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Panama Maritime Authority, ClassNK Ink MOU on Cybersecurity

admin — Sun, 28 Nov 2021 16:59:17 +0000

The Panama Maritime Authority has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan-based Class NK on cyber security.

The Panama Maritime Authority, aware of the role that maritime transport represents and the risks it faces because of the technological growth on board, said it wants to encourage all the Panamanian fleet’s shipowners, operators, and any other interested parties, to report incidences derived from any cyber event. That will help to better understand the cyber threats to which ships are exposed and implement more effective measures to control such risks.

A voluntary cyber incident reporting scheme has been developed through Merchant Marine Notice (MMN) 22/2021, which is available as of November 17, 2021, on the ship registry website.

The information received will allow the Panama Maritime Authority, in close collaboration with Class NK, to analyze the trends and patterns to which vessels are exposed in terms of cyber risk and thus propose measures to safeguard the efficiency of maritime transport.

ClassNK’s Hirofumi Takano, Executive Vice President, Director of Innovation Development Division, said, “Sharing a common objective to build onboard cyber resilience by cross-industry approach, I am pleased to embark the new partnership with PMA and contribute to maritime cyber security with our expertise. ClassNK has strived to develop rules and standards and conduct certification services based on outcomes gained through collaboration with front runners. We will continue to promote initiatives based on diverse partnerships and work to propose best practices related to ensuring cyber security suitable for shipping”.

Speaking on the occasion, PMA’s Eng. Rafael Cigarruista, General Director of Merchant Marine, said, “As a world largest flag sate, it is our duty to take action against cyber risk and contribute to the safety of maritime transport. In this occasion, we are very happy to conclude a MOU with ClassNK, a leading classification society putting effort into maritime cyber security. By integrating the knowledge and expertise from both flag state and classification society, we are confident in developing measures against cyber risks that are appropriate for the industry to deploy.”

Source: www.marinelink.com

Image: www.pexel.com

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Countries Agree to Create Green Shipping Lanes in Pursuit of Zero Carbon

admin — Sun, 14 Nov 2021 18:48:35 +0000

A coalition of 19 countries including Britain and the United States on Wednesday agreed to create zero emissions shipping trade routes between ports to speed up the decarbonization of the global maritime industry, officials involved said.

Shipping, which transports about 90% of world trade, accounts for nearly 3% of the world’s CO2 emissions.

U.N. shipping agency the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has said it aims to reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions from ships by 50% from 2008 levels by 2050. The goal is not aligned with the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change and the sector is under pressure to be more ambitious.

The signatory countries involved in the ‘Clydebank Declaration’, which was launched at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, agreed to support the establishment of at least six green corridors by 2025, which will require developing supplies of zero emissions fuels, the infrastructure required for decarbonization and regulatory frameworks.

“It is our aspiration to see many more corridors in operation by 2030,” their mission statement said.

Britain’s maritime minister Robert Courts said countries alone would not be able to decarbonize shipping routes without the commitment of private and non-governmental sectors.

“The UK and indeed many of the countries, companies and NGOs here today believe zero emissions international shipping is possible by 2050,” Courts said at the launch.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the declaration was “a big step forward for green shipping corridors and collective action”.

Buttigieg added that the United States was “pressing for the IMO to adopt a goal of zero emissions for international shipping by 2050”.

The IMO’s Secretary General Kitack Lim said on Saturday “we must upgrade our ambition, keeping up with the latest developments in the global community”.

Industry needs regulatory help
Jan Dieleman, president of ocean transportation with agri business giant Cargill, one of the world’s biggest ship charterers, said “the real challenge is to turn any statements (at COP26) into something meaningful”.

“The majority of the industry has accepted we need to decarbonize,” he told Reuters.

“Industry leadership needs to be followed up with global regulation and policies to ensure industry-wide transformation. We will not succeed without global regulation.”

Christian Ingerslev, chief executive of Maersk Tankers, which has over 210 oil products tankers under commercial management, said it had spent over $30 million over the last three years to bring their carbon emissions down through digital solutions.

“We need governments to not only back the regulatory push but also to help create the zero emissions fuels at scale,” he said.

“The only way this is going to work is to set a market-based measure through a carbon tax.”

Other signatory countries are Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Republic of Ireland, Japan, Marshall Islands, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden.

Source: www.marinelink.com

Image: www.pexel.com

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Lightweight sterngear for a greener planet

admin — Thu, 14 Oct 2021 14:50:45 +0000

A UK marine propulsion specialist company is partnering with the National Composites Centre to design lighter, more sustainable propulsion systems.

