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)
Sunday, February 06, 2022
Two Research Teams Face Off Over the Wreck of HMB Endeavour
Reproduced plans for Endeavour (Australian National Maritime Museum)
The head of the Australian National Maritime Museum announced Wednesday that he believes his team has identified the wreck of the famed sailing vessel HM Bark Endeavour, which carried Capt. James Cook and his crew on their voyage of exploration to Australia and New Zealand. However, the museum's American partners have pushed back, calling the announcement "premature."
The Australian team has not found the ship's bell, or any other object that would conclusively link site number RI-2394 to Endeavour - but "the preponderance of evidence" suggests that this particular wreck is indeed the long-sought historic ship, said Kieran Hosty, a marine archaeologist with the museum. "We've found lots of things that tick the box for it to be Endeavour, and nothing on the site that says it's not," he said.
In particular, the dimensions of the ship's scantlings are nearly identical to the dimensions on historical shipyard plans, including unique joinery elements at the vessel's stem, Hosty said.
After Cook's voyages ended, Endeavour was sold and renamed Lord Sandwich, and historians believe that she saw service as a British prison ship during the American Revolutionary War. In 1778, she was present for the siege of Newport, Rhode Island, and the Royal Navy intentionally scuttled her and four other ships in order to prevent vessels from sailing into the harbor. This might explain why so few objects have been found at the wreck site, the museum's archaeologists believe.
"Anything that was of value would have been stripped out of that ship before it was sunk," said Dr, James Hunter, an archaeologist with the museum. "What has been recovered up to this point is indicative of an 18th-century timeframe."
Based on this evidence, Kevin Sumption, Director and CEO of the Australian National Maritime Museum (ANMM), decided to announce Wednesday that the Endeavour has been found. The decision did not sit well with the Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project (RIMAP), the lead institution for the wreck site.
"The ANMM announcement today is a breach of the contract between RIMAP and the ANMM for the conduct of this research and how its results are to be shared with the public," said Dr. Kathy Abbass, the head of the American team. "What we see on the shipwreck site under study is consistent with what might be expected of the Endeavour, but there has been no indisputable data found to prove the site is that iconic vessel."
The ANMM dismissed Abbass' criticism. "She can have her opinion and we've got ours," the spokesperson told the Daily Mail. "We don't believe we are in breach of contract."
ANMM's team plans to put out a paper on their research for peer review soon, "and so further insights will be made as happens with all archaeological projects," the spokesperson said.
Argentina Deploys New Patrol Ships to Ward Off China's Squid Fleet
Boarding teams from ARA Bouchard (P-51) and ARA Piedrabuena (P-52) inspect fishing vessels in the Argentine Sea (Photo credit: Argentine Navy)
The Argentine Navy has deployed its two newest offshore patrol vessels (OPVs), ARA Bouchard (P-51) and ARA Piedrabuena (P-52), to monitor an international fishing fleet traveling close to the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) en route to the South Atlantic. While there have been no confirmed reports of these vessels engaging in illegal, unregulated, or unreported (IUU) fishing, recent history suggests that this is occurring or will occur soon.
Putting the new units to good use
Bouchard and Piedrabuena are assigned to the Argentine Navy’s maritime patrol division (División de Patrullado Marítimo: DVPM). Along with a Beechcraft B-200 Super King Air aircraft assigned to the naval air squadron for maritime surveillance (Escuadrilla Aeronaval de Vigilancia Marítima), the two units monitored vessels traveling through the Magellan Strait en route to open seas in the South Atlantic, according to a 23 December press release. After departing from Admiral Zar base in Trelew, Chubut Province, the B-200 flew over “the fishing fleet, in coordination with the patrol boats, maintaining surveillance… of the activities carried out by these ships of different nationalities.”
The support vessel ARA Estrecho de San Carlos (A-22) has reportedly replaced Bouchard as the main vessel assigned to Ushuaia, the capital of Tierra del Fuego province, which is near the Beagle Channel and Argentina’s border with Chile.
