remove bridge wreckage from Dali's starboard side, April 25 (USACE) — Salvors use a diamond-wire cutting rig to remove bridge wreckage from Dali's starboard side, April 25 (USACE)

On Tuesday, Maryland's governor said that responders at the site of Baltimore's Key Bridge are making progress on clearing the shipping channel and freeing the container ship Dali, which struck a pier and collapsed the structure in seconds on March 26. Officials think that the boxship could be removed by May 10, according to a statement from the Port of Baltimore.

Since the cleanup began in earnest, responders have pulled more than 3,300 tons of steel out of the channel, including several 300-500 ton sections of the main span. The East Coast's largest floating crane is on scene to handle these gigantic lifts, and the unified command is moving at a deliberate pace to ensure safety.

One of the hardest lifts, the section that is trapping the container ship Dali, is next up on the list. The temporary shipping channel next to Dali will be closed for the next 10 days as salvors prepare to pull this twisted segment off the ship's bow. The contractors will make a series of precise cuts all at once to remove the section without collapsing it further, Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said at a press conference.

Meanwhile, contractors are using a massive 1,000-ton hydraulic claw to grab tangled piles of steel girders off the bottom, without the risk of sending down divers to rig every lift.

When the channel reopens on May 10, the unified command believes that it will have a control depth of 45 feet - nearly as deep as it was before the accident. The previous "limited access channel" was deep enough to move ro/ros and one sub-Panamax boxship, but 45 feet should be enough to begin moving larger container ships in and out of the port - with a two-tug escort. The timeline is still subject to the uncertainties of salvage work.

"There's a lot of factors that play in to that, both the engineering, the salvage operations themselves, and weather," said Rear Adm. Gilreath. "We're going to continue to move to do this safely and as fast as possible."

While the operation in the main ship channel is under way, three temporary shallow channels will remain open for tug and barge traffic. Full 50-foot channel restoration is still expected by the end of May.

The bodies of two construction workers who were lost in the bridge collapse are still missing, and the Maryland State Police hopes that it will be possible to find them to bring closure to their loved ones. Four deceased workers have been recovered to date, but wreckage and zero-visibility conditions on the river bottom have made dive operations challenging. Police divers have "areas of interest" within the debris field, and are on standby for opportunities to access these sites.

Maryland is still seeking the support of Congress to fund the eventual reconstruction of the Key Bridge, a project which will likely take several years and several billion dollars. Gov. Wes Moore said that multiple members of Congress have come to see the site, and he expects the chairman of the House Appropriations Committee to visit soon. In addition to rebuilding the Key Bridge, Maryland's transportation department is also considering upgrades to protect the giant Chesapeake Bay Bridge, another older bridge that lacks heavy protective structures.

Dutch Settle Decades Old Scrapping Case Over Sale of Toxic Refer Vessels

refer cargo ship — Spring Bear sold for demolition in 2012 was one of the four vessels at the center of case (Alfvan Beem photo - CC0 1.0 Deed)

The Netherlands’ Public Prosecution Service has reached a $6 million settlement in a long-running case involving the scrapping of four refer cargo ships more than a decade ago. The case which started in 2018 marked the first time in Europe that a shipowner and its executives were brought up on criminal charges of exporting ships with toxic materials for scrapping overseas.

The case stemmed from the 2012 sale of four retired refer vessels, Spring Bear, Spring Bob, Spring Deli, and Spring Panda by Dutch shipping company Seatrade. Prosecutors charged that the shipping company had sought to maximize its profit on the sale of the vessels by using cash buyers.

Because the four vessels were used to transport refrigerated cargo, they were said to contain chemicals used in the refrigeration process that were harmful to the environment and the workers at the breaker’s yard. In addition, the ships based on their age contained PCBs and asbestos as well as oil and lubricating fluids. The prosecution reported that the four vessels departed from Rotterdam and Hamburg with these harmful materials still aboard.

Built in 1984, the Spring Bear and Spring Bob ended up in India and Bangladesh. The other two vessels which were also built in 1984 were sold for breaking in Turkey.

