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DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2006 – 031

PSi-Daily Shipping News 07-03-2006

Number 031*** COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS ***Tuesday 07-03-2006 News reports received from readers and Internet News articles taken from various news sites.

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The VOS SYMPATHY loaded with GB Diving equipment moored in the port of Den Helder

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EVENTS, INCIDENTS & OPERATIONS

The STEPHANITURM which was laid up for a long time in the Golf of Mexico area arrived in Singapore for her new owner and was named OFFSHORE SUBSEA I, the vessel will get a large refit before taken into the service again

Photo : Capt. Jelle de Vries ©

Major safety violations on sunken Egptian ferry

Report points to "safety violations" in doomed Egyptian ferry




An Egyptian investigation commission has received a report which pointed to "serious safety violations" on the ferry which sank in the Red Sea last month, killing some 1, 000 people, the official MENA news agency reported on Friday. "A fact-finding commission...has received a report from the Administrative Control Authority pertaining to serious safety violations in the vessel," said MENA. Members of the commission would meet next week to discuss the report, Mohamed Abul-Enein, the official spokesman for the commission, was quoted as saying. Al Salaam 98, carrying some 1,400 people, including a 96-strong crew, went down in the Red Sea on Feb. 3 on a trip from the Saudi Arabia port of Dubah to the southeastern Egyptian port of Safaga. Officials said only 387 passengers survived the disaster.The black box of the ship, which contained vital navigation information, including weather conditions when before the ship went down, was recovered on Feb. 21 with the help of two International Maritime Organization experts from France and Britain. The device was sent to Britain for analysis, a process that could shed some light on the tragic accident but may take several weeks.

Over 200 Caribbean cruise ship passengers take ill

More than 200 passengers on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship and several crew members took ill with a stomach virus during a weeklong cruise, the Miami-based company said on Saturday. Royal Caribbean International said 243 of 3,252 passengers on board the Explorer of the Seas had caught a norovirus, a common cause of infectious gastroenteritis prevalent in hospitals, nursing homes, cruise ships and other semi-enclosed environments. All those affected were treated. Nineteen of the 1,184 crew members also took ill during the voyage,which made stops in Belize, Mexico's Yucatan and the Cayman Islands. The vessel was due back in Miami on Sunday. Royal Caribbean said it believed a passenger brought the virus on board. Noroviruses are thought to affect an estimated 300 million people around the world every year, the cruise line noted.

Kustwacht voor de Nederlandse Antillen en Aruba assisteert in Venezolaanse wateren.

De Kustwacht voor de Nederlandse Antillen en Aruba heeft in de nacht van 28 februari op 1 maart ondersteuning geboden bij twee search and rescue (SAR) zaken die plaatsvonden in de territoriale wateren van Venezuela. De eerste SAR vond plaats naar aanleiding van een melding van een hersenbloeding bij een mannelijke passagier aan boord van het cruiseschip 'Black Watch'.

Het schip bevond zich op dat moment in de territoriale wateren van Venezuela. Aangezien de lokale autoriteiten geen eenheden beschikbaar hadden, is om assistentie van de Kustwacht NA&A gevraagd. De kustwacht heeft daarop de helikopter van marineschip Hr. Ms. Van Nes ingezet. De passagier is per helikopter overgebracht naar het ziekenhuis in Aruba.



Op het moment dat de helikopter van het marineschip op de terugweg was, kreeg de Kustwacht een melding binnen van de Aruba Port Authorities dat de motorboot 'Daribel' van de Arubaanse reddingsorganisatie SARFA (Search and Rescue Foundation Aruba) onderweg naar Aruba motorproblemen had. Aangezien de communicatie met de Daribel niet optimaal was, werd de helikopter van de Hr. Ms. Van Nes ingezet om de precieze locatie van de boot te bepalen. Deze bevond zich in de territoriale wateren van Venezuela. Na toestemming van de Venezolaanse autoriteiten is een super-RHIB van de Kustwacht naar de locatie vertrokken om de boot naar Aruba te slepen.

