General News

Finland`s main shipyards have been busy with corporate changes as well as with newbuildings. Kvaerner ASA plans to reduce its debt burden by raising a reported NKr2.5 billion ($39.28 million) through the…

The shipyard Material Management and Production Control System (MARS) from Logimatic has been ordered by two shipyards in Europe. The Gdynia Shipyard in Poland has taken the complete MARS system as an…

As competition increases and the market continues to suffer, the possibility of class society mergers gets closer. There are likely to be mergers or alliances among classification societies within the next few…

EC-sponsored multi-modal satellite navigation trials are being conducted by Racal in the Baltic Sea, where a Colour Line ferry is using Racal`s prototype EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service) system for the…

Chevron has taken delivery of the first of a new class of four VLCCs with a number of interesting features. The four VLCCs, which were contracted at Samsung Heavy Industries in South…

P&O Cruises` flagship Oriana will undergo a two and a half week refit at A&P`s Southampton yard commencing April 14. It is the second scheduled refit for the 1995-built vessel. The programme…

FastShip is to install 250MW (340,000 bhp) in each of its high-speed container ships to achieve a service speed of 40 knots on the route between the USA and Europe. The company…

Oil major Shell International Trading and Shipping Company (STASCo) has signed an evergreen alliance agreement with Sembawang Shipyard of Singapore. The agreement commits the scheduled refit and drydocking of the Shell fleet…

Figures from Lloyd`s Register shows the world orderbook grew by 2.1 million gross tonnage (mgt) in the quarter to end-September 1998 to stand at 57.7mgt (2,727 sea-going merchant ships over 100gt). Almost…

Details of the Syncrolift shiplift system that will form the heart of the new Abu Dhabi Shipbuilding (ADSB) yard have been released. The new lift will measure 120 x 25m and operate…