Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published by The Maritime Executive

Published Aug 10, 2022 1:13 AM by The Maritime Executive

Mining giant BHP has partnered with Pan Pacific Copper and Nippon Marine to try out a rotor sail system aboard a geared bulker. One Norsepower rotor sail with a tilting foundation will replace one of the deck cranes aboard the Koryu, a 53,000 dwt vessel that carriers ore from Chile to Japan. 

Norsepower’s modernized Flettner rotors provide the vessel with "push-button" wind propulsion, with no reefing or crew attention in use. The installation is scheduled for completion by the third quarter of 2023, and it may well be the first aboard a geared bulker.

When installed, it will make the Koryu the cleanest vessel in her category in terms of GHG emissions intensity, according to BHP. It helps that Koryu has one of the highest cargo utilization rates in her segment: she conducts a steady trade in both directions, carrying copper concentrate from Chile to Japan, then sulfuric acid from Japan back to Chile. 

"As fuel prices increase and a carbon levy is initiated, investing in technologies which have proven emissions reductions and fuel savings is essential for long term commercial success," said Norsepower CSO Jukka Kuuskoski. 

Rotor sail installations have been picking up speed in the bulker segment, where the vessels' wide-open deck spaces make the installation of the tall cylindrical towers more practical. The first rotor sail equipped bulker, the Afros, received its installation in 2018, and systems have been installed on ships up to the size of a very large ore carrier (VLOC). 

Published Aug 12, 2022 5:03 PM by The Maritime Executive

A group of Greenpeace activists in Germany targeted an Oldendorff cargo ship in their efforts to call attention to their demands to stop offshore drilling and gas production. The vessel, the Emma Oldendorff, was preparing to load a cargo of pipe bound for Western Australia as part of a new offshore LNG development being undertaken by Woodside. Greenpeace reports that 20 of its activists boarded four inflatable boats in the port of Brake on the Weser not far from Bremerhaven....

Published Aug 12, 2022 4:24 PM by The Maritime Executive

On Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard recognized the captain and crew of the boxship CGA CGM Herodote for saving three lives off the coast of Japan in March.  On March 21, 2022, while underway on a voyage from Saipan to Japan, the crew of the Herodote saw smoke from a fishing vessel about eight nautical miles away. Herodote diverted towards the fire and discovered a Japanese fishing vessel, the Yuujin Maru 51,  completely engulfed in flames. The vessel was burned...

Published Aug 12, 2022 3:25 PM by The Maritime Executive

For the second time this year, Indonesia has banned the export of coal saying it was falling short of its domestic targets. While the current move is only a partial ban against some miners it nonetheless comes at a difficult time raising concerns both in the bulker community and especially in Europe where the EU’s phased-in ban on Russian energy expanded this week to include a total ban on Russian coal imports. The Indonesian Energy and Mineral Resources Minister announced...

Published Aug 12, 2022 2:09 PM by The Maritime Executive

Greek bulker owner Diana Shipping has made a bold statement in its efforts to both grow and modernize its operations. The company, which primarily employs its fleet on short to medium-term time charters and transport a range of dry bulk cargoes, reached an agreement to buy nine bulkers currently owned by Sea Trade Holdings which will increase Diana’s capacity by more than 10 percent. The vessels, which make up Sea Trade’s entire fleet are also about half the average age...

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