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The communication mast of the "Purau", 247 gt (IMO-No.: 8600155), suffered a bend while the tug was pushing a vessel up to the wharf in Lyttelton on Nov 27, 2018. The "Purau" slipped sideways and along the vessel and while she was pushing, and the curvature of the bow of the vessel above Purau bent her mast. No-one was hurt. A temporary repair was done the next day and the vessel remained safe to operate. Port operations were not affected. A permanent repair was to be done in mid-to-late January 2019. The LPC has reported the matter to Maritime New Zealand and wasconducting a detailed internal investigation. Report with photo: https://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/business/109247269/lyttelton-tug-still-works-after-accident

Houston-based liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter Cheniere Energy said the first commissioning cargo of LNG has loaded and departed from its Corpus Christi liquefaction facility in Texas. The LNG was loaded on the LNG carrier Maria Energy, chartered by Cheniere Marketing, said a press release. “Exporting the first commissioning cargo of LNG from Texas demonstrates Cheniere’s ability to deliver projects safely and ahead of schedule, including the first greenfield LNG export facility in the lower 48 states,” said Jack Fusco, Cheniere’s President and CEO.

About 34 vessels expected at seaports across the country, particularly in Lagos, may be impeded by dockworkers’ strike.This was contained in the Shipping Position issued yesterday by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). It revealed that many of the vessels are conveying Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol, Automated Gas Oil (AGO) or diesel, and general cargo goods, as well as sugar and wheat. The vessels, slated to arrive Lagos pilotage district from today to the end of the month might be in jeopardy, as dockworkers have endorsed the strike and are ready to shut the ports from business activities.However, four vessels that are waiting to be berthed and eight motor tankers that have already arrived the ports might be affected by the industrial action.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. opened Terminal A – the largest cruise terminal in the US – at PortMiami in Florida on 2 November. Designed by architecture firm Broadway Maylan, the 17,000-square-foot terminal was built on land leased by Miami-Dade County. The facility has been dubbed the ‘Crown of Miami’ because its structure evokes the points of Royal Caribbean’s crown and anchor logo when viewed from the water, as well as the ‘M’ of Miami when viewed from the east or western approaches, and waves rising or ships passing when seen from the terminal side. Terminal A was constructed in compliance with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards and is equipped with advanced technologies to enhance the waiting areas and expedite the boarding process. The terminal will serve as a homeport for Royal Caribbean International’s 5,400-guest Oasis-class ships, such as Allure of the Seas and the new Symphony of the Seas

90 cubic meters of sludge of the "Seikongen" that were still in Puerto Montt were pumped into trucks and deposited in the Hidronor treatment plant Copiulemu in a landfill of the Panitao sector in the Biobio Region. With the shipment of the sludge, the authority closed the entire process of unloading the decomposed salmon that remained aboard the "Seikongen". Spanish report with photo: https://www.cooperativa.cl/noticias/pais/region-del-biobio/lodos-del-barco-seikongen-fueron-arrojados-en-la-region-del-biobio/2018-12-11/153214.html

Greek dry bulk owner Diana Shipping has sealed a new charter for 2013-built panamax Ismene. The vessel will go out on charter today to Koch Shipping in Singapore for a period of 13-15 months at $12,125 per day. Despite an improving dry bulk market, the rate is only marginally higher than the $12,000 per day previously being paid for the vessel by DHL Project and Chartering. Diana Shipping says the new charter will generate around $4.6m of gross revenue based on the minimum time charter period.

Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port has received the Jin Tai Feng, a ship carrying 82,498 tons of corn. It is 235 meters long and draws 13.50 meters. It is the largest ship the port has ever received. This comes after development projects launched last year by the Saudi Ports Authority to strengthen the services at the Kingdom’s ports and to upgrade their capabilities and efficiency. The Yanbu commercial port handled 413,824 tons of various types of general cargo during July 2018 compared to 141,066 tons during July 2017 — an unprecedented increase of 193 percent. The Kingdom is working relentlessly to build a solid ground for the status of the Saudi Ports Authority as a leader in the ports sector which links the national economy with the international market.

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The world’s first liquid natural gas (LNG) carrier designed to traverse the world’s icy northern polar region was launched on Tuesday by Guangzhou Shipyard International Co. Ltd. for Dynacom of Greece. Yamal LNG has signed a long-term charter agreement for the ship with its owner Dynagas. The ship, named Boris Sokolov, will serve the world’s largest LNG project, the Yamal LNG plant in northwest Siberia. It is designed to cope with the extreme cold of the Arctic, where the temperature can fall below minus 50 degrees. It meets the highest rating of ice-breaking ability, as defined by Russia’s Maritime Register of Shipping. This means it can sail to and from the project at all times of the year.

The fast changing scene on the North American eastern seaboard is welcoming another voyage debut with news of a first direct link to Asia for Florida’s Port of Tampa. Cosco is adding Tampa to its Gulf of Mexico Express (GME) service. The first vessel to load containers for Tampa in China will be the 4,253 teu Cosco Piraeus, starting its eastbound trip on 24 December in Shanghai and scheduled to arrive at Tampa on 28 January, according to the latest weekly report from Alphaliner. The GME service is the smallest of the 18 all-water services linking Asia with the US east coast, and is the only service currently using just classic panamax ships of below 5,000 teu in capacity.

Coal shipments from the Port of Gladstone in Australia rose to a 22-month high in October on a strong lift in exports bound for India and South Korea, data released by the Gladstone Ports Corporation on Tuesday showed. A total of 6.69 million mt of coal was shipped from the Queensland port in October, up 10% year on year and 16% from September, the data showed. About 70% of the coal handled at Gladstone is metallurgical coal, GPC said.

Cruise passenger numbers hit an all-time high at Port Canaveral in Florida, US this year, helping the port to generate more than US$103 million in total revenues for the 2018 financial year. The number of passenger movements at Port Canaveral rose by 7.7% from 2017 to reach 4,568,431 in 2018. The port’s operating revenues for 2018 reached US$101.72 million, an all-time high for multi-day cruise ship passengers at the port. The figures are US$8.44 million above last year’s reported revenues and a 120% jump from 2008.