
TODAY’S BULLETIN OF MARITIME NEWS
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- First View : BARRA
- DEME wins multiple contracts in Africa
- China to invest US$78.2 billion in new Silk Road linking Asia with Europe and Africa
- RCCL confirms order for two Icon-class 200,000-ton cruise ships
- Pres Filipe Nyusi inaugurates Nacala coal terminal and railway
- US Tidewater to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
- Daring returns
- PRESS RELEASE: GAC Poland smoothes the way for £14m ferry upgrades
- Expected Ship Arrivals and Ships in Port
- Cruise News and Naval Activities
- Pics of the Day : KOKOPO CHIEF
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A recent arrival at the port of Durban was the smallish Handysized dry bulk carrier BARRA (42,648-dwt), a fairly regular caller at the port over the years. Here she is in the entrance channel heading for the inner port and a berth at Maydon Wharf 15 to load breakbulk. Built in 1998 she is 181 metres in length and has a beam of 30 metres. Barra was built by the JMU shipyard in Tokyo, Japan and is owned and managed by Stam Shipping of Athens, Greece and flies the Panamanian flag. This picture is by Keith Betts
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DEME WINS MULTIPLE CONTRACTS IN AFRICA

Building on recent successes on the continent, DEME, the Belgian dredging, environmental and marine engineering group, has been awarded several new contracts in Africa with a total value of approximately €125 million. The contracts were awarded over the last few weeks for projects in Angola, Benin, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia and Nigeria.
In Angola a 5-year maintenance dredging contract has been awarded by Angola LNG for its gas terminal in Soyo. Works will start by the middle of June 2017.
In Benin DEME was awarded a contract for…[restrict] coastal protection works at the Cotonou shoreline. Works will include beach nourishment with a total volume of 1.5 million m³ as well as revetment works and groyne construction.
In Ghana DEME participates in a contract for the Tema Port expansion project. Ghana’s main seaport, operated by Meridian Port Services (MPS), is gearing up to accommodate some of the world’s largest container ships and increase cargo handling services and capacity. The project includes dredging and land reclamation of 3 million m³. Works are set to start by the end of May 2017.
In Ivory Coast a contract has been awarded for the maintenance dredging of the port of Abidjan. Works will be executed this month (May 2017). It is the third consecutive time that DEME has been contracted by the Port Autonome d’Abidjan to maintain the port.
DEME also returns to Liberia for maintenance dredging works in the Freeport of Liberia. The contract has been awarded by Liberia’s National Ports Authority.
In Nigeria, DEME acquired a contract for the Maiyegun Waterfront development in Lagos. DEME reclaims approximately 600,000 m³ to raise the level of an existing beach. Maiyegun Waterfront will include new housing units, a commercial hub, as well as leisure facilities. The contract in Nigeria follows the recently won project for the Lagos Deep Offshore Logistics Base (LADOL), where DEME is involved in the yard and quay wall construction, as well as the dredging of the berth pocket and access channel to the quay, on behalf of Samsung Heavy Industries.
Over the years DEME developed significant expertise across Africa, where the company is currently executing several major dredging and land reclamation projects.
About DEME Group
The Belgian dredging, environmental and marine engineering group DEME is an international market leader for complex marine engineering works.
Established more than 140 years ago, DEME has organically moved into several related sectors, such as the financing of marine engineering and environmental projects, executing complex EPC related marine engineering projects including civil engineering works, the development and construction of renewable energy projects, providing services for the oil, gas and energy sector, the decontaminating and recycling of polluted soils and silts, the harvesting of marine resources, etc.
Thanks to an integrated company structure, DEME strongly emerges as a ‘global solutions provider’ which offers its clients overall solutions. DEME has the most modern, high-tech and versatile fleet of dredging and support vessels.