The prosecutors report that Seatrade now acknowledges the transfer of the ships without complying with the environmental regulations. In addition, the company has committed to ensuring that in the future when ships are sold for dismantling it will comply with the applicable rules.

As part of the settlement, Seatrade and two of its directors will pay a fine of €2.65 million ($2.83 million). The company will also pay €3 million ($3.2 million) which was said to be equivalent to the profit the company made through the cash sale instead of following the required procedures.

The Rotterdam District Court in 2018 had ruled against the company based on the EU Waste Shipment Regulation. They found that the company had illegally exported the vessels for scrap. At the time, the prosecutor called for a fine of €2.55 million. They also asked for a one-year ban for the directors. The court found two of three directors guilty, but the case was overturned in 2020 by the Court of Appeal.

The case had been hailed by environmentalists for the strong message that it sent to shipowners in the European Union. Since this case, several others have followed including the 2020 prosecution of George Eide in Norway for the 2015 sale of a vessel that broke down and grounded on its way to the scrapyard in Pakistan. Eide was found guilty and sentenced to spend six months in jail.

European rules require special procedures for the sale of the vessels and handling of their recycling at EU-approved facilities. The rules are being further tightened to prevent the export of toxic materials and ensure proper handling and disposal. Despite this, activists are still protesting end-of-life ship recycling while highlighting continued efforts by various shipowners to evade the rules.

Top photo by Alfvan Beem – public domain CC0 1.0 Deed

Video: Drifting Cargo Ship Hits Railway Bridge in Bangladesh

cargo ship hits bridge — The out of control vessel washed up against one of the main bridges in the city (YouTube)

It happened again, this time as a small cargo ship out of control drifted along one of the main waterways in the Bangladesh city of Chattogram before becoming pinned alongside the bridge. Both the bridge and ship suffered some damage with the survey work still underway.

According to officials they were trying to determine if the cargo ship named Samuda-1 had broken away from its moorings at a nearby shipyard on the Karnaphuli River or if it was a mistake by the helmsmen on the ship. Some reports said the vessel appeared to be without power and uncrewed but TV images showed at least one person aboard the vessel.

Eyewitnesses told the local TV station that the vessel was seen floating from the AK Khan dockyard on the western side of the river. There were strong winds which made it difficult to control the vessel and it struck the Kalurghat Railway Bridge. The ship was pinned up against the bridge due to the strong current in the river while officials were arranging for a salvage vessel.

It is reported to be one of the main bridges crossing the river and providing rail and vehicle connections to other areas of the country. The bridge was completing nearly eight months of renovations to support the opening of a new railway line.

Officials reported that there were several bent sections on the bridge but they believed it was overall minor damage. Rails along the deck of the vessel were also twisted but they were awaiting the salvage to remove it from the bridge to determine if there was more damage.

Shoaling and Bank Effect Caused Ship to Hit Navy Fuel Pier

The National Transportation Safety Board has concluded an investigation into a serious allision involving a tanker and a Navy fuel pier at a base in South Carolina, and has determined that bank effect was the primary cause.

On the afternoon of September 5, 2022, the product tanker Bow Triumph got under way from a private petroleum terminal on the Cooper River, upstream of Joint Base Charleston. The river is a winding tidal waterway, with sharp bends and branching tributaries. With a docking pilot aboard and a harbor pilot at the conn, Bow Triumph got under way at about 1530, headed for another product terminal a few miles downriver. The pilot had made this transit about 500 times before, including voyages aboard the same class of tanker, and had piloted more than 10,000 ships over the course of his 30-year career.

The ship passed two bends without difficulty. As the Triumph approached the third bend, the pilot maneuvered towards the east bank (left descending bank), anticipating that a tidal current would push the ship towards the west bank as it rounded the bend. Unbeknownst to the bridge team, the ship was now transiting closer to the east bank than any ship in the previous year, based on AIS data.

At 1600, the pilot began the turn to port. At first the ship responded properly, but then the rate of turn stalled. The pilot increased RPM to full ahead and gave a series of escalating rudder commands, culminating at a full Becker rudder angle of 90 degrees (beyond the maximum possible on typical vessels).