Africa Mercy to be launched

The ANASTASIS seen moored in the port of Cotonou (Benin) Photo : Piet Sinke ©

A global charity operating a growing fleet of hospital ships will soon launch its newest Africa Mercy ship, which is expected to double the number of medical beneficiaries than it is currently serving. Slated to go active in April off the Port of London, the former Danish rail ferry will be the world's largest non-governmental hospital ship as Texas-based Mercy Ships says goodbye to two veteran ships - Anastasis and the Caribbean Mercy. Best practices from the two retiring ships were used as a base line in designing the hospital, public areas and crew accommodations on the Africa Mercy. While the former cruise liners were converted into hospital ships, the organization's newest vessel will have a purpose-built hospital, allowing for greater numbers to be cared for. The $62 million project, which includes state-of-the-art hospital facilities, is being launched through sponsors and patrons of the Africa Mercy project, which is undergoing the final stages of its conversion.

Coast Guard Responds to Accident in Mobile Bay

Investigation and pollution teams from Coast Guard Sector Mobile are responding to an accident in Mobile Bay, Ala., involving a container ship and a sky-crane. The accident which occurred on March 2 involved the container-ship Zim Mexico III and the crane. One person has been confirmed dead, and their name is being witheld pending next of kin notification. Local law enforcement and search and rescue personnel are also onscene. Responders reported a 2-ft. gash in the bow of the vessel. About 200 gallons of hydraulic oil and diesel also leaked onto the pier and was contained by the local fire department. The waterway has not been closed to maritime traffic. The Coast Guard, in conjunction with local officials, are currently investigating the incident.



Boarding team members assigned to the guided missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG 66) prepare to board an Iranian dhow. The vessel had been adrift for ten days before Gonzalez provided assistance to the dhow's crew by providing them food, water and coordinating the crew's repatriation after determining their engine was beyond repair.

Oil Spills Pollute Jakarta Waters The waters in the Kepulauan Seribu Seribu National Park (TNKS) in the Java Sea north of Jakarta were last week polluted by oil spills from oil rigs of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) and BP Indonesia or from passing tankers, Antara reported. The TNKS authority has caused the oil spills from rigs of the Chinese company and the subsidiary of United Kingdom-based BP (British Petroleum) or passing tankers had been polluting the waters around Putri and Perak islets since Feb 18. The TNKS had also found that the polluted area was widening as the oil spills were also spotted in waters around Putri Timur and Bira Besar islets on Feb 19. The pollutants reportedly had also made the waters around Putri Barat, Kayu Angin Bira, Belanda, Petondan and Pelangi islets dirty. Winds blowing from the northwest and north caused a widening of the polluted area.

Renovation s.s. Rotterdam meets resistance in Poland

Several Dutch newspapers report that in Poland opposition has been raised against the planned renovation of the steamship Rotterdam in de port of Gdansk. Greenpeace wants to know what happens to the 180 tons of asbestos on board. “We want to know exactly who removes the asbestos from the ship en where it will be stored”, says a Greenpeace spokesman. The prefect of Pomerania has decided that the place where the Rotterdam is berthed does not suit for the renovation. According to R. Hagens, representing the operator of the Rotterdam (De Rotterdam BV), problems are being solved.



“There was fuss because a newspaper stated an asbestos bomb was coming to port. During renovation about 1500 tons of waste will get off. The newspaper mentioned 1500 tons of asbestos. We are no dumpers of waste. We explained everything neat and are observing the permits, says Hagens. He says to be in contact with Greenpeace about the removal of waste and asbestos from the ship. “It is alright that Greenpeace checks us. They know that we are no dumpers”.

See for the latest news and photos about the ROTTERDAM http://www.ssrotterdam.net/

Cruise Ship Crimes Detailed Five of the 28 people who disappeared from cruise ships in the last three years were found, according to data disclosed to Congress by the world's largest cruise lines. A congressional memo compiled in advance of a House hearing on cruise ship safety Tuesday also details 177 sexual misconduct incidents, ranging from inappropriate touching to rape, and four robberies of amounts over $5,000. During that three-year period, approximately 25 million people embarked on cruises from North America ports, the memo said. Disclosure of the data, supplied by Holland America Lines, Royal Caribbean Cruises and others, is unusual because cruise lines are not required by law to publish comprehensive crime statistics and because criminal law varies greatly on international waters. Rep. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.), chairman of the House Subcommittee on National Security, is working on legislation mandating such reporting.