The DEME Group has 4,600 employees worldwide and achieved a turnover of 1.97 billion euros in 2016.[/restrict]
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CHINA TO INVEST US$78.2 BILLION IN NEW SILK ROAD LINKING ASIA WITH EUROPE AND AFRICA
China’s President Xi Jinping has announced the funding of the New Silk Road, or One Road, One Belt as it is also called, to the tune of 500 billion yuan (US$78.2 million).
The vast undertaking promises to open new trade routes between China and the rest of Asia with Europe and with Africa.
Already trains are operating between China and Western Europe on a regular schedule including…[restrict] freight trains between China and the UK. These are said to shave up to two weeks from the time that shipping takes going through the Suez Canal.
President Xi Jinping was addressing the leaders of about 30 countries during the opening ceremony of the international cooperation forum of ‘Belt and Road,’ the simplified version of the ‘Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Route.’, reports Macauhub.
He said that China will contribute an additional 100 billion yuan (US$14.5 billion) to the Silk Road Fund, set up in 2014 to finance infrastructure projects and provide aid over the next three years in the amount of about 60 billion yuan (US$8.7 billion) to developing countries and international organisations participating in the initiative.
Two banks – the China Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of China – will also offer special loans up to 380 billion yuan (US$55 billion) to support the Silk Road project.
Xi, who devised this international infrastructure plan during an official visit to Central Asia in 2013, intends with this project to revive the old Silk Road, the economic corridor that united the East and the West before sailing ships opened up trade opportunities.

Analysts have suggested that altruism and pure trade are not the only factors behind China’s determination to make this ambitious project a successful reality. The World Economic Forum has pointed out that China wishes to lift the value of cross-border trade to $2.5 trillion within a decade, and that to enable the infrastructure for this vast undertaking Xi is giving the lead to state-owned enterprises and financial institutions in China to invest in infrastructure and construction abroad.
There have also been allegations that China has not only commercial imperatives at the heart of this project, but geopolitical forces are at work as well and that the trade routes chosen will go a long way to influencing those countries towards stronger relations, both trade-wise and politically with China.
By opening new trade markets China has a stronger chance of keeping its economy buoyant.
There are strong commercial and geopolitical forces at play here, first among which is China’s vast industrial overcapacity – mainly in steel manufacturing and heavy equipment – for which the new trade route would serve as an outlet. As China’s domestic market slows down, opening new trade markets could go a long way towards keeping the national economy buoyant.
sources: Xinhua, macauhub, WEF and own[/restrict]
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RCCL CONFIRMS ORDER FOR TWO ICON CLASS 200,000-TON CRUISE SHIPS

Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) has confirmed orders first announced in September last year for two Icon class cruise ships each of 200,000-gt, for delivery in 2022 and 2024.
The order has been placed with Meyer Turku in Finland and will cost an estimated €1 billion each, the new ships will slot in between the Oasis class (227,000-gt) and the Quantum class (169,000-gt) in terms of size.
The Icon class ship will have around 5,000 lower berths and will introduce a number of new innovations that will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is understood they will be LNG-powered and employ a fuel cell-based power generating system.
Symphony of the Seas

In other RCCL cruise news, construction of the latest Oasis-class cruise ship, named SYMPHONY OF THE SEAS is proceeding as per schedule and is due for delivery in less than one year, in April 2018. On delivery she will become the world’s largest cruise ship, outreaching HARMONY OF THE SEAS by means of an additional 28 staterooms.
Symphony of the Seas will cruise in the Mediterranean Sea during the 2018 summer months.
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PRES FILIPE NYUSI INAUGURATES NACALA COAL TERMINAL AND RAILWAY
Construction of the completed Nacala coal terminal known as Nacala-a-Velha and the Nacala Integrated Logistic Corridor (CLN) railway have been inaugurated at a ceremony held at Nacala last Friday (12 May 2017).
The railway corridor connects the Vale coal mine at Moatize in Mozambique’s Tete Province with the port at Nacala Bay, a 912-km Cape-gauge (1067mm) railway that runs through the landlocked Malawi to make use of existing railway infrastructure. The Malawi railway network is owned by the company that owns the rest of CLN and has been…[restrict] or is still in the process of being upgraded to carry heavy-haul coal trains to the new terminal, which lies in the deepwater Nacala Bay.
