Think Maritime

German Nod Sets Nord Stream Build Date

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 12:01:42 +0000

Construction of the Nord Steam natural gas pipeline is on schedule following an approval by German environmental officials, directors said.

The German Federal Maritime and Hydrological Agency on Monday granted a permit for a 19-mile section of the pipeline. Germany on Dec. 22 granted its first Nord Stream permit for a 31-mile offshore leg.

That leaves Finland the only nation that has not granted approval for the natural gas pipeline. Matthias Warnig, the managing director of the Nord Stream pipeline consortium, said the project was still on schedule, Germany’s Deutsche Welle news agency reports.

“We are firmly on schedule to start construction of the pipeline in spring 2010 and to start transporting gas in 2011,” the director said.

Denmark, Sweden and Russia already backed the project formally.

The Monday permit is the final step for Germany to move forward with the $10.8 billion pipeline project.

Nord Stream will stretch 745 miles through the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea to Germany. The project, along with South Stream, is part of an effort by Russia to diversify its European transit options away from Ukraine.

Europe gets about 25 percent of its gas from Russia, though 80 percent of that volume travels through Soviet-era pipelines in Ukraine.

Kiev, along with Warsaw, said they were concerned Nord Stream would strip transit revenue away from their government coffers.

Russian gas giant Gazprom leads the Nord Stream consortium along with Germany’s E.ON Ruhrgas and BASF-Wintershall.

Marina requires new lifejackets

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:42:29 +0000

IN LIGHT of the holiday sea mishaps, maritime authorities ordered seagoing vessels to be equipped with new snap-on lifejackets to
prevent, or at least minimize loss of lives in maritime disasters.

Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) chief Maria Elena Bautista said that by January 1, these new lifejackets should replace the old lifejackets that require complicated procedures.

“International conventions require that lifejackets be easy to wear, with less thinking required. The vest should be snap-on at the front.

The present lifejackets require so many maneuvers just to be worn
securely,” Bautista said in a radio interview.

The new lifejackets must have the Marina’s logo, as well as the date of approval for easier monitoring and inspection by authorities, she added.

Lifejackets to be used in vessels that ply nighttime routes must also be equipped with emergency whistles and flashlights.

Starting January 1, we will require that the lifejackets be of the snap-on type, instead of having so many strings and laces,” she added.

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) meanwhile welcomed this development.

“We are glad with this order from Marina. I think it is high-time for us to safeguard our traveling citizens. Shipping lines, whether big or small should follow suit,” commandant Admiral Wilfredo Tamayo said in a text message.

In a related development, the number of missing passengers of a
roll-on roll-off vessel M/V Baleno 9 that sank off Batangas province last weekend still stand at 44 as of Thursday morning, the Coast Guard
chief said.

An initial manifest showed there were 88 passengers and crew members aboard but the new figure cited by Tamayo indicates 123 people may have been aboard the ill-fated ship.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) identified the six fatalities as Hermie Ann Largado, 22; John Panagsagan, 40; and Jennylyn Gutierrez, 20; Johnny Mutya, 36; Lealyn Peñaranda, 19; and Gloria Angel Galanza, eight months old.

The spokesman meanwhile reassured the public of a fair and transparent investigation into the incident, after suspending two Coast Guard executives over the tragedy.

Temporarily relieved were Petty Officer 1 Danilo Sanchez, the commander of the agency’s detachment in Calapan, Mindoro; and Petty Officer 2 Rizal Maligaya, the clearing officer who received the Masters’ Oath of Safety Departure (MOSD).

Tamayo said the two will get a chance to air their side during the investigation.

“Everything will be fair and transparent. The purpose of this is not to influence the ongoing probe of the Board of Marine Inquiry,” he said.

The tragedy is the second mishap that happened on a holiday weekend.