Boot met vluchtelingen zinkt voor Italiaans eiland

Voor de kust van het Italiaanse eiland Linosa is zondag een boot met zowat driehonderd vluchtelingen gezonken. Daarbij raakte één persoon zwaargewond. Dat meldden de havenautoriteiten. "Van de zowat driehonderd personen aan boord, van wie acht vrouwen, was er uiteindelijk maar één zwaargewonde die onmiddellijk naar het ziekenhuis van Palermo op Sicilië werd overgebracht. Enkele personen raakten lichtgewond", verklaarde een medewerker van de haven van Palermo. "We zetten onze zoektocht echter voort voor het geval er toch slachtoffers zouden zijn", benadrukte hij. De sloep sloeg om op enkele tientallen meters van de kust en de passagiers konden het eiland op eigen kracht bereiken ondanks een sterke wind en slechte weersomstandigheden.

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The guided missile cruiser USS Cape St. George (CG 71) transit the Persian Gulf in support of U.S. and Coalition Forces.

Navy Dismisses Sub Purchase Pressure US Navy officials held firm to a decision to buy only one submarine annually for the next several years, despite a strong reaction from lawmakers concerned that the limited procurement would exacerbate problems in the struggling shipbuilding industry. During their annual budget presentation to the House Armed Services Committee, Navy leaders argued increasing submarine purchases in the short term would throw the service's carefully balanced shipbuilding plan off kilter, forcing substantial cuts elsewhere. At more than $2 billion each, submarines are one of the priciest items on the Navy procurement menu. Current plans call for the service to increase buys to two subs a year in 2012 -- but not before then. Lawmakers with submarine interests in their districts argue the one-per-year schedule would force the industry to lay off hundreds of highly skilled submarine designers just as China emerges as a significant naval power and that the Navy, which has been retiring older submarines, will soon have its fleet dip below the 48 subs deemed operationally necessary by the Pentagon's recent Quadrennial Defense Review. Navy officials acknowledged the temporary decline in the size of the sub fleet, but said it does not pose any immediate operational risk.

Royal Navy Gets Sub Detection System The Royal Navy has taken delivery of a new naval sonar system five months ahead of schedule. The Sonar 2087 is a defense capability needed by the Royal Navy in order to detect a new generation of increasingly stealthy submarines which often operate close to shore - making them very hard to detect. Ordered in 2001, the system was due to enter service in May 2006. The Sonar operates at a lower frequency (longer wavelength) to enable the detection of a hostile submarine at longer range - enabling the ship's captain to take action before the enemy submarine gets within torpedo range.



The Royal Navy’s most modern and versatile warship, HMS Bulwark (L15), assumed duties Feb. 28 from the guided missile cruiser USS Cape St. George (CG 71) as the flagship for Combined Task Force Five Eight (CTF-58). CTF-58

is a multinational coalition, which conducts maritime security operations (MSO) in the northern Persian Gulf. MSO helps establish the conditions for security and stability in the maritime environment, as well as complement the counter-

terrorism and security efforts of regional nations.

Storm stirs up sunken navy frigate The storm that lashed the lower North Island over the weekend has caused wreckage from an old navy frigate sunk near Wellington last year, to be washed ashore. The former HMNZS Wellington was sold for $1 to the Sink F69 Trust which sunk it about 500 metres off Island Bay – virtually in Cook Strait – on November 14. Prior to the sinking Island Bay man, Nick Dryden, a former deep sea fishermen and diving instructor, said the lightly built ship would break up very quickly and become a danger to divers, not the tourist and diving mecca the trust claimed it would be. Divers were likely to die, he said at the time. Island Bay resident Ken Findlay said he was walking on the beach when he came across the wreckage, scattered the length of the beach. Mr Findlay said the wreckage was so extensive that his initial response was to start looking for bodies as he thought the storm had caused a fishing boat to sink. However on closer inspection he realised the debris had come from the sunken frigate. There was a large quantity of cork, like the type you use to insulate freezers, lots of polyester and rubber," he said. Mr Findlay called Wellington police about 4.45pm and notified them of the wreckage. It was not until he attended a Victoria University open day today when he ran into Sink F69 Trust chairman Marco Zeeman that it was confirmed the wreckage was from the F69, he said. "I was telling Marco about it and I realised he started to look peculiar," Mr Findlay said. Mr Zeeman said he had collected some timber from the beach and was going back to collect some more but there was very little debris. There had been less than a trailer load of wreckage collected from the beach but scattered over the length of the beach Mr Zeeman said he could understand how it could look like more. "It was a hell of a storm and I'm a bit disappointed and a bit surprised but that's what happens with shipwrecks," he said. Mr Zeeman said despite warnings about the shipwreck breaking up he did not expect any problems.



