The Nautical Institute (NI) is seeking a self-motivated maritime training professional to lead a number of key projects in the Dynamic Positioning field.

The post will involve developing and implementing NI training and certification services. This work will be integrated with all aspects of NI activity including membership, accreditation, the development of best practice, publications and other areas of the NI. It will be wholly focused on providing practical solutions with a professional ethos.

The successful candidate will meet the following criteria:

• NI DP certified, with a minimum of 3.5 years experience on different types of DP vessels.
• Membership of The Nautical Institute is desirable, as is some management experience.
• Have a good knowledge of the NI DP scheme and be up to date with industry regulations.
• Good communication and negotiation skills, computer literacy and proven writing
• ability. The ability to work with and develop a range of IT applications.
• Be able to work within a small team as well as independently, in a multi-tasking
• environment, displaying the highest professional standards.
• Empathy with people of different nationalities.
• The capability to keep track of and work on a number of areas at the same time is essential.

The position, expected to be based at NIHQ in London, will entail some European and overseas travel and will involve general promotion of the ethos and values of The Nautical Institute, as is the case for all staff.

This is envisaged to be a full time position and is offered with a salary circa £50,000 per annum depending on qualification and experience

Please apply with your CV and a covering letter to the Chief Executive:

The Nautical Institute, 202 Lambeth Road, London, SE1 7LQ, UK.

Email: cpw@nautinst.org Fax: +44 (0) 207 401 2817.

Deadline for applications: 15th August 2013.

The Norwegian Government has introduced a proposal to reduce the tax deduction called “uplift” in its petroleum tax system from 7.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent.

The overall uplift will therefore be reduced from 30 per cent to 22 per cent. The Government has suggested that this proposal will lead to more efficient use of resources, and over time will increase tax revenues. Furthermore, the Government has also proposed increasing its special petroleum tax from 50 to 51%.
However, Statoil has warned that this proposed change to tax breaks for investors on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) could threaten the attractiveness of future projects. Statoil has suggested that the uplift change would reduce tax deductions on NCS projects by USD 38 million for every USD 1 billion invested, and could therefore threaten the eco-nomical viability of some development plans.

This month AET performed its 10,000th fully serviced lightering operation in the US Gulf . Using its own personnel, equipment and lightering support vessel, AET successfully transferred 547,000 bbls of crude oil from Tankers International LLC’s V.K. Eddie, a VLCC, into one of its own Aframax tankers, Eagle Kinabalu, for SeaRiver Maritime, Inc.

Commenting on the achievement, AET President & CEO, Hor Weng Yew said:

“AET is the market leader in US Gulf lightering and we perform around 700 operations each year. Today is a milestone for our company and demonstrates our expertise in this highly specialised sector. This achievement would not have been possible without the continued support, trust and guidance from our customers and business partners, and I would like to express my deepest gratitude. In today’s market, it is important to remain flexible with the capability to deliver value-added services which is why we place such an emphasis on specialist activities such as lightering and dynamic positioning. Our offshore operation also has an excellent safety record.”

He went on say:

“Our company is continuing to grow and expand its capabilities. We are now performing lightering operations off the coast of Uruguay and we have long terms contracts in place to deliver dynamic positioning shuttle tanker services in the Brazilian Basin and in the Barents Sea.”

AET began US Gulf lightering in 1994 with three Aframax tankers, three mooring masters and a support staff of just six people. Today, the company operates over 30 vessels in this region and employs 16 mooring masters and over 100 support staff working from its newly built shore facility at Galveston, Texas. In 2011 and 2012, AET invested in a fleet of four purpose designed and built lightering support vessels (the first in the world) to give added flexibility and enhanced levels of safety to its offshore operations.

There are many recent changes in regulation and others on the horizon that will impact on dynamic positioning (DP), and for this reason IDPOA will be taking part in a panel debate during the fifth European Dynamic Positioning Conference being held in London this week.

The panel debate is set to look at some of the changes and their impact on the sector, in particular on people and equipment. There are the changes to the dynamic positing operator (DPO) training, experience and certification with now two systems available and a third likely in the near future.