Argentina has acquired four Gowind-class OPVs from France, manufactured by Naval Group. The third unit, ARA Storni (P-53), was delivered in October 2021, while the fourth and final ship, ARA Bartolomé Cordero, was launched in September 2021 and will likely be delivered sometime in early 2022. The four units will help the Argentine Navy improve its patrol and surveillance operations.
There have also been developments from a bureaucratic standpoint. In late February 2021, the Ministry of Defence created the Joint Maritime Command (Comando Conjunto Marítimo: CCM) to “patrol and control of [Argentina’s] maritime and fluvial areas.” The MoD announced that starting this past 1 January, the CCM assumed command of surveillance maritime operations, which includes monitoring the international fishing fleet that is sailing near the country’s EEZ.
Good and Bad News
The Argentine Navy will have additional air and surface units in the near future. In late December, the Argentine government announced that the local shipyard Tandanor will construct a new icebreaker for Antarctic operations to replace the aging icebreaker Almirante Irízar (Q-5). In the same month, the Ministry of Defence announced that two refurbished Sikorsky SH-3H Sea King medium helicopters will be acquired to improve capabilities and operations, including search and rescue, in the country’s southern areas and during Antarctic operations. The price of the two helicopters, including personnel training and spare parts, is $12.8 million.
Alas, the service still has no operational submarines. Moreover, apart from the four new OPVs, the rest of the fleet has yet to be modernized, which limits the service’s capabilities for constant, long-range patrol operations to monitor illegal activities by the international fishing fleet.
IUU Fishing
Argentina has a history of combating IUU fishing. For example, in 2016, the Mantilla-class patrol boat Prefecto Derbes (GC-28) shot and sank the Chinese fishing vessel Lu Yan Yuan Yu 010. The ship had reportedly ignored warning shots and attempted to flee, only to ram the Argentine patrol vessel. Lu Yan Yuan Yu was reportedly fishing without authorization in Argentina’s EEZ close to Chubut Province.
The author of this article has written several essays for CIMSEC about IUU fishing in Latin American waters (See 2016’s “Latin American Navies Combat Illegal Fishing,” and 2020’s “The Ecuadorian Navy’s Constant Struggle Against IUU Fishing.” Regional cooperation is vital to solving this security challenge, which can be achieved by modernizing the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Tratado Interamericano de Asistencia Recíproca: TIAR) into a 21st-century agreement that is also tasked with combating IUU fishing.
Turning TIAR into TIAR 21, as the author suggested in a July 2021 Regional Insight paper for the William J. Perry Center for hemispheric Defense Studies at the US National Defense University, would be an essential step forward to more effectively monitor South America’s vast waters and prevent the ongoing maritime pillaging of precious marine resources by extra-regional fishing fleets.
An international fishing fleet, comprising vessels from countries such as China, Spain, South Korea, and Taiwan, continuously operates throughout South America, moving with the season. For example, the same fleet operated around Ecuador, close to the Galapagos Islands, in July-August 2021, then traveled south through Peru and Ecuador. It is currently crossing the Magellan Strait to operate in the South Atlantic for the summer months below the Equator. In Argentina, fishing vessels are focused on fishing squid, spider crab (centolla), and crab.
According to a December report by the Argentine daily La Nación, the “fishing season” commenced in early December, as some 180 vessels, “mostly from China,” crossed the Magellan Strait after operating in waters close to Chile and Peru. “By April, there will be approximately 500 ships operating in the area,” explained Major Néstor Alberto Kiferling, head of Argentina’s maritime traffic service. As modern as the Gowind class ships are, the international fishing fleet vastly outnumbers the Argentine Navy’s current capabilities, even with support from aerial units and other vessels.
Conclusion
It has been argued that Argentina is in a better situation vis-à-vis IUU fishing today compared to five years ago. Indeed, the Argentine Navy is putting its two new OPVs to good use by deploying them to the Magellan Strait to monitor the international fishing fleet crossing through the country’s EEZs en route to the South Atlantic. As with many other South American countries, one of Argentina’s major environmental challenges is IUU fishing, But while IUU Fishing is problematic when perpetrated at low-scale by fishing vessels from Argentina or a neighboring country, it can become truly catastrophic when done so by hundreds of international fishing vessels with no interest in preserving the maritime environment.
