Wind Both Blow BP has been thrashed by political tempests and market turbulence since its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico became the worst environmental disaster in US history. But its the prospect of a real live storm that is really worrying the financial and scientific experts alike, as Hurricane Alex swirls its way towards the south US coast.This particular hurricane the first of the brewing season is likely to avoid hitting the slick directly, but winds could sprinkle more oil inland. The states are now reporting 413 miles of oiled shore, up from 179 miles this week after a re-appraisal of what constitutes pollution in Louisiana. BP is hoping to have plugged the leak by mid-July or August, but the risk that a hurricane will spread the millions of gallons already lurking in the ocean will remain until November, when hurricane season is over.The risks are not limited to further contamination, as storms also jeopardise current clean-up efforts and the struggle to stop more oil spewing into the ocean.For now, the collection of 25,000 barrels of oil a day from BPs leak is safe. But the bad weather has now stymied any efforts to increase the amount captured...

Safety Awards Safety at Sea International magazine held its fourth annual award ceremony aboard HMS Belfast on the Thames, London, to recognize those companies that made the biggest contribution to improving maritime safety last year.Awards were made at the 22 June event for advances in equipment, systems, training, management/operations, security and seamanship.The award ceremony followed the first annual Safety at Sea International lecture entitled, Who cares about safety?, which was delivered by safety management expert Dr Phil Anderson, managing director of ConsultISM.2010 Safety at Sea International awards winners and shortlists:Safety at Sea International Award for Equipment (sponsored by Chemring Marine)Winner: Nadiro, for its Drop-in-ball lifeboat hookCitation: This innovative lifeboat hook was described as brilliant by one judge and easy to click on without losing your fingers by another. You can see when its connected, noted a third.Shortlisted: Extronics, for its iCAM501 Digital Stills Camera; RFD Beaufort, for its Marin Ark escape system and Survival Systems, for its Triple 5 lifeboat hook.Safety at Sea International Award for Management/Operations (sponsored by Inmarsat)Winner: APM Terminals, for its Safety Culture InitiativeCitation: With 19,000 staff in 50 ports and 34 countries, APM Terminals faced a huge task in introducing best-practice safety procedures. The judges described...

Chinese Eyes The Chinese Foreign Ministry has said it will closely watch the incident and beef up efforts to rescue the hostages.The Singapore-registered ship, Golden Blessing, carrying poisonous chemicals used in anti-freeze, was scheduled to arrive in India from Saudi Arabia.It is owned by Golden Pacific International Holdings and is chartered by the Shanghai Dingheng Shipping Co.Commenting the repeated incidents hijacking by the Somali pirates, Chinese analysts said there is little hope of stamping out the lucrative pirate business unless some order can be brought to Somalia.Rear Admiral Yang Yi, former head of strategic studies at the Peoples Liberation Armys National Defense University, told China Daily that it is difficult for international forces to wipe out such hijackings.The base of the pirates is on the land. Navy escort can only limit the pirates activities, Yang said. Shipping companies should seriously consider applying for escorts.According to the International Maritime Bureau, there has been a rise in pirate attacks in the Somali area in 2009 from a year earlier, with at least 214 attacks, including 47 hijackings.Source:shiptalk

Pirates hijacked a ship carrying a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze off the northern tip of Somalia and took the 19 Chinese sailors onboard hostage, officials said. The Singaporean-flagged Golden Blessing was seized inside the internationally recommended transit corridor in the Gulf of Aden that is patrolled by the anti-piracy naval coalition, said Lt. Col. Per Klingvall, a spokesman for the European Unions anti-piracy force.All 19 crew are reported to be safe, he said. The ship was reported to be on its way from Saudi Arabia to India.Klingvall said the 14,445-ton chemical tanker was carrying a cargo of glycol ethylene which is used in antifreeze when it was captured approximately 60 miles (95 kilometers) off the northern Somali coast. The vessel was moving toward the Somali coast after the hijacking.Pirates rarely steal or damage the cargo of the ships they take, instead holding crews for multimillion-dollar ransoms. In 2008, pirates hijacked a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying 33 Soviet-designed tanks and crates of small arms but later released it after receiving a reported $3.2 million.The ship hijacked Monday is owned by Golden Pacific International Holdings Ltd. and is chartered out to Shanghai Dingheng Shipping Co. Ltd.In a statement, the Singapore Maritime...

New indices will compare the environmental performance of ships French-based classification society Bureau Veritas has introduced a Green Rating Composite Index which will provide charterers and regulators with a tool to compare the environmental performance of ships and will give owners a tool against which to assess environmental investment in the vessel.The move comes as IMO is developing its Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) as part of a strategy to meet anticipated changes to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. A Several major classification societies are working on competing indices which they believe meet a commercial need in addition to IMOs EEDI.BV says its Green Rating Composite Index builds on BVs international experience with rating the environmental performance of buildings and its research into new technologies to make ships more fuel efficient.BVs senior vice-president Didier Chaléat says: "To encourage the market to use the most environmentally-friendly ships, and to encourage owners and yards to invest in greener technology, we must have a clear standard to compare the environmental performance of ships. We have started two years ago with our Golden Pearls labels to allow cruise companies to show to the public the specific attention paid to environmental matters related...

