The decision has shocked the Danish shipping community. Ship officer students at Svendborg and Marstal carried out a media stunt, putting up Villa Anna – the house where Mr A P Møller founded the company – for sale.

A P Møller-Mærsk has 3,000 officers employed, of whom 800 are Danish citizens. “I don’t think that the 800 Danes are any better than the 2,200 officers of foreign nationality”, says Henrik Sloth. It has not yet been revealed if the 170 Danes are to be laid off or transferred to other units within the group, or offered land employment (source: www.ShipGaz.com).

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Data from NOAA-19 will support several NOAA programs, including:

* Weather analysis and forecasting
* Climate research and prediction
* Global sea surface temperature measurements
* Atmospheric soundings of temperature and humidity
* Ocean dynamics research
* Volcanic eruption monitoring
* Forest fire detection
* Global vegetation analysis
* Search and rescue operations.

NOAA operates two types of satellite systems for the United States – geostationary and polar-orbiting. Geostationary satellites constantly monitor the Western Hemisphere from around 22,240 miles above the Earth, and polar-orbiting satellites circle the Earth providing global information from approximately 540 miles above the Earth.

The worldwide demand for satellite data is growing so NOAA is working closely with the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites to ensure seamless satellite coverage. Under an agreement between the organizations, NOAA’s two operational polar-orbiting satellites – NOAA-18 and NOAA-19 – are carrying a EUMETSAT instrument. In return, through 2020, EUMETSAT is carrying key NOAA instruments on board its European-built MetOp satellites.

Details about NOAA’s satellite operations and the wide variety of information these valuable spacecraft provide is available online.

NOAA understands and predicts changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and conserves and manages our coastal and marine resources (source: http://www.noaa.gov).

The statement comes a day after a negotiator for the pirates said a $3m (£1.95m) ransom had been paid.

A plane was seen apparently dropping money by parachute onto the ship, which is carrying two million barrels of oil.The owners expressed relief that the 25-strong crew, including two Britons, was safe after their two-month ordeal.

“We are very relieved to know that all the crew members are safe and I am glad to say that they are all in good health and high spirits,” said a statement released by Saleh K’aki, president of Vela International Marine.

“This has been a very trying time for them and certainly for their families. We are very happy to report to their families that they will be on their way home soon.”

The UK Foreign Office said it was ready to assist the two Britons on board when they reach land – chief engineer Peter French, from County Durham, and James Grady, from Renfrewshire.

Drowned pirates

The Sirius Star was carrying two million barrels of oil – a quarter of Saudi Arabia’s daily output – when it was seized 450 nautical miles south-east of Kenya in November.

The current location of the tanker is unclear.

Five of the pirates reportedly drowned while making off with their share of the ransom money after their skiff was hit by high seas.

Somali pirates have also released an Iranian-chartered vessel seized off the coast of Yemen in November, Iranian media reported.

The Delight, which was seized on its way to Iran from Germany carrying 36,000 tonnes of wheat, was freed on Friday night, reports said.

A surge in piracy in the busy Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean shipping lanes has sent insurance prices soaring, made some owners choose to go round South Africa instead of through the Suez Canal, and brought an unprecedented deployment of warships to the region (source: bbc.co.uk).

As the global economy inches closer towards recession, it will trigger a domino effect that will affect the industry.

As much of international trade is carried by seaborne transport, the industry will surely feel the pinch of slumping global consumption, production and trade volume.China, whose economic growth has driven global economic growth in the last decade, will also suffer a drop.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected that China’s GDP will grow at a slower pace of 8.5% next year from its earlier projection of 9.3%.

Consumers will also continue to tighten their spending and industries will cut down on production.

This will result in lower demand for goods, materials and components, and lessen the volume of global trade.

And several shipping trades will suffer more than most.

The woes of the bulk trade looks set to continue as demand for bulk items decline further.

The container trade will also suffer a sharp fall, partly also due to the impending entrance of huge new tonnage in the market.

These will cause freight rates, which have taken a severe beating of late, to spiral down further.

It will also drive the prices of vessels down and also affect the net worth of shipping companies, whose valuation will be lowered as the prices of their assets decline.

However, players with deep pockets and huge cash reserves will find plenty of opportunities to acquire vessels on the cheap and expand their fleets.

As a result of the credit crunch, banks are expected to tread more cautiously in the ship financing markets.

Less funds will be made available, especially to small shipping companies.

Shipping companies which manage to secure financing will have to pay higher rates for it.

As funding becomes scarce and expensive, shipping companies will defer from borrowing and delay their fleet expansion programme.

Shipyards will also see demand contraction as shipping firms defer their orders while distressed shipowners are expected to cancel orders.

In addition, the ‘funding freeze’ will also result in banks tightening the issuance of letters of credit and trade finance facilities to importers and exporters, which will adversely affect the volume of trade.

The issue of maritime security will also be keenly monitored as the spate of attacks on merchant ships in the Gulf of Aden continue.