Wilder Alejandro Sánchez is an analyst who focuses on international security and geopolitics. The views expressed in this article belong the author alone and do not necessarily reflect those of any institutions with which the author is associated.
This article appears courtesy of CIMSEC and may be found in its original form here.
Alang Ship Recyclers Make Renewed Push for Green Standards
Alang is seeing a renewed push to develop ship recycling standards above the requirements of regulators and classification societies.This development stems from shipowners' own requirements for recycling of their vessels.
These shipowners require ClassNK HKC certification as the basic standard and are looking to audit or pre-evaluate existing ship recycling yards. Some owners list out their own responsible ship recycling standards, and they are looking for yards that have gone beyond the requirements of the classification society and perform LTI-free operations.
Some of the standards required for the ship recycling facility beyond regulatory requirements include:
1. Complete impermeable floor 2. Stormwater collection system for complete containment of any seepage to the sea 3. Large heavy-lift cranes for better control over the dismantling of large units 4. Environmentally sound downstream waste management and auditing of subcontractors.
All the above require financial investments for ship recyclers to implement. One recycling yard that is making this investment is Bansal Shipbreakers at Plot No. 25 and 39.
"As of today, the text adopted in the Hong Kong Convention is interpreted in different ways by different shipowners. For example, some may interpret the impermeable floor as the cutting zone concreted, and others may say that the entire facility is to be made impermeable by the use of concretization," says Mr. Rubal Bansal, the company's director. "It is in our best interest to go for the higher benchmark of green recycling even when it may require substantial financial investments in terms of construction of the facility or procurement of equipment (large heavy lift cranes). We always go for the higher regulation/requirement."
ClassNK issued Bansal a certificate of HKC compliance in 2018, and now they are on their way to getting certification from Lloyd's Register for compliance with the HKC and the standards of the EU SRR. The Bansal yard has also been audited by leading shipowners as part of their pre-evaluation for the recycling of vessels.
Alang’s push for green ship recycling has been relatively subdued since the Basel Ban Amendment took effect in 2019, but the effort is now being renewed. The impetus comes directly from the shipowners themselves, and it is set to translat into safe and environmentally sound ship recycling.
Arjun Banerjee is an environmental compliance consultant and hazmat manager, and he has worked with cash buyers and ship recyclers for the past seven years. He holds a post-graduate degree in environment and sustainable development, a degree in civil engineering, and is a lead auditor for ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 certified by Lloyds Register.
ICYMI
Photos of Spilled Catch Shock European Fisheries Regulators
The environmental group Sea Shepherd has obtained aerial footage of a large-scale release of dead fish off the coast of France, drawing scrutiny from the public and from regulators.
The Sea Shepherd patrol vessel Age of Union is operating in the Bay of Biscay off La Rochelle, monitoring four factory trawlers to collect evidence of dolphin bycatch. On her most recent patrol, the vessel observed a release of thousands of blue whiting into the ocean. This catch came from the Margiris, the second largest trawler in the world.
Sea Shepherd asserted that the fish were illegally dumped over the side, but the Pelagic Freezer-Trawler Association (PFA) - which represents Margulis' operator - told media that the release was an accidental "fishing incident" involving a ruptured net.
"We would like to clarify that around 0550 on 3 February 2022, an amount of blue whiting was involuntarily released into the sea from the Margiris vessel, due to a rupture in the cod-end part of its net. Such an accident is a rare occurrence and in this case was caused by the unexpectedly large size of the fish caught," said the PFA in a statement to media.
Regulators from France and the EU are asking for more information.
"At the sight of the images shared by [Sea Shepherd France], I asked the National Fisheries Monitoring Center to shed light on this subject in order to identify the cause of these discards of fish. Of course, these images are shocking," said French Minister of the Sea Annick Girardin. "France supports sustainable fishing and this isn't reflected here. Should an infraction have occurred, sanctions would be taken against the responsible shipowner that will be identified."
Virginijus Sinkevi?ius, EU commissioner for the environment, oceans and fisheries, said in a statement that his office is collecting "exhaustive information and evidence" about the release.
