Trump Questions Need to Protect Persian Gulf Shipping

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-25 14:06:44

Questioning the longstanding American doctrine of using sea power to protect shipping lanes worldwide, President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States does not "need to be there" for merchant vessels in the Persian Gulf. "China gets 91% of its Oil from the [Strait of Hormuz], Japan 62%, & many other countries likewise. So why are we protecting the shipping lanes for other countries (many years) for zero compensation. All of these countries should be protecting their own ships...

Malaysia: Potential Future Gas Shortfall Should Spur Investment

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-25 01:04:48

Malaysia offers some of the most material and attractive upstream investment opportunities in Southeast Asia, primarily due to the need for additional gas supply. According to research by natural resources consultancy Wood Mackenzie, the multiple breakdowns in the Sabah-Sarawak gas pipeline and a delayed final investment decision (FID) on the large Kasawari offshore gas project have resulted in short-term supply crunch to the Bintulu MLNG plant. This supply shortage is expected to continue though to at least 2025, when major...

file photo of cattle shipped from Australia

RSPCA: Vietnam is the Most Dangerous Destination for Exported Cattle

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 23:03:30

RSPCA Australia is calling on the live export industry to voluntarily stop sending cattle to Vietnam until an independent review of the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS) can be completed. The RSPCA calling for the urgent review following the latest of many rounds of reports of animal welfare breaches in Vietnam, which revealed poor animal handling practices and the use of unapproved movement aids as well as the likelihood that cattle weren’t stunned prior to slaughter, and over a...

WTO: G20 Trade Restrictions Historically High

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 22:08:38

The WTO’s 21st Monitoring Report on G20 trade measures issued on June 24 shows a continuation of record high trade restrictions. The trade coverage of new import-restrictive measures introduced during the period (October 2018 to May 2019) was more than 3.5 times the average since May 2012 at $335.9 billion. This is the second highest figure on record, after the $480.9 billion reported in the previous period. Together, these two periods represent a dramatic spike in the trade coverage of...

IMO Warns Shipping Industry of Fake Piracy Reports

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 21:17:12

The International Maritime Organization warns that alerts being issued from the email account of the Regional Maritime Information Sharing Centre (REMISC) in Sana’a, Yemen (infoex@remisc.org) are not legitimate. Given the current situation in Yemen, which is in the midst of a civil war, the center has not been able to provide updated piracy incident information and has stopped its activities. IMO has supported REMISC since its establishment, but says that it has no oversight of its current operations. REMISC – together with the Mombasa and Dar es Salaam...

U.S. Launches Maritime Security Initiative for Strait of Hormuz

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 21:03:05

The United States is launching a new maritime security initiative for the Persian Gulf region to counter the threat of Iranian attacks on shipping, a State Department official told reporters Monday. During previous regional conflicts, the U.S. Navy has periodically provided escorts for merchant shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but this effort would be multilateral, according to the official. The new program, called Sentinel, would be implemented with both material assets and monetary contributions from participating nations. The participants...

Italia Nostra Calls for Cruise Ship Ban in Venice's Giudecca Canal

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 19:37:34

Historic preservation association Italia Nostra has called upon UNESCO to register the city of Venice and its famed lagoon on its list of most endangered World Heritage Sites. The group cited the continued presence of large cruise ships in the Guidecca Canal and the San Marco Basin among the reasons for its concerns, and it is calling for a ban on cruise ship transits through this sensitive historica area. "Everyone seems to agree that...

World's Longest Wind Turbine Blade Revealed

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 18:37:20

LM Wind Power in France has unveiled the world's longest wind turbine blade. The 107-meter (351-foot) blade will be used for GE's Haliade-X 12MW wind turbine, the world's most powerful to date. The Haliade-X 12 MW is a multi-million investment that will help reduce offshore wind’s cost of energy in order to make it a more competitive source of clean and renewable energy. The Haliade-X features a 220-meter rotor and digital capabilities. In addition to being the biggest offshore wind...

Celebrity Flora Launched

By The Maritime Executive 2019-06-24 18:10:02

Celebrity Cruises has officially launched Celebrity Flora, a 100-guest, all-suites mega yacht designed specifically to sail the Galapagos Islands. Celebrity Flora is also one of the most energy-efficient ships in hers class, with a 15 percent reduction of fuel consumption thanks to the introduction of an advanced propulsion system, hull configuration and specially designed diesel engines. Celebrity Flora's dynamic positioning system is a first in the Galapagos and will be used instead of anchors to protect the sea floor, with...