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The collision between the 'Colombia-Colombia II' and the tank barge 'Eiltank 65' (MMSI: 211513810)on the Volkerak on Jan 7, 2023, near Dinteloord was primarily the fault of the 'Colombia'. However, the Eiltank 65 was not entirely blameless and bears 15% of the blame, the Rotterdam District Court ruled. The vessels were sailing on opposite courses in the dark, with winds of force 5 and gusting to force 7. The 'Eiltank 65' struck the 202-meter long barge combination 'Colombia-Colombia II' almost amidships. At that moment, the barge was sailing in the wrong direction, in line with the 'Eiltank 65', and was simultaneously overtaken on starboard by another vessel. In the case brought by the owner of the 'Eiltank 65' against the 'Colombia', the latter was accused of being at fault for the collision. The 'Colombia' was not only sailing on the wrong side of the fairway, but also allegedly altered its course at the last moment in such a way that a collision became unavoidable and wrongly failed to yield right of way to the 'Eiltank 65'. Furthermore, the 'Colombia' failed to contact the radio or take any other measures to avoid the collision, according to the German company Eiltank. The Belgian owner of the 'Colombia' was invoking force majeure due to strong winds. In the event of force majeure, each party must bear its own damages. The owner of the 'Colombia' believed that both parties were 50% at fault for the collision. The Rotterdam District Court determined that there was no force majeure. In this case, the 'Colombia' is 85% at fault. This leaves Eiltank with a "minor contributory negligence" of 15%. The court based this assessment on several factors: While the wind was strong and the vessels were affected, it was not so strong that the collision was unavoidable. At the same time, it has not been established that the 'Colombia' indeed altered its course to port just before the collision. Eiltank did assert this, but did not substantiate it properly. Furthermore, under the circumstances, the 'Colombia' should have yielded to the right of way. This did not happen, according to the court. The court further argued that it was primarily up to the skipper of the 'Colombia' to contact his colleague on the 'Eiltank 65' by radio. This did not happen, and the 'Colombia' did not take any other precautions to prevent the collision. At the same time, the skipper of the'' Eiltank 65' could have foreseen the collision and contacted the 'Colombia' about it. Because this also did not happen, Eiltank bears a small portion of the blame. The hull damage, loss of time, and expert assessment costs amounted to over €96,000 for Eiltank. The owner of the 'Colombia' must pay 85% of this, or almost €81,700. The €56,300 already paid will be deducted from this, leaving an outstanding invoice of almost €25,400. This amount will be increased by the interest on several of the aforementioned amounts. There will also be an additional €7,000 in legal and collection costs. Because the 'Eiltank 65' was not entirely unscathed in the collision, some money must also be transferred in the opposite direction. The owner of the 'Colombia' will receive approximately €6,800 in damages, as well as approximately €2,000 in collection and legal costs.

The 'Nautilus' has found the ship's bell of the lost frigate USS 'De Haven- (DD-469,', the latest in a series of discoveries in a survey of the so-called "Iron Bottom Sound" off the Solomon Islands. The Fletcher-class destroyer was commissioned in September 1942and immediately departed for the Solomon Islands campaign. She escorted a convoy of troopships to Guadalcanal, then patrolled the archipelago to interdict Japanese forces for the next several months. On Feb 1, 1943, the 'De Haven' was escorting a small group of landing craft and a seaplane tender to a new beachhead on Guadalcanal. As she returned to the base with two of the landing craft, nine Japanese planes approached, and six turned to attack her. The 'De Haven' was hit by three bombs, killing the commanding officer and sinking the ship just off Savo Island. 167 crewmembers lost their lives. The wreck was discovered by Dr. Robert Ballard in 1992, and the the 'Nautilus' returned to the site in July to re-survey the vessel. With the assistance from live-stream video viewers, the research team found the bell dislodged from its mount and resting atop a torpedo mount amidships. Signs of deterioration and marine life colonization suggested that the timing of the find was lucky: some areas of the wreck have become heavily encrusted, and one of the other torpedo mounts has tilted due to deck collapse since the last survey. The team also conducted the first ever wreck exploration of the USS 'Walke', a Sims-class destroyer that sank off Savo Island during the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on (Nov. 15, 1942. The 'Walke' fired off about 300 five-inch rounds at three Japanese warships in a nighttime battle; she was hit by a torpedo in return, then by multiple rounds of shells. As she went down, her depth charges detonated, killing survivors in the water. The ROV exploration showed the ferocity of the fight: the bridge had been blown off and was found separately, and only about half of the length of the hull could be identified as a single structure. Both the bow and stern were missing. Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8oqLozxPV0g&t=416s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pfSGpiZ4WY&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.maritime-executive.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE

