For the past year we have been sourcing and publishing a selection of industry related blogs, under categories such as piracy, tankers and the BDI

Our curation focuses on solving ‘filter failure’ to ensure that spammy, irrelevant results don’t get through: we hope that you agree when we say we think we do a good job on that!

Blog monitoring fits our mission at Coracle of working in partnership with our customers to create and deliver bespoke professional development products that transcend all boundaries in a cost effective, time critical manner. We are proud to be providing the services that we do.

The blog monitoring at Coracle Voice has been provided for free for most of 2010 and we have had some very positive feedback to the service, however, due to changes in underlying licenses and the need to expand our team to meet demand, we are going to stop publishing our findings freely and move to a subscription service. (Please note that this change will not affect the Twitter Top 40 or top stories on twitter feed)

The new subscription is being offered on a 12 month basis as follows:
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We look forward to hearing from you,

Tanker Blog mentions for November 17, 2010 showing 17 entries

1. Russian navy vs Somali pirates – part 2

   mybroadband.co.za — This videotape shows Russian Navy commandos on a Somali pirate ship shortly after the pirates had captured a Russian oil tanker. … The soldiers freed their compatriots and the tanker.. .

   Quote:

   This videotape shows Russian Navy commandos on a Somali pirate ship shortly after the pirates had captured a Russian oil tanker. The Euro Union navy that patrols these waters would not interfere because they feared there could be casualties. All explanations are in Russian with a few exceptions when a wounded pirate says something in English and the Russian Soldier comments. All conversations between the commandos are in Russian; however, the pictures speak for themselves.

   The soldiers freed their compatriots and the tanker.

   After capture, the Russian Navy Commandos moved the pirates back to the pirate ship, searched the pirate ship for weapons and explosives, and then they left the ship and exploded it with all remaining pirates hand-cuffed to it. The commandos sank the pirate ship along with the pirates and without any court proceedings, lawyers etc. That is, they used the anti-piracy laws of the 18th and 19th centuries where the captain of the rescuing ship has the right to decide what to do with the pirates. Usually, they were hung.

   http://true-turtle.livejournal.com/85315.html

   Nicely done, Russia

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

2. 11/15/10 – Shipping + Power Experts Explore Nuclear Power Commercial Tankers

   bestshippingnews.com — The Strategic Research Group at Lloyd’s Register, Hyperion Power Generation Inc, British designer BMT Nigel Gee and Greek ship operator Enterprises Shipping and Trading SA are to lead the research

   

   

   A consortium of British, American and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors as commercial tanker-owners search for new designs that could deliver safer, cleaner and commercially viable forms of propulsion for the global fleet.

   The Strategic Research Group at Lloyd’s Register, Hyperion Power Generation Inc, British designer BMT Nigel Gee and Greek ship operator Enterprises Shipping and Trading SA are to lead the research into nuclear propulsion, which they believe is technically feasible and has the potential to drastically reduce the CO2 emissions caused by commercial shipping.

   ‘This a very exciting project,’ said Lloyd’s Register CEO, Richard Sadler. ‘We believe that as society recognises the limited choices available in the low-carbon, oil-scarce economy — and as land-based nuclear plants become common place — we will see nuclear ships on specific trade routes sooner than many people currently anticipate.’

   The agreement for the joint industry project was signed today at the offices of Enterprises Shipping and Trading in Athens, Greece.

   Enterprises’ Victor Restis said: “Despite the fact that shipping contributes much less to the world’s atmospheric pollution than other shore-based industries, we believe that no effort is too great when it comes to safeguarding a better world for future generations. We are extremely honoured and proud to be part of this consortium at this historic event, as we strongly believe that alternative power generation is the answer for shipping transportation.”

   The consortium believes that SMRs, with a thermal power output of more than 68 megawatts, have the potential to be used as a plug-in nuclear ‘battery’.

   The research is intended to produce a concept tanker-ship design based on conventional and ‘modular’ concepts. Special attention will be paid to analysis of a vessel’s lifecycle cost as well as to hull-form designs and structural layout, including grounding and collision protection.

