New Times Shipbuilding Co. Ltd.

The captain of a dive boat that caught fire last year near Santa Cruz Island, resulting in 34 deaths, was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury on 34 counts of seaman’s manslaughter.Jerry Nehl Boylan, of Santa Barbara, was named in the indictment by a federal grand jury that alleges Boylan, as the captain and master of the Santa Barbara-based Conception, “was responsible for the safety and security of the vessel, its crew, and its passengers.”The indictment alleges that Boylan caused the deaths of 33 passengers and one crewmember “by his misconduct, negligence and inattention to his duties.

The 193-member U.N. General Assembly urged all countries to designate seafarers and other marine personnel as key workers on Tuesday after travel restrictions to combat the spread of COVID-19 have left hundreds of thousands stranded at sea for months.A unanimously adopted resolution encouraged governments to ensure safe ship crew changes and travel, allowing stranded seafarers to be repatriated and others to join ships."In this crisis, we need to show our attention, commitment and support to these invisible heroes, who are working under difficult and challenging circumstances," Indonesia's U.N. Ambassador Dian Triansyah Djani told the General Assembly.

Soren Toft started his new role as CEO at MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company on December 2, 2020, reporting to Diego Aponte, MSC Group President, and Gianluigi Aponte, Founder and MSC Group Chairman.Toft will oversees MSC’s global cargo businesses including ocean liner and logistics. He will also be a member of the board of directors of Terminal Investment Ltd (TiL), the terminals business which is majority-owned by MSC.Soren Toft joins MSC from Maersk, where he served as COO since 2013 and later as a Member of the Executive Board.

Lebanon wants maritime border talks with Israel to succeed and difficulties that surfaced in the last session round can be overcome, President Michel Aoun told a U.S. mediator on Wednesday after the latest round was postponed.The negotiations between the old foes were launched in October, with delegations convening at a U.N. base to try to resolve a dispute about their maritime border that has held up hydrocarbon exploration in the potentially gas-rich area.But a session scheduled for Wednesday was postponed with U.S. officials instead pursuing separate contact with the sides.Aoun told visiting U.S.

Classification society ABS has published the Guide for Sustainability Notations aiming to help marine and offshore operators meet the environmental, social and governance (ESG) requirements outlined in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).ABS has also launched two new sustainability notations, SUSTAIN-1 and SUSTAIN-2, to help marine and offshore operators demonstrate alignment with the SDGs and establish a pathway for sustainability certification and reporting.“We are responding to the growing interest in the SDGs from the maritime industry. The Guide demonstrates how sustainability can be directly linked to design and operations.