On Christmas Eve, three people were killed while dozens went missing after MV Catalyn B collided with a fishing vessel off Limbones Island in Cavite province.(Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)

Maritime Lawyer Charles R. Lipcon Named World’s Best Prosecutor of Cruise Lines

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:38:33 +0000

Maxim Magazine named Charles Lipcon the World’s Best Prosecutor of Cruise Lines. Charles was featured in article entitled “Wet and Wild” . The article was an expose of some of the dangers on the high seas. Charles was quoted as the authority on maritime law and cruise ship assault prosecutions.

Charles Lipcon, Maritime Attorney, said “The cruise lines only have to report crimes involving Americans to the FBI, and even those are underreported. The cruise lines don’t want their passengers or their crew members to be crime victims.” The public statistics show the FBI opened 184 cases of crimes on cruise ships between October 2001 and February 2007, including 101 sexual assaults, 12 missing persons, and 13 deaths.

Charles Lipcon is a maritime attorney with the law firm of Lipcon, Margulies & Alsina, P.A. This firm handles many cases against the cruise lines both for passengers as well as crew members. Charles Lipcon has also been featured as a top Miami Maritime Lawyer by Florida Trend’s Legal Elite and a top attorney by Super Lawyers.

Charles Lipcon is the author of one of Amazon’s top 30 selling travel books, Unsafe on the High Seas. This book details some of the dangers of cruise ship travel from assaults to missing people. It also covers the victim’s rights and how they can defend themselves. The book does not try to persuade you into not taking a cruise, but rather teaches you how to cruise safer. The book can be ordered from Amazon.com.

About Lipcon, Margulies & Alsina, P.A.
Lipcon, Margulies & Alsina, P.A. is a Miami, FL, Law Firm focusing on maritime and admiralty personal injury claims against cruise lines and other boat owners. Lipcon’s maritime lawyers represent passengers and crew injured on ships worldwide.

Eco-friendly shipping pact

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:33:48 +0000

Singapore on Friday acceded to an international eco-friendly shipping convention. It deposited its Instrument of Accession to the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on Ships, 2001 (AFS Convention) with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). The AFS Convention was adopted at the IMO on Oct 5, 2001, and entered into force on Sept 17 last year. When it enters into force for Singapore on March 31 next year, the Republic will join 40 other countries to be a party to the AFS Convention.
The Convention will apply to ships registered with Singapore and also to ships calling at the Port of Singapore. Singapore’s accession followed consultations with the Singapore Shipping Association and the Association of Singapore Marine Industries.
Mr Lam Yi Young, Chief Executive of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said: ‘As one of the world’s busiest port, protection of the marine environment is of great importance to Singapore. Singapore’s accession to the AFS Convention underscores our commitment to environmentally-friendly shipping and port activities.’
Anti-fouling paints/systems are used to coat the hulls of a ship to prevent fouling organisms such as algae and molluscs from attaching to it. If allowed to build up, these fouling organisms would reduce the speed of the vessel or increase the fuel consumption to maintain a certain speed. Some of these anti-fouling paints contain chemicals that are harmful to the marine environment.
The AFS Convention bans the use of harmful anti-fouling paints/systems on the hulls of new and existing ships and encourages the use of environment friendly anti-fouling paints such as silicon paint.
The accession to the AFS Convention adds to the list of IMO Conventions on the protection of the marine environment which Singapore had ratified and implemented.