According to Ian Giddings of IMCA, who will give a presentation during the conference, “With the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) including guidance on the training and experience of personnel operating dynamic positioning systems in the revised STCW Code it seems this area will grow. Furthermore it has led to the need to revise IMCA’s document ‘The Training and Experience of Key DP Personnel”.

He adds, “Also regulations and guidance covering both DP equipment and operations have been looked at by many parties. The revision of IMO MSC/Circ. 645 Guidelines for vessels with dynamic positioning systems has been placed on the IMO Ship Design and Equipment sub-committee work agenda.

“This has been, and will be, supplemented by addition of some documents such as the Marine Technology Society’s DP operations guidance and the revision of IMCA’s ‘Guidelines for the Design and Operation of Dynamically Positioned Vessels’ and of the ‘International Guidelines for the Safe Operation of Dynamically Positioned Offshore Supply Vessels’.

“Finally with many flag states and maritime administrations looking at their own regulation and guidance on DP, revising existing guidance and producing new guidance where necessary, during my presentation I will look at some of these locally based regulations, as well as some of the guidance available for use worldwide such as the revised NWEA guidelines, now entitled ‘Guidelines for Offshore Marine Operations’.”

Further information on the European Dynamic Positioning Conference is at www.rivieramm.com/events/european-dynamic-positioning-conference-2013-47/event-home-663

Kongsberg Maritime is set to launch a new solution for the distribution of Radar data on board ships. Utilisation of an Ethernet based LAN (Local Area Network) is a significant addition to Kongsberg Maritime’s K-Bridge Integrated Bridge System and is capable of improving safety and navigation through enhanced Radar functionality whilst offering significant installation benefits. The system is currently undergoing Type Approval testing at DNV, with first customer delivery in Autumn 2013.

The LAN topology is based on a newly developed Radar Interface Network (RIN) unit to be located at each antenna, connected to the Multi Functional Display (MFD) units on the K-Bridge by a Local Area Network (LAN). Former Radar network topology uses analogue cables and an interswitch, which limits network design, the number of displays data can be sent to and how the data may be handled and presented.

Kongsberg Maritime’s LAN network architecture uses contemporary networking methodology. Radar data can be shared by an unlimited number of Multi Functional Displays (MFD’s) without a dedicated Radar interswitch. The MFD can be configured as a standard Radar display, or it may be configured with additional views combining information from several integrated subsystems. An example of this is the possibility of views mixing the Radar image with data from a dynamic positioning system.

The new Radar topology provides significant enhancements in how Radar data is presented, made possible because of the digital network, improved signal processing and automatic Radar and picture tuning. Images from several Radar antennas can be viewed on the same screen including the possibility to view both X-band and S-band data in the same image. By presenting a picture compiled in real-time from several Radar antennas, the operator is given a high quality, detailed picture that displays seamless tracking of up to 1000 targets in a full 360 degree view.

Because the Radar LAN is based on standard Ethernet data cables instead of the analogue cables traditionally used for Radar, much longer distances between the display and antenna can be achieved, which enables more flexible network design with considerably lower installation and maintenance costs.

“The new Radar topology introduces digital networking to Radar, so it is a significant step-forward in navigation and safety technology,” comments Gudbrand Strømmen, Navigation Development Department Manager, Kongsberg Maritime. “The possibilities this introduces can transform how Radar is used on board. At the same time, we are able to offer such a wide range of new functionality, that will improve navigation safety and efficiency whilst reducing installation costs and providing a highly redundant and easy to maintain Radar system.”

International classification society RINA launched new rules for Offshore Support Vessels, new environmental notations covering cargo handling and transshipment operations and a new guide on complete ship model calculation of passenger ships.

All these initiatives were approved at a meeting of RINA’s technical committee held in Genoa this week.

OSV Rules
The free-standing and user-friendly Offshore Support Vessels (OSV) Rules have been developed in response to requests from shipyards and operators.