In the close confines of the narrow waterway, the situation began to change quickly. By 1601:24, it was evident that the heading had only changed by two degrees, and the vessel was not making the turn; instead, it was headed for Naval Weapons Station Charleston's Pier Bravo, a finger pier which protrudes at an angle out into the river.

At this point, the pilot ordered the crew to drop anchor and put engines astern. Less than a minute later, at 1602:20, Bow Triumph's bow allided with Pier B, destroying a 300-foot section of the wharf.

Bow Triumph sustained about $2.5 million in hull damage, and the pier section had to be demolished and replaced at a cost of $29 million. (This January, the bulker Hafnia Amessi hit the same pier, causing more than $3 million in damage.)

On drydocking, investigators noticed that Bow Triumph was missing her hull coating in several areas, an indication that she may have touched bottom. The waterway is known for rapid shoaling, and a Corps survey in May 2022 found that sediment accumulation had reduced the water depth by more than 10 feet. According to the NTSB, the survey that the pilot relied upon was from November 2021, 10 months before the casualty voyage.

Given the data, NTSB concluded that the ship experienced bank effect when it transited so close to the east side of the channel and passed over the shoal. Bank effect occurs when a vessel transits close by a riverbank, shoal or canal bank, and creates a pressure difference between each side of the ship. This hydrodynamic phenomenon can push the ship's bow away and pull the ship's stern towards the bank, exerting a turning force - in this case, to starboard. The effect is stronger in shallow water and at higher speeds. The incoming tidal current would have added additional turning force to the bow as the tanker exited the bend.

"Transiting in the center of the channel is prudent to avoid the risks associated with bank effect," concluded NTSB. "Pilots, masters, and other vessel operators should consider the risks in areas known for shoaling when planning transits."

BOEM Proposes Offshore Wind Area Auctions in Gulf of Mexico and Oregon

offshore wind farm — BOEM proposed plans for Oregon and the Gulf of Maine (file photo)

The U.S. Department of the Interior took its next steps in the aggressive plans to accelerate the development of offshore wind energy in the U.S. They released proposals for two new wind areas off the coast of Oregon and in the Gulf of Maine which they said combined could provide 18 GW of energy. It however includes more controversial areas especially along the Oregon coast.

The Biden Administration highlights that it has already approved eight offshore sites with a combined capacity of more than 10 GW, which they said will power nearly four million homes. They are also continuing the lengthy review process for additional proposals after having conducted four auctions including the New York Bight, offshore of the Carolina, and the first sales off the coast of California, and in the Gulf of Mexico.

Today’s proposals include eight lease areas offshore Marine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. Combined it represents nearly one million acres in the Gulf of Maine and the potential for 15 GW. The Bureau of Offshore Energy Management (BOEM) is proposing to conduct simultaneous auctions for each of the eight lease areas. Before finalizing the plan, they said they are seeking feedback on various aspects including the size of the lease areas, orientation, and location. They are also looking for input if any areas should be prioritized for inclusion or exclusion.

The proposed Gulf of Maine Sale Notice will be published on May 1. It maps out the areas ranging between 101,000 and 132,000 acres. The 60-day comment period will run to July 1, 2024.

The Pacific Coast proposal focuses on two lease areas totaling approximately 195,000 acres off the coast of Oregon. The Coos Bay Wind Energy Area and the other in the Brookings Wind Energy Area they said could power more than one million homes and provide approximately 3 GW. Along with the proposed lease sale, BOEM released its draft environmental review of potential impacts associated with offshore wind energy leasing activities for public review and comment.

"As we move forward with offshore wind energy in Oregon and the Gulf of Maine, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management remains dedicated to close collaboration with our government partners and key stakeholders," said BOEM Director Elizabeth Klein. "We're excited to unveil these proposed sales and emphasize our commitment to exploring the potential for offshore wind development from coast to coast."

The Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, however, immediately released a statement saying they were “extremely disappointed,” in BOEM’s announcement that it was moving to finalize the wind areas. The Tribal Council previously expressed its opposition to offshore wind energy development off the Oregon Coast.

