
TODAY’S BULLETIN OF MARITIME NEWS
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- First View : KRI BIMA SUCI
- West African states face up to Gulf of Guinea security
- Heavy load project cargo for Port of Lüderitz
- Seychelles women sign up for international maritime association, WOMESA
- Ethiopia-Djibouti railway enters final trials before commencing services
- Mozambique’s first inland port at Inchope to be completed in 2018
- Durban-Gauteng pipeline upgraded to multi-petroleum mode
- Next Viking Cruises ship to be powered by liquid hydrogen
- Indonesian Navy receives new sail training ship
- Bureau Veritas joins the RECOMMS drones project
- PRESS RELEASE: Ecobank launches mVisa across 33 African Countries
- Expected Ship Arrivals and Ships in Port
- Cruise News and Naval Activities
- Pics of the Day : BRITISH COURTESY
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The Indonesian Navy has taken delivery of its new sail training ship KRI BIMA SUCI which replaces an older sail training ship, the 64 year old German-built KRI DEWARUCI which has been in service with the Indonesian Navy for most of that period. The new ship was built in Spain at the Freire Shipyards in Vigo and at 110 metres in length is among the largest sail training ships currently in service. See full story below. Picture: Freire Shipyard
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WEST AFRICAN STATES FACE UP TO GULF OF GUINEA SECURITY

At a symposium on maritime security held in Dakar, Senegal during September, the chiefs of naval staff and other officers from 17 West African countries met to discuss measures in creating maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea.
The symposium was a follow-up to an initiative of cooperative actions agreed at Yaoundé, Cameroon, in June 2013.
The Yaoundé initiative was formally approved…[restrict] in 2016 at the African Union summit held in Lomé, Togo, which was approved last year and which aims to bring together improvements in the efficiency of African states in maritime safety and security.
From a political perspective, the initiative involves the main regional organisations, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC).
The regional initiative also seeks to create security across the Gulf of Guinea and to ensure its prosperity. As a result a regional strategy is being developed with specific actions to combat identified threats.
What distinguishes the West African region is that the 17 member states are taking responsibility for their own maritime security in the face of lawlessness and piracy, as compared with the situation in the Gulf of Aden region where naval forces and privately contracted security agencies have had to intervene to deal with security and piracy issues.
With important oil resources and a huge trading block at stake, in whose waters 140 million tons of merchandise pass through the western section alone – a quarter of all African shipping – and over 6,000km of coastline to defend and protect, the Gulf of Guinea has a significant strategic importance not just for the West African region.
In addition to its oil producing zones, which are continuing to expand, the region’s waters are home to important fisheries. The threats the region faces include acts of maritime banditry and piracy to trafficking of all kinds of goods, including drugs and weapons; pollution risks; illegal fishing in highly productive waters; migratory flows and overcrowding of coastal mega-cities.
In more recent times, terrorism in the form of radicalised Islamists operating from the region of the Sahel, pose additional security threats. source: Mer et Marine[/restrict]
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HEAVY LOAD PROJECT CARGO FOR PORT OF LÜDERITZ

Mention the Namibian port of Lüderitz and you might be excused for thinking of a regional port used to handling small vessels and even smaller cargoes. The ex German port has always played second fiddle to the bigger and busier Walvis Bay further to the north – in fact Lüderitz probably owes its existence to Walvis Bay being a British enclave, administered from the Cape and then South Africa in pre-World War 1 days, and the need for the German colonial power to have a port of its own.
Today the port of Lüderitz is Namibia’s second port, servicing the southern regions of the country, and home to a thriving fishing industry.

Recently the port had an unusual visitor, a project cargo ship bringing a heavy load that was discharged at the port. The cargo consisted of six pieces weighing more than 300 tonnes each plus a further two weighing 235 tonnes.
These had been loaded at the Spanish port of Bilbao and were over-dimensional preheaters and superheaters manufactured in Northern Spain and handled by the project cargo specialist firm of Coordinadora Internacional, a member of the Project Cargo Network.
“We believe in working closely with our clients to identify their needs. In this particular project, we had to work on a very tight and strict schedule and we were able to deliver in time and meet the commitments that we previously established with our client,” said Pablo Higueras, executive director at Coordinadora.
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SEYCHELLES WOMEN SIGN UP FOR INTERNATIONAL MARITIME ASSOCIATION, WOMESA