Ships complying with the new rules are assigned the Service Notation Offshore Support Vessel followed by at least one of the following service features defining the specialized service: supply for OSVs specially intended to provide facilities and assistance for the performance of offshore activities; tug for OSVs specially equipped for towing; salvage tug for OSVs specially equipped for towing having specific equipment for salvage; escort tug for OSVs specially equipped for towing and having specific equipment for escorting ships or other units during navigation; firefighting for OSVs specially intended and equipped for fighting fire; oil recovery for OSVs specially equipped with fixed installations and/or mobile equipment for the removal of oil from the sea surface and its retention on board, carriage and subsequent unloading; diving support for OSVs equipped to support diving operations, which are provided with a diving system; cable laying for OSVs specially equipped for the carriage and/or laying, hauling and repair of submarine cables and pipe laying for OSVs specially equipped for the carriage and/or laying, hauling and repair of submarine pipes.

In addition, in order to better describe the specific technical capabilities, equipment and arrangements, RINA has established a number of additional service features and additional class notations that may be assigned to an OSV, such as anchor handling and dynamic positioning.

Environmental Notations
RINA has introduced new requirements for the certification and the evaluation of the environmental impact of dry cargo handling systems. These respond to demands from transshipment and bulk port operators in sensitive areas which wish to demonstrate environmental responsibility and high standards of minimizing airborne pollution from cargo handling.

The following two new additional class notations may be granted: GC Cargo Handling (Green and certified cargo handling systems) to ships provided with systems for handling solid bulk cargo which may be source of sea or air pollution (e.g. those handling coal, iron ore, sulphur, etc,), designed, tested and installed according to Part F Ch 7 Sec 6 to minimize their environmental impact; and Green Plus T to transshipment units  intended to operate at a fixed location, complying with the provisions for the assignment of the GREEN PLUS notation and complying with the provisions for the assignment of the GC CARGO HANDLING (Green and certified cargo handling systems) notation.

Guide on Complete Ship Model Calculation of Passenger Ships
RINA launched a guide aimed at shipyards and ship designers which details the procedures for the structural analysis of passenger vessels.

The structural arrangement of passenger ships presents significant differences with respect to other ship types, the most important being the presence of several decks contributing to the hull girder longitudinal strength.

The contribution of each deck to the longitudinal strength strictly depends on the actual arrangement and cannot be evaluated on the basis of a simplified beam analysis. The level of contribution of each of these elements is to be obtained through a finite element analysis of the whole ship.

The purpose of the Guide is to detail the procedure for the above analyses, taking into account the general arrangement of the longitudinal elements (side, decks, bulkheads) and the specific characteristic of passenger ships (windows, openings, recesses, pillaring systems).

Ensco plc has ordered an additional advanced-capability DP3 ultra-deepwater drillship based on the Samsung GF12000 hull design. The vessel, ENSCO DS-10, will be the eighth Samsung DP3 drillship in the Ensco fleet, further extending the benefits of Ensco’s fleet standardization strategy. It will be built at the Samsung Heavy Industries, Co. Ltd. (SHI) shipyard in South Korea, with delivery scheduled for the third quarter of 2015. The agreement includes an option for an additional drillship of the same design.

“Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations”
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ENSCO DS-8 and ENSCO DS-9, also based on the GF12000 hull design, are scheduled for delivery in 2014. Ensco is currently the only drilling contractor offering the advanced features of the GF12000 hull design.

Ensco Chairman, President and CEO Dan Rabun said, “We continue to see very strong demand for rigs in existing deepwater markets, along with growing demand from emerging exploration areas. Operators are also showing high interest in this iteration of the Samsung DP3 drillship, due to its advanced design and capabilities that improve drilling productivity and fuel efficiency – two key factors that affect the operator’s project costs.”

“We have a track record of providing rigs that allow our customers to improve performance and operate efficiently, and the advances on these most recent drillship orders are again all about helping our customers succeed,” Rabun added. “Our strategy of fleet standardization further benefits our customers by providing consistency in systems and operational excellence.”

