1 Jun SpaceX company’s “Falcon 9” rocket has a successful lift-off and ascends to orbit, the rocket is one contender for commercial launch business from NASA and its development cost was partly paid for by NASA.
1 Jun Taking things a little deeper, six bids are entered for the tender to dredge and enlarge the Gatun Lake section of the Panama Canal. The bids ranged in price from just under US$40 million to almost US$100 million, the Panama Canal Authority will now consider which bid to select, more information here: http://www.marinelink.com/news/submitted-dredging-panama334421.aspx
2 Jun The Syrian crew of the hijacked general cargo vessel MV “Rim” are reported to have regained control of their vessel. Some confusion surrounds this case, the vessel was hijacked in February of this year, believed to be carrying scrap metal possibly bound for Yemen. The vessel is either Libyan or North Korean – depending upon whom you believe, Equasis has it as DPRK registered and Romanian registered, ownership unknown. One crewmember was apparently injured during a battle with pirates and there are reports that other pirates attempted to re-hijack the “Rim”, EU Navfor vessels are in attendance.
2 Jun The 1988 built, 7478GT Italian cruise vessel “Vistamar”, is detained in Belfast under ParisMOU inspection after it was found that a number of the ship’s fire safety doors were inoperable. The ship was detained for 4 days for necessary repairs.
3 Jun Seaspan Corporation receives the 50th addition to its fleet and the 8th vessel delivered so far this year with the arrival of the 2,500GT container vessel “Calicanto Bridge” from the Chinese shipbuilder Jiangsu Yangzijiang Shipbuilding Company (try saying that name quickly) and has chartered the ship to K Lines of Japan.
4 Jun Ships traversing the Gulf of Mexico area and entering the Mississippi River area may have to pay for decontamination costs to remove oil traces resulting from BP’s ongoing nightmare of the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Although few vessels report sighting oil some ports are expected to require mandatory decontamination. BP may end up being faced for this bill as well, just days after having received the US official interim bill for US$ 69 million dollars.
6 Jun Norwegian Cruise Lines’ 155,873GT, 4200 passenger newbuilding “Norwegian Epic” continued its saga of fires with a suspected arson attack in the STX shipyard at St Nazaire – this is the third suspicious fire in a month. The vessel is due for delivery mid June with christening planned for July 2.
8 Jun Those readers of a certain age will well remember a gentleman by the name of Jacques Cousteau, his voyages of exploration of marine life made fascinating viewing. To celebrate the centenary of his birth his famous ship “Calypso” is to be restored and re-launched as an educational exhibition. More information here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10264797 and more information on the Cousteau Society here: http://www.cousteau.org/news/calypso-saved
14 Jun Bloomberg’s report sighting a possible silver lining to BP’s Gulf of Mexico cloud claiming that the incident and the heightened scrutiny of the offshore industry may force some operators to begin replacement of their offshore industries with rig constructors in Asia being likely to benefit. Over half of the rigs operating in that area are over 20 years old.
14 Jun Not exactly on Her Majesty’s Service, two men and a service woman are convicted of smuggling GBP 2 million worth of cocaine on board the warship HMS Manchester. The vessel had been involved in anti-narcotics training and a Royal Navy wren on board the ship concealed the Bolivian Marching Powder in her clothing.
15 Jun Authorities in Ghana impound the Chinese bulker MV “Rui Ning 3” (an odd name for a vessel) and arrest 3 crew members after allegations that three stowaways discovered on the vessel were thrown overboard. One was later rescued by Ghanain patrols, a second survivor was later rescued whilst the third man died. Stowaways are protected under the United Nations declaration of human rights but it is not unheard of for ships’ owners to try to avoid the inconvenience and expense associated with them by trying to dispose of them in other ways.
16 Jun Fire breaks out on the lower vehicle deck of the Jersey to Portsmouth ferry “Commodore Clipper” resulting in 62 passengers and 39 crewmembers being forced to remain on board after the vessel docked in Portsmouth as fire fighting operations continued.
17 Jun Thomas Miller celebrates its 125th anniversary by sponsoring the restoration of the oldest vessel in use in Africa. Not quite yet an African Queen, the “Chauncy Maples”, now 112 years old will be renovated as a floating clinic in Malawi. More information on this noble enterprise can be found on Thomas Miller’s homepage here: http://www.thomasmiller.com/fileadmin/uploads/tm/Documents/Article%202010-06-17%20Lloyd's%20List%20(2).pdf
18 Jun The BBC’s internet news service publishes what might be described as a Dummy’s Guide to Somali Piracy explaining in layman’s language the modus operandi of these villains: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10349155
20 Jun A real old lady bows out of service, the 114 year old, Turkish flagged “Bilal Cavusoglu” sinks following capsize in a storm in the Marmara Sea. The general cargo vessel was built by Nederlandse Scheepsbouw in 1896 and reportedly modernised in 1955.
23 Jun Briese Schiffahrt’s 2528GT General Cargo vessel “Santiago” is arrested in Limassol pending clarification of the legality of its cargo. The vessel is apparently carrying with weapons and explosives allegedly bound for Sudan and Singapore. Sudanese authorities apparently deny any knowledge of the vessel and its cargo.
28 Jun Not as fortunate as its name, the Singaporean registered 9,127GT chemical product tanker “Golden Blessing” is captured by Somali pirates and is now under way towards the Somali coast.
30 Jun 9 Ukrainian crew members of the Cambodian registered 2161 GT general cargo vessel “Dada Star” ex “Winger” abandon the vessel which remains in Pasajes in Spain with the crew reportedly unpaid for 6 months.
That’s all folks, the Month of July in Marine will follow in August,
Cheers,
Jason
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