On February 6, Margiris departed the fishing grounds and headed towards Falmouth, England, outside of the European Union. There she rendezvoused with another trawler operated by the same firm, the Alina, then departed again, according to Sea Shepherd.
Dutch Detain Captain and Mate for Abandoning Drifting Bulker
Julietta D being towed to Rotterdam ( FlyingFocus photo courtesy of Coastguard of the Netherlands)
In a strange twist to yesterday’s dramatic sea rescue of the crew from a drifting bulker during a raging storm, Dutch authorities are now detaining the captain and chief mate from the Julietta D. The vessel was secured by a salvage crew from Boskalis and brought to port, but the investigation is questioning the actions of the captain for leaving the vessel.
The Coastguard of the Netherlands reports that it responded to a call received from the 37,200 dwt bulker requesting assistance and a spokesperson told the Dutch news outlet NOS that the Coastguard in those situations does not question the captain’s judgment that there is an emergency. The Maltese-flagged bulker reported that its anchor chain had parted causing the vessel to hit an anchored chemical tanker creating a small hole in the hull. They were told that the ship was drifting out of control in the storm where winds were gusting up to 75 mph and the seas were running 16 to 20 feet.
Two Dutch helicopters along with lifeboats of the Royal Dutch Rescue Society (KNRM) were dispatched into the storm during. They also requested assistance from the Belgian Coast Guard, and they were able to locate the bulker between 15 and 20 miles off the coast. An airlift took place removing the 18 crew members including the captain and chief mate from the vessel.
Dutch media reports that last night the police detained the captain and chief mate as part of an investigation. They are reporting that the authorities are saying that the captain and mate should have remained aboard the vessel for as long as possible and only left if there was imminent danger. They are being investigated for prematurely abandoning the vessel that could then have gone aground on the Dutch coast.
The investigation will also look at the damage caused by the bulker when it hit the foundation for a transformer in the under construction Hollande Kust Zud wind farm. Tennet that is building the platforms for the Vattenfall project reports that there was no one on the transformer that was hit. Once the storm subsides, they are planning to inspect the site to see if there was any damage due to the impact.
The Julietta D remained afloat and adrift causing an offshore oil platform also to be abandoned before a joint salvage operation between Boskalis and Multraship got underway that same afternoon. The Sovereign, a large Boskalis tug, arrived on the scene about four hours after the ship was abandoned. Four salvors from Boskalis’ salvage division, SMIT Salvage, were airlifted onto the Julietta D by helicopter and were able to secure a towline to prevent the vessel from going aground. The Julietta D was pulled further out to sea as a precaution.
A second tug, the seagoing Multratug 18 operated by Multraship also arrived and secured a line, but due to the extreme wave height, the connection did not hold. Dutch media are saying the Coastguard reported that one person on the tug and a second on one of the KNRM’s lifeboats both received minor injuries during the attempt to secure the second line. The Multratug 18 remained on stand-by overnight to assist. A second large Boskalis tug, the Manta, loaded with salvage equipment and additional personnel, was also sent to the bulker and at sunrise today the Multratug 18 was able to attach a stern line to provide course guidance during the tow. The tugs were then able to bring the Julietta D to Rotterdam as the wind reduced and the waves were lower.
The tanker Pechora Star that was hit by the Julietta D remained at anchor and moored in the port of Amsterdam on Tuesday morning under its own power.
The German shipping company that owns the Julietta D thanked everyone involved for their efforts and promised to cooperate fully with the investigation.
Multraship tug connected to the Julietta D providing course guidance during the tow (Multraship/Flying Focus photo)
One of Maersk’s Largest Boxships Grounds off Germany
Mumbai Maersk went aground near the mouth of the Weser approaching Bremerhaven (Havariekommando)
One of the largest containerships in Maersk’s fleet went aground last night, February 2, as it was approaching the German port of Bremerhaven. There are no signs of a hull breach or pollution, but a first attempt to refloat the ultra-large boxship was unsuccessful and additional resources are being assembled while the vessel's ballast tanks were also emptied before a second attempt to pull the vessel back into the shipping channel near the mouth of the Weser.
