BP Marine helps to keep the ‘Angel’ flying

Mission to Seafarers receives oil for a year for support vessel Flying Angel to maintain vital link with stranded seafarers off UAE’s east coast

The Mission to Seafarers in Dubai, part of the international organisation that cares for seafarers regardless of race or religion in over 300 ports around the world, announced today that BP Marine has agreed to supply the M/V Flying Angel with its lube oil requirements for the following twelve months. “We are very happy to welcome BP Marine aboard, their generous donation of lube oil will help to ensure that the Flying Angel’s’ maintenance costs are kept to a minimum helping to maintain this vital link with distressed seafarers,” said Reverend Stephen Miller, Director and Port Chaplain, The Mission to Seafarers, Dubai. The UAE’s east coast is the second largest bunker anchorage in the world which is used by over 10,500 ships each year. During this time, over 200,000 seafarers are unable to communicate with family and friends at home for weeks, sometimes months, leading to isolation and loneliness. The vessel has an Internet café, a library with DVDs and books, a medical clinic, access to telecommunications and pastoral support.

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One dead, one wounded aboard ship freed by pirates

In a reminder of the deadly nature of Somali piracy, Dutch Marines on board the just-released MV Marathon found one seafarer dead from a gunshot wound and another with a bullet wound, but in stable condition.

The dead man was reportedly the vessel's second engineer and was killed in the initial attack on the vessel. The wounded man has been identified as a cook. The Marathon had a Ukrainian crew of eight. At a briefing today, the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Intelligence Service, Mykola Malomuzh, said the owners had paid a ransom of $1.3 million. It was air dropped to the ship Monday. The pirates seized the Netherlands Antilles-flagged vessel, owned by Western Marine Transport NV and managed by Amons & Co., on May 7. The 2,575-tonne ship was carrying coke and was westbound through the Gulf of Aden when it was seized inside the so called safe corridor. It was seen as a high risk vessel with a small freeboard and capable of just 10 knots. Personnel from the Royal Netherlands Navy frigate De Seven Provinciën are currently on board the Marathon and have been providing medical assistance and fresh food, water and fuel.

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Douglas-Westwood: floating production report

UK-based maritime market researcher and analyst Douglas-Westwood has produced a new report on the world’s floating production market.

In its report, Douglas-Westwood provides an overview of the current and future developments of floating production units from 2009 to 2013. According to its figures, 93 floating production units were installed over the past year, while it predicts that some 121 more units will be installed within the next five years. Douglas-Westwood said that the report would cover all types of floaters, including FPSOs, FPSSs, spars and TLPs. The report will analyse the technologies involeved and economic rationale for the use of these units. The energy business consultants added that one of the major factors which would determine the future direction of FPSO expenditure was whether the sector develop through upgrades or the re-deployment of existing units by converting existing vessels.

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CBD grants Yantai Raffles $150,000,000 loan

Singapore: Yantai Raffles Shipyard has signed a committed three year term loan facility with China Development Bank Corporation aimed primarily to retire more costly, existing bank debt and to establish working capital.

Mai Bo Liang, Chairman of Yantai Raffles’ Board said “Two of the priority objectives of the Company’s current Finance strategy are to establish and build upon key banking relationships in China, and to replace short-term bank lines with committed, longer term, competitively-priced funding arrangements. In securing this facility with CDB, Yantai Raffles has achieved an outcome that absolutely meets these two core objectives.”“Yantai Raffles is delighted to establish this business relationship with CDB and, with the ongoing commitment of Yantai Raffles’ two largest shareholders, Brian Chang and China International Marine Containers, and is confident that there will be opportunities to develop further areas of mutual cooperation with CDB,” he added.This transaction follows closely behind a Co-operation Agreement signed between CIMC and CDB in March 2009, in which CDB has provided CIMC with credit facilities of up to RMB 6.5bn ($1bn).

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Somali Pirate Attacks Boost Shipping Insurance Rates

The cost of piracy insurance has increased as much as 20-fold after attacks on shipping off the Horn of Africa doubled in the first quarter, insurance broker Marsh said.

Attacks on large commercial vessels such as the Sirius Star, a Saudi oil supertanker that was released in January, almost two months after it was hijacked with a cargo of 2 million barrels of oil, have spurred premiums and demand for coverage. Piracy “is a pretty challenging piece of risk to underwrite,” Marcus Baker, head of marine insurance at Marsh in London, said in a telephone interview. “These pirates are attacking up to 700 miles off shore.” The European Union extended its anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia by a year last week, warning of a “serious threat” to ships in the sea corridor that handles a tenth of the world’s trade. Armed gangs have seized at least 29 merchant ships this year and carried out 114 attacks, more than in all of 2008, according to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. “We had ships that were quoted at 0.05 percent on their value for a trip through the Gulf of Aden in the middle of last year, and we have had other ships recently quoted at 0.1 percent for the same trip,” Baker said.

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Petrobras, Vale Join Forces to Explore Offshore Brazil

Petrobras has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Vale S.A. which establishes the framework for a partnership to explore and produce oil and natural gas in part of BM-ES-22 concession, located off the northern coast of the state of Espírito Santo.

This concession is formed by ES-M-466, ES-M-468, ES-M-527 and ES-M-523 blocks, acquired by Petrobras at National Petroleum Agency (ANP) sixth bidding round. The blocks are situated at water depths of between one and two thousand meters and exploration is focused on the post-salt section. The object of the Memorandum is to establish the basis to negotiate the transfer of 25% working interest in the blocks ES-M 466, ES-M-468 and ES-M-527 to Vale and assure the exclusive right to Vale to acquire the participation of theses blocks during the tenor of the Memorandum. The final conditions of the negotiation have to be submitted for the approval of the ANP.

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