Including commissioning, systems integration testing, project management and tubulars, the construction cost is expected to be approximately $625 million.

Measuring 755 feet in length and 125 feet in width, ENSCO DS-10 will offer a 1,250-ton hoisting system with enhanced offline capability. Like ENSCO DS-8 and ENSCO DS-9, the new unit will have advanced capabilities to meet the demands of ultra-deepwater drilling in water depths of up to 12,000 feet and a total vertical drilling depth of 40,000 feet. It will be initially outfitted to work in water depths up to 10,000 feet.

Features include: retractable thrusters; enhanced safety and environmental features; improved dynamic positioning capabilities; and advanced drilling and completion functionality, including below-main-deck riser storage, triple fluid systems and offline conditioning capability. The drillship also incorporates enhanced client and third-party facilities with living quarters for up to 200 personnel.

A 165-ton active heave compensating construction crane allows for deployment of subsea production equipment without interference with ongoing drilling operations. ENSCO DS-10 includes a 15,000-psi subsea well control system with seven rams and can accommodate a second BOP stack.

Ensco’s four active DP3 drillships are currently working in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, Brazil and West Africa. Three are contracted into 2016 and the fourth is contracted into 2018. A fifth drillship, ENSCO DS-7, scheduled for delivery later in 2013, is contracted to Total into 2016.

Echosounders from KONGSBERG will play a part in the American Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI), for the monitoring subsea life along both US coasts.  OOI is a cable-based array of scientific sensors designed to monitor the marine habitat. Everything from fish and plant life, to chemical, physical and geological changes will be measured.

“Given the global climate changes, it is vital for researchers to learn as much as possible about ocean life and any changes that are taking place. This type of technology gives insight into what changes  are actually taking place over time,” explains Frank Reier Knudsen, marine biologist and business development manager at Kongsberg Maritime.

International scientists need more to learn more about life in the sea. Now they have new technology at their disposal. Using KONGSBERG echosounders, scientists can study marine mammals such as whales,  as well as fish and plankton. They can also monitor climate variations in marine ecosystems, to mention just a few of the options available.

“This information is crucial, for example, for implementing the global measures needed to protect the tremendous biodiversity of marine life,” continues Reier Knudsen.

It is not only along the US coasts where environmental experts are building up this kind of monitoring network. Similar initiatives are taking off on the coasts of Australia, Canada and Africa, as  well as in Norway’s own Arctic waters of Lofoten. The Norwegian Ocean Observatory Network (NOON), with which Kongsberg Maritime is affiliated, is a project designed to monitor the complex environmental  and climatic changes resulting from global warming. Kongsberg Maritime is providing Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and satellite surveillance, among other services. The research material makes  it possible to observe changes over time throughout the ecosystem and to see how they affect ocean currents, commercial fishing and installations, and possibly even to examine the effects of the offshore  industry.

“For Kongsberg Maritime, it is exciting to be chosen as a partner for the OOI contract. It also offers a golden opportunity for testing our technical environmental monitoring solutions on real applications  in collaboration with others. The contract will help us to gain valuable experience for further developing our solution to meet future scenarios and monitoring requirements. At the same time, we are very  pleased to see that KONGSBERG’s technology and expertise in this area are becoming more visible,” comments Arild Brevik, Business Development, Subsea Environmental Monitoring.

The technical solution being supplied under the OOI contract is part of KONGSBERG’S total solution for subsea environmental monitoring. The solution encompasses stationary and mobile sensor platforms,  integrated subsea arrays of sensors and topside systems.

“The technical solutions are under continuous development. We’re looking forward to collaborating on OOI with our US colleagues,” concludes Brevik.

Offshore drilling giant, Transocean Ltd. (RIG  -  Analyst Report) recently issued a Fleet Update Summary for the period commencing Apr 18, 2013 to date. The value of all the new deals and extensions in the same time frame is estimated to be roughly $662 million. The update covers the company’s offshore drilling rig status and contract information.