Women in the maritime sector in the Seychelles have joined an internationally recognised association for women in the maritime sector, WOMESA, after the launching of a local affiliate group.
WOMESA-Seychelles will operate under the aegis of the Women in the Maritime Sector in East and Southern Africa (WOMESA).
Veronica Bristol, who was elected chair of the local group, described…[restrict] the group’s primary objective as being to promote women’s access to quality employment and to lobby for a higher percentage of women at the senior management level within the maritime sector in Seychelles.
WOMESA consists of 50 members, drawn from countries within East and Southern African. It was launched by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in December 2007, in Mombasa, Kenya.
The launching of WOMESA-Seychelles took place on Friday 29 September 2017 at the 8th annual WOMESA conference held on the main island, Mahe.
The IMO’s representative in the maritime corporation division, Helen Buni, said she was impressed by the integration of women in Seychelles’ society.
“Upon my arrival in the Seychelles, the immigration official who greeted me with a smile was female, the traffic policeman was female, and upon arriving at the hotel, the receptionist was also female,” said Buni.
Veronica Bristol said that Seychelles, consisting of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean, is heading in the right direction as more Seychellois women are taking up high-level positions.
She said that the launching of the local association “comes at an opportune time as IMO is encouraging its member states to put more emphasis on incorporating women in the maritime field.”
As the chair of the new association, she is going to take it as a commitment to encourage young girls in Seychelles to take up a career in the maritime industry.
A participant at the conference, Chipilino Mponda, who is employed with a Malawian shipping company, said that being a ship’s captain is not easy.
“As a woman in a male-dominated industry, it is very hard at the beginning to earn respect from men as they tend to think that women cannot be in a position of control,” said Mponda.
She added that the post carries a heavy responsibility. “I am a captain of both a cargo and a passenger ship. The biggest cargo ship is 750 tonnes, and the passenger ship takes 460 passengers. The responsibility of carrying the passengers safely to their destination is always on your shoulders.”
Bristol said that Seychelles association has benefited through IMO sponsorship. “It has provided scholarships to some of WOMESA-Seychelles members for further training in maritime law in Malta,” she said. source: Seychelles News Agency[/restrict]
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ETHIOPIA-DJIBOUTI RAILWAY ENTERS FINAL TRIALS BEFORE COMMENCING SERVICES

The Ethio-Djibouti railway project, the official name for the new standard gauge railway running from Ethiopia to the port of Djibouti in the Gulf of Aden, has entered the final trial stage ahead of the commencement of passenger and freight services.
The new railway falls under the control of the Ethiopian Railways Corporation (ERC), whose Communication Services Head Dereje Tefera told The Ethiopian Herald newspaper that the trials and final checks were necessary before the railway can be certified by an external institution and…[restrict] commences full operation.
China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC) and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) have been appointed to manage and operate the overall activities of the railway project for the coming six years, he added.
According to Dereje the companies will use the six years to train the Ethiopian and Djibouti personnel in areas of operation, maintenance and the like.
The new railway will provide Ethiopia with an efficient and reliable means of transport between the landlocked country and the port at Djibouti. It will also help Ethiopia in its commitment to fighting poverty while also building a positive image for both countries.
The railway project cost a total of US$3.4 billion with Ethiopia and Djibouti contributing 70% and 30% respectively. The railway stretches for a total of 656km from Sebeta on the outskirts of Addis Ababa to Dewele and a further 100km from Dewele to Negad via Dorale. source: Ethiopian Herald[/restrict]
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MOZAMBIQUE’S FIRST INLAND PORT AT INCHOPE TO BE COMPLETED IN 2018

A new inland port at Inchope in central Mozambique is scheduled to come into service in 2018, says a report in the Mozambican daily newspaper Noticias
Inchope lies where the road and rail between Beira and Machipanda (on the Zimbabwe border) crosses the North-South highway and is a logical place for the inland intermodal terminal to be positioned. It is also the spot where…[restrict] the southern, central and northern areas of the country meet.
Head of the administrative post Augusto Roque said that the inland port, which will officially be known as the Inchope Interior Customs Station, will be an international cargo terminal, allowing the concentration of containerised goods to be exported and imported into and out from the port of Beira and to countries in the interior of the continent such as Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