A diving team would go down once the weather settled down and check out the wreckage, he said. "It's just had it's first major storm and it will be slowly squished into the seabed and the result will be that it looks more like a shipwreck," he said.

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Gdynia spin-off troubles mount The situation at one of Europe's biggest shipyards appears to be going from bad to worse.

Stocznia Gdynia has been thrown into deeper turmoil over moves to split the company from wholly owned Stocznia Gdansk. Gdynia's three management board members have been dismissed. At Gdansk, the government was expected this week to install a new top-tier supervisory board to push through the divorce. Israeli shipowner Rami Ungar was also due to hold talks in Poland with the state over increasing his investment in Gdynia, where he already holds a 16.6% stake.



Car-carrier giant Ungar is the biggest customer at the financially strapped yard, which urgently needs an injection of cash or a new, private owner. A shareholder's meeting this week again postponed making a decision until 8 March on increasing Gdynia's capital through a private share placement. One reason may be the Ungar talks. Sacked from the Gdynia board is yard president Jerzy Lewandowski, as well as vice-presidents Andrzej Czech, responsible for marketing and purchasing, and Jerzy Wrobel, head of production, design and planning. The changes took effect last Friday and this week all three were said to be on vacation. They are believed to have been offered the role of board advisors but they are no longer running Gdynia's day-to-day affairs. Yard employee Arek Aszyk has been promoted to the management board, as well as the temporary secondment of two members from Gdynia's supervisory board as its new president and vice-president. Exactly why Lewandowski, Czech and Wrobel have been forced out by the supervisory board is unclear but industry sources in Poland believe it is because the Gdansk spin-off is taking too long. "They want the separation to happen immediately," commented one yard executive a reference to Gdynia's main shareholder, the state treasury, and trade union members. Gdynia acquired Gdansk when it collapsed into bankruptcy at the end of the 1990s but, partly because of its Solidarity roots, workers and some politicians have never accepted its control by a former rival. Directors at Gdynia have argued they need cash from the sale of Gdansk and cannot afford for it to simply slip through their fingers. They are said to have created obstacles to a government sell-off by refusing to agree on replacing Gdansk's entire supervisory board. It would have meant relinquishing control to politicians and trade-union members, claims one source. A fresh bid to instal a more compliant supervisory board was said to be the main purpose of a Gdansk shareholders' meeting this week. Ungar has 16.6% of its parent Gdynia (22.5% of the votes), the Ministry of Treasury 33% (36% of the votes), industrial development agency ARP around 15% (13.5%), Polish state shipbuilding organisation Korporacja Polskich Stocznie (KPS) 10% (6.8%) and the shipyards' investment fund SFI 6.9%. Past and present employees are also shareholders. One Gdynia source says a revamped Gdansk supervisory board could immediately appoint a new yard president and effectively seize control. It is understood that a permanent management board at Gdynia must be appointed within three months. Meanwhile, Gdynia's planned share placement was originally to be in the region of PLN 110m ($34.5m) but the government is now keener to target around PLN 250m. Deciding on this has been given as a reason for postponing the shareholders' general assembly until 8 March.

Shipbuilding firm gets deal for hi-tech boats

DESPITE the political turmoil that continues to bug the Philippines, the shipbuilding industry in Cebu continues to grow and make milestones. Iken Aboitiz, chief finance officer of the Aboitiz-owned FBMA Marine Inc., said the cost per manpower hour at the firm’s shipbuilding facility in Balamban, Cebu is eight times less than in other areas in the world.