An estimated US$4.4 billion has been invested so far in the corridor and port terminal, which lies on the opposite side of the bay facing the port of Nacala itself.
President Nyusi said that Nacala-a-Velha and the railway will have a huge impact on various sectors of the local economy. He mentioned that this was now the most modern and biggest coal terminal in the country which would be of great benefit to Mozambicans.
Development of the mine at Moatize and the railway was commenced by Brazilian mining giant, Vale Moçambique in a partnership with Mozambican state-owned rail and port company, CFM. The Japanese firm Mitsui later bought into the project.
Prior to the development of the Nacala Integrated Logistic Corridor, CFM took on the rehabilitation of the Sena Railway from Moatize in Tete province and the port at Beira. This was completed and mining companies including Vale began operating coal trains to the Beira port, where the coal terminal had been refurbished and a system of barges incorporated to tranship coal from Beira onto bulkers too large for the port that were at anchor outside.
The Sena Railway corridor has volume limitations however which necessitated the construction of a connection from Moatize wit
h the Malawi railway network that in turn extended back into Mozambique and on to the port of Nacala. The Sena Railway also suffered from a number of armed attacks by what are thought to be Renamo insurgents. This caused delays with coal deliveries to Beira and further hastened the construction of the Nacala line.
At Nacala on Friday President Nyusi highlighted the fact that Nacala-a-Velha can handle large Capesize vessels thus avoiding the increased costs of transhipping. In addition, Nacala-a-Velha has a 22-million ton capacity of which 18mt is to be coal exports.
The terminal has been in operation well before the official inauguration, having commenced handling coal in January 2016.[/restrict]
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US TIDEWATER TO FILE FOR CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY

US offshore oil services company Tidewater Inc, one of the biggest in the offshore industry, has entered into a restructuring agreement with lenders that will require the company to file for the protection of Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the United States.
It has been common knowledge for some time the Tidewater was in financial difficulty brought about by the downturn in the global oil industry.[restrict]
The firm’s debts are said to be in the region of US$1.6 billion which it hopes to be able to eliminate by means of the restructuring. Tidewater is expected to file for chapter 11 bankruptcy along with certain of its subsidiaries by Wednesday this week (17 May).
During this process Tidewater, which operates with a fleet of over 300 vessels, will continue to operate as a means of holding its position in the worldwide offshore oil industries services market and says it has funds to pay employees and vendors.
Tidewater says that the prepackaged plan has the support of the company’s lenders holding 60% of the outstanding principal amount of loans under the credit agreement and holders of 99% of the aggregate outstanding principal amount of Tidewater’s senior notes.
“As we continue to navigate this unprecedented industry downturn, we are pleased that we have reached an agreement which should allow Tidewater to significantly reduce its debt burden and provide sound financial footing for the company’s future,” said Jeffrey Platt, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tidewater.
“We believe that successful completion of our restructuring will provide the necessary liquidity and operational flexibility for Tidewater to continue to operate at lower levels of activity until offshore drilling activity recovers and more reasonable levels of vessel utilization and day rates are restored. I want to thank our employees and other stakeholders for their continued hard work and dedication as we complete the restructuring process.”
Details of Tidewater’s restructuring plan are contained on the company website : CLICK HERE[/restrict]
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Type 45 destroyer HMS Daring returned to Portsmouth on 12 May after spending nine months at sea protecting some of the world’s most vital shipping lanes.
Hundreds of families and friends lined a packed jetty at HM Naval Base Portsmouth to welcome home the warship and her 260-strong ship’s company following their deployment to the Middle East.
During her time away, the advanced air-defence destroyer visited 12 countries, steamed 50,000 miles and undertook 20 patrols of the Bab-al-Mandeb strait to…[restrict] reassure merchant vessels and keep the sea lanes open for trade.