Although the surveillance and naval patrols have increased in the strategic sealane that facilitates much of the world’s seaborne transportation of crude, the frequency and intensity of attacks have continued unabated.

A more drastic and effective action should be taken by the international community to eradicate the threat of piracy there.

Due to the rampant piracy cases, insurance underwriters are expected to increase their coverage for ships, crews and cargos.

Shipowners and shippers will have to take up extra coverage such as kidnap and ransom coverage and ‘war risk zone’ premiums in high risk areas such as the Gulf of Aden.

The focus on protecting the marine environment will also become more intense, due to the introduction of new environment conventions and growing public attention and concern on the issue.

Several countries which have introduced stringent laws to protect their maritime areas from pollution by the shipping industry will strictly enforce them, in the wake of several recent high profile incidents.

The imprisonment of the master and chief officer of the Hebei Spirit tanker that discharged oil off the coast of South Korea in December 2007 has provided a precedent that has worried many shipowners and seafarers.

Although no shipping trade is immune to the widespread slump in the demand for shipping services as a result of the global economic woes, the offshore shipping sector should continue to perform well as offshore oil and gas activities continue.

Demand for offshore services vessels, especially, will remain strong as oil majors continue their exploration and production activities in deepwater fields.

The tanker market should remain resilient as global demand for energy continues to grow, albeit at a modest pace.

Economic growth and demand for container shipping services in the Middle East and South Asia are expected to remain buoyant.

Shipping, being a demand-derived service, stands to rebound quickly once consumer confidence, industrial output and the global economy pick up steam (thestar.com.my).

In addition to alternative energy sources, the Hornblower Hybrid will also feature clean, fuel-efficient marine diesel engines.Of course, the vessel isn’t much more than a publicity stunt if riders aren’t given information about its energy use. Let’s hope that Alcatraz Cruises takes the time to educate the school groups and visitors from around the world that take trips to Alcatraz every day (source: cleantechnica.com).

This prediction was made on Wednesday by Martin McAdam, chief executive of Edinburgh-based Aquamarine Power, the only UK company that is developing wave and tidal power simultaneously.

He was speaking at the launch of a report by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers that called on the Scottish government to invest £40m ($61m) in the industry as it moves to testing the technology for wave and tidal power in the real ocean environment.

The report warns that failure to invest now in new plants being piloted by some of Scotland’s leading renewable engineering companies at the government-funded European Marine Energy Centre in Orkney would be a huge missed opportunity to develop one of the world’s most promising renewable technologies.

Professor Bill Banks, president of the institute, said: “Scotland is uniquely placed to take advantage of the opportunity presented by marine energy. To take full advantage of this the Scottish government – and indeed the UK too – must play a leadership role in growing the enterprise.”

The report says: “Over the years there has been some doubt that the industry could deliver on its potential and many within the industry would agree that they were guilty of over-optimism on timescale. However, the marine energy sector has recently demonstrated that it can deliver power onto the electricity grid.”

Mr McAdam said the main reason for the delays was the ferocity of the ocean environment, where extreme storms could generate forces a thousand times stronger than normal waves.

Both Holyrood and Westminster have recently agreed to target an 80 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050, compared with 1990 levels. Westminster is proposing that about a third of the UK’s electricity is generated from renewable energy by 2020. Holyrood has more ambitious targets of 30 per cent by 2011 and 50 per cent by 2020.

The report said Scotland was particularly well placed to respond to this challenge, having world-leading natural resources and a long tradition of engineering innovation. Scotland also had the potential to produce 25 per cent of Europe’s wind power, 25 per cent of Europe’s tidal power and and 10 per cent of Europe’s wave power.

“Another legacy of the North Sea oil and gas industry is the manufacturing and port facilities necessary to construct and transport large marine structures,” said the report (source: ft.com).

The $65,000 study commissioned by the port in July last year could help the waterfront better position itself for federal funding to repair docks and other infrastructure knocked askew by Hurricane Ike on Sept. 13, officials say.

The study underscores what managers have known all along — that cargo and passengers moving through the port make jobs and generate revenue for support businesses.

“It tells me what we’ve been working on for a long time, the fruition of jobs,” said Gerald Sullivan, chairman of the Wharves Board of Trustees, the Port of Galveston’s governing board. “I’m really pleased about that.”

Where They Live

But there also were surprises, as the study offered new insight to where waterfront workers live.

Harbor-wide business cargo and cruise business generate 3,074 direct jobs, according to the study. About 42 percent of the workers live on the island, 15.8 percent in Dickinson and 14.7 percent in Friendswood, with the remainder around Galveston and Harris counties.

The Port of Galveston, which serves the offshore energy industry and operates the No. 4 cruise-ship terminal in North America, makes money by renting warehouses and docks to businesses, creating jobs for 338 unionized dockworkers who handle such cargo.

Cargo that generates the most direct jobs include bananas and fruit, 260; grain, 145; and farm equipment, 111.

Cruising Along

Cruise ships, which began sailing from the island eight years ago, generate about $5 million a year for the port and create big economic ripples in the region, according to the study. Based on 211 cruise ship calls last year, the island cruise industry generated $83.7 million in wages and salaries. Passenger and crew spending also converts into island jobs at hotels, restaurants and stores, according to the study.