That, and FBMA’s reputation of quality and timely delivery, are among the reasons that allowed the firm to secure a contract to commercially produce high-technology fastcrafts for the world’s largest defense contractor and aeronautics and astronautics specialist, Lockheed Martin. Last Saturday, FBMA released to the sea off Balamban one such vessel, the “Lider.” vAccording to FBMA president Dough Border, the company is scheduled to build two more fastcraft vessels of the same design for Lockheed Martin aside from the other placed orders that are already in the pipeline. “In our nine years of operation, we have worked hard and succeeded in gaining the confidence, which has been the company’s supreme challenge, of the world (seacraft) market,” he said during a press conference on the launching of the “Lider.” vAboitiz said FBMA won a contract from Lockheed Martin to build for the first time the fastcraft vessel, a specialist form of Swath (small waterplane twin hull) designed to cope with extreme weather conditions experienced in servicing offshore oil and gas installations. FBMA has the capacity to simultaneously build six of the Swath fastcraft. “This is a very good example of what Filipinos can do,” he said. The $9-million “Lider,” which is built entirely by Filipino hands, is owned by Mexican oil company Pemex. It will be run by the Hoteleria y Servicios Petroleros, which operates in the Gulf of Mexico. With the Swath technology, the four torpedo-like hulls and the onboard computerized stabilizing systems, the two-meter-by-28-meter vessel will give comfort to the offshore oil and gas workers as they travel to and from the oil rigs. The hull forms offer exceptional sea keeping and reductions in onboard motion, thus minimizing motion-induced sickness. Border said this technology offers a cost effective alternative to the very expensive and sometimes risky helicopter. The construction of the “Lider” took about 12 months. Aboitiz said the never-ending political turmoil in the country has given the company constant “headaches” and apprehensions that it will threaten the confidence of the world in the Philippines. But he said FBMA’s clients are not scared. FBMA is wholly owned by the Aboitizes, a Cebuano clan that has ventured into almost all sectors of business including power, transport, banking, food, construction and real estate. An International Organization for Standardization-certified company, it constructs aluminum or steel vessels for European, Australian, United States and Asian operators. It has built 14 vessels for the Philippines, Hong Kong, Australia, United Kingdom, Korea, the Netherlands and Mexico. At present, it is building four vessels.

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The KING OF SCANDINAVIA is getting painted in the DFDS colours in the port of IJmuiden, the ferry will start her service to

Newcastle on Saturday Photo’s : Ton Grootenboer ©

Solvang orders very large gas ship Oslo-listed Solvang and partners have ordered their first very large gas carrier (VLGC). The 75,000-cbm ship, which is a small VLGC, has been ordered at Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2008. A 30% stake in the ship will be owned by Solvang and controlled by shipowner and broker Inge Steensland, who is expected to have majority control of the vessel. Solvang has traditionally co-operated closely with Oslo-listed BW Gas, the dominating player in the VLGC market, but TradeWinds understands that company is not involved in the Solvang order. Brokers suggest a price in excess of $90m.

PRESCO to Build Tankers Primorje Sea Shipping Company OJSC (PRESCO) signed to build five product carrying tankers with the STX Shipbuilding. The new tankers will be used for the transportation of crude oil, oil products and chemicals both in the Far Eastern region and between European ports. Under the contract these ice-class tankers of the deadweight of 52 thousand tons each are to replenish the PRESCO fleet by 2009.



