Maritime Vessels Directory

Russia plans to build its first batch of icebreakers that are powered by liquified natural gas, a top official said on Friday, returning to an idea that was put on hold.Russia has the world's only fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers. It is building up that fleet, hoping to develop the Northern Sea Route across its northern flank into an international shipping lane as climate change melts the ice."We are now returning to this topic (building LNG-powered icebreakers). I think that by the end of the year we will decide on the possible construction of two to four medium-sized icebreakers," Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev told reporters.

Ten Men Get 12 Years in Prison for Chinese Ship Hijacking

yesterday

A court in Lagos sentenced 10 men to 12 years in prison on Friday for kidnapping the crew of a Chinese-flagged merchant vessel last year, the navy said, a verdict that officials hope will help tackle piracy in the waters off Nigeria's coast.Federal high court Justice Ayokunle Faji, who also fined each man 250,000 naira ($608) for each of the three counts for which they were charged, said their actions in kidnapping 18 crew from the FV HAILUFENG II in May 2020, were "an embarrassment to the nation that has impacted the economy negatively".The defense counsel said the men would appeal.The hijacking ended when the navy said it had rescued the vessel's crew members and arrested the pirates.

"We'll vigorously defend," Keppel Says After FPSO Arbitration Request

yesterday

Singapore-based Keppel Offshore and Marine subsidiaries have been slapped with a request for arbitration from an unnamed counterparty in relation to contracts for the delivery of Floating, Production, Storage, and Offloading (FPSO) vessels.Keppel said this week that the unnamed claimant had withheld $11.3 million due to Keppel's subsidiaries under the FPSO engineering, procurement, and construction contracts.Furthermore, the claimant is seeking payment from Keppel of around $31.2 million, "on the basis that the claimant is allegedly entitled to a price reduction under the EPC Contracts," Keppel said.

Rosatom, DP World in Arctic Container Shipping Project

yesterday

Russian state nuclear energy firm Rosatom and Dubai logistics firm DP World agreed on Friday to join efforts in developing pilot container shipping between Northwest Europe and East Asia through the Arctic, the companies said.Rosatom is a designated sole infrastructure operator of the Northern Sea Route which it plans to develop into a fully-fledged transport corridor."The Northern Transit Corridor holds out the prospect of shorter transit times between East and West," Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World was quoted as saying in the statement.

Northern Lights Partners with MAN Engines & Components

yesterday

Northern Lights announced a new partnership with MAN Engines & Components, when on June 30 2021, Northern Lights acquired MAN Engines West Coast distributor Rabaul Diesel Inc (RDI). Northern Lights said the deal with MAN is a great addition to its family of products including Northern Lights marine generators, Technicold air conditioning, refrigeration, ice machines & Lugger propulsion engines.Also headquartered in Seattle, WA Northern Lights intends to operate under Northern Lights Power and Energy for the Western US and Canada. This new, separate division will offer MAN diesel and gas engines as well as spare parts for power and marine applications.

Maritime Reporter and Engineering News (June 2021)

USCG Fleet Modernization Annual