In the words of Daring’s CO, Commander Marcus Hember: “After nine demanding months at sea conducting operations to protect Britain’s economy, returning home is a wonderful and rewarding moment for all of Daring’s sailors and their families. I am proud of everything they have achieved during this long deployment and hope they enjoy some well-earned time with their families and loved ones. Everyone on board has contributed to the security and stability of one of the most important areas of the world for international trade, something for which they truly deserve recognition.”
HMS Daring, the first of six Type 45 destroyers of the Royal Navy, left her home port of Portsmouth in September last year with almost 260 people on board including a Royal Marines boarding team and an embarked flight from Yeovilton-based 825 Naval Air Squadron.
Daring operates with the Royal Navy’s newest type of helicopter – the Wildcat Mk2 – which extends the ship’s capability beyond the horizon and uses its advanced targeting system and surveillance radar to help reduce the threat of waterborne attack.
After passing east of the Suez Canal, Daring escorted the Navy’s Joint Expeditionary Force task group including Devonport-based HMS Bulwark, flagship HMS Ocean, and mv Eddystone. As well as providing air defence to the task group, Daring helped protect from the threat of waterborne attack, carrying Royal Navy and Royal Marine boarding parties to counter piracy, terrorists and smugglers.
The destroyer then went on to undertake 20 journeys through the Bab-al-Mandeb strait, protecting 800,000 tonnes of shipping and ensuring the critical choke point remained free flowing for international trade. Around 95% of Britain’s economic activity by volume depends upon the sea and a vast amount of global trade passes through the region.
After leaving the Persian Gulf in April, Daring steamed in to the Black Sea for routine port visits to Romania and Bulgaria. As part of long-planned visits the destroyer spent time conducting training at sea with the Romanian Navy and Air Force before going alongside and taking part in some defence engagement activities with NATO allies.
Daring has now passed on her duties to HMS Monmouth, a Plymouth-based Type 23 frigate.
RN permanent presence in the ME
The Royal Navy has a permanent presence in the Middle East, working as part as part of the Combined Maritime Forces – a collective of 31 nations formed to promote security and stability in some of the world’s most vital shipping lanes.
Daring is one of six Type 45 destroyers in service with the Royal Navy and was the first to be launched. She was commissioned into the fleet in 2009.
It is said that the Type 45 is the world’s most advanced air defence destroyer.
Her highly-trained ship’s company of 190 acts across the full spectrum of military activity, including such missions as disaster relief in the wake of a typhoon, maritime security operations to counter the threat from piracy, and when required, high intensity war fighting. She deploys with an additional 60 personnel who form the ship’s flight crew, Royal Marine boarding teams and additional personnel associated with operations and training.

[/restrict]Edited by Paul Ridgway
London
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GAC POLAND SMOOTHES THE WAY FOR £14m FERRY UPGRADES
Company’s long-standing relationship with shipyard delivers four P&O Ferries
Szczecin, Poland – Four P&O ferries are now back afloat after completing major refits at Remontowa Shipyard in Gdansk, with GAC Poland as their agent.
The 32,000-ton, 180 metre long Pride of York and 2000 passenger, 650 vehicle Pride of Canterbury were the first to arrive at the yard, in January and February respectively. They were followed by sister ships Pride of Bruges and Pride of Burgundy. Three months after the first ferry arrived, major renovations to…[restrict] all four had been completed and they were back plying their Hull-Zeebrugge and Dover-Calais routes.
Work began on preparing car decks and passenger areas as soon as the vessels set off on their two-day voyages to Gdansk. Once in at the shipyard, GAC Poland ensured the smooth and efficient delivery of large volumes of the materials, spare and supplies required for the mammoth project which included upgrading the main engines and generators, blasting and painting the hulls, major changes to the ferries’ infrastructure, as well as modernisation of passenger areas, catering and retail outlets. Cabins were fitted with new lighting, bedding and en-suite bathrooms and improved temperature controls. Superior cabins underwent total refurbishment with new furniture, carpets and curtains.
