Snake boat to enter Guinness

‘Aries Chundan,’ the first ever snake boat made of steel, is all set to enter the Guinness Book of World Records for accommodating the largest canoe crew of 141 at Kochi, Kerala.

The boat, a design wonder crafted by Aries Marine and Engineering Services, performed the feat on May 1 with a crew of 141 rowers in the Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha, 70 km from Kochi, Chief Executive Officer of Aries Group S. K. Sohan Roy told. Local MLAs Thomas Chandy and K. K. Shaju inaugurated the event where Mr. Roy was also present. The existing record was held by a traditional snake boat for accommodating a crew of 118, Mr. Roy said. The annual snake boat race in Alappuzha is a major tourist attraction. The 143-feet long ‘Aries Chundan’ had already found a place in the Limca Book of Records as the longest snake boat made of steel, he said. This innovative steel snake boat had a scientific design, which was based on the latest scientific methods in naval architecture, he said. The boat’s shape and stability had been designed using the famous ‘Autoship’ software. The strength had been analysed by a finite element method, an overhanging test was conducted to analyse the longitudinal strength and a sinking test was conducted to prove its ‘unsinkability.’
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22,500-tonne cargo ship launched in Hai Phong

A 22,500 tonne cargo ship built by the Bach Dang Industrial Shipbuilding Corporation was launched in the port city of Hai Phong.

The Diamond Falcon No. 5, worth 19.5 million USD, is the fifth of 18 cargo ships to be built under a contract between the corporation and the Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinaline). The ship is 153.2m long, 26m wide and 13.7m high. It was designed by Vietnam-Japan joint venture Vinakita, with the 6,230 KW main engine made by Japan and about 40 percent of the ship equipment made locally. The corporation plans to build four ships of the kind in 2008.

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Austal Awarded FCL by DoD

Austal USA has been awarded a facility clearance (FCL) by the US Department of Defense.

The achievement elevates Austal USA to a new level of US defense supplier, allowing the shipyard to Prime for future classified US Government shipbuilding projects. The clearance was awarded after Austal USA entered into a Special Security Agreement (SSA) with the US Government following a process spanning more than three years, in which the company had to satisfy strict criteria surrounding foreign ownership, control or influence. As part of the process, an Austal USA Board – a subsidiary Board of Austal Limited - was established to allow the shipyard greater independence from its publicly owned Australian parent company.
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NACKS completes second dry dock

A second VLCC-capacity dock at Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering (NACKS) has been completed.

The yard, a joint venture between COSCO Group and Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corp, is building a 300,000 dwt VLOC in the new dock for COSCO. The dock is 500m long and 80m wide, with five cranes.

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Mitsui considers diversification plans to avoid new build oversupply problems

In attempt to avoid shipbuilding oversupply problems come 2010 or so, Japan's biggest shipbuilder Mitsui Engineering and Shipuilding (MES) is seeking to diversify its core businesses.

"We will use the profits earned by the shipbuilding and machinery divisions to launch and foster new businesses that will be profitable in 2010 and beyond," said President Yasuhiko Kato. Possible new directions for the company include extracting and solidifying natural gas hydrates for shipping, and the construction of floating offshore platforms to produce, store and offload crude oil and natural gas.
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Renaissance buys Qatari supply vessel operator

Oman's Renaissance Services will buy offshore supply vessel operator Doha Marine Services.

Under the QAR453 million (US$125 million) deal, Renaissance subsidiary Topaz Energy and Marine will buy the company in phases, and add four vessels to Doha Marine's Qatar fleet. The deal expands the Topaz fleet to 91 vessels, with 16 still under construction.
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