Next year to be tough for container shipping

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:32:46 +0000

The global container shipping industry faces a tough recovery in 2010 after the decline in global trade volumes this year, according to a forecast by Business Monitor International (BMI), the London-based global industry research and analysis firm. To gauge the magnitude of the recovery that lies ahead for the container sector, BMI uses its global port container throughput indicators for 2009. Since final figures for the year have yet to be released, BMI makes its assumptions using its forecasts, which were reviewed after the first six months of 2009 with H1 2009 data being added to its forecasting matrix.
Port throughput in the Middle East has fared slightly better, the report said.
“Using the UAE port of Jebel Ali, the region’s busiest container port and a transhipment hub for other Middle East countries, as a bellwether, BMI notes that the port is one of the few expected to post throughput growth in 2009, with 6.6 per cent growth forecast. It should be noted, however, that in 2009, despite positive growth, container throughput at Jebel Ali will have slowed yoy, as the port posted 25 per cent and 21.2 per cent growth for 2007 and 2008 respectively,” it said.
Asia’s container throughput has felt the knock-on effect of many major consumer markets going into recession at the end of 2008 and in 2009. Factory output dropped as orders from consumer markets in Europe and the US dried up. The port of Singapore boasts the largest container throughput and is a major transhipment hub for Asian states shipping to Europe and the US.
“We estimate that the downturn in 2009 will have had a negative impact on the port’s throughput, with box volumes falling 17.8 per cent yoy,” the report said.
Another major container hub for Asia that caters to the transhipment needs of China, the port of Hong Kong, is also forecast to post throughput declines in its container cargo, with BMI estimating a yoy drop of 18.85 per cent. Mainland Chinese ports are expected to fare no better, with the port of Shanghai, second after Singapore in terms of container throughput, expected to post a yoy throughput decline of 16.45 per cent in 2009.
Negative growth
Emerging Europe has been one of the areas worst hit by the downturn, as once-developing consumer markets have shrunk on the back of the global economic downturn. Using Russia, the main economy in the region, as a bellwether, BMI predicts that throughput at the country’s main container port of St Petersburg will decline by 39.72 per cent in 2009. This is on the back of a forecast total trade decline of 34.62 per cent for the country in 2009.
African ports’ container throughput is also facing negative growth, as although the country’s raw material sector and dry bulk shipping sector has been propped up by Chinese demand for commodities such as coal, Africa’s demand for manufactured goods has plummeted. At the port of Durban, South Africa’s largest container port in terms of volume, BMI forecast box throughput to drop by 13.58 per cent.
The US, where the economic crisis began, has been struggling with consumer confidence as unemployment has increased. This has had a knock-on effect at the country’s container facilities as slackening demand from consumers has meant a decline in the import of manufactured goods.
The country’s two main west coast ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are, in BMI’s opinion, expected to suffer the brunt of the downturn. The ports are America’s import gateways for Chinese and Asian goods, and the general decline in the retail sector means that we expect container volumes at Los Angeles and Long Beach to decrease by 11.39 per cent and 23.21 per cent respectively, the report said.
Although still expected to post a decline in box volumes, America’s main east coast port of New York and New Jersey is not forecast to witness such a steep fall in throughput as its west coast peers, with BMI forecasting a yoy drop in throughput at the port of just 2.2 per cent in 2009 as the facility is less exposed to the import market and is diversified by catering for exports as well.
In Latin America the situation is the opposite way around. The region’s main west coast port, the Pacific facility of Valparaso in Chile, is forecast to witness a decline of 12.91 per cent compared to the Atlantic port of Santos in Brazil, where BMI believes box volumes will fall by 22.93 per cent yoy in 2009. The reason for this is that Chile’s trade volumes are expected to fall by 14.9 per cent, compared to Brazil’s yoy decrease of 24.3 per cent.
Shipping lines’ financial results are another good bellwether to assess the current decline, the report said.
“Over the quarter the majority of the top 10 global shipping lines have announced their H1 results, in the case of Japanese operators their Q1 FY 2009-2010 results. All lines have suffered losses, with the Paris-based consultancy AXS Alphaliner reporting that liner companies’ losses had hit $6 billion (Dh22bn) for the first half of 2009,” it said.
“BMI witnessed the extent of these losses on a daily basis as we covered each of the top 10 container lines’ financial results announcements. We note that European-based liners have been hit hard. Despite having a diversified portfolio, AP Moller Maersk reported a net loss of $540 million. The company’s hardest-hit operating unit was its container line division, Maersk Line, which posted a $961m loss after its revenue plummeted 30 per cent yoy. France’s CMA CGM posted a loss of $515m, and Germany’s Hapag-Lloyd recorded declines in its revenues, which fell 24.3 per cent yoy in H1 2009,” it said.
Asian lines have suffered the same fate. China’s leading container line, Coscon, was its parent Cosco’s worst-performing division, with a loss of $631.7m during H1 2009 as revenues fell by 45.8 per cent yoy to $803m. China Shipping Container Line also posted a net loss of $500 for the first half of 2009 after the company’s total revenue fell by 51.5 per cent yoy.
Taiwan’s Evergreen Line, South Korea’s Hanjin Shipping and Singapore’s NOL joined the losses club over the period as Evergreen posted a $60m loss in Q2 2009, marking the third straight quarterly loss for the Taiwanese container line.
Hanjin Shipping fared no better, recording an operating loss of $342m for H1 2009. The company’s positive result of total container volumes increasing by 22.7 per cent in Q2 2009 on Q1 2009’s figure was overshadowed by the fact that revenue per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) was considerably dented as freight rates continued to plummet. NOL posted a $391m loss in H1 2009 as the company’s revenue declined by 37 per cent, the report said.