Ryszard Karger, GAC Poland’s Managing Director, says his company’s strong, long-standing relationship with the shipyard helped ensure that everything went smoothly.
“Winning the ship agency business for the four P&O Ferries upgrades at Remontowa Yard was a major coup for us,” he adds. “We are no strangers to the yard and have worked closely on many occasions in the past, but this was the biggest project for some time. The project involved the delivery of large volumes of spares and supplies, and arrangements for the 714 personnel brought in for the refits, including transport and accommodation. Thanks to GAC’s hallmark attention to detail, reliability and local expertise, everything went without a hitch.”
John Garner, Fleet Director at P&O Ferries, says: “We looked at a number of shipyards across Europe for this vitally important work – which will guarantee the future of all four ships into the next decade – and settled on Remontowa for its track record of delivering first class re-fits and the economies of scale generated by taking the ships to the one yard.”
David Piaskowski, Commercial Area Director at Remontowa, notes: “The secret to success for any major project is good planning, and we were confident that by working with the GAC Poland team, everything would go according to plan.”[/restrict]
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EXPECTED SHIP ARRIVALS and SHIPS IN PORT
Port Louis – Indian Ocean gateway port
Ports & Ships publishes regularly updated SHIP MOVEMENT reports including ETAs for ports extending from West Africa to South Africa to East Africa and including Port Louis in Mauritius.
In the case of South Africa’s container ports of Durban, Ngqura, Ports Elizabeth and Cape Town links to container Stack Dates are also available.
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CRUISE NEWS AND NAVAL ACTIVITIES
QM2 in Cape Town. Picture by Ian Shiffman
We publish news about the cruise industry here in the general news section.
Naval News
Similarly you can read our regular Naval News reports and stories here in the general news section.

China Navigation’ KOKOPO CHIEF (13,387-dwt) on berth at Lyttelton harbour, New Zealand where she is seen working her cargo. She is one of CNCo’s owned vessels in a fleet that operates in the fields of liner business (Swire Shipping) using multi-purpose and container vessels, and the bulk business (Swire Bulk) using a fleet of owned and chartered-in handysize bulkers. Kokopo Chief is one of Swire Shipping’s owned multipurpose ships used in the liner business and has a container capacity of 981 TEUs. The ship is 158 metres in length and 22m wide and was built at the Miho Zusen shipyard at Shimizu in Japan and delivered in May 1991. She was lengthened to her current dimensions in November 2005. As a multipurpose vessel two of her holds (1 and 4) are fully cellular to carry containers, with 210 reefer points available on deck. Holds numbers 2 and 3 are non-cellular and have hydraulically-operated flush fitting tween decks, making these ideal for breakbulk and project type cargo. The ship is fitted with three Macgregor cranes, each with a maximum load of 45 tonnes. This picture is by Alan Calvert
The China Navigation Company (CNCo) has an interesting history and background. Founded in 1872 to operate Mississippi-style paddle-steamers on China’s Yangtze River, the company is currently headquartered in Singapore and is one of the oldest independent British shipping companies managing its own tonnage ‘in-house’. The company owns and manages a sizeable deep-sea fleet of multi-purpose, container and bulk vessels and has an extensive network of liner, bulk, logistics and shipping agency businesses around the Pacific Rim.
CNCo is the deep-sea shipping – and oldest operational entity – of the Swire group companies. Swire is a multinational conglomerate with interests spanning five continents and principal areas of operation in the Asia-Pacific region, centred on Greater China. CNCo’s parent company, John Swire and Sons Limited, is headquartered in London and controls a range of wholly owned businesses in Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, East Africa, Sri Lanka, the USA and UK. source of company info: China Navigation
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
“When you concentrate your energy purposely on the future possibility that you aspire to realize, your energy is passed on to it and makes it attracted to you with a force stronger than the one you directed towards it.”
― Stephen Richards, Think Your way to Success: Let Your Dreams Run Free
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