Maersk Unveils Design of Carbon-Neutral Methanol Vessels

Maersk Unveils Design of Carbon-Neutral Methanol Vessels

In early December, Danish shipping company Maersk unveiled the design of its eight 16,000 TEU container vessels that are to be powered by carbon-neutral alternative biofuel methanol. The design, according to Maersk Chief Technical Officer Palle Laursen, provides a 20% improved energy efficiency per transported container compared to the industry average for vessels in this size. Additionally, he said, the entire series is expected to save around a million tons of annual CO2 emissions. The vessels, Laursen said, are designed to be 350 meters (1,148 feet) long, 53.5 meters (175.5 feet) wide and would look significantly different from what has…
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The Emerging Arctic

The Emerging Arctic

The Arctic continues to represent new frontiers for the North American maritime trade, yet these frontiers are also wrought with complexity. Industry in the Arctic involves an intricate web of sentiment, infrastructure, technology, climate change, politics and evolving economic practices. With industrial demands accelerated by COVID, yet also delayed by the pandemic, the Arctic maritime industry aspires to balance current demands while also checking irresponsible growth. Industry leaders must take into account multiple considerations into account when reviewing the potential of the emerging Arctic. For instance, the politics of the Arctic industry are ever-changing. Discussions are as divided as our…
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Bulk and Breakbulk: A Status Report

Bulk and Breakbulk: A Status Report

For the past 18 months, much of the industry talk has centered around the COVID-19 pandemic and its fluctuating effects on container movement, including record cargo numbers and congestion at the largest ports on the West Coast. One interesting side effect to the ongoing bottlenecks has been a growing trend of shippers looking at ports with bulk and breakbulk capabilities as a creative alternative to moving commodities. The Port of Vancouver USA, as well as the handful of ports in this feature, have seen more shippers move products in bulk and breakbulk in 2020 and 2021, many of them commodities…
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Astoria Yard Upgrades Former LA Pilot Boat for Service on Washington Coast

Astoria Yard Upgrades Former LA Pilot Boat for Service on Washington Coast

The 54.5-foot aluminum pilot boat Vega represented the latest ideas in design and propulsion when it arrived at Jacobsen Pilot Service in the Port of Long Beach in Los Angeles County in 2003. After 15 years of daily service, it was replaced in 2018 by the Orion, a 63.5-foot custom design with a fiberglass sandwich hull that provides insulation from noise and vibration. The Vega was put up for a sale at a price of around $400,000, but did not attract a buyer until the summer of 2020 when the Port of Grays Harbor, Wash. took advantage of this opportunity…
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Supply-Chain Logjams: Pacific Mariners Weigh In

Supply-Chain Logjams: Pacific Mariners Weigh In

“The terminal and vessel backlogs that occurred in San Pedro between July 2020 and August 2021 were the result of a cumulative collapse of the entire logistics supply chain.” The above statement is the conclusion of a report to the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) by Martin Associates, a consulting company that in October, presented a deep-dive analysis into the Los Angeles and Long Beach container and logistics problems. The federal government has been trying to zero-in on a quagmire that not only threatened Christmas, but presents serious economic and inflationary issues. One major effort started in September when the U.S.…
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Orange County Oil Spill:  Maritime Shipping Okay at Local Ports While Policymakers Investigate

Orange County Oil Spill: Maritime Shipping Okay at Local Ports While Policymakers Investigate

The sizable oil spill in October off the coast of Orange County caused by an anchor-dragging incident has reportedly not had an impact on maritime shipping at local ports, although it has prompted state policymakers to investigate how to prevent it from happening again, including possible future legislative changes. The oil spill itself doesn’t appear to have immediately affected maritime goods transport to and from Southern California ports, as confirmed by multiple representatives to Pacific Maritime Magazine. Operations at the Port of Long Beach were not directly affected by the oil spill, said Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario…
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Panama Canal Closes Fiscal Year 2021 with Record Tonnage

Panama Canal Closes Fiscal Year 2021 with Record Tonnage

The Panama Canal closed its fiscal year 2021 with a record-breaking annual tonnage of 516.7 million Panama Canal tons (PC/UMS), coming in 8.7% higher compared to the 2020 fiscal year (FY20) and 10% above tonnage registered in FY19, the waterway’s last pre-pandemic fiscal year, according to data released by the Panama Canal Authority (ACP). The gains were despite fiscal year 2021 for the Canal being marked by unprecedented supply chain challenges caused by the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Related disruptions drove container rates to rise exponentially and production to slow down across various sectors, due to raw material…
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U.N. Security Council Adopts Anti-Piracy Resolution

U.N. Security Council Adopts Anti-Piracy Resolution

The UN Security Council on Dec. 3 adopted a resolution to combat the continuing threat of piracy off the coast of Somalia, as measures to keep vessels safe have returned to levels not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic. The Security Council adopted Resolution 2608, which, among other things, condemns piracy and armed robbery at sea off the Somali coast, underscoring that it exacerbates instability by introducing “illicit cash that fuels crime, corruption and terrorism.” However, the resolution only provides for a three-month extension for an existing program that allows international naval forces to fight piracy off Somalia’s coast. Although…
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IMO Council Creates International Day for Women in Maritime

The International Maritime Organization’s Maritime Council has established an International Day for Women in Maritime, which is to be observed each year on May 18. Adopted by the IMO Assembly in December 2021, the observance would celebrate women in the industry, promote the recruitment, retention and sustained employment of women in the maritime sector, raise the profile of women in maritime, strengthen IMO’s commitment to gender equality and support work to address the current gender imbalance in maritime.    The proposal to establish an International Day for Women in Maritime was first addressed by IMO’s Technical Cooperation Committee (TCC) in…
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