At a national level, the inland port of Inchope will store cargo coming from the south, central and northern regions of the country for export and import, and will relieve the port of Beira of some of its cargo processing work.
The inland port is an intermodal land terminal directly connected by road and/or railroad and perhaps by air, and a bonded warehouse is located in the secondary zone (outside the port).
It will also receive consolidated cargo and can process it for customs purposes immediately or work as a customs warehouse. In this way, the inland port stores importers’ goods for the period the importer requires, under a tax suspension system (i.e. in bond), and can carry out customs processing in stages.
The same process can be put in place for exports as part of a system that allows the exporter to use the inland port to store cargo and from the moment it enters all the transaction documents can be negotiated normally as if the goods have already been shipped. source: macauhub[/restrict]
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DURBAN-GAUTENG PIPELINE UPGRADED TO MULTI-PETROLEUM MODE
Transnet’s trunk pipeline from Durban to Johannesburg reached a new milestone yesterday when it was successfully commissioned into a multi-petroleum product mode.
As a result of the upgrade the pipeline will be able to transport an additional two grades of petrol, Unleaded 93 Octane and Unleaded 95 Octane.
Since it’s commissioning in 2012, the 555km and 24 inch trunk-line, which…[restrict] forms part of Transnet’s New Multi-Products Pipeline Project (NMPP) has transported over 16 billion litres of diesel only.
With the new additional products, the pipeline is projected to pump 7 billion litres of petroleum products in the 2017/18 financial year.
“Our main function is to make sure that we move fuel to all parts of the country and this project will certainly achieve that,” said Transnet’s Group Chief Executive, Siyabonga Gama. “The pipeline will now move four petroleum products to the country’s economic hub with a much more secured supply of fuel.”
The successful conversion of the pipeline to the multiproduct line will also enable Transnet to mitigate the security of supply risk during the planned shut-down of Sasol’s Natref refinery this month.
The New Multi-Products Pipeline Project is within the timeframes of the amended construction license of NERSA (National Energy Regulator of South Africa).
To date Transnet has invested a total of R30.4 billion on the NMPP project which will replace the aging petroleum pipeline, which has been operational since 1965, with a high pressure, multiproduct pipeline.
Transnet Pipeline has also completed the construction of the inland accumulation facility at Jameson Park near Heidelberg which will be bought into operation in the next two months.
The New Multi-Product Pipeline (NMPP), consists of three pump stations, a coastal and an inland terminal, (TM1; the coastal terminal in Durban and TM2; the inland terminal in Jameson Park near Heidelberg), a 24-inch 555km trunk line from Durban to Gauteng and a network of 16-inch pipes around Gauteng.[/restrict]
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NEXT VIKING CRUISES SHIP TO BE POWERED BY LIQUID HYDROGEN
Viking Cruises has unveiled plans to develop what could become the world’s first cruise ship powered by liquid hydrogen.
This was made public at last week’s Safety at Sea Conference held in Haugesund, Norway.
Based on existing designs and looking not unlike to Viking’s latest ship, VIKING SUN, which the company took delivery of on 25 September, the 230-metre long hydrogen powered vessel will…[restrict] carry more than 900 passengers plus a crew of 500 will produce zero-emissions while becoming the pathfinder to a whole new zero-emission shipping industry.
According to Viking it has been working with the Norwegian International Ship Register on this and several other new projects in recent years. If it goes ahead the new ship will be registered in Norway.
Acknowledging that they still have a long way to go before all technical challenges are met, a spokesman said it was a very “concrete project” with a high priority at Viking Cruises.
Until now liquid hydrogen has not been sued as a marine fuel. One of the technical challenges will be keeping the fuel at minus 253 degrees to keep it from evaporating. A fuel cell will convert the hydrogen to electricity for propulsion and electric power on board.
Because hydrogen is a very explosive gas, protection against gas leaks will be an important part of the safety requirements for the fuel, Viking said.
“We want to lead the way to zero-emission ships through fuel cell technology. The road to that point is still long, but here at Viking we want to be ahead of the game,” says Chairman of Viking Cruises, Torstein Hagen.[/restrict]
VIKING TAKES DELIVERY OF VIKING SUN