Container shipping companies’ bottom lines have been battered by rate decreases and the fall of cargo volumes. This decline in traffic can be seen in the number of TEUs carried in H1 2009. NOL has witnessed the largest decline in containers shipped, with its TEU volumes for H1 2009 declining by 24 per cent yoy, the next largest percentage drop yoy is Cosco, which carried 21.9 per cent fewer containers in H1 2009 than in the same period in 2008.
Maersk Line, despite posting hefty losses, managed to hold on to more clients, with its container volumes decreasing by just seven per cent yoy. From this it could be assumed that Maersk Line slashed its rates in order to attract clients, which would explain its comparatively low container volume percentage change yoy compared with its H1 2009 financial loss.
Japan’s two top lines, NYK and MOL, registered container volume declines yoy of 28 per cent and 23.2 per cent respectively in the Q1 FY 2009-2010 period, the report said.
Route sharing
Service shares and route rationalisations have allowed competitors to pull together and pool their resources by reducing capacity, but at the same time offer clients the same services and allow shipping firms to remain active in various markets, the report said.
The negative impact of the downturn on companies’ routes can be seen in the development over the quarter of the New World Alliance (APL, Hyundai MM and MOL) along with Maersk Line, which co-operate on Tran-Atlantic routes, cutting their capacity on this trade route by a third.
The fact that a partnership of the four main container lines have had to cut capacity on this route emphasises the tough environment those within the shipping industry face.
BMI expects route sharing to continue into 2010 and we expect companies’ co-operation on services only to end when trade volumes pick up substantially. The fact that the US has now emerged from recession is good news for operators on the Trans-Atlantic route.
BMI expects shipping lines to continue to lay up vessels. The strategy of idling ships is a short-term strategy that allows companies to reduce capacity and cut running costs.
“The tactic has been popular among major shipping lines throughout 2009 as it is not as final as scrapping and allows companies to cut costs but ensure that lines will still have capacity to call upon when trade volumes improve. More lay ups are, however, needed if the container shipping sector is to tackle overcapacity,” it said.
As trade volumes look set to improve in 2010 shipping lines will no doubt be tempted to bring their vessels out of lay up and try to catch cargo volumes before their competitors.
However, BMI warns against bringing back idled ships at the first sign of an upturn in the market; the lay up strategy has not only been effective in reducing companies’ costs during the downturn but has also helped the container shipping sector as a whole by creating upward pressure on freight rates by reducing the overall supply of ships in circulation. A flood of vessels on the market would plunge rates once again.
Scrapping has been on the increase in 2009 as ship owners send their older vessels to the break-up yards. An increase in scrapping is an obvious outcome of a downturn in the shipping market, the report said.
BMI believes that scrapping will continue in 2010, but not perhaps at the same pace as was seen in 2009. A recovery in trade volumes is being predicted, which BMI believes will mean that owners will choose lay up over scrapping in the hope that their vessels will once again start to make money.
New vessel orders
In such a climate it is understandable why just one new box ship order has been placed in 2009, the report said. “The order originated from a company that is not involved in the container shipping sector, the Abu Dhabi National Tanker Company. The shipping company, which operates in the liquid bulk shipping market, placed an order for two 1,060 TEU vessels in October with the South Korean shipyard Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, and the vessels are due for delivery in 2011,” it said.
BMI believes that this news highlights the tough situation in the container shipping market, and demonstrates how stagnation looks unavoidable in the mid term as fleets stop expanding.
BMI does not expect new orders to pick up in 2010. “Shipping lines and owners have enough ships in lay up that they will wish to bring on to the market before they start considering expanding their fleet through newbuilds,” it said.
2010: Recovery time?
BMI believes that global trade will begin to pick up in 2010. “The US came out of recession in Q3 2009 and in 2010 we expect the country’s consumer confidence to begin returning. This will have a knock-on effect on manufactured goods inventories. In 2010 our country risk desk estimates that the US’ total trade will grow by three per cent and exports by four per cent. These increases will affect throughput at the nation’s ports,” it said.
BMI forecasts that container throughput will increase at the US’ main West Coast ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach by 2.23 per cent and 5.84 per cent respectively.
“The country’s main east coast port of New York and New Jersey is predicted to register a y-o-y throughput growth of 2.8 per cent, which will override our projected decline in throughput in 2009 of 2.22 per cent and will see the facility handling its pre-downturn box volumes,” it said.
The report also forecasts that China’s exports will improve by a massive 10.96 per cent in 2010, as along with America other major Chinese-goods-importing nations in Europe – France and Germany – have also emerged from recession, with the expected implication that consumer confidence and therefore consumer buying will begin to recover. The yoy growth in China’s trade will have a positive affect on China’s container port throughput with Shanghai’s throughput predicted to increase by 2.55 per cent yoy.
“However, we warn that despite predicted trade growth and positive growth in throughput at many major ports worldwide the container shipping sector still faces a gloomy 2010 as overcapacity still haunts the market. Despite a concerted effort by container line operators through scrapping, laying up and deferring newbuild vessels to try to decrease overcapacity in the market, BMI fears that an equilibrium between supply and demand has yet to be reached,” it said.
More worrying is that even though companies have managed to defer some of their orderbooks there is still a huge amount of vessel capacity on order that will at some point over the mid-term (2010-2014) be realised and come online.
The container sector’s considerable newbuild orderbook is a ticking time bomb, as it appears unlikely that trade volumes that would demand such a fleet are likely to arise in the mid term, the report said.