In the morning of Aug 17, 2019, around 7 a.m. a fire broke out aboard the Namibian trawler "Ocean Tide", 296 gt (IMO: 7220839), which was moored at the jetty of the Seaworks Fish Processors. One of the 20 crew members on board, was found dead following the fire. The deceased was identified as 40-year-old Hausiku Mathews Sivambo. It was believed he became trapped inside the vessel and burned to death. His body was removed the next morning. The family of the deceased was present at the scene. A police investigation into the cause of the fire was ongoing. Report with photo: https://www.nbc.na/news/one-dead-after-vessel-caught-fire-walvis-bay.21902

Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) announced a series of projects, totaling over $170 million of capital investment, that will increase efficiency, add product liquidity, and enhance blending capabilities at its Pasadena and Galena Park terminals, part of its best-in-class refined products storage hub on the Houston Ship Channel. In response to growing customer demand, KMI’s liquids terminal platform now boasts 10 ship docks, 38 barge spots, 20 inbound pipelines providing connectivity to 10 regional refineries and chemical plants, 15 outbound pipelines, 14 cross-channel lines, and approximately 43 million barrels of storage on the Houston Ship Channel, North America’s leading port for energy exports.

The collision between the 'Colombia-Colombia II' and the 'Eiltank 65' on the Volkerak on Jan 7, 2023, near Dinteloord was primarily the fault of the barge 'Colombia' (MMSI: 205253090). However, the 'Eiltank 65 was not entirely blameless and bears 15% of the blame, the Rotterdam District Court ruled. The vessels were sailing on opposite courses in the dark, with winds of force 5 and gusting to force 7. The 'Eiltank 65' struck the 202-meter long barge combination 'Colombia-Colombia II' almost amidships. At that moment, the barge was sailing in the wrong direction, in line with the 'Eiltank 65', and was simultaneously overtaken on starboard by another vessel. In the case brought by the owner of the 'Eiltank 65' against the 'Colombia', the latter was accused of being at fault for the collision. The 'Colombia' was not only sailing on the wrong side of the fairway, but also allegedly altered its course at the last moment in such a way that a collision became unavoidable and wrongly failed to yield right of way to the 'Eiltank 65'. Furthermore, the 'Colombia' failed to contact the radio or take any other measures to avoid the collision, according to the German company Eiltank. The Belgian owner of the 'Colombia' was invoking force majeure due to strong winds. In the event of force majeure, each party must bear its own damages. The owner of the 'Colombia' believed that both parties were 50% at fault for the collision. The Rotterdam District Court determined that there was no force majeure. In this case, the 'Colombia' is 85% at fault. This leaves Eiltank with a "minor contributory negligence" of 15%. The court based this assessment on several factors: While the wind was strong and the vessels were affected, it was not so strong that the collision was unavoidable. At the same time, it has not been established that the 'Colombia' indeed altered its course to port just before the collision. Eiltank did assert this, but did not substantiate it properly. Furthermore, under the circumstances, the 'Colombia' should have yielded to the right of way. This did not happen, according to the court. The court further argued that it was primarily up to the skipper of the 'Colombia' to contact his colleague on the 'Eiltank 65' by radio. This did not happen, and the 'Colombia' did not take any other precautions to prevent the collision. At the same time, the skipper of the'' Eiltank 65' could have foreseen the collision and contacted the 'Colombia' about it. Because this also did not happen, Eiltank bears a small portion of the blame. The hull damage, loss of time, and expert assessment costs amounted to over €96,000 for Eiltank. The owner of the 'Colombia' must pay 85% of this, or almost €81,700. The €56,300 already paid will be deducted from this, leaving an outstanding invoice of almost €25,400. This amount will be increased by the interest on several of the aforementioned amounts. There will also be an additional €7,000 in legal and collection costs. Because the 'Eiltank 65' was not entirely unscathed in the collision, some money must also be transferred in the opposite direction. The owner of the 'Colombia' will receive approximately €6,800 in damages, as well as approximately €2,000 in collection and legal costs.

