American LNG Officers Available, Ready and More on the Way

In the February 8th edition of THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE e-newsletter, we outlined new political pressures and the realities (or so we thought) for the less-than-rosy prospects for employing significant numbers of U.S. officers and mariners on the world’s LNG carrier fleet. Some MarEx readers took exception with our comments regarding the availability of experienced U.S. LNG mariners, as well as our description of the timelines involved with U.S. involvement with the LNG trades. MarEx is happy to set the record straight.

Last December, Suez LNG made a firm commitment to promote employment opportunities for U.S. mariners on both its existing fleet of LNG carriers and on the vessels to be used in the future for the offshore Massachusetts Neptune project. MARAD spokespersons have been candid in saying that the employment agreement was a significant factor in the decision to give Suez the go-ahead. The announcement has given the dwindling supply of American deep sea mariners renewed hope of sailing on LNG carriers in a climate where there are none under American flag, none under construction and none being seriously contemplated for the future.

Last week, we reported that “The most experienced LNG merchant mariners in America probably last sailed on LNG carriers more than twenty years ago.” More than one MarEx reader has taken issue with that statement and the American Maritime Officers union (AMO) provided MarEx with a raft of data to refute such an allegation and also agreed to speak with us about the matter.

AMO spokesman Told Laird told MarEx on Monday, “American mariners do have recent experience in LNG transportation. On January 21st 2005, deck and engineering officers of the American Maritime Officers union (AMO) and unlicensed crew of the Seafarers International Union (SIU) delivered their last LNG cargoes for the Indonesian-Japanese market for PRONAV Ship Management (PSM). AMO officers manned these six LNG vessels known as the “Aquarius Class” from August 2000 to January 2005. Officers represented by AMO formed approximately eleven crews for six LNG vessels operated by PSM. The officer ratings were: master, first officer, second officer, third officer, chief engineer, first engineer and second (gas/cargo) engineer.”

Laird also correctly pointed out that there are more than 200 LNG carriers in service worldwide, with at least another 100 on order. MarEx has reported in the recent past that the world’s LNG fleet, in answer to increasing domestic and international demand, is expected to double within ten years. On Monday, AMO told MarEx, “AMO LNG officers have almost five years of experience, with recency in the past 25 months. In March 2007, AMO officers will begin manning vessels for a leading international operator of LNG carriers.” In response to MarEx requests for concrete numbers, however, the AMO spokesman conceded that out of a total pool of about 85 mariners, only 65 were currently ready and willing to take an LNG sailing berth, if offered. The numbers hardly represent a groundswell, but are ample proof that U.S. mariners are available, if only in small numbers.

The prognosis for Americans to return to LNG service is now good. The AMO pool of 65 mariners is a good place to start and AMO has more than 100 others being trained for the development of future LNG officers. But the AMO spokesman also said that the effort to ramp up American expertise in LNG and put that knowledge to work was a collaborative effort involving many unions, the maritime academies and MARAD itself. MARAD Administrator Sean Connaughton’s confirmation and subsequent willingness to immediately jump feet first into the fray was a welcome development and further helped to invigorate a process that had been underway since 2005 and AMO’s Laird says that they “were appreciative of the Suez / MARAD initiative and pleased that he (Connaughton) was taking the lead.”

There’s far more underfoot, though. Because steam engines are better suited to handle “boil-off” from LNG cargoes, the large number of steam engineering licenses as a percentage of the U.S. labor poor will likely give some Americans the advantage as Americans are offered the opportunity to return to LNG service. Although the landscape of engine plants in LNG new construction starting to change - partly as a function of the heavy emphasis in the international trades on motor licenses - in the short run, American engineers will likely be in demand. The marine steam engineer, thought to be an anachronism in the world shipping model, still has application in today’s LNG markets.

The problem with finding experienced LNG officers is not just an American phenomenon. The Fall 2005 edition of Proceedings (the Coast guard of Safety at Sea) perhaps tells the story best, in Dr. Hisashi Yamamoto’s article, “The Rapid Expansion of the LNG fleet and the implications for seafaring resources.” The supply of international officers is weak, as well, and likely to get work as the number of LNG work platforms explodes in the next five years. As a result, wage and benefit scales - even by American standards - are good and getting better.