Maersk confirmed reports from Germany’s Central Command for Maritime Emergencies (Havariekommando) advising customers that the 210,000 dwt Mumbai Maersk was inbound to Germany with containers shipped in Asia heading for Germany and the Scandinavian countries. With a capacity of approximately 20,000 TEU, the Mumbai Maersk is part of the line’s Triple E class introduced in 2018 and one of the largest vessels in the fleet. The vessel had previously unloaded at Rotterdam before proceeding to Germany, so it is unclear how many containers are currently aboard.
The German authorities reported at just after 11 p.m. local time approaching the mouth of Weser the vessel ran aground on a shallow patch. The 1,309 foot Mumbai Maersk reported no injuries in the grounding but remained stuck. The vessel has a normal average draft of approximately 46.5 feet, but pictures released by CCME show it to be higher in the water. Reports in the local media suggest that vessel currently has a draft under 43 feet and that it may have experienced a problem with its rudder while in the fairway approaching the port. The media is reporting that the vessel made a loop taking her south of the fairway into an area used for dredged material from the shipping lane.
A total of seven vessels were sent to provide assistance, including a towing assistance team, which CCME says typically consists of four people trained to manage situations such as this grounding. A first attempt by the tugs overnight to free the containership was unsuccessful.
Mumbai Maersk remains on a shallow patch off Bremerhaven, Germany (Havariekommando)
The Mumbai Maersk’s current position is reported not to be obstructing the entrance to the Weser as the route to Bremerhaven. Port traffic is reported to be operating normally.
CCME said that Maersk retained a salvage company and that they were working with the shipping line planning additional efforts to refloat the containership. The authorities ordered a sounding of the site to get up-to-date information on the water depths in the area. The current plan calls for additional tugs to be added to the effort and a new attempt to refloat the vessel on the coming high tide around midnight on February 3. CCME reports a higher than normal tide is expected tonight with the next higher than normal tide expected Saturday night.
Maersk is advising customers with outbound cargos to be loaded in Bremerhaven that it will determine actions if the next refloating attempt does not prove to be successful. “We will look into alternative means of transport to move this cargo to its intended destinations,” Maersk wrote in its customer advisory.
The Mumbai Maersk was introduced in 2018 and claimed a new record for Maersk, loading what at the time they said was the largest number of containers. In August 2018, the containership departed Asia with a capacity load of 19,038 TEU bound for Europe.
Facing Scrutiny on CO2, Rotterdam Starts Tracking Vessel Emissions
Rotterdam handles about 100m tonnes of oil per year for refineries in the port and nearby. Its tracking program covers 14m tonnes per year of shipping emissions (Rik Schuiling / CC BY SA 3.0)
Responding to scrutiny from an environmental watchdog over its carbon emissions, Europe’s largest and busiest port says that it intends to make its impact more transparent.
On the day that NGO Transport & Environment (T&E) revealed that the port of Rotterdam was associated with almost 14 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, making it the most carbon-emitting port in Europe, the Port of Rotterdam Authority said it has partnered with the consultancy BigMile to develop a digital platform to identify and track transport-related emissions within its waters.
Over the next six months, the authority and BigMile will undertake a pilot project to calculate seagoing and inland vessel movements within the port with the aim of better understanding its emissions levels.
The port intends to use AIS data to precisely calculate transport sector emissions. The emission platform will help the port and business community make better choices and implement strategies to make the facility a carbon-neutral port. Findings from the project will be shared with shipping companies and terminals in the second half of the year.
“With millions of transport movements, we are the largest port in Europe. This means that our activities can have a huge impact on making logistics more sustainable,” said Nico van Dooren, who is responsible for the Port of Rotterdam Authority’s energy transition program.
He added the port is working on a series of related projects to make the industry and logistics more sustainable, from determining optimal connections via the most sustainable modality to the production of alternative fuels and promoting fast and efficient port call handling.
As Europe’s largest and busiest port, Rotterdam has been handling an average of 14.5 million TEU throughput annually. It is an absolute leader in crude oil handling and storage in Northwest Europe, moving 100 million tonnes of oil every year, almost entirely for refineries within the port and the nearby region.
A new study by T&E shows that transport emissions at Rotterdam are also somewhat significant at 13.7 million metric tonnes - nearly twice its largest competitor, Antwerp.