   “We are enthusiastic about participating in the historic opportunity presented by this truly groundbreaking consortium,’ said John R. ‘Grizz’ Deal, the CEO of Hyperion Power. “In addition to fitting the basic requirements as the model for studying the application of SMRs in commercial naval propulsion, the Hyperion Power Module HPM can also help to set new nuclear maritime standards. The HPM’s design includes a non-pressurised vessel, and non-reactive coolant. These features, among others in the HPM, should encourage the industry to strive for even higher levels of inherent safety in their models.”

   International shipping has been identified as a significant global contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, and it is under mounting pressure to contribute to overall emission reductions. There is an ongoing debate about how much the sector will be able to reduce those emissions, while continuing to support the forecast expansion in world trade that it enables.

   ‘Nuclear propulsion offers the opportunity for an emissions-free alternative to fossil fuel, whist delivering ancillary benefits and security to the maritime industry,’ said Dr Phil Thompson, Sector Director — Transport, for the BMT Group. ‘We look forward to using our wide range of maritime skills and expertise to identify the through-life implications, risks and potential for developing and using SMRs in the civilian maritime environment and to provide a framework for its safe and reliable introduction and utilisation.”

   11/15/10 – Shipping + Power Experts Explore Nuclear Power Commercial Tankers

   
   

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

3. Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation Announces Pricing of Follow-On Offering

   www.prnewswire.com — PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that

   PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that it has priced its follow-on public offering of 6,500,000 shares of common stock at $5.50 per share. Navio

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

4. Odfjell’s losses mount

   www.tradewinds.no — . Norwegian chemical tanker owner hammered by depreciation, tax and lower revenue in first nine months.

   Norwegian chemical tanker owner hammered by depreciation, tax and lower
   revenue in first nine months.

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

5. Scorpio wants more

   www.tradewinds.no — . Emanuele Lauro-led tanker owner looks for $57.5m from shareholders with Lolli-Ghetti family member chipping in $5m. .

   Emanuele Lauro-led tanker owner looks for $57.5m from shareholders with
   Lolli-Ghetti family member chipping in $5m.

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

6. Singapore managers merge to form new Asian force

   www.shipmanagementinternational.com — . Luna Ship Management and Ship Management Associates (SMA), two Singapore-based ship managers, are merging to create a new, stronger management company to serve ship owners in the region and globally, it was announced today.. .

   Luna Ship Management and Ship Management Associates (SMA), two Singapore-based ship managers, are merging to create a new, stronger management company to serve ship owners in the region and globally, it was announced today.

   Luna and SMA have combined to form Norstar Ship Management, a third party manager providing a service to owners seeking the full range of technical and crew management to the shipping markets.

   The company, which has offices in Singapore’s Central Business District, will operate a fleet of 12 tankers initially, five from the SMA management and seven from Luna. The vessels are all Singapore, Panama or Marshall Islands registered. The owners of the managed vessels have been informed of the merger and have each expressed support for the move.

   Norstar Ship Management aims to build up its fleet and manage additional vessels in 2011.

   The new company brings together a strong mix of technical and commercial expertise which the directors believe will be attractive to tanker and other ship type operators. The new company directors are brothers Chris and Tom Bonehill from Luna and Duncan Findlay and Bill Hastings from SMA.

   The Bonehill brothers, both former ship brokers, have a strong track record in commercial shipping operations while Mr Findlay and Mr Hastings have each enjoyed successful careers as technical ship managers.

   The Luna and SMA brands will be phased out following the creation of Norstar Ship Management.

   Chris Bonehill said today: “We are delighted with this merger as it will give our clients a stronger value ship management proposition. We have found the right partner in SMA as they have an outstanding track record in full technical ship management services.”

   Tom Bonehill added: “The combined companies have highly complementary skill sets and experience. We are looking forward to working with Duncan and Bill and we believe that owners seeking full technical management in Singapore now have a compelling new choice when it comes to selecting high quality ship management services.”

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

7. Stealth mulls sell-off

   www.tradewinds.no — . Top boss at Greek gas owner says five vessels may hit the auction block as it fights for victory in tumultuous tanker market. .

   Top boss at Greek gas owner says five vessels may hit the auction block as it
   fights for victory in tumultuous tanker market.