Today, they are accusing the federal government of ignoring their concerns and “providing promises that they may be dealt with at some later stage of the process.” They contend that the proposed areas are within the tribe’s ancestral territory, contain viewsheds of significant cultural and historic significance, and are important fishing areas. They have requested that BOEM exclude important, cultural viewsheds as well as areas critical to resident and migratory species and important fishing areas.

BOEM says that the proposals reflect a multi-year planning process including input from the tribes and other groups and data such as that from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In identifying these areas, BOEM says it prioritized avoidance of offshore fishing grounds and identification of vessel transit routes while retaining sufficient acreage to support the region’s offshore wind energy goals. They said they will continue to engage with the different groups and continue to refine the plans.

The new areas are part of a broader plan by the Biden Administration. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland last week announced a new five-year offshore wind lease schedule, which includes up to 12 potential offshore wind energy lease sales through 2029. Future offshore wind energy lease sales from BOEM are anticipated in the Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico, Pacific, and the waters offshore of the U.S. territories in the next five years.

New Jersey Launches Wind Solicitation as New York Prepares for Next Round

New Jersey wind — New Jersey plans a wind port to support regional development (NJEDA rendering)

Undeterred by a range of setbacks in developing the offshore wind energy sector, both New Jersey and New York are pushing forward with their next rounds of solicitations. The governors of both states attest their strong support for the industry attributing the setbacks as part of the growing pains of a new industry.

New Jersey announced today, April 30, that it has opened its fourth offshore wind solicitation which will run till July 10. They set a goal of awarding between 1.2 GW and approximately 4 GW of contracts for offshore wind generation capacity. State administrators said the new round is designed to encourage competition, promote economic development, and ensure the lowest reasonable cost and lowest risk to New Jersey ratepayers.

“This latest solicitation is further proof of our commitment to building a strong and thriving offshore wind industry that will deliver undeniable economic and environmental benefits to our state, for both this generation and the next,” said New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy.

New Jersey is looking to reinvigorate its offshore wind energy industry despite continuing strong opposition from local and environmental groups. They contend the wind turbines would be determinantal to the Jersey shore’s tourism industry and continue to site theories that the survey work for wind farms is causing an increase in whale deaths. U.S. Congressman Jefferson Drew is bringing former president Donald Trump, another avowed “hater of wind” for a rally on the Jersey shore next week.

The state suffered a major setback in October 2023 when Ørsted backed out of two large late-stage development projects. The company said financial pressures had made the projects no longer financially viable while the governor angrily denounced the company and said they would hold them to their financial commitments to the state.

The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities highlights that in January 2024 it awarded two of New Jersey’s largest offshore wind projects to date. They authorized the 1.3 GW Attentive Energy Two which would be more than 40 miles offshore near Seaside Heights and is being developed by TotalEnergy and Corio Generation. The first phase of that project is now stalled as it would supply power to New York. New Jersey also approved the 2.4 GW Leading Light Wind project which would be 40 miles from Long Beach Island. It is a partnership between Invenergy and energyRE.

New Jersey had previously approved Atlantic Shores, a partnership between Shell New Energies and EDF. It calls for 1.5 GW of power generation capacity and would be just over eight miles from Long Beach Island.

In neighboring New York which would also draw sites within the New York Bight located between the states, they are looking to launch a next round this summer. Last week, New York issued a request for information for the next round as well as a planned infrastructure grant program. This comes after the state’s regulators announced they had closed the third round solicitation without any awards.

New York blamed significant changes that they traced to GE Verona’s decision not to build a planned large wind turbine. At the same time, New York had to launch an accelerated round at the beginning of the year to provide a structure to rebid two other large projects that threatened to walk away unless they could reset their power purchase agreements. Negotiations are still underway to finalize new agreements with Empire Wind 1 (Equinor) and Sunrise Wind (Ørsted).

Iran Promises Humanitarian Release of MSC Aries Crew

Iranians seizing containership — Iranian forces seized the containership on April 13 (Mehr News - Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License)

Iranian officials are promising to arrange the release of the crew from the seized MSC Aries on humanitarian grounds as they look to improve relations with Portugal, where the ship is flagged. News of progress came in a statement from the Iranian Foreign Ministry after a call with the Portuguese government. Previously, Iran made a similar statement tied to its efforts to improve relations with Pakistan which has citizens among the crew.