With the digital platform, Rotterdam said it is taking a step towards using sound data to manage its emissions reduction strategy. BigMile has developed a calculation and analysis platform to help shippers and logistics service providers optimize and report on the multi-modal transport-related carbon emissions of their transport. Its platform, which already has over 200 users, helps logistics firms comply with carbon reporting requirements and regulations.
“In the first project phase, we are focusing on area emissions in the port of Rotterdam area, from 60 kilometres offshore to the Brienenoordbrug. We are literally ‘charting’ sea-going and inland shipping’s actual emissions based on vessel and vehicle movements,” explained Wouter Nering Bögel, BigMile project manager.
ICS Finds Drop-Off in Flag States' Labor Standards Reporting
The International Chamber of Shipping has issued its annual report card on flag state performance, and while the signs are positive in general, there is one category where some states are underperforming: their labor standards reporting. ICS' analysis of flag states’ reporting on ILO labor standards, including the Maritime Labor Convention, showed a six percentage point drop in flag states meeting their obligations.
“The pandemic has been a challenge for us all and one that Flag States have also had to weather. However, the drop off in reporting against ILO Labour Standards, including the MLC, is further evidence that seafarer wellbeing has been an unintended casualty of the pandemic," said ICS Secretary General Guy Platten. “Hundreds of thousands of seafarers have been trapped on ships for many months beyond their scheduled tours of duty throughout the last two years. This report is a reminder that flag states must keep seafarer wellbeing as a top priority.”
The dropoff reflects a trend of reporting challenges for governments generally, not just flag state administrations. Out of the 2,004 reports on labor standards requested by the International Labor Organization from governments in 2021, only 43 percent of these requests were granted. This is a sharp drop compared with the 71 percent reporting rate in 2020, during the height of the pandemic. "This has been a challenging year for many governments resulting in a limited capacity to report," the ILO noted.
According to ICS, this shows both the unusual administrative pressures of the pandemic and the impact of the crew change crisis on seafarers, governments and the industry.
However, according to ICS, this one shortcoming was an outlier, and most flags showed a generally strong performance on port state control inspections and ratification of international conventions. This includes positive developments at the biggest flags.
"Amongst the 10 largest ships registers (by dead weight tonnage), covering more than 75 percent of the world fleet, none have more than two indicators of potentially negative performance, and five have no negative indicators at all," ICS reported. "The findings also suggest that distinctions between ‘traditional’ flags and open registers are no longer meaningful, with many open registers amongst the very top performers."
ASYMMETRICAL CYBER WARFARE
Cyberattack Disrupting Northern European Oil Hubs in Major Ports
Starting in German the interruptions have spread to the Netherlands and Belgium (EVOS terminal Amsterdam file photo)
Port facilities across northern Europe are all reporting what appears to be a spreading cyberattack targeting the region’s oil operations. After initial reports of disruptions in Germany, reports are now also coming in from the Netherlands and Belgium saying that it is impacting the loading and unloading of barges at a time when the oil market is already strained by winter weather. Local prosecutors in the three countries are investigating while reports indicate the European Union’s policy agency has also offered to support the investigation.
The first instances of what appears to be a sophisticated cyberattack were reported in Germany late last week. Oiltranking Group and Mabanaft discovered they had been a victim of a cyber incident on January 29. The companies reporting taking actions to address the situation and strength their network while investigation the extent of the intrusion. A separate company Oiltanking Deutschland that runs terminals in Germany reported that it was operating on a limited capacity and Mabanaft Deutschland which runs inland terminals also reported that its operations were being impacted. Both Oiltanking Deutschland and Mabanaft Deutschland declares force majeure reporting that they were having problems honoring delivery contracts.
German judicial authorities confirmed that they had launched an investigation into suspected extortion of oil operators. The German newspaper Handelsblatt first reported that the German security services believe the attack began with BlackCat ransomware. The software first appeared late last year and drew attention because of its sophisticated approach and incorporating several so-called innovations versus other ransomware.