The CAPSULE project is a feasibility study aimed at adapting composite material technology developed for the aviation industry to the marine industry. This technology has the potential to not only directly reduce greenhouse emissions but also enable the transition to low emission and zero carbon energy systems such as batteries, fuel cells or hydrogen.

Teignbridge will be partnering with the National Composites Centre (NCC) who, as an integral part of the coreUK’s High Value Manufacturing Catapult, aim to accelerate the growth of UK industrial output by enabling design and manufacturing enterprises to deliver winning solutions in the application of composites. The NCC will bring its expertise to support this new application of composites through material selection, manufacturing process selection, composite design techniques and testing guidance.

Mark Phare, Director at Teignbridge commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with the National Composites Centre on this feasibility study and are confident that the output of the project will be the preliminary design of a composite propulsion system that maximises the opportunities and benefits of composite materials to improve efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enable the use of low energy density and zero carbon fuels. This new range of stern-gear components represents a new direction for Teignbridge and we are excited to explore this technology within the marine industry.”

Gary Offord, Technology Programme Manager and NCC lead for the CAPSULE projectfor NCC Surface Transport, added: “We are very excited about the opportunity this collaboration offers the UK. Teignbridge have a fantastic history in bronze cast precision performance propellers and stern gear. Merging their maritime and product knowledge with the NCC’s composite expertise creates the perfect partnership for success and a real opportunity to offer the market products that facilitate a route to net zero targets.”

Project CAPSULE is part of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition which is, funded by the Department for Transport and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK.

Source: www.maritimejournal.com

Image: www.pexels.com

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Soaring container rates risk stifling post-COVID recovery

admin — Thu, 11 Feb 2021 14:06:49 +0000

The surge in international container-shipping rates in recent months has left companies reliant on maritime transport facing delays and mounting costs that risk bogging down a post-coronavirus economic recovery.

The spot rate for shipping from Shanghai to the U.S. West Coast jumped to $4,000 per 40-foot container, according to the Shanghai Shipping Exchange — 2.4 times the year-earlier figure. Rates from Shanghai to Europe quadrupled to $4,400 per 20-foot container. Spot prices for shipments to Southeast Asia, South America and South Africa rose three- to sixfold to the highest levels in data going back to 2009.

The impact is reverberating across Japan’s businesses. A retailer that sells household products made in China and elsewhere said shipping costs increased dramatically, starting in December. Shipments from China and Southeast Asia to Japan can now cost more than four times what they used to, depending on the day of the week, according to the company.

The shipments themselves face delays as well. Some of its stores have sold out or are close to selling out of cleaning equipment and storage products.

A midtier farming machinery builder was forced to delay a Europe-bound shipment’s departure to February from January. “We weren’t able to cover the surge in shipping costs on our own, so we had our European client cover 50% this time as an exception,” a company representative said.

Another manufacturer, which exports auto parts from Southeast Asia to North America, said shipping companies have turned down certain cargo even when offered peak prices.

The company is working on improving its logistical efficiency and plans a comprehensive cost-cutting drive to help absorb the surge in shipping rates. But it will still likely be hard-pressed to cover the entire difference on its own and may eventually need to consider price hikes.

Shipping volumes have ballooned since last summer, which saw a surge in shipments to North America. Consumers cooped up at home snapped up products to suit their new lifestyles, with demand for big-ticket furniture and appliances in particular fed by a stock market rally and loose monetary policy. Shipments of auto parts and semiconductors picked up in the fall as well.

Maritime container shipments from Asia to the U.S. jumped 28% on the year in December, marking a fifth straight month of double-digit growth, according to the Japan Maritime Center.

This has led to containers piling up in the U.S. Exacerbating the problem is congestion at ports on the West Coast, where the surge in volume and the need for coronavirus precautions have slowed down cargo unloading, leaving ships and their containers stuck.

Cargo ships can currently wait a week or more before unloading there. A new cluster of coronavirus infections was discovered at a Los Angeles port in January, and there is concern that shipments could face further delays and rate hikes.

The tight global supply of containers has contributed to the jump in shipping rates to other destinations, including Europe, where shipments of personal computer peripherals and auto parts have begun picking up again, albeit somewhat later than in the U.S.

Shipping companies are working on an international framework for sharing empty containers, though industry insiders do not expect a quick fix. “I don’t think the container shortage will go away until at least May or June,” said Takashi Maruyama, a director at Mitsui O.S.K. Lines.

Source: Nikkei

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Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash

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