Meanwhile, Viking Cruises took delivery of its fourth new ship, VIKING SUN on 25 September at the Fincantieri Ancona shipyard in Italy.
Yesterday (4 October) the ship sailed from Venice on her maiden voyage, through the Adriatic and Ionian Seas. In November she will cross the Atlantic to sail a series of (Northern Hemisphere) autumn itineraries and on 15 December the ship will head off on Viking Cruises’ first-ever World Cruise.
Taking 141 days to…[restrict] complete the circumnavigation, Viking Sun will visit 35 countries and 66 ports, before ending the cruise in London on 5 May 2018.
The following year she will embark on her second World Cruise, this time spanning 128 days, five continents, 21 countries and 44 ports. There will be ten port overnights on this journey.
“As we celebrate two decades of helping guests travel the world in comfort, this year also marks one of significant growth. We are pleased that with the delivery of Viking Sun we now have four small ships, each carrying only 930 guests,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking. “With the continued expansion of our offerings, we look forward to bringing guests to more destinations around the world and introducing them to the Viking way of exploration.”
Viking Sun
Viking’s ocean ships have a gross tonnage of 47,800 tons, with 465 staterooms that can accommodate 930 guests. Classified as a ‘small ship, the all-veranda Viking Sun is the newest addition to Viking’s award-winning ocean fleet, which also includes Viking Star®, Viking Sea® and Viking Sky®. In its first two years of operation, Viking has been rated the #1 ocean cruise line in Travel + Leisure’s 2016 and 2017 ‘World’s Best’ Awards.
Viking will welcome two more sister ships in the next two years, and by 2019 it will be the largest small ship ocean cruise line. Two additional ships are also on order for delivery in 2021 and 2022. Viking’s ocean fleet features modern Scandinavian design with elegant touches, intimate spaces and attention to detail.
The Viking Difference
Designed for discerning travellers with interests in history, art, music and cuisine, Chairman Torstein Hagen says Viking offers guests “the thinking person’s cruise” as an alternative to mainstream cruises. Ships are small to get guests closer to their destination, with more time in port and more overnights. On board, guests find serene Scandinavian spaces, where every room is beautiful and functional, quiet and filled with light. With the most al fresco dining opportunities at sea, featuring regional cuisines and always-available American classics, Viking’s guests can truly dine in their destination. A focus on cultural enrichment brings immersive experiences ashore and on board.[/restrict]
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INDONESIAN NAVY RECEIVES NEW SAIL TRAINING SHIP

The Indonesian Navy recently took delivery of its new sail training ship named KRI BIMA SUCI, a name taken from a mythological Javanese hero who was a symbol of force, bravery and righteousness and who is depicted on the ship’s figurehead.
The 110 metres Kri Bima Suci is replacing Kri Dewaruci which was built in Germany in 1953 and served as Indonesia’s floating ambassador for over 60 years.
The new ship was built for the Indonesian Navy by…[restrict] the Freire Shipyards in Vigo, Spain.
The ship has five decks and will have a crew of up to 200 when fully manned. Oliver Design, another Spanish company, was responsible for designing and installing some 2,000 square metres of interiors with mess rooms, cabins, offices, weapons locker, store rooms and all the services a crew of this size requires.

Oliver Design’s part in the project involved the architectural design of the ship and the interior design and a German firm, Detlev Loell & Partners, supplied the rigging and sails.
Construction of the ship commenced in October 2015 after Freire was selected out of 12 tenders.
The sail training ship has a 1,300kW engine that allows the ship to reach a speed of 12 knots under power, or a maximum speed of 15 knots when under sail. Bima Suci will participate in international races and goodwill missions.
Her current crew of 66 sailors, under the command of Captain Sutarmono, carried out sailing exercises on board the Bima Suci before commencing her maiden voyage on 18 September sailing to her home port in Surabaya on the north coast of the island of Java. The journey is expected to take around 60 days.[/restrict]
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BUREAU VERITAS JOINS THE RECOMMS DRONES PROJECT

