LOTUS

First steel was cut Thursday for the first of the UK Royal Navy’s five new Type 31 frigates, HMS Venturer.The historic ceremony took place at Babcock's factory in Rosyth, Scotland, where the Type 31 Inspiration class ships are being constructed."The frigates will be at the heart of the Royal Navy’s surface fleet, deterring aggression and maintaining the security of the UK’s interests as well as providing humanitarian relief when needed. The frigates will work alongside the UK’s Allies to deliver a warship presence across the globe and enable a forward naval presence," Babcock said in a statement.

Höegh LNG Partners has entered into an agreement with a subsidiary of New Fortress Energy for the charter of the Höegh Gallant for FSRU operations for a period of ten years, with a planned start-up during the fourth quarter of 2021. New Fortress Energy will deploy the FSRU in Jamaica.Sveinung Støhle, Chief Executive Officer, stated: "The new long-term FSRU contract entered into with New Fortress is an important development for the Partnership as it extends the Partnership's contract coverage and average charter length and broadens our customer base and global footprint.

Classification society American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) has granted its Approval in Principle (AIP) to Ned Project Inc. for its hydrogen-ready wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) design.The NP20000X ULAM design is intended to be Jones Act Compliant and able to meet future offshore wind market demands, specifically operations involving 15-20 MW wind turbine installations. According to ABS, the vessel's innovative approach loads monopiles vertically on the 8,000 square-meter (m2) deck, eliminating the need to rotate monopiles to the vertical position at sea, increasing efficiency, and safety.

JAX LNG, a small-scale LNG facility located along the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Fla., recently completed the first fueling of a marine vessel in the United States with a blend of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable LNG (RLNG).JAX LNG loaded the RLNG/LNG blend into the Clean Jacksonville bunker barge to fuel the Isla Bella. The Isla Bella is the world’s first LNG-powered container ship and was put into service by TOTE Maritime Puerto Rico in 2015. Element Markets supplied the renewable natural gas (RNG) used to produce the RLNG via renewable thermal certificates (RTCs). Using RLNG to fuel marine vessels is a readily available pathway to net-zero emissions by 2050.

The Puget Sound Pilots are pleased to announce the hiring of Charles Costanzo as Executive Director.Costanzo joins Puget Sound Pilots after over a decade at The American Waterways Operators where he served as General Counsel and Vice President – Pacific Region.“We are thrilled to have Charlie join PSP as our new Executive Director and we are confident that his strong background in advocacy and marine safety will serve PSP for years to come,” said Puget Sound Pilots President Ivan Carlson.