Faststream Launch Seagoing Recruitment Division
Global maritime recruiter Faststream has made its first steps to sea by launching a dedicated seagoing recruitment division. This new business area sees Faststream expand from its roots in shore-based shipping recruitment to become one of the only global providers of recruitment throughout the entire shipping mix. Read More…
The Worst Jobs in History - The Maritime Age - Part 2
Shipping Industry Runs Short Of Young Mariners … What To Do?
Long a symbol of romance and adventure, the seafaring life is attracting fewer young adults these days, creating a worsening personnel shortage for those hauling cargo across oceans and the Great Lakes.
Some shipping companies have told the U.S. Maritime Administration that the problem has forced them to dock or even sell vessels. Others said it has kept them from expanding fleets, or caused delayed voyages and lost contracts.
A cross-section of the maritime industry has been affected to varying degrees, from oil tankers and bulk cargo haulers to tugs, barges and ferries. Read More…
Why African Seafarers Attract Patronage, By Expert
A NORWAY based maritime training consultant, who has been coordinating trainings of Nigerians in that country as seafarers, Captain Arne Loland, has enumerated the factors that are inhibiting African countries from becoming an alternative source for maritime manpower supply in the world, saying corruption in the their educational system has been the bane.
Loland is also collaborating with the Maritime Events Limited and the Regional Maritime University in Accra, Ghana to organise the second African manning and training conference in Ghana next month. Read More…
Somali Pirates Seize Greek Cargo Ship MV Saldanha
Pirates have hijacked a Greek-owned cargo vessel in the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Somalia.
The Greek merchant marine ministry says pirates seized the MV Saldanha early Sunday, as it headed toward Slovenia with a load of coal.
The ministry says the ship was carrying 22 crew members, their nationalities unknown.
Somali pirates have received millions of dollars in ransom payments during a hijacking spree over the past year.
The attacks have continued despite increased naval patrols by the U.S., European Union and other world powers (source: www.voanews.com).
Hotelier at Sea
Could nearly 4000 oil rigs soon to be decommissioned in the Gulf of Mexico be retrofitted into an American Dubai of offshore luxury hotels? If so, would that really be a good idea?
Either way, Morris Architects has proposed exactly that:
There are approximately 4,000 oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico varying in size, depth and mobility that will be decommissioned within the next century. If a deck on one of these rigs is about 20,000 square feet, then there is potentially 80 million square feet of programmable space just off the coast of the United States. The current method for rig removal is explosion, which costs millions of dollars and destroys massive amounts of aquatic life. What if these rigs were recommissioned as exclusive resort islands? Could the Gulf be America’s “Dubai” and the rig the artificial island on which to build it? This project examines the possibilities of creating a self-sufficient, eco-friendly high-end resort experience in our own backyard – the Gulf of Mexico. Read More…
The Worst Jobs in History - The Maritime Age - Part 1
Cruise Ship The Ocean Nova Grounded Off Antarctica Coast
The owners of a cruise ship that ran aground in Marguerite Bay, Antarctica, are hoping high tide will dislodge the ship Wednesday, a company statement said.
Connecticut-based Quark Expeditions said the M/V Ocean Nova became stranded Tuesday in the bay not far from an Argentine research base. Marguerite Bay is about 900 miles south of the tip of South America.
The ship is carrying 65 passengers and 41 crew members, Quark Expeditions said.
All those aboard the vessel “remain safe and calm,” the company statement said. Read More…
Global Subsea Expenditure To Exceed $80 Billion
Infield Energy Analysts forecast that over the period 2009 through to 2013, the total global subsea sector expenditure will exceed $80 billion. This is for subsea equipment and drilling and completion. This is up from $46 billion on the previous five years. Approximately 3,222 trees are expected to be started up within the next five years, the biggest players being Petrobras (374), Shell (244), Total (237), Chevron (236), BP (229), ExxonMobil (215) and StatoilHydro (194).
The new Global Perspective Subsea Market Update is being launched at Subsea 09 in Aberdeen on Feb.11-12 and at PennWell’s Subsea Tieback Forum & Exhibition in San Antonio March 3-5 (source: www.offshore-mag.com).
British, French Nuclear Submarines Collide
A British Royal Navy nuclear submarine and its French equivalent collided while on operations in the Atlantic Ocean earlier this month, defense ministries in Paris and London confirmed Monday.
Both vessels, HMS Vanguard and Le Triomphant, were armed with nuclear warheads and suffered damage but were able to return to port under their own power following the collision.
“Two “SNLE” (nuclear submarines), one French and the other British, were, a few days ago, on standard patrols in the Atlantic. They briefly came in contact in a very slow speed while they were immersed,” the French Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
“There is no casualty or injury among the crew. Neither the nuclear deterrent mission nor the nuclear security have been compromised.”
In an earlier press release issued on February 6, the Ministry of Defense said the vessel’s sonar dome had been damaged in a collision. The vessel was able to return to its base at Ile Longue in Brittany, northwest France, accompanied by a frigate.
The UK’s Ministry of Defence also confirmed the incident. In a statement, the First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Jonathan Band said the collision occurred during “routine national patrols.”
“Both submarines remained safe and no injuries occurred. We can confirm that the capability remained unaffected and there has been no compromise to nuclear safety,” Band said. Read More…