The potential for drones to be used for inspections is not new but to date trials have not focused on specific survey requirements for ship structures in enclosed spaces – the RECOMMS project will do just that.
Bureau Veritas has joined RECOMMS (Remote Evaluation of Coatings / Corrosion on Offshore Machinery and Marine Structures / Ships), a joint investment project (JIP), to develop drones with the capability to inspect steel structures in enclosed spaces.
The JIP’s primary objectives are to develop a steady, stable and reliable drone capable of following programmable flight paths, either pre-determined by 3D imagery software or flown by a pilot using 3D simulator ship specific training programmes developed in unison with the drone design. This will lead to the development of a complete and marketable inspection drone when delivered with the required software package.
Key investment partners for the confined space ambitions include Akzo Nobel, Barrier Group, Bureau Veritas, Drone Ops, Hempel Paints A/S, Marine Technical Limits and a major oil company. Safinah Ltd, coating specialists and consultants, are the RECOMM project managers.
In the first phase of development the drone will be designed to carry an unobstructed HD camera as well as lighting and batteries with suitable strength, durability and longevity to perform structural and coating inspections within a ballast tank whilst providing reliable clear images fit for comparison with close up inspection.
“The end goal is to be able to survey cargo spaces, ballast tanks and confined spaces remotely and effectively,” says Jean-François Segretain, Technical Director, Bureau Veritas, Marine & Offshore. “If we can do this with drones we can help reduce risks to our surveyors and ship crews by minimising the need, for example, to erect expensive staging whilst covering the survey scope which would otherwise require surveyors to work at height or perform tank inspections by means of rafting.”
It is estimated that eliminating the need for staging erected for class renewal surveys could save in the region of US$90,000 for a VLCC or US$40,500 for a capesize bulk carrier (based on dry-docking costs in China for ships of ten years and older).
“While a lot of work has been done with drones nothing yet released has led to drones meeting specific requirements for marine classification close up surveys. This project addresses the specific needs of our survey requirements and other inspections,” Segretain said.
As a secondary goal, the project will also address the potential for inspection of open space marine structures such as offshore wind turbine blades.
Once tank inspection objectives have been met, the drone will be designed with a payload carrying capacity capable of further developing the attachment of sensoring equipment with the end goal of performing paint and coating application analysis as well as steel thickness measurement. Paint coating and plate thickness gauging equipment manufacturers are already involved with others being encouraged to join the project, in order to develop specialised sensoring equipment suitable for the drone.
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ECOBANK LAUNCHES mVISA ACROSS 33 AFRICA COUNTRIES
Ecobank Scan+Pay with mVisa delivers instant, secure cashless payment for goods and services by allowing customers to scan a QR code on a smartphone or enter a unique merchant identifying code into either a feature phone or smartphone
LOMÉ, Togo – Ecobank https://Ecobank.com has partnered with Visa to launch Ecobank Scan+Pay with mVisa solutions to their consumers.
The strategic tie-up signals interoperability on a cross border level – and potentially huge gains – as it affords consumers with the ability to use their mobile phone to directly access the funds in their bank accounts to pay person-to-merchant (P2M) or person-to-person (P2P).
Ecobank Scan+Pay with mVisa delivers instant, secure cashless payment for goods and services by allowing customers to scan a QR code on a smartphone or enter a unique merchant identifying code into either a feature phone or smartphone. The payment goes straight from the consumer’s bank account into the merchant’s account and provides real-time notification to both parties. This serves to accelerate digital commerce and combat some of the challenges merchants have faced using traditional point of sale systems, including the cost of installation coupled with the requirement of electricity and internet connectivity.
Ecobank mVisa solutions also enable customers to send money instantly to any Visa cardholder worldwide. This is a major innovation that serves the need of Africans in the diaspora by enabling them to simply link their Visa card to the Ecobank unified mobile app to send money home to another Visa cardholder quickly and securely.
“We are fulfilling our commitment to give every African the right to participate effectively in the global economy at an affordable price and in a convenient manner. Ecobank Scan+Pay with mVisa helps merchants – particularly small and micro merchants – to grow their sales without the risks of carrying cash whilst also giving consumers the ability to pay for goods and services in a cashless manner from their phones. Consumers can also conduct person-to-person payments and instantly transfer money to their friends and family via their phones at very low cost,” said Ecobank Chief Executive Officer Ade Ayeyemi.
The partnership demonstrates both Ecobank and Visa’s continued commitment to provide financial services to the banked and unbanked in Africa by leveraging digital platforms to offer convenient and affordable payment mechanisms.
Andrew Torre, President for Visa Sub-Saharan Africa said, “We are glad to partner with Ecobank to bring mVisa into the market, a mobile payment solution with real benefits to drive digital transformation backed by advantages of Visa’s global network – security, reliability and global acceptance, allowing consumers to make payments both domestically and internationally.”
Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank Group Executive Consumer Banking, pointed out that the Ecobank mVisa solutions rollout significantly strengthens the banks person-to person payments capabilities. “Bringing this added functionality on our Ecobank mobile app connects families in Africa by delivering needed funds instantly anywhere, anytime. That’s real value to our customers,” he said.
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EXPECTED SHIP ARRIVALS and SHIPS IN PORT
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CRUISE NEWS AND NAVAL ACTIVITIES
QM2 in Cape Town. Picture by Ian Shiffman
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Naval News
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PIC OF THE DAY : BRITISH COURTESY

The BP ‘Virtue’ class oil products tanker BRITISH COURTESY (47,210-dwt) slips into Durban on one of her regular routine calls. The 183-metre long, 32m wide tanker was built in 2005 at the Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co Limited in South Korea. Her port of registry is Douglas, Isle of Man. This picture is by Keith Betts
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
“If we can acquire an attitude of self-belief, then we will surely determine our future actions and our future life opportunities.”
― Stephen Richards
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