As the summer maintenance season has started, the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense. The 'Nikolay Urvantsev' (IMO: 9750660), chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, 2025, and sailed around a week later. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Fedor Litke (IMO: 9768370)', operated by Dynagas, arrived at the Fayard A/S yard on July 17, following a delivery at Dunkerque, and remained in drydock as of July 24. Repairs and maintenance schedules have been significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. The Damen ship repair focuses on hull maintenance, which the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice. The Damen Shiprepair stated that the company was in compliance with all international sanctions legislation against Russia. As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU the yards’ activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet, related to the fear of sanctions. A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Christophe de Margerie' spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, the 'Sputnik Energy' and the 'Nova Energy' (IMO: 9324277), remained at Zhoushan yards.

Australia’s New South Wales government said on Wednesday it will fast track its review of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at the port of Newcastle, proposed by a South Korean firm, as the state urgently looks to beef up gas supply. The $430 million Newcastle GasDock LNG project, planned by South Korean firm EPIK, was declared “critical state significant infrastructure”, which means the project will not have to go to the state’s independent planning commission for approval, saving several months in the review process.

Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons. Germany’s largest universal port remains on a growth course, achieving a distinct 4.1 percent advance to 69.4 million tons in seaborne cargo handling in the first half of 2019. Especially good growth trend in the general cargo segment, up 6.1 percent at 48.4 million tons, was the main contributor to the excellent figures for total and container handling. The total for bulk cargo handling was just 0.3 percent lower than for last year’s first half at 21.0 million tons.

An incident between an iranian military helicopter and the USS 'Fitzgerald' took place on July 23, 2025, in the Gulf of Oman. The Iranian helicopter instructed the Arleigh Burke-class Aegis guided missile destroyer to change course. The U.S. warship was intercepted at approximately 10 a.m,. LT, as the vessel was entering Iranian-controlled waters. Iran responded by dispatching a navy helicopter, which passed over the warship and hovered nearby. Iran claimed the 'Fitzgerald' responded by telling the helicopter to leave the proximity and threatened twice to engage the helicopter. Iran further claimed that after repeated warnings, the 'USS Fitzgerald' changed course and continued in a southern direction. The U.S. Central Command and the U.S. Navy have not yet acknowledged the incident. Video: https://x.com/i/status/1948005842663694491

As the summer maintenance season has started, the first Arc7 ice-class gas carriers in service of the Yamal LNG project have arrived at the Fayard A/S shipyard in Odense. The 'Nikolay Urvantsev' (IMO: 9750660), chartered to Novatek’s Yamal LNG project, arrived at the drydock on June 26, 2025, and sailed around a week later. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Fedor Litke (IMO: 9768370)', operated by Dynagas, arrived at the Fayard A/S yard on July 17, following a delivery at Dunkerque, and remained in drydock as of July 24. Repairs and maintenance schedules have been significantly condensed for the Arctic LNG carriers due to their harsh operating conditions along Russia’s Northern Sea Route. The Damen ship repair focuses on hull maintenance, which the LNG carriers regularly require breaking a path through thick Arctic sea ice. The Damen Shiprepair stated that the company was in compliance with all international sanctions legislation against Russia. As the vessels have not been directly sanctioned by the U.S. or the EU the yards’ activities do not violate international law. Though procuring spare parts has become increasingly difficult, suppliers of gas chromatographs and flow meters used on LNG carriers have placed restrictions on the end user and no longer deliver parts to the vessels of the Yamal fleet, related to the fear of sanctions. A number of sanctioned LNG carriers, including an Arc7 and several Arc4 ice-class vessels, have recently resorted to receiving maintenance at Chinese yards. The Arc7 LNG carrier 'Christophe de Margerie' spent months at a Zhoushan Island yard east of Shanghai in summer 2024. Currently two additional sanctioned Russian gas carriers, the 'Sputnik Energy' (IMO: 9256602) and the 'Nova Energy', remained at Zhoushan yards.

Chinese city-gas distributor Shenzhen Gas will launch next week in southern China its first fully-owned terminal to import liquefied natural gas (LNG), a company executive told Reuters on Friday. This will make Shenzhen Gas the second city gas distributor backed by a local government that owns an LNG import facility.

ENCHANTED PRINCESS, the fifth in a line of six Royal Class ships built for Princess Cruises, was floated out on 6 August at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Monfalcone.