News

Nantong Ocean Ship Engineering (NOSEC) repaired or converted 134 ship during 1999, with 97 per cent of the vessels coming from 21 overseas countries. Highlights included three roro ferry conversions for the…

Management at Malta Drydocks signed a new four year collective agreement with the General Worker?s Union on January 12, 2000."This agreement will ensure continued labour stability at the shipyard, and provide for…

The capesize, 146,019 dwt Golden Union bulk carrier Cape Providence has undergone permanent repairs at Nantong Ocean Ship Engineering.The 1987-built bulker, laden with ore, was steaming across the Indian Ocean almost 2,000…

San Diego?s National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO) has received $2 million for the first phase of a $25 million contract to convert a US Navy Strategic Sealift Program vessel USNS Soderman.The…

Cascade General entered the new year with a wide range of work underway at the Portland Shipyard and at remote locations.Three large ATC crude carriers have been docked under the maintenance and…

Norwegian owner Bergesen Dy drydocked the 53,372m3 gas carrier Havprins at Turkey?s Gemak shipyard for 25 year survey work and general repair. This is the first time the Norwegian giant has used…

Interior contractor James P Colie refurbished the main dining room and purser?s deck on the cruise ship Royal Princess during its winter drydock at Baltimore Marine Industries.The largest part of the project,…

F A Vinnen & Co?s 29,181g, 2,480 TEU container vessel Merkur Star is under repair at MAN B&W Service Center Hamburg, where a new crankshaft is being fitted.The ship, which is powered…

Having scored a couple of noteworthy successes, turbine manufacturers are keeping up the momentum. Gas turbines compare favourably against diesel engines on weight, size, power and NOx/SOx emissions ? where they suffer…

China?s shipping and shipbuilding industries are benefiting from sweeping reforms of state enterprises, increased foreign investment and technical assistance. Plans for China to join the World Trade Organisation is likely to accelerate…

While last year was very poor for operators of bulk tonnage there are now strong signs of a good recovery and people are more optimistic. From the coast of Brazil to the…

In a world where position counts, NCL has always said it was the fourth largest. Now it looks to become equal third, but not of its choosing. Cruise lines love their branding…

German builder Lindenau has adapted one of its Tanker Class designs to suit the needs of a domestic owner. The second of a pair of 13,050 dwt double-hulled IMO Type 2 chemical/oil…

Dutch orderbooks remain dominated by general purpose cargo ships, and dredgers, but more non-typical highly sophisticate vessels are appearing. While Dutch builders receive 4-5 per cent less in building subsidies than those…

Against a background of 25 per cent over-supply in shipbuilding capacity and a 20 per cent fall in newbuilding prices since 1997, OECD members cannot even agree on the size of the…

While the debate still rages over the loss of the 1975-built Maltese-flagged tanker Erika, its classification Society Registro Italiano Navale (RINA) has confirmed that conditions of class were imposed following a survey…

DNV has made its register of ships freely available on-line through its homepage http://www.dnv.com/registerofvessels. Users can search for vessels using the name (or part of name), former names, IMO registration number, or…

Austal of Australia has signed a joint venture agreement with Bender Shipbuilding to build fast ferries in the USA. The new company, Austal USA, will build the full range of high speed…

Korean yards took the vast majority of the orders placed in December to finish the year ahead of Japan. Its yards took orders for 66 vessels totalling 3.7 million gross against 16…

International Registries is offering free transfer for ships joining the Marshall Islands registry until the end of June, and has also reduced its tonnage tax. For new entrants there will be no…

Kvaerner has sold two more of its smaller yards and confirmed it will retain a stake in Masa-Yards to help secure a sale. "We have to get the best value for shareholders…

Following research that showed that bow slamming in moderate sea states can be as damaging as those in bad weather, Polish classification society, Polski Rejestr Statkow (PRS), has revised its rules. The…

@body:ICO Global Communications, the UK company set up in 1995 to develop a global mobile satellite communications system (previously known as Inmarsat P), has been bailed out of bankruptcy by an injection…