New global and regional emissions caps now in place The more stringent regulations contained in the revised Annex VI (Regulations for the Prevention of Air Pollution from Ships) of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL convention) enter into force today, 1 July 2010. This means the sulphur limit applicable in the current Emission Control Areas (ECAs), the Baltic and North Seas, has now been reduced to 1.00%.The main changes to MARPOL Annex VI will see a progressive reduction of SOx emissions from ships, with the global sulphur cap reduced initially to 3.50% (from the current 4.50%), effective from 1 January 2012; then progressively to 0.50 %, effective from 1 January 2020, subject to a feasibility review to be completed no later than 2018.The revised Annex VI allows for Emission Control Areas (ECAs) to be designated for SOx and particulate matter, or NOx, or all three types of emissions from ships, subject to a proposal from a Party or Parties to the Annex, which would be considered for adoption by the Organization, if supported by a demonstrated need to prevent, reduce and control one or all three of those emissions from ships.The limits applicable in sulphur...

German classification society claims container vessel certification first Hamburg-based classification society Germanischer Lloyd (GL) says it has issued the first-ever IMO Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) certification for a large container vessel, Hapag Lloyds Vienna Express.The news comes as other classification societies, including just this week Frances BV, are developing their own indices. GL, however, is working to IMOs voluntary EEDI guidelines, MEPC.1/Circ.681 and 682.In a statement GL says that the EEDI value achieved by the Hapag-Lloyd vessel is significantly better than the present average vessel of this size (based on Lloyds database), underlining the high energy efficiency of the vessels design.GL says that the EEDI certification shows that leading members of the maritime industry are actively pursuing measures to improve the energy efficiency of merchant vessels and thus reducing the CO2-emissions considerably.The classification society notes that IMOs recent focus has been on the EEDI which is intended to become a mandatory newbuilding standard. The EEDI compares theoretical CO2 emissions and transport work of a vessel (gCO2/(t*nm)) and will eventually be benchmarked against an IMO-set requirement.As a ships EEDI represents the basic energy efficiency of a design, it can be used as a benchmark within an operators fleet as well...

India has called for the fullest cooperation among the SAARC countries to combat terror coordinated action that could include real-time intelligence sharing. India has called for the fullest cooperation among the SAARC countries to combat terror coordinated action that could include real-time intelligence sharing.The meeting of the interior ministers of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) also decided to consider Pakistans proposal for creating SAARCPOL, an institution on the lines of Interpol.Underlining the serious security situation in South Asia, Home Minister P. Chidambaram exhorted the eight SAARC members to share information on potential terrorists and planned acts of terrorism.The increasing threat of terrorism poses a major challenge to the maintenance of peace and security and adversely affects economic development in our region, Chidambaram said at the conference here.We can all undoubtedly agree that the South Asian region is faced with a serious security situation, he said.Home ministers from Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Afghanistan and the Maldives, besides India and Pakistan, participated in the conference to focus on security and counter-terror cooperation among the countries.Stressing that only the fullest cooperation will enable SAARC countries to effectively tackle the grave threat of terrorism in our region, Chidambaram asked whether...

A renewable power technology, an emissions performance index and a Californian port featured among the winners at the second Sustainable Shipping Awards, held in London last week. The variety apparent in the nominations across the categories underscored the growing efforts in marine sector to improve environmental performance. The audience heard addresses from José María Figueres, former President of Costa Rica and chairman of the Carbon War Room and the chairman of the International Maritime Organizations Marine Environment Committee (MEPC), Andreas Chrysostomou.The Environmental Technology award was of great interest but hard to pick, with nominations going to three quite different and not readily comparable technologies. SolarSailor won the category for its hybrid power systems for ships which see solar energy generated from an onboard wing of solar cells, which provide renewable power to supplement a conventional fuel-powered engine. The solar wing also acts as a sail, adding direct propulsion. The company boasts of 50 per cent fuel savings being realised from its hybrid energy ferries in use in Hong Kong. The hybrid technology is being commercialised internationally across the spectrum of ship types and size from large tankers to small yachts.Ecospec was another nominee in the technology category for its promising...

Governments at an IMO conference in Manila, Philippines on June 25 adopted amendments to the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW). The International Shipping Federation (ISF) and its member national associations have led maritime employers throughout the comprehensive review process. ISFs sister organisation, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), provided technical and operational advice.The most contentious issue to be resolved in Manila concerned the IMO minimum rest hour requirements with the ILO Maritime Labour Convention. As a result of proposals submitted to the conference by ISF, both daily and weekly exceptions to the minimum rest hour periods with appropriate safeguards have been maintained, while strong requirements for the recording, monitoring and enforcement of the minimum rest hour provisions have also been added.With the strengthened mandatory recording requirement we now expect increased focus from port state control on minimum rest hour compliance, particularly with the ILO Maritime Labour Convention also coming into force soon, said ISF/ICS Secretary General, Peter HinchliffeThe Manila amendments are adopted during the IMOs Year of the Seafarer on June 25.Source:shiptalk