Per the report, Deepwater Millennium, a Dynamic Positioning drillship, got a contract to work offshore Australia for two years. The dayrate is expected to be around $605,000. Previously, the rig was operating at a dayrate of $545,000. Transocean added that the contract is expected to add $442 million to the existing backlog.

Moreover, Transocean John Shaw, a semi-submersible rig, got a contract extension offer to work for a year in the North Sea’s U.K. sector. The unit will operate at a dayrate of $415,000. The contract is estimated to add $151 million to the backlog of Transocean. Previously, the rig was operating at a dayrate of $360,000.

Included in the report, Jack Bates, a semi-submersible rig, got a contract for operating three wells, situated offshore Australia. The unit is expected to work at a dayrate of $525,000. The deal will add $47 million to the company’s backlog. Management added that the rig was earlier working at a dayrate of $380,000.

The report also revealed that Falcon 100 – Transocean’s midwater floater – is out of contract presently. Further, as per the Fleet Update Summary, the out-of-service time expected for 2013 increased by 117 days.

Switzerland-based Transocean is the world’s largest offshore drilling contractor and the leading provider of drilling management services worldwide. With less oil being discovered on land and with companies having to dig deeper to get to their reserves, Transocean is poised to benefit from a market with robust multi-year demand trends, given its technologically-advanced and versatile drilling fleet.

On the flip side, dayrates on rigs are likely to come under pressure as global capacity is freed up due to concerns over the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) drilling uncertainties. We believe Transocean will continue to face challenges in renewing and obtaining contracts on favorable terms.

Ron Huibers has been on the job as president of Volvo Penta Region America for just more than six months, but upon entering the position in the autumn of 2013, the goal for the engine industry veteran was clear:  “We have the mandate to grow the business substantially; we want to double the business in the next few years.”

A strong brand in the leisure marine segment, Volvo Penta is now making the moves it believes will help it fortify and extend as a player in the commercial marine engine sector, and Huibers believes that he has the people, the corporate infrastructure and most importantly the products to hit the aggressive sales targets. Volvo Penta is a part of the Swedish Volvo Group, a leading power supplier for the truck, bus, construction machine, industrial and marine sectors to over 180 countries around the world. Huibers, who previously served as the head of the truck division, hopes to leverage Volvo’s technology in those markets to address the needs of the commercial marine market.

Streamlined Operations
Effective January 1, 2013, the company underwent a major restructuring in this hemisphere, folding its Latin American operations into  its North American business unit, creating a single unified organization, for which Huibers now has responsibility for all of Volvo Penta’s commercial marine, leisure marine and industrial engine business from the North Slope of Alaska to the tip of Cape Horn, including the Caribbean, from his headquarters in Chesapeake, Va.
“If you look at the numbers, our business has been up 5% (Volvo Penta America),“ Huibers said. “While it is still well down from historical numbers, I think we are starting to see some firming up and cause for optimism.”
The streamlining of North American operations is designed to provide better and faster service to customers in Latin America from the U.S., whereas previously the Latin American countries fell under the international group based in Sweden. “We are creating a single business unit with commonality in practices, procedures, sales, service and support,” he said. “We have already made important appointments for OEM and aftermarket business in our Latin American operation center in Curitiba, Brazil. We will make additional changes to strengthen our operation, distribution channels and technical support this year.”