Source: Emirates Business

2010 – year of the seafarer

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:26:51 +0000

Shipgaz – IMO has decided to dedicate next year to the world’s seafarers. The theme for the World Maritime Day will be “2010: Year of the Seafarer”. ”Our intention is to pay tribute to you, the world’s 1.5 million seafarers – men and women from all over the globe – for the unique, and all too often over-looked, contribution you make to the wellbeing of all of us”, IMO Secretary-General Efthimios Mitropoulos says and continues:
”At the same time, we will seek to add impetus to the “Go to Sea!” campaign, which we launched in November 2008 to attract new entrants to the shipping industry and, in particular, to encourage young people to follow in your footsteps by becoming the seafarers of tomorrow.”

Goods handling in Rotterdam falls

admin — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 11:25:42 +0000

Shipgaz – In 2009, goods throughput in the port of Rotterdam fell 8.5 per cent to 385 million tonnes compared with 2008. Imports decreased 13 per cent to 272 million tonnes and exports increased 5 per cent to 113 million tonnes.
”Considering the circumstances, we cannot be dissatisfied. After hitting rock bottom in the second quarter, throughput has been improving slightly every month and virtually all the investments are going ahead … I hope that we will be able to break through the 400 million tonne barrier again next year. That means growth in throughput considerably over 3 per cent”, says Hans Smits, Port of Rotterdam Authority CEO.