Chinese player charters four car-carrier newbuilds from Ray

China Shipping Car Carrier Co (CSCCC) has chartered four newbuildings from Israel's Ray Shipping. A source says the car carriers are on charter for more than five years, beginning in 2008. Two are said to have capacity for 6,400 cars and two for 5,000 cars, which are the size ranges Ray is building in Poland and Croatia. They will be the biggest in the Chinese car-carrier fleet. Ray has six 5,000-car capacity carriers on order at Uljanik in Pula, which are set for delivery between the middle of 2006 and the end of 2007. However, in recent years, Ray boss Rami Ungar has focussed his massive newbuilding programme on Stocznia Gdynia in Poland. He has already taken delivery of 15 car carriers from the yard and has another 10 due for delivery this year and next. Eight are on the yard's books as 6,600-car units and two 2,130-car units. Interestingly, Gdynia has been looking to firm up orders from Ray for eight more ships, including five more 6,600-car units. Some of those could be destined for CSCCC. CSCCC owns two 3,290-car capacity pure car carriers (PCCs) the Zhong Hai Gao Su (built 1985, ex- Emerald Highway ) and Dong Fang Gao Su (built 1984, ex- Diamond Highway ). CSCCC, registered in Dalian, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of state-owned China Shipping Group, the second-largest shipping group in the country. CSCCC was established in August 1984 and started operations one year ago. The company is chartering in the four car carriers to meet demands from rising Chinese vehicle exports. At present, Chinese-built cars are exported mainly to Africa and the Middle East but Chinese carmakers are eyeing the US market. A China-based executive of a foreign car-carrier company says the PCC market is expected to be tight in the next several years. Other companies have also been fixing PCCs recently. They include South Korean shipowning group STX Pan Ocean, which has fixed three 4,900-unit pure car/truck carriers (PCTCs) from NSC Schiffahrtsgesellschaft (NSC) for more than 10 years. They are being built in Croatia, with delivery in 2008.

New Name for MAN B&W After-Sales Service

The MAN B&W Diesel Group is bringing all its worldwide after-sales services under the brand name MAN B&W PrimeServ. The new name

stands for fast, reliable and high-quality service for diesel engines. With PrimeServ, MAN B&W Diesel is making a clear statement about its focus on service. The company sees the after-sales market as a key part of its business, and plans to strongly expand its service activities over the next few years. Five new PrimeServ branches will be opening during 2006 – in Houston, Dubai, Cuba, Guangzhou and Mumbai. The objective of the optimised worldwide MAN B&W PrimeServ After-Sales-Network is to engage even more actively with the customers and to offer them an even better service. One of the innovative features of the MAN B&W PrimeServ portfolio is online service using cutting-edge, satellite-based engine monitoring. The broad network of service centres, which are staffed by highly-trained specialists and enable MAN B&W Diesel to offer its customers an international, round-the-clock service, is now being expanded further with the five new branches. MAN B&W Diesel recently introduced a new training course for “International Service Engineers“, the purpose of which is to equip talented young people with the skills needed in the service business in the future. The first PrimeServ conference took place on 2nd March 2006 in the MAN Museum in Augsburg, and served as the kick-off event for the new-look, optimised service network. The Executive Board brought together managers of the worldwide service organisation to share their thoughts and experiences. The aim of the conference was to make the



participants aware of the importance of presenting a consistent and coordinated profile under the new PrimeServ label. In 2005, the Management of the MAN B&W Diesel Group decided to place the entire after-sales business in the capable hands of Dr. Stephan Timmermann, Member of the Executive Board. He is now responsible for all after-sales activities across all sites. Dr. Timmermann considers the new services in MAN B&W Diesel’s portfolio to be essential for the continuing growth of the company. “Alongside engine products and our licensing business, after-sales service is a core activity and supporting pillar of the MAN B&W Diesel Group,“ he says.

Seatrade eyes Elmira reefers Seatrade Groningen has its eye on acquiring the reefer fleet of Elmira Shipping of Greece. The 540,500-cbf reefers Pacific Mermaid and Atlantic Mermaid (both built 1992), 539,600-cbf Antarctic Mermaid (built 1993) and Arctic Mermaid (built 1992) have been targeted as purchase candidates. Elmira executive Dimitris Souravlas says no sale has taken place. However, sources close to Elmira confirm Seatrade has approached the Greek owner. They say Elmira would consider selling if it could attain $18m and above for each ship. They add that the owner is happy to keep the reefers since they are good earners. The ships are on charter to Seatrade for another year at $0.63 per cbf or around $11,850 per day and are listed as the pool's top 20 largest ships. Two reefers were bought in 1999 and the other two in 2004 at an aggregate of just above $60m. Seatrade is in the middle of completing the sale of 14 of its reefers to German KG (limited partnership) MPC Munchmeyer Petersen Steamship in a deal reportedly worth about $400m. Elmira controls another two chemical tankers, four ro-ros and one general cargoship.