The Product
Volvo Penta offers marine diesel engines ranging from 120 to 900 hp, suitable for tugs, commercial fishing craft, pilot boats, offshore supply vessels, inland and coastal ships, as well as a range of auxiliary engines and gensets for commercial applications.
Last autumn the company announced that it had supplied the main propulsion system for the new 60-ft tug Ted Kayser, which was recently delivered to Kathryn Rae Towing of Hahnville, La. The installation was overseen by Allemand Industries, the Volvo Penta Power Center in Harvey, La. The vessel’s two Volvo Penta D16 engines each provide continuous 650 hp at 1,800 rpm. The engines drive a pair of Rolls Royce four-bladed stainless steel propellers through Twin Disc MGX5222 5.04:1 marine gears. David LeBlanc, product manager at Allemand, said, “The D16 engines are ideally suited for tugboats because their low-end torque enables the vessel to start pushing when the rpm reaches 1,100. The result is good momentum from the start at a lower rpm and better fuel economy.”
In addition, Huibers noted a pair of recent commercial marine projects as examples of Volvo Penta’s range of technologies and capabilities. The first is the propulsion systems for six new custom 13.9m (46-ft.) power catamarans, which were built last year for use as course markers and VIP viewing platforms for the America’s Cup racing events.  The vessels were designed by Australian naval architects One2three and built by East Asia Composites.  The boats’ twin Volvo D6-330 engines and IPS450 pod drives are linked to the GPS for automatic precise position keeping when serving as a course marker, even in strong currents and wind conditions. “The captains were very pleased with the Volvo Penta propulsion and dynamic positioning systems, which enabled them to keep the boats precisely on station without anchor lines,” said Helmut Ahollinger, president of Helmut’s Marine Service, the Volvo Penta Power Center in the San Francisco area. “This is a tremendous improvement over the smaller outboard boats used in the past, which needed constant manual maneuvering to hold a steady position. And, unlike fixed buoys, the marker vessels can easily and quickly be repositioned as needed to alter the race course for changing weather conditions.”
The second project is a Volvo Penta diesel-electric hybrid plant for the inland waterway tanker MTS Duandra, which was commissioned last year in Benelux. The ship’s two standard Volvo Penta D16 MG gensets generate power for on-board electricity, thruster, cargo pumps and two electric engines which are part of the propulsion system. The propulsion system consists of a 750 hp Volvo Penta engine connected to a MMW1700 gearbox. On the gearbox a 475 hp electric motor is also connected, and together they can drive the 1,225 hp designed propeller to full speed on request. The propeller can be diesel-electric, diesel-direct or combined driven, so the skipper can always find the most efficient way of propulsion and has a lot of redundancy which guarantees an almost 100% uptime of the ship. This setup, according to the manufacturer, reduces the total installed diesel power on-board by approximately 30% compared to a conventionally built ship. The savings made were used to invest in the extra electric equipment, catalytic converters and particulate filters on all the D16 engines. By using this technique the NOx emissions are reduced by 70-90% and particulates are reduced by about 40%.
Building and maintaining a technically advanced line takes considerable R&D investment, and while Huibers would not share specific dollar amounts, he indicated the company has a long and strong history of investing in future tech.
Our core values are quality, safety and environmental care,” Huibers said. “When the truck buiness collapsed 66%, our company didn’t pull back, it doubled down on its R&D investment and we came out ahead. Today Volvo Penta is investing heavily in R&D to reduce emissions and fuel consumption and minimize downtime in its commercial marine engines.
“With our SCR and DPM filtration technologies we are in conformance with EPA Tier 3 standards in our marine diesel engines,” he said. “We are already supplying Tier 4 engines for industrial applications. In fact, we have Volvo Penta Tier 4 industrial engines powering heavy machinery in underground mines, which have some of the world’s most stringent clean-air requirements, so we understand what it takes to meet emission standards with our marine diesels.”

LNG in its Future?
While the marine operators are starting to move towards the use of LNG as fuel onboard ships of varying sizes, Huibers is not ready yet to coronate LNG technology, citing a number of obstacles and challenges inherent with the fuel and ancillary systems on the vessel and shoreside.
“As part of the larger Volvo Group, we have access to the tremendous R&D facilities of the larger organization, which is actively launching LNG, DME, hybrid and other alternative fuels for trucks, buses and construction machines. While LNG is less expensive and has considerable potential to reduce emissions, we do not believe it will replace diesel as the fuel-of-choice in the near future,” Huibers said. “There are enormous barriers to the widespread use of LNG as a marine fuel, in terms of the infrastructure required to produce and distribute to the market. The handling costs of LNG are high. We will keep a close eye on developments and will bring new alternative-fuel products to market as warranted by demand, timing and technology.”