On December 20, Sea-Watch 3 saved 33 people from drowning, including several children.

Two Hundred Med Migrants Dead So Far This Year

By MarEx 2019-01-19 17:30:20

Over 117 vulnerable migrants are believed to have perished in the winter waters of the Mediterranean Sea on Friday marking the second tragedy in just two days and bringing the total number of migrant deaths on the Mediterranean Sea to 200 through nearly three weeks of the new year. News of the second shipwreck arrived with the rescue of three survivors who were interviewed by the U.N. International Organization for Migration (IOM) staff Saturday on the Italian island of Lampedusa....

An Organic Rankin Engine from Electratherm.

Nuclear Propulsion Along Inland Waterways

By Harry Valentine 2019-01-19 19:23:44

Using mobile thermal storage batteries, small numbers of micro-scale nuclear reactors at fixed locations could provide propulsive energy for fleets of vessels that sail along inland waterways as well as railway locomotives used for shunting at terminals or short line railway service. Relevant developments have occurred in fixed location thermal storage, mobile thermal storage and engine technology that combined, could offer cost-competitive maritime propulsion. Introduction During his career, renowned management professor CK Prahalad illustrated that new possibilities...

Mark Dickinson receiving the Merchant Navy Medal

Seafaring: A Labor of Love

By Paul Gonzalez-Morgan, Editor Marine Strategy 2019-01-19 19:00:10

Mark Dickinson, General Secretary of the trade union Nautilus International, was awarded the prestigious Merchant Navy Medal for meritorious service last year in recognition of his work on seafarer employment, training and welfare. We speak to him here about support for seafarers: Is it fair to say pay is aligned with the role of being a seafarer? Being a seafarer is a unique profession, of which there are few parallels, and often it is a labor of love. Pay is...

Analytical Fuel Testing Needed to Tackle Bad Bunkers

By Chris Dyson 2019-01-19 18:32:36

With the implementation of the IMO’s 2020 global sulfur limit now less than a year away, the number and variety of industry players contributing to the debate surrounding the new regulation continues to increase, as does the speed at which narratives around the topic change. Low sulfur fuels, which the majority of vessels will use to comply, are rightly central to industry discussion. In particular, talk of bunker blending, and risks associated with...

EJF: Ghana Must Enshrine Transparency in Law

By MarEx 2019-01-19 18:18:21

Transparency must be improved to eradicate illegal fishing and prevent the collapse of Ghana’s fishing industry, says a new report. Transparency is the most effective means to tackle these issues and provides much-needed accountability in a sector facing unprecedented challenges, as fish stocks plunge to their lowest recorded levels. The report, published by the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) and Hen Mpoano under an E.U.-funded project, shows that the Ghanaian fishing industry suffers from a shocking lack of transparency. This...

Deltamarin to Oversee Regulation Compliance for Titanic II

By MarEx 2019-01-19 17:56:58

Blue Star Line has contracted Deltamarin to continue with the design of Titanic II. The company will oversee design and project management, including compliance with regulations including SOLAS 2020 and the Energy Efficiency Design Index. The project, led by Australian billionaire Clive Palmer, will see Titanic II mimic the design of the original Titanic. Blue Star Line will create an authentic Titanic experience, providing passengers with a ship that has the same interiors and cabin layout as the original vessel, while integrating...

Hafnia Joins BW, Forming Top Product Tanker Player

By MarEx 2019-01-18 19:57:25

BW Tankers has completed its merger with product tanker operator Hafnia, acquiring Hafnia's assets, operations and name. Going forward, BW Tankers will be the surviving legal entity, but it will change its name to Hafnia. It will be managed by a mix of both companies' executive leadership, with commercial management located in Copenhagen (the former Hafnia's home base) and financial and technical management in Singapore (the home of BW Group). According to Hafnia, the combined firm is now the world's...

"Fix Me!"

By Paul Benecki 2019-01-18 18:01:53

Vessel operators pay close attention to their hull and machinery, but what if the ship could talk to them directly about its condition? That’s basically the goal of condition monitoring, or condition-based maintenance, which in effect “tell” the shipowner when and where repairs are needed. At the most basic level, condition monitoring (CM) simply means tracking key indicators of equipment health and looking for changes that could predict trouble. Lube oil analysis is a time-tested example:...

Overfishing Threatens East Africa's Nile Perch

By China Dialogue Ocean 2019-01-18 17:45:27

[By Geoffrey Kamadi] Eunice Atieno Ong’iro, 34, slices open a Nile perch and pulls out an off-white organ, hardly a fistful in size. She places it on a scale, jots down its weight in a notebook and stores it away in a plastic bag. In just a few seconds the process is complete and she is ready to do it again. “They come every three days to collect the maw,” she says, referring to the traders who purchase the organs...