International Maritime Showcase in Singapore

Asia Pacific Maritime 2006 returns for the 9th time to Singapore later this month (22 - 24 March 2006). This international maritime event aims to connect quality Asia Pacific buyers to a global pool of maritime products, technologies and services suppliers. The event is widely recognized as an effective platform for industry players to interact, network and explore collaborative opportunities as well as getting updated with the latest emerging trends in the maritime trade. Calling it "One-Stop Knowledge Hub" organizers prepared a number of seminars and conferences to provide first-hand information and insights into the current and anticipated shipbuilding trends and capabilities in the Far East region and beyond. China Shipbuilding – Presentation by China Association of National Shipbuilding Industries (CANSI) and China Ship News will focus on the anticipated shipbuilding trends and capabilities in China. Being one of the top three shipbuilding nations in the world, what is China’s winning formula to gain such prominent status in shipbuilding besides its booming economy and technology know-how? Which China shipyards are the rising stars and what are the possibilities of collaboration with shipyards from other countries? This interactive and informative session will address all that you want to know about China’s shipbuilding and shipyards. Ship Building & Repair Business in Japan - Japan has been the leader in shipbuilding for nearly 50 years since 1956. The boom of China economy has benefited the shipbuilding industry through an increase in newbuilding orders and a rise in shipbuilding prices. However, the rise in newbuilding prices does not completely reflect the increase in ordered tonnage, and various cost factors such as the rise in steel prices and the strengthening of the yen are also squeezing profits. As a consequence, shipbuilders are still unable to fully enjoy the benefit of upswing of newbuilding prices. This interactive presentation will address how the Japanese shipbuilders can remain competitive while adapting itself to the rapidly changing landscape. Asian Shipbuilding Symposium - Leading maritime technology suppliers, equipment manufacturers and industry groups will gather their strength and knowledge to showcase the very latest products and address the most imminent issues via a power-packed presentation, interactive dialogue session and networking functions.



Innovation in British Marine Technology - Presented by British Marine Equipment Association (BMEA). With the marine equipment industry contributing around £1billion to the UK economy per annum (and a significant share of that coming from export orders), this seminar will allow attendees to gain first-hand knowledge of the latest developments and innovations in British marine technology. Companies supplying marine equipment and services spanning the maritime industry and including shipbuilding, navigation, ship repair, satellite tracking and port technology, will be represented.

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The TOR FLANDRIA arrived in the port of Göteborg for repairs Photo : Martin Aalbregt ©

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An F-14D Tomcat from the "Tomcatters" of Fighter Squadron Three One (VF 31) lifts from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71). Roosevelt and embarked Carrier Air Wing Eight

(CVW-8) are currently underway on a regularly scheduled deployment conducting maritime security operations.

Navy jets grounded for review after crash A Navy jet crashed in the remote northeastern corner of Oregon during a routine training mission Friday but all four crew members on board ejected from the craft and survived, officials said. Plagued by a series of helicopter and jet crashes in recent months, the Navy said Friday it will ground all its aircraft for half a day next week for an internal safety review. The EA-6B Prowler from Whidbey Island Naval Air Station crashed north of Pendleton just before 11:30 a.m., according to the Navy and Umatilla County officials in Pendleton. The safety stand down will affect 3,800 aircraft and thousands of naval aviation personnel, including aircraft on 12 carriers around the world. It is the first time since September 1997 that such a pause in flight operations across the Navy has been ordered. Grounding the flights is not related to any specific equipment or flying problem, the Navy said, but rather is a way to refocus on safety, risk management and other procedures. Since Oct. 1, there have been nine major crashes that resulted in loss of life or of the aircraft. Nine aircraft were destroyed and 10 naval aviators were killed. During the same period a year ago, there were eight major crashes. A Navy Web site says the EA-6B Prowler was first stationed at Whidbey Island in 1971 and deployed to Vietnam in 1972. There are 80 EA-6B's in Whidbey's air wing, said Kimberly Martin, a Navy spokeswoman at Whidbey Island. The electronic-warfare plane carries a pilot and three tactical crew members who can jam enemy radar and communications while providing countermeasures to defend against radar-guided guns and missiles, according to the Naval Historical Center Web site. In 2009, the Navy is set to replace the EA-6B's at Whidbey with the newer EA-18G Growler.



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