After the reports of problems in Hamburg, additional terminals began also reporting outages. Belgian authorities are also investigating after ports in Ghent and Antwerp-Zeebrugge were impacted. Similarly, the authorities in the Netherlands became involved. SEA-Tank, Oiltanking, and Evos in Amsterdam, Ghent and Antwerp are all reporting issues related to their operating systems.
The head of Germany’s IT security agency in a press briefing called the incident serious but said it was not grave believing that it has been contained. The authorities are investigating if it was a coordinated attack on multiple locations or if it spread through the cross-border operations along the Dutch-Belgian oil trading hub.
The unloading of oil barges has become an issue while elsewhere companies have worked to reroute shipments. This week, Shell said it was taking steps to reroute to different supply depots because of the attacks.
The current attack is reminiscent of the May 2021 ransomware incident on the U.S.’s Colonial Pipeline. The pipeline, which is one of the largest and most critical in the U.S. as it feeds much of the East Coast, was disrupted for days.
German Fuel Hack Stretches to Sixth Day
With Distribution Curbed
Rachel Graham and Jack Wittels, Bloomberg News Feb 4, 2022
BC-German-Fuel-Hack-Stretches-to-Sixth-Day-With-Distribution-Curbed , Rachel Graham and Jack Wittels
(Bloomberg) -- A cyberattack targeting fuel storages in Germany and parts of northern Europe stretched into a sixth day with little visibility over when things will get back to normal.
Mabanaft Germany, whose systems were breached, continued to work on resolving the issue on Friday, according to a letter from the company seen by Bloomberg.
The hack left swaths of German fuel depots unable to load onto trucks. Operations at different companies’ terminals have also been disrupted in Belgium that handle a range of fuels, including gas. At least one terminal in Antwerp run by a company that suffered an IT outage is at least partly operating, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.
German authorities said earlier this week the incident was serious “but not grave.” People involved in fuel distribution in Germany said the fuel-supply situation since the hacking has so far been stable. One said there were plenty of alternative routes to market, while others said that high prices and subdued demand have helped to take any pressure off the country’s supply of heating oil.
The hackers behind the German breach appear to be related to the Russian DarkSide ransomware gang, according to Brett Callow, a threat analyst at the cybersecurity firm Emsisoft. DarkSide was accused of the attack on Colonial Pipeline Co. last year, shutting down the largest gasoline pipeline in the U.S. for several days in May.
The hacking has coincided with one of the tightest diesel markets that Europe has seen in years. So-called timespreads for the fuel have surged to the highest since 2008, indicating demand is outpacing supply. The distributors in Germany said that has resulted in slow demand.
Oiltanking Deutschland GmbH, a Mabanaft-linked storage firm whose IT system was also compromised, had about 18 million tons of fuel pass through its depots in 2020. That equates to about 15-20% of the nation’s oil demand, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
In Germany, a force majeure is in place across distribution and storage assets owned by Mabanaft Group, within which the Oiltanking Deutschland operates. Both firms are owned by Marquard & Bahls.
The disruption left companies like Shell Plc unable to load fuels onto trucks at Oiltanking Deutschland facilities and looking for alternative options. Some barge operators can’t get fuel out of storage onto vessels operating along the Rhine River, a major conduit for supplies from northwest Europe to buyers as far away as Switzerland. Payments were hindered at some German filling stations.
A cyber attack on a German oil storage and logistics firm has impacted Shell’s oil supply chain in Germany, where it is rerouting supplies to alternative depots, the supermajor said on Tuesday.
Shell was able to “reroute to alternative supply depots for the time being,” a spokesperson for Shell’s German unit, Shell Deutschland GmbH, said in a statement on Tuesday as carried by Reuters.
A few days ago, oil supply and logistics firms Oiltanking Deutschland GmbH and oil trading firm Mabanaft, both of which are subsidiaries of Hamburg-based group Marquard & Bahls, were victims of a cyberattack that affected their IT systems.
The companies discovered on Saturday the cyber incident and launched an investigation into it with the help of external specialists, Oiltanking Deutschland and Mabanaft said in an emailed statement cited by The Associated Press.
Oiltanking GmbH Group continues to operate all terminals in all global markets, but the German operations of Oiltanking Deutschland GmbH were “operating with limited capacity.”
