(This is excerpted from Maritime Reporter & Engineering News' January 2020 "The Path to Zero" column.)Are the world’s ships’ engines ready for IMO compliant very low sulfur fuel? That’s a wide open question as ship owners step to the end of the preparatory gang-plank on January 1, 2020 when 0.5% very low sulfur distillate fuels (VLSF) have to replace residual heavy fuel oil (HFO) containing 3.
The offshore supply vessel (OSV) industry has emerged from its 2017 trough, thanks in large part to a slight shrinkage of the active fleet, a string of debt restructurings, improved cost management, and an uptick in drilling activity in a few regions. The industry is far from healthy, though, and the climb back to financial well-being will likely be long and unsteady.
Japanese public multinational corporation Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KHI) has delivered the Marvel Pelican, a 155,000 m3 capacity liquefied natural gas (LNG) transport vessel for use by Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL).The second of Kawasaki's line of 155,000 m3 capacity LNG carriers to be commissioned, this ship is designed to enable passage through the newly expanded Panama Canal
This month, listen in as Sean Fernstrum weighs in on how his firm arrived at its enviable market position, what comes next, and why.Sean Fernstrum is a third-generation owner of R.W Fernstrum & Company. He graduated from Michigan Technological University in 1990 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Scientific and Technical Communications.
“In God we trust. All others must have data.”When Ed Grimm took the helm of Southern Towing Company (STC)as President and CEO, he inherited an enviable team of leaders, engineers, mentors, communicators and analysts. Today STC is a clear leader on the inland waterways, pioneering and proving the business and safety value of Z-Drives on the river towboats.
Ammonia, the same pungent solution used in fertilizers and cleaning agents, may one day be the key to transporting renewable energy around the world. There are currently a number of government and corporate projects assessing the feasibility of converting excess renewable energy from sources like wind, solar, tidal and nuclear into ammonia and then back into usable energy.
The 2019 version of the MarineNews MN100 edition - our annual look at the very best individuals and firms in the shallow draft, brown water and workboat sectors - has come and gone. Anchoring that prestigious list, as always, is R.W. Fernstrum & Company. That's no surprise to MarineNews readers.THE COMPANY:R.W.
The expedition cruise ship market maintains its torrid pace with news that Oceanwide Expeditions has orders another Polar Class 6 ship, following the success of its ship Hondius.Croatian shipyard Brodosplit, the builder of Hondius, won the follow on order for M/V Janssonius, which is scheduled to be completed in October, 2021.
France and Italy forged a military shipbuilding alliance on Friday, as state-controlled Naval Group and Fincantieri signed off on a 50-50 joint venture that will bid for Franco-Italian warship projects and sell to the world market.The alliance reflects the two countries' desire to fend off competition in naval shipbuilding from the likes of China, the United States and Russia.
“I think it is very early to project what will be the fuel of the future. I think that it will be much more clear in January 2020 (when the new IMO fuel rules enter force) and we see the direction of fuel costs.”To start, put in perspective the current pressure to reduce emissions in the maritime industry.
Gasoil traders expect the middle distillates market to stay well supplied until almost the end of 2019 before swinging into deficit with the introduction of new maritime fuel regulations.Calendar spreads for low-sulphur gasoil delivered to Europe's Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp hub are currently in contango through until October before shifting to backwardation from November onwards.
President Donald Trump is set to meet with Republican senators on Wednesday over a proposal to waive rules that only U.S.-flagged ships can move natural gas from American ports to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Northeast.The nearly 100-year-old Jones Act mandates the use of U.S.-flagged vessels to transport merchandise between U.S. coasts.