Seacurus Daily: Top Ten Maritime News Stories 25/10/2017
1. Growth of Box Giants
Six years ago only 5% of the container vessels deployed on the Asia-Europe tradelane had a capacity in excess of 14,000 teu. Since then this number has grown nine-fold to 45% today. Copenhagen-based boxwatchers SeaIntel are now predicting that by 2020 almost 90% of all ships on this key route will be larger than 14,000 teu as a slew of 18,000 to 22,000 teu ships deliver from yards in Asia.
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2. Cruise Ship Rescue
A British luxury cruise ship with 4,000 passengers on board has rescued 10 African migrants off the coast of Spain near Almeria. The crew of the the P&O Cruises flagship Britannia spotted an inflatable dinghy carrying the migrants at 1am in the morning and immediately performed a U-turn and issued a man overboard announcement to the cruise passengers. A Spanish coastguard helicopter was sent to pull the migrants out of the water, and onto the vessel..
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3. COSCO Anti Trust Clearance
Cosco Shipping Holdings has announced that a US anti-trust review has cleared the companyâs takeover of Hong Kong containerline OOCL. Cosco said the deal is still waiting for approvals from Chinaâs Department of Commerce and the European Union in order meet the prerequisites of the transaction. In July, Cosco, sealed a deal to acquire OOCL at an offer price of $10.07 per share. The acquisition will take Cosco into third place in the global container fleet rankings.
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4. IUMI Sees the Future
The advent of new technologies is likely to revolutionise the maritime industry, but may create a more challenging environment for marine insurers, Dieter Berg, president of IUMI. New disruptive technologies such as electronic navigation, autonomous shipping and smart container monitoring systems are likely to revolutionise the maritime business, but marine insurers are likely to face a lot of challenges to their existing business models.
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5. UK Shipping Concerned
The head of the UK’s shipping industry trade body says the Government finally understands the "catastrophic" impact a no-deal Brexit scenario could have on trade, but claims EU authorities are failing to prepare for that outcome. UK Chamber of Shipping chief executive Guy Platten said the most immediate concern is how a hard Brexit with no transition period would affect the ferrying of freight across the Channel.
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6. New Cyber Security Launch
A new cyber security training programme has been launched, produced by KVH Videotel in association with global shipping association BIMCO, to address the threat of ransomware and other computer system breaches that could severely affect the safety of shipsâ crew, systems, and operations. Companies will soon have to ensure that cyber security procedures are properly addressed in their shipâs Safety Management System (SMS), so now is the time to act.
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7. Jones Act in Spotlight
Four bills are currently pending in Congress to repeal or limit the reach of the Jones Act, which requires use of U.S.-flag coastwise endorsed vessels to move cargoes between ports or places in the United States. Three of the bills are focused upon relief efforts to assist Puerto Rico following the disastrous Hurricane Maria. None of the bills appears likely to advance immediately, but change could be coming.
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8. Ballast Water Fitting
When the time came to select ballast water treatment systems for retrofit on board its vessels, freight ferry operator Seatruck opted for the Optimarin Ballast System (OBS) for its ships, citing ease of installation, reliability, cost efficiency and complete regulatory compliance as deciding factors. The roll-on roll-off (RoRo) cargo specialist went on to install five systems itself while its vessels were undertaking normal operations â no dry dock required.
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9. UN Envoy Urges IMO
Peter Thomson, Fiji Ambassador and the UN Secretary Generalâs Special Envoy for the Ocean, has stressed the urgent need to address the adverse effects of human activity on the 70% of the worldâs surface made up of water, in a visit to the IMO. âWe are all aware of âClimate Changeâ but we need to talk more about âOcean Changeâ and the effects of acidification, warming, plastic pollution dead zones and so on,â said Thomson during his visit.
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10. Weather Cause for Concern
The 10,603 dwt reefer vessel "Baltic Performer" has suffered a list after its cargo shifted in inclement weather conditions, according to French Préfecture maritime Atlantique. The vessel was off the coast of Penmarch, Bay of Biscay when it reported the list of 12 degrees in the afternoon hours of October 21. At the time, the 1992-built reefer, crewed by 25 seafarers, was sailing from the Dutch port of Vlissingen to Senegal.
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Daily news feed from Seacurus Ltd â providers of MLC crew insurance solutions www.seacurus.com
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S Jones
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