InterManager Daily News 20.10.2020.

1. Chinese crew wages leap during Covid
Chinese crew during Covid-19 have seen their wages leap, surpassing the monthly pay of key rival seafarer nations such as the Philippines, India and across eastern Europe. The difficulties of getting foreign crews into the People’s Republic, one of the largest shipyard nations in the world, has forced owners to hire Chinese crews for newbuilds leaving or drydocking, resulting in the spike of Chinese crew wages. https://splash247.com/chinese-crew-wages-leap-during-covid/

2. Biden vows to tackle shipping emissions
The IMO’s Intersessional Working Group on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships is meeting this week ahead of next month’s Marine Environment Protection Committee virtual gathering next month, where important short-term greenhouse gas cutting measures are set to be deliberated, albeit with the US unlikely to be a driving force for change.
https://splash247.com/biden-vows-to-tackle-shipping-emissions/

3. Shipping all at sea when it comes to defining decarbonisation
Prompted by Greg Atkinson, the chief technical officer at Japan’s Eco Marine Power, the latest MarPoll, our quarterly survey, gave readers seven definitions of of the word ‘decarbonisation’, asking them for the one that best matches their understanding of what the term means and/or encompasses.
https://splash247.com/shipping-all-at-sea-when-it-comes-to-defining-decarbonisation-2/

4. Opinion: Law of the Sea Can’t Solve the Greco-Turkish Island Problem: Andreas Kluth
The combatants would be Greece and Turkey, formally NATO “allies” but in reality perennial foes since the sloppy unraveling of the Ottoman Empire. And their war would be less about the island as such than about the Mediterranean waters said to belong to it. That’s because underneath the sea bed, there may be lots of oil and gas.
https://gcaptain.com/opinion-law-of-the-sea-cant-solve-the-greco-turkish-island-problem-andreas-kluth/

5. Japan To Release Fukushima’s Nuclear Waste Water Into Sea
Nearly a decade after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan’s government has decided to release over one million tonnes of contaminated water into the sea, media reports said on Friday, with a formal announcement expected to be made later this month.
https://gcaptain.com/japan-to-release-fukushimas-nuclear-wast-water-into-sea/

6. COVID19: Malta Stops MSC Cruise Passengers From Disembarking
Malta on Friday stopped passengers disembarking from the MSC Grandiosa cruise ship over a suspected case of COVID-19, Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli said. Although the cruise ship was let into Valletta harbour, it was not allowed to disembark passengers, Portelli said. https://gcaptain.com/covid19-malta-stops-msc-cruise-passengers-from-disembarking/

7. Stena Bulk Once Again Facilitates Successful Sea Trial, This Time With ExxonMobil´s First Marine Bio Fuel Oil
Stena Bulk has just completed a successful sea trial together with ExxonMobil, testing the company’s first marine bio fuel oil in commercial operation. The trial included evaluation of on-board storage, handling and consumption in main and auxiliary engines, and showed once again biofuel’s potential as a low-carbon option to conventional fuels. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/stena-bulk-once-again-facilitates-successful-sea-trial-this-time-with-exxonmobils-first-marine-bio-fuel-oil/

8. US$220m Infrastructure Funding For US Ports
The US Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) has awarded US$220m in discretionary grant funding to improve port facilities in 16 states and territories through MARAD’s FY 2020 Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP).
https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/us220m-infrastructure-funding-for-us-ports/

9. Tanker Market Could Face Sharp Rebalancing In Next Couple Of Years
The global tanker market is set for some critical capacity management in 2021-22. Weaker freight rates have sapped enthusiasm for new orders, and creaking oversupply of older ships could accelerate scrapping. With uncertainty over pandemic-related oil demand and over fueling ships ahead of key climate goals, a step backward may be the way forward for tankers.
https://www.shippingtribune.com/news/shipping/Tanker+market+could+face+sharp+rebalancing+in+next+couple+of+years

10. How Panama Canal Navigated COVID, Drought And Trade War
The Panama Canal debuted a $5-billion-plus set of larger locks in 2016, only months before a trade war broke out between the U.S. and China — the waterway’s two largest transit sources. The canal, which relies on water availability, suffered one its worst droughts ever in 2019. https://www.shippingtribune.com/news/shipping/How+Panama+Canal+navigated+COVID%2C+drought+and+trade+war