Zhangjiagang port beats cargo volume target

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:10:53 +0000

ZHANGJIAGANG, a port city in Jiangsu province, has beaten its full-year cargo volume target following a surge in throughput in the first 11 months of this year, according to Zhangjiagang municipal government, writes Hui Ching-hoo. The port had aimed to handle 135m tonnes of cargo this year, but total throughput rose to 136m tonnes between January-November, up 20.2% year on year.
Of the total, there was a 31.2% rise in international cargo to 35.9m tonnes and an 8.3% increase on box throughput to 786,000 teu.
The municipal government attributed the increase to a series of expansionist measures that included dredging new fairways in the eastern part of the port and the installation of new anchorages to meet the increase in the number of foreign trade vessels calling there. Customs also speeded up cargo examination procedures and improved the reporting mechanism for dangerous goods in the port.
At the same time, Jiangsu provincial government also eased berthing restrictions on foreign-flagged ships at Hong Tai Tong Yong, one of the major port operators in Zhangjiagang, on September 26.
Zhangjiagang Port Group has also invested Yuan800m ($117.6m) in building 16 berths at Zhangjiagang.

Shipping could by 2030 cut emissions by 30%, at zero-cost

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:09:50 +0000

Tor Svensen, COO DNV Maritime yesterday introduced the press to the groundbreaking results of a new study depicting how the shipping industry, by 2030, could cut emissions by 30%. The results were presented onboard the Viking Lady, the world’s first commercial ship with a fuel cell adapted to marine use installed onboard, while docked in Copenhagen. The good news; the scenario implies a zero-cost for the industry.
Major reduction potential with existing technologies
The study, which is a follow-up of the abatement curve launched by DNV during Norshipping in June depicting the reduction potential of the existing world fleet, looks at the reduction potential of both the existing fleet and newbuildings.
“What we have here is a model that looks at the potential of a range of reduction measures; from more efficient voyage execution to speed reduction and the employment of fuel cells on board the ships. The results are quite encouraging; if the shipping industry starts acting now and applies the available cost-efficient technologies, emissions can be reduced considerably. Without additional costs incurred. By doing this we can go a long way in meeting some of the tough requirements already set. Also those currently being debated in Copenhagen,” says Mr. Svensen.
Even higher emission reduction at incremental costs
The study looks at ships from all market segments, both from the existing fleet and newbuildings projected to be built in the years to come. The results show that shipping, compared to a projected baseline (where no measures are applied) of 1,530 million tons of CO2, could cut emissions by 30% by 2030 at zero-cost . This equals a reduction in emissions of 500 million tons of CO2. The study also shows that the emission reduction potential would increase to 50% if all identified measures costing up to 100 $/tonne CO2 were implemented.
Regulations and tighter enforcement still needed
The study suggests that where emission reduction and sound economic rationale pull in the same direction, widespread implementation of cost-effective measures will come over time. Enforcement through regulatory means could, however, be necessary where the economic pull is weaker. “While there is no silver bullet which could make it all happen, the aggregated effect of all measures are significant and will ensure an industry that operates in a more energy efficient manner and also takes its share of the common responsibility of reducing carbon emissions,” Mr. Svensen says.

Panama throws out vessels in anti detention raid

admin — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:06:28 +0000

The Panama Maritime Administration, PMA, has cancelled the registration of 73 vessels and a further 101 vessels may face the same destiny, as Panama aims to cut the number of detentions, reports Maritime Global Net quoting a PMA newsletter.
Earlier this year, the port state organisation Paris MOU published its annually revised list of flag state inspection performance. The world’s largest registry, Panama, remained on the Black List, and with a worse result than the year before, despite promises of quality enhancement. The Panama register comprises almost a quarter of the world’s merchant fleet, measured in deadweight tons.
Panama has imposed stringent requirements for ships older than 20 years, which are now required to submit to a check by an inspector from a Recognized Organization before calling at a port within the Paris MOU.
“Any vessel failing to go through such inspection could be fined or deleted from the registry; additionally [the registration of] any 20-year-old vessel detained twice in six months will automatically be cancelled”, says PMA in the newsletter.