The companies are working to restore operations to normal as soon as feasible, but in the meantime, the oil logistics and supply chain in Germany has been affected, including oil logistics at the local operations of supermajor Shell.
All systems of loading and unloading tanks operated by Oiltanking Deutschland in Germany are being paralyzed, German business daily Handelsblatt reported on Tuesday.
Oiltanking Deutschland is one of the largest independent providers of tank space for oils, chemicals, and gases worldwide, according to Handelsblatt. Oiltanking Deutschland has 11 tank farm locations in Germany.
The German unit of Mabanaft “has also declared force majeure for the majority of its inland supply activities in Germany,” the statement from the firm cited by AP said. Mabanaft is an importer, wholesaler, and supplier of gasoline, diesel fuel, jet fuel, heating oil, and other petroleum products.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
Opinion: Now is the Time to Take Port Cyber Security Seriously
If you think COVID-related supply chain issues at ports are bad, wait until a malicious actor wants to inflict similar chaos on purpose.
Product terminal operator Oiltanking Deutschland has reported a cyberattack affecting its German terminal operations (Copyright Oiltanking Deutschland)
Locomotives, airplanes, container ships and bulk freighters, long-haul and short-haul trucks, anything that rolls, flies, or floats. No matter the vehicle, and no matter how it’s powered, chances are a port plays a critical role in beginning or ending its journey. From paying more at the gas pump to finding things from baby formula to cat food, we have witnessed firsthand what happens when the push and pull of supply and demand starts to break down. Ports are dedicated to ensuring that supply meets demand both in terms of finished goods and the raw materials for making them. When they break down, the ripples spread across the entire economy.
At this moment, on the periphery of the crisis unfolding in Ukraine, major bulk fuel suppliers in the ports of Antwerp and Hamburg are experiencing work stoppages because of cyber attacks. Regardless of the motive or responsible party, what occurred this week is an explicit example of how bad actors use attacks such as these to take advantage of a dire situation. While this attack may not have been on our shores, it can directly impact the United States’ and its allies’ ability to operate in the region, as well as apply needless stress on an already taxed economy.
The American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) highlighted in Congressional testimony the role cyber security plays in securing our ports. AAPA’s President Chris Connor recently emphasized that the dual threats of ransomware and COVID-induced supply and staffing stresses have “revealed what is already a problem…ship and port systems are connected to each other or the internet. A critical attack on any of these systems could have devastating economic consequences or even lead to the loss of life.”
This is not an exaggeration. The efficiency of current global economic systems is due in large part to interconnectedness and advanced analytics, both of which are powered by cyber infrastructure that is now thoroughly enmeshed with traditional port infrastructure. Connor further noted that “the maritime transportation system needs resources to harden their IT systems to prevent attacks and to respond appropriately when an attack does occur.”
The bad news is we have a problem, but the good news is we generally know what we need to address this: more resilient networks combined with better cyber detection and response capabilities.
The exact scope and scale of implementing this solution will differ from port to port, but through financial programs such as the Department of Homeland Security’s Port Security Grant Program and resources from the Office of Maritime Security at the Department of Transportation, the work can and must begin now.
Ports have played a crucial role in America’s growth and role in the world since its founding, but a time has come when these engines of economic and social power might become vulnerable in a crisis. Not all critical infrastructure is equally critical, and ports have the potential to be just as devastating when compromised or degraded as they are constructive when they are operating at their full potential. Malicious cyber actors are noticing that the toxic mix of ransomware, epidemics, and geopolitical instability in places like Ukraine, the South China Sea, or the Persian Gulf can make even simple attacks extremely effective.
It will not matter if our power grid is resilient if it can’t get the coal and natural gas to feed it. It will not matter how secure our smart devices are if they are sitting in shipping containers. It will not matter how cheap gas is if the pipelines that carry it are not functioning. And finally, it will not matter how much money is earmarked for addressing cyber security at ports if it is not spent wisely, and more importantly, before a crisis arrives, and judging by events in Europe, it may already be upon us.
Jason P. Atwell is the Principal Advisor of Global Intelligence at Mandiant, Inc. the global leader in dynamic cyber defense?and response.