Release of the study comes as Miami-based Carnival Cruise Lines passenger ships, which have been sailing from Houston since Hurricane Ike, return to the island Saturday. The port has repaired the Cruise Ship Terminal No. 1 and is working to repair its second terminal ahead of the Dec. 13 arrival of the 3,114-passenger Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Sea. The Voyager sails seasonally from the island.

The port is prepared to handle passengers Saturday when the 2,052-passenger Carnival Ecstasy resumes year-round, four- and five-day cruises from the island, officials said. The 2,974-passenger Carnival Conquest will begin year-round, seven-day sailing from the island Sunday.

‘Challenges Ahead’

Martin Associates based its report on 116 telephone interviews with port tenants, users and service providers. Those interviews were conducted before the storm.

Some tenants, including shipyard Gulf Copper Drydock & Rig Repair, which also generates about $5 million in yearly revenues for the port, have been out of commission as they await repairs to their buildings. The storm also damaged the grain elevator, which has not resumed operations. Port Director Steve Cernak said he expected all tenants to return by the year’s end, however.

“There are some challenges ahead,” Cernak said. “But we will retain our tenants and recover.”

During the hurricane, the port sustained damage to docks, warehouses, security equipment and levees that keep dredge spoils contained on Pelican Island. It had been on track to make a record $25 million in revenues this year. The port, which has insurance, still is calculating how the storm will change those projections.

Good timing

But it also is seeking help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Days after the storm, Mayor Lyda Ann Thomas, also a member of the port’s governing board, traveled to Washington, D.C., to ask federal lawmakers for $2.4 billion in disaster relief for Galveston institutions, including $500 million for the port.

Port officials commissioned the study to have an impartial assessment of what the waterfront contributes to the region, they said. They had planned to use it to secure federal funding for dredging projects. Port officials now plan to also present the study to FEMA to show the port’s importance to the region, Cernak said.

“The timing is a good thing,” Cernak said. “It will help us rebuild.” (source: galvestondailynews.com)

“We’ll continue to do everything in our power to ensure that we continue to deliver the very best education to all our students,” Gurnon said.

MMA recently installed solar-powered lighting around the campus to easy energy consumption. The Taylors Point school recently admitted the largest freshman class in its history. An executive-level Massachusetts Maritime Academy trio is headed for Shanghai Maritime University in China. Gurnon is accompanied by Professor Qi Chen from the Social Sciences Department, and Paul Kelly of Orleans, an MMA trustee.

Kelly recently returned from China where he coordinated security efforts for the Olympics. MMA secured private funding for this trip, and Kelly is paying for his own passage. “The entire trip will not cost taxpayers a dime,” said Chris Ryan, MMA communications officer.

The university in Shanghai is a public college with an undergraduate enrollment of 22,000 and 2,000 post-graduate students. Instruction is in Chinese and English. The university specializes in maritime industry business studies and offers course work in harbor-front industries. In collegiate and business circles, it is considered a leading edge maritime university in China (source: wickedlocal.com)

International Seaport Dredging Limited (ISD) has a vision to strengthen for devotion with committed people to design, to develop, to tender for, to procure and to execute dredging and land reclamation works. Committed mission of ISD is to provide a healthy and safe workplace, an efficient, effective working system and quality technical service in an environmental responsible manner.

With the committed leadership, ISD has emerged as one among the top key reliable marine and dredging contractors in Indian subcontinent with the consistent track record of completing the projects as per schedule without any deviations, thereby winning the trust of the client(s) for future collaboration

ISD business spectra includes dredging, marine engineering services, land reclamation involving designs, constructing, developing, modernizing, extending and maintaining ports and harbours in India and Middle Eastern countries. ISD has successfully completed Hazira Port pre-monsoon dredging, Gujarat Adani Port maintenance dredging, Sea Bird maintenance dredging, New Doha International Airport capital dredging, Visakhapatam inner turning basin capital dredging, Ennore maintenance dredging and Gangavaram Port capital dredging. ISD has hands full of capital dredging commitments, Gangavaram Port development, Dhamra Port development and assisting with ISD equipments for the prestigious National importance project, i.e., Sethusamudram Shipping Channel Project.

To grow you need firm ground under your feet. And that also goes for your professional life. That’s why talented go-getters choose ISD. As the leading international group in dredging and hydraulic engineering work, ISD offers a solid platform for professional and personal growth. Our people break new ground around the world. They are trail blazers, who turn ambitious plans into reality and provide strong foundations for a better future. Are you ready to build a versatile career? Set foot on land with ISD.

View the 34 vacancies at www.MaritimeJobSearch.com

International Seaport Dredging Ltd.
5th floor Challam Tower
Old No.62, New No.113
Dr. Radhakrishnan Salai
Chennai – 600 004
INDIA

Tel : + 91 44 43129900 – 05
Fax : + 91 44 43129901
Email: jobs@isdpl.com