Domestic training opportunities are widely available in United States. AMO officers also have access to comprehensive training programs at the RTM STAR Center facilities. Since 1999, the RTM STAR Center has offered a 60-hour U.S. Coast Guard approved course, LNG Tank Ship Liquefied Gases. This course satisfies training requirements of 46 CFR 13.209, 13.309, 13.409 or 13.509 for a tankerman endorsement and the tankerman familiarization, and the liquefied gas tanker training requirements of paragraph 1 - 7 and 22 - 34 of section A/V - 1 of the STCW Code.

RTM STAR Center has expanded the LNG curriculum to include the LNG Cargo Simulation program developed by MPRI Ship Analytics for spherical and membrane carriers. The first simulator course for AMO officers will be offered the week of February 11 with a “train-the-trainer” course being offered to three U.S. maritime academies the week of March 5.

The International Organization of Masters, Mates and Pilots (MM&P) with the Maritime Institute of Technology and Graduate Studies (MITAGS) have also been running an LNG USCG approved training program since the late 1970’s. MITAGS has been the historic training facility for the USCG Inspectors who will board foreign flag LNG/LPG
vessels arriving at U.S. ports. They have also trained shore side LNG operators in preparation for either the re-starting of an existing U.S. receiving terminal or the starting up of a new facility. The MITAGS LNG/LPG simulator/training program allows sixteen (16) students to interact in a team training environment, as would exist aboard ship.

Glen Paine, Executive director of MITAGS, told MarEx on Wednesday, “Training in the United States is of very good quality, and readily obtainable. What’s lacking are the vessels upon which the required cargo observations can be obtained. MM&P/MITAGS are very interested in working with MARAD, the USCG, all government agencies, and maritime schools in accomplishing the goal of supplying U.S. mariners aboard LNG vessels.”

The unions are not the only organizations who gearing up to meet the expected coming demand for LNG personnel. At the Massachusetts Maritime Academy in Buzzard’s Bay, just a stone’s throw from the MARAD approved Excelerate and Neptune LNG offshore facilities, there is a flurry of activity underway to put in place a state-of-the-art LNG curriculum. MMA President ADM Richard Gurnon told MarEx on Wednesday that “Mass. Maritime is in the early stages of ramping up to provide PIC credentials and simulator experience for our students. We have the software and we are working closely with Suez and Excelerate to put a simulator in place and develop an appropriate curriculum.”

Gurnon also pointed out that the Academy’s training ship is a steam powered vessel, positioning the school to be a future leader in that aspect of LNG training and knowledge. Beyond this, there are plans to construct a twin screw (model) LNG carrier at the Academy’s Plymouth, MA “Lake Trainer” center. On Wednesday, Gurnon left no doubt that Mass. Maritime fully intends to become a leader in LNG training; sooner rather than later.

In January 2005, Americans; AMO officers and SIU crews, delivered their last LNG cargo for the Indonesian-Japanese market for PRONAV Ship Management (PSM). One experienced LNG mariner who declined to be identified because of his current employment status said, “Eight Aquarius-class LNG tankers built at General Dynamics' Quincy shipyard in the late 70's were re-flagged to the Marshall Islands in mid-2000 by ProNav ship management. This eventually resulted in the loss of nearly 500 jobs for very experienced and highly qualified LNG certified US citizen merchant mariners. Interestingly, these veteran LNG tankers, whose construction was partially financed by American taxpayers, continue to trade profitably in the global LNG business.”

Local politics have a funny way of dictating the fate of individual LNG projects. National politics, on the other hand, may eventually dictate a definitive, strong U.S. presence on LNG deliveries to the United States in a post-9/11 world. Our anonymous LNG mariner finished up by telling MarEx, “You are correct that finding sufficient US citizen merchant mariners to man LNG ships importing cargos to the US will become increasingly challenging, however there is still an available and willing core of actively sailing US merchant mariners with extensive LNG experience in the US flag fleet.” He may well be right. If the frenzy of activity now underway in the American merchant marine labor market is any indication, that time may be just around the corner.

Joseph Keefe is the Managing Editor of THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE. He can be reached at [email protected]