The international community has publicly applied pressure on Iran for the release of the MSC Aries which was seized on April 13 as it neared the Strait of Hormuz outbound from the Gulf. During the recent sessions at the International Maritime Organization pressure was also applied with calls for immediate release.

Unlike other instances where Iran leveled specific allegations against the vessels, in this case, Iran has vaguely called the seizure of the containership a “retaliatory move” for Israel’s attacks on the Iranian consulate in Syria and general aggression against Iran. They also said the ship “violated maritime law,” without any specifics while reports linked the ownership of the vessel to an affiliate of Zodiac Maritime, of which Israeli shipping magnate Eyal Ofer is an investor.

MSC said the week after the incident that “discussions with the Iranian authorities are in progress to secure their earliest release,” referring to the 25 crewmembers. MSC said it was also working with the Iranian authorities to have the cargo discharged.”

“We seriously consider the release of the ship’s crew as a humanitarian issue,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement on April 27 after the call between Portugal’s Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian. “We have announced to their ambassadors in Tehran their access to consular services, release, and extradition,” the ministry said for the crew which consists of individuals from India, Pakistan, Russia, the Philippines, and Estonia.

Last week, however, a spokesperson for India’s External Affairs Ministry Randhir Jaiswal told reporters on Thursday that the 16 Indian crewmembers were expected to return home “after the completion of some contractual obligations.” He said the Indian consul in Iran had met with the crew on April 25 but did not give a timeline for their return. Iran had previously told India’s representatives that the crew was not being detained.

Days after the incident, Iranian released a female cadet who was working aboard the MSC Aries. Ann Tessa Joseph, a deck cadet on the ship, returned to India on April 18 reporting her colleagues were in good health and going about their daily work.

The Philippines was able to gain an agreement from Iran for its citizens working on a seized tanker being held by Iran to return home at the end of their employment contracts. That meant the crew spent months in Iran before recently being replaced by a new crew and then permitted to return home.

Houthi Attack on MSC Ship in Indian Ocean Indicates Further Range

Map indicates the further distance from Yemen of the latest attack (UKMTO)

Details of the attack on the MSC Orion (158,000) were confirmed today by the maritime security forces in the region after the Houthi claimed an attack on the vessel yesterday as part of their latest barrage. The incident however is raising troubling questions as the vessel was at a much greater distance from Yemen possibly indicating the Houthi have extended the range of their drones.

The UK Maritime Trade Organizations and Joint Maritime Information Center are confirming the details of the attack on the MSC Orion which came overnight on April 29 to 30. According to the JMIC, the vessel was in the Indian Ocean approximately 300 nautical miles east-southeast of the Horn of Africa, or more than 170 nautical miles south of Socotra island. The UKMTO puts the vessel’s position up to 400 nautical miles from the mainland of Yemen.

The ship which is registered in Portugal and owned by Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Maritime chartered to MSC reported an explosion and found some debris believed to be from a “Uncrewed Aerial System.” The ship sustained some minor damage with the report that the crew was uninjured and that the ship was proceeding. Her AIS signal is off but the last indication is that she was bound for Salalah, Oman. Built in 2020 by Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea, she is a larger ship with a capacity of 15,000 TEU.

The Houthi in mid-March had threatened to expand the zone of attack to include portions of the Indian Ocean. They said they would disrupt ships attempting to divert away from the Red Sea and traveling around Africa. So far, while there have been several other Indian Ocean attacks, this is the first confirmed at these distances.

The Houthis are believed to be using drones manufactured in Iran. Military experts report Iran has claimed a capability of over 650 nautical miles for its drones and possibly further for its missiles.

Previously, for example, the tanker Marlin Luanda was approximately 60 miles from Aden when it was struck. The vessel was hit by a missile in January which caused a fire. The bulker True Confidence was approximately 50 miles offshore when it was struck in an attack that killed three crewmembers.

So far, none of the military and monitoring operations have specifically commented on the distance of this attack with the UKMTO repeating its standard comment about caution. Security analysts are however warning that it could raise new concerns for shipping that has already been forced to take longer routes to avoid the dangers.

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