The inland waterways have enjoyed several positive developments toward modernization of the system, particularly over the last two years.Annual appropriations that fund the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Civil Works mission have been steadily on the rise for the last nine fiscal years, specifically the Construction and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) accounts have been funded at historic levels.
The U.S. House has this week passed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), in which it attached a provision that would change rules for manning offshore vessels in U.S. waters, with the goal of fostering American jobs in the U.S. offshore wind sector, however, the move could be counterproductive.According to American Clean Power (ACP), which has slammed the move, the U.S.
Danish offshore services company Maersk Supply Service has won its second offshore wind installation contract in the U.S. The company, best known for its offshore support vessels, in March ordered a wind turbine installation vessel, and won its first contract with Equinor and BP to install turbines at the Empire Wind project in the U.S.
Like every sector of cargo and passenger shipping, “digitalization”—where computerized processes are replacing onboard routines previously handled manually— is an ongoing trend coastwise, on the waterways and harbors. Regulatory compliance, especially with Subchapter M for towing vessels
Empire Offshore Wind, a joint venture between Equinor and bp, awarded a contract to Maersk Supply Service for charter of its newbuild wind installation vessel (WIV). This vessel, together with US constructed barges and tugs built and operated by Kirby Offshore Wind, will be used for the installation of the project’s Vestas V236-15MW turbines.
There’s no energy shortage when it comes to projects promoting the viability of alternatively fueled marine vessels (alt-fueled vessels).Consider just a few examples:Crowley Maritime Corp will take delivery in 2023 of an electric tugboat, dubbed eWolf, built by Master Boat Builders in Coden, Ala.
Waterway traffic is coming back. November 2021 saw 52.1 million tons moving on the U.S. inland waterway system, the highest monthly tonnage since October 2019, a few months before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the shutdowns and stoppages of early 2020. Flows estimated by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), part of the U.S.
Houston, Texas-based Kirby Inland Marine agreed to pay $15.3 million in damages and assessment costs to resolve federal and state claims for harm to natural resources resulting from a 2014 oil spill from a Kirby barge in the Houston Ship Channel, the U.S. Justice Department said.In a related enforcement action in 2016, the United States secured a settlement with Kirby for $4.
Sea Change - America’s first hydrogen powered ferrySWITCH Maritime’s new 70-foot passenger ferry Sea Change is navigating uncharted waters as the United States’ first zero-emissions, hydrogen fuel cell-powered, electric-drive ferry.The pioneering aluminum newbuild, constructed by Bellingham, Wash. shipbuilder All American Marine, Inc.
A section of the Ohio River was closed to vessel traffic on Tuesday due to towboat fire near Belleview, Ky.The U.S. Coast Guard said it issued a waterway restriction between mile marker 499 and mile marker 501 on the Ohio River after a fire reportedly broke out in the engine room aboard the towing vessel Capt. Kirby Dupuis.
Among transportation planners, “resilience”, describing the ability to bounce back from adversities, both economic and other, has become a top consideration as we increasingly must “expect the unexpected.” The U.S. waterway system, covering the network of inland rivers and coastwise waterways, has seen a mix of good and not so good.
Waterjet propulsion systems supplier Marine Jet Power (MJP) announced it has appointed Kevin Kirby as president of MJP, Inc. and regional sales director of MJP in the Americas region. He will be responsible for business development, strategic market analysis and customer relations in addition to operations.