Leading classification society ClassNK has announced that it has released amendments to its Rules and Guidance for the Survey and Construction of Steel Ships. ClassNK is constantly revising its Rules and Guidance in order to reflect the latest results from relevant research and development projects, feedback from damage investigations, requests from the industry as well as changes made to relevant international conventions, IACS unified requirements (UR), national regulations and so on.
The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has released an interim report into the explosion and fire on board the chemical tanker Stolt Groenland, but before concluding its investigation, MAIB is calling for information regarding any accidents or near-misses involving the carriage of styrene monomer, including any actions subsequently taken.
The fire on Stolt Groenland occurred in Ulsan, South Korea, on September 28, 2019. The Cayman Islands registered vessel had sailed from Houston on August 17 carrying 20 different chemical cargoes in 37 of her 39 cargo tanks. At about 0600 on September 28, the Singapore registered chemical/product tanker Bow Dalian secured alongside Stolt Groenland’s port side. The purging of Bow Dalian’s cargo tanks with nitrogen supplied from shoreside vehicles was then commenced in readiness for a ship-to-ship cargo transfer with Stolt Groenland. Continue reading “MAIB makes urgent call for information on styrene monomer near misses or accidents”
The International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) has released its 2019 statistical report, IUMI Stats, noting that while the market seems to have bottomed out in 2019, major losses are beginning to return.
There were nine major cargo vessel fires in 2019 which resulted in loss of life, injury and environmental damage. These fires had a strong economic impact, causing high costs to both the hull and cargo sectors. Recent statistics from the Nordic Association of Marine Insurers (Cefor) show that the larger vessels are most Continue reading “Global marine insurance market 2019 analysis published by IUMI”
ABS has issued a guide for the certification of container securing systems advising that when special containers are used for unique cargoes that have reduced or increased load capacities, limitations should be considered when stowing them onboard ship and when determining permissible tier and container stack weights.
Surveyors are advised to undertake all surveys on container securing systems upon request, with adequate notification, of the owners or their representatives, and are to report to the Committee. Adding to this, if there is a need for further Continue reading “Container certification guide for safely securing cargoes published”
Lateral rolling motion represents the greatest challenge for stacks of containers. If containers are to be transported safely on the deck of a container vessel, they must be firmly connected to the ship. This is done with the aid of what are known as twistlocks. These twistlocks are inserted into the corner castings of the containers. These corner castings have elongated holes in which the rotating lug of the twistlock engages, locking the containerstogether. In addition, the bottom two layers of the stacked containers are connected to the ship with lashing rods. Initially, it was common practice to stow stacks of containers on deck in such a way that the individual stacks were connected to each other Continue reading “The securing of containers on deck of a container ship”
Nuclear powered ships as a fuel are completely zero-emission solution – it does not emit any SOx, NOx, CO2 or particulates. The technology is also millions of times more power-dense than fossil fuels and alternative fuel options that are currently being considered like methanol, ammonia and hydrogen. In terms of meeting the IMO’s 2050 greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction ambition, it’s the only proven solution available today, capable of replacing fossil fuels in all marine applications.
The technology is far from new – the first nuclear power plant became operational in 1955 with the US Navy. Since then, there has been around 700 reactors operational at sea, and currently there are about 100. This equates to thousands of operating years’ experience. The technology is not just limited to navies – there have also been civil marine applications. Russia has been operating nuclear merchant ships for many years. At present this includes nuclear-powered icebreakers with some of these vessels becoming passenger ships in the summer, cruising to the arctic circle. Therefore, it could be argued that on the fringes of the cruise industry there are already nuclear-powered ships operating. Continue reading “Could nuclear powered ships help the industry meet the 2050 emissions target?”
ABS has launched the ‘Shuttle Tanker Advisory’ report, explaining what shuttle tankers are, where they operate, scoping out the challenges that they could face in different regions, their design features, and focusing on safety and human factors.
Shuttle tankers are primarily employed in offshore oil and gas fields. Typically, the offshore facility from which a shuttle tanker loads from is a Single Point Mooring (SPM) buoy or a Floating (Production) Storage and Offloading (F(P)SO) unit.
A shuttle tanker must be able to safely moor and load cargo from these types of Continue reading “ABS releases a shuttle tanker advisory report”
The American Club has released its latest loss prevention guidance ‘Bunkering – A Compendium’, together with website access to a comprehensive approach to loss prevention initiatives demanded by new regulations and generally by supplying guidance on operations and management.
The Compendium is intended to give guidance not only in respect of issues arising from the new MARPOL regulations coming into effect on January 1, 2020, but also in regard to best practice generally in the conduct of bunkering operations. Continue reading “‘Bunkering – A Compendium’ – American Club publishes a detailed loss prevention guide”
The US Office of Commercial Vessel Compliance has published ‘Determinations for a Vessel’s Keel Laid Date or Similar Stage of Construction.’ The instruction was updated on September 20, 2019.
This work instruction aims to establish the interpretations of when a vessel’s keel is considered to be laid or the vessel is at a similar stage of construction.
It also provides guidelines for Officers in Charge, Marine Inspection (OCMIs) to determine what may be accepted for the purpose of establishing a vessel’s laid date.
Regulatory applicability may depend on a ship’s keel laid date or a similar stage of Continue reading “Keel laid date or similar stage of construction interpretation published”
Shell, ExxonMobil and Total could do more to remove the need for speculative orders, says Affinity (Shipping).
Oil majors need to provide more support to owners looking to order LNG-powered tonnage, or the projects will fail to get off the ground, a top broker has warned.
“All of Shell, Exxon and Total have theoretical newbuilding requirements for dual-fuel VLCCs but, getting them to commit at numbers and for durations that make Continue reading “LNG-fuelled VLCCs owners need oil majors backing, says Affinity”
Since the introduction of the first diesel-powered ships in the early 20th century, technology developments in shipping have been steady and incremental. This continuity will end as the industry approaches the year 2050. Decarbonization requirements and the opportunities offered by digitalization will bring about major change. The challenge for a ship built today is that this change will take place within its lifespan. Failure to account for foreseeable regulatory and technology developments may render a ship built today uncompetitive at best; in the worst case it may end up being prohibited from operating altogether. The technology choices made when building a new ship will therefore decide whether it will be future-proof.
Disruptive change facing the shipping industry is fast approaching in the form of the IMO Sulphur Cap regulation, which comes into force from 1 January 2020. Although the picture is still far from clear, those in the know expect a number of vessels and operators to be non-compliant come January. Where this leaves things and how authorities will react, only time will tell.
To aid those operating in the sector who ‘need to know’, a number of shipping, refining, fuel supply and standards organisations have collaborated in order to produce Joint Industry Guidance on the supply and use of 0.50% sulphur marine fuel, which was released on 20 August 2019.
Continue reading “Sulphur cap: Joint industry guidance for the supply and use”
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