Importantly, there is some political support for USV operations, as they greatly reduce the likelihood of own-force casualties, and may help enable deniability in covert operations. Also, they are of particular interest to small, but ambitious navies, as they offer, potentially, a lot of bang per buck. Singapore is a major player in the USV arena, its vessels from the Protector-class hae seen front-line action in Middle Eastern waters. Besides these vessels, which were built by Israel’s Rafael. Now, Singapore is set to field its own USV, in the form of the ST Electronics' ‘Venus’, currently under development, and recently revealed at the IMDEX 09 naval exhibition and conference at the Lion City's Expo Centre. With a length of nine metres, and a beam of 2.8 metres, the ‘Venus’ has a designed maximum speed of 50 knots, and endurance of up to eight hours. ‘Venus’ will be fitted with modular weapons and sensor outfits, in accordance with operational requirements, which will equip it to carry out anti-submarine, surface warfare, mine countermeasures and surveillance missions.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Singapore unveils USV project
Unmanned surface vehicles (USV), which can be controlled from remote locations, ashore and afloat, form an increasingly important thread of the international naval tapestry.
Importantly, there is some political support for USV operations, as they greatly reduce the likelihood of own-force casualties, and may help enable deniability in covert operations. Also, they are of particular interest to small, but ambitious navies, as they offer, potentially, a lot of bang per buck. Singapore is a major player in the USV arena, its vessels from the Protector-class hae seen front-line action in Middle Eastern waters. Besides these vessels, which were built by Israel’s Rafael. Now, Singapore is set to field its own USV, in the form of the ST Electronics' ‘Venus’, currently under development, and recently revealed at the IMDEX 09 naval exhibition and conference at the Lion City's Expo Centre. With a length of nine metres, and a beam of 2.8 metres, the ‘Venus’ has a designed maximum speed of 50 knots, and endurance of up to eight hours. ‘Venus’ will be fitted with modular weapons and sensor outfits, in accordance with operational requirements, which will equip it to carry out anti-submarine, surface warfare, mine countermeasures and surveillance missions.Read More
Importantly, there is some political support for USV operations, as they greatly reduce the likelihood of own-force casualties, and may help enable deniability in covert operations. Also, they are of particular interest to small, but ambitious navies, as they offer, potentially, a lot of bang per buck. Singapore is a major player in the USV arena, its vessels from the Protector-class hae seen front-line action in Middle Eastern waters. Besides these vessels, which were built by Israel’s Rafael. Now, Singapore is set to field its own USV, in the form of the ST Electronics' ‘Venus’, currently under development, and recently revealed at the IMDEX 09 naval exhibition and conference at the Lion City's Expo Centre. With a length of nine metres, and a beam of 2.8 metres, the ‘Venus’ has a designed maximum speed of 50 knots, and endurance of up to eight hours. ‘Venus’ will be fitted with modular weapons and sensor outfits, in accordance with operational requirements, which will equip it to carry out anti-submarine, surface warfare, mine countermeasures and surveillance missions.
KOC raises prospect of workboat bonanza
Dubai: Workboat builders in the Gulf states are buzzing on news that the Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) plans to replace its ageing fleet of workboats with some 53 new vessels.
It is understood that KOC requires a range of different workboats including tugs, crew boats, work barges, mooring boats, a landing barge and an anti-pollution barge to replace existing vessels. The company has so far not gone public with its requirements but market sources believe that existing vessels will be phased out over the next three to four years as they approach the operating age limit under Kuwaiti safety regulations. Sources also believe that shipbuilders in the region will be well-placed to win a significant share of the construction contracts which could be worth up to half a billion dollars in total.
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MOL launches barge service from Cambodia
MOL (America) has launched a new barge service between Phnom Penh and North America.
The new service will employ Phnom Penh’s river barge terminal. Containers will be shipped via barge to Ho Chi Minh’s deepwater terminal and loaded on MOL’s line-haul vessels for direct service to North America and intra-Asia. The barge service will save MOL up to ten days of transit time to the US west coast and Canada. Customarily, containers from Phnom Penh are trucked to Sihanoukville in southern Cambodia where they are transferred to feeder vessels, shipped to Singapore and transshipped to line-haul vessels bound for North America. This new direct barge service to Ho Chi Minh will reduce intermodal travel, while completely eliminating the need for feeder services and transshipping in Singapore.
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Feeder Ship in Service, Hamburg to Finland
The feeder ship A La Marine was welcomed at the Port of Hamburg’s terminals on 8 June 2009 for the first time.
Built at the Peene Shipyard in Wolgast, which belongs to the Hegemann Group, the ship measures 557.7 ft in length and 82 ft in width and has a cargo carrying capacity of 1440 TEUs, as well as 316 connections for refrigerated containers (reefers).The new ship belongs to the fleet of the Belgian shipping company Delphis. Since being delivered it has been in service in the Baltic region for Delphis subsidiary Team Lines, one of the leading European operators of feeder services. Every 14 days the A La Marine puts in to the container terminals of the Finnish ports of Kotka and Helsinki.
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US report highlights importance of coastal activity
European governments and maritime interests will find relevance in an American report released last week which shows that ocean resources and coastal communities are vital to the overall economy, yet climate change poses a major threat.
The results of the first independent report on the ocean and the US economy, released by the National Ocean Economic Program (NOEP) during Capitol Hill Ocean Week, shows that in 2007, four in five Americans lived in coastal states, generating 83% of the nation's economic output, and contributing $11.4 trillion to the national gross domestic product (GDP). The report highlights the enormous overall value of the ocean and the nation's coasts, and the critical role these areas play in America's economic health and well being. The report also shows that these areas, which have been hit hard by the recession, are also under considerable future risk due to the effects of climate change, ocean acidification, and sea level rise.‘Our nation's economic recovery and stability depends on how we deal with the issue of climate change and what we do to protect valuable natural assets that serve to support the people and communities that live along our ocean and coastal areas as well as the entire nation’, said Dr. Judith T. Kildow, director of the NOEP.
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The results of the first independent report on the ocean and the US economy, released by the National Ocean Economic Program (NOEP) during Capitol Hill Ocean Week, shows that in 2007, four in five Americans lived in coastal states, generating 83% of the nation's economic output, and contributing $11.4 trillion to the national gross domestic product (GDP). The report highlights the enormous overall value of the ocean and the nation's coasts, and the critical role these areas play in America's economic health and well being. The report also shows that these areas, which have been hit hard by the recession, are also under considerable future risk due to the effects of climate change, ocean acidification, and sea level rise.‘Our nation's economic recovery and stability depends on how we deal with the issue of climate change and what we do to protect valuable natural assets that serve to support the people and communities that live along our ocean and coastal areas as well as the entire nation’, said Dr. Judith T. Kildow, director of the NOEP.
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