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

8. Scorpio Tankers Inc. Prices Public Offering of Its Common Stock

   thegreenjournal.ca — Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

   MONACO–(Marketwire – November 16, 2010) – Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE: STNG) (the “Company” or “Scorpio Tankers”) announced today that it has priced its public offering of 4,575,000 shares of its common stock, par value $0.01 per share, at $9.80 per share. Of this public offering amount, the full 100,000 shares reserved by the underwriters for officers, directors and affiliates pursuant to their directed share program are expected to be issued as follows: 76,530 shares to Mr. Robert Bugbee, a Director and President of the Company; 10,000 shares to Mr. Cameron Mackey, Chief Operating Officer of the Company; 7,470 shares to Mr. Brian Lee, Chief Financial Officer of the Company and 6,000 shares to Mr. Donald Trauscht, a Director of the Company. In addition, 510,204 shares are expected to be issued at the public offering price in a concurrent private placement to a member of the Lolli-Ghetti family, of which the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Emanuele Lauro, is a member. The proceeds of the offering and concurrent private placement are expected to be used, after assessing any working capital and other general corporate expense needs, to pursue vessel acquisitions consistent with the Company’s acquisition strategy.

   The offering is expected to close on November 22, 2010. The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 686,250 shares of common stock to cover over-allotments, if any. Scorpio Tankers’ common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “STNG.”

   Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated is acting as the sole bookrunning manager and Fearnley Fonds ASA, Dahlman Rose & Company, LLC, Lazard Capital Markets LLC, Knight Capital Markets LLC and DVB Capital Markets LLC are acting as co-managers in the offering.

   Copies of the final prospectus may be obtained from Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated at 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014, Attention: Prospectus Department, or by calling 1-866-718-1649 or by e-mailing prospectus@morganstanley.com.

   The issuer has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and the other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, the issuer, any underwriter or any dealer participating in the offering will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request it by calling Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated at (866) 718-1649.

   You may also access the issuer’s most recent preliminary prospectus dated November 15, 2010 included in Amendment No. 1 to the registration statement on Form F-1 through the following link: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1483934/000119312510261165/df1a.htm.

   About Scorpio Tankers Inc.

   Scorpio Tankers Inc. is a provider of marine transportation of petroleum products worldwide. Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

   Forward-Looking Statements

   Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “intends,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project,” “plan,” “potential,” “may,” “should,” “expect,” “pending” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

   The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.

   In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the failure of counterparties to fully perform their contracts with us, the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for tanker vessel capacity, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, competition in the tanker industry, availability of financing and refinancing, charter counterparty performance, our dependence on third-party managers, ability to obtain financing and comply with covenants in such financing arrangements, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, piracy or political events, environmental damage, acts of terrorism, vessels breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties.

   

   

   
   

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

9. Scorpio Tankers Inc. Prices Public Offering of Its Common Stock

   stockmarketsreview.com — Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

   

   MONACO — (Marketwire) — 11/16/10 — Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE: STNG) (the “Company” or “Scorpio Tankers”) announced today that it has priced its public offering of 4,575,000 shares of its common stock, par value $0.01 per share, at $9.80 per share. Of this public offering amount, the full 100,000 shares reserved by the underwriters for officers, directors and affiliates pursuant to their directed share program are expected to be issued as follows: 76,530 shares to Mr. Robert Bugbee, a Director and President of the Company; 10,000 shares to Mr. Cameron Mackey, Chief Operating Officer of the Company; 7,470 shares to Mr. Brian Lee, Chief Financial Officer of the Company and 6,000 shares to Mr. Donald Trauscht, a Director of the Company. In addition, 510,204 shares are expected to be issued at the public offering price in a concurrent private placement to a member of the Lolli-Ghetti family, of which the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Emanuele Lauro, is a member. The proceeds of the offering and concurrent private placement are expected to be used, after assessing any working capital and other general corporate expense needs, to pursue vessel acquisitions consistent with the Company’s acquisition strategy.

   The offering is expected to close on November 22, 2010. The underwriters have a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 686,250 shares of common stock to cover over-allotments, if any. Scorpio Tankers’ common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “STNG.”

   Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated is acting as the sole bookrunning manager and Fearnley Fonds ASA, Dahlman Rose & Company, LLC, Lazard Capital Markets LLC, Knight Capital Markets LLC and DVB Capital Markets LLC are acting as co-managers in the offering.

   Copies of the final prospectus may be obtained from Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated at 180 Varick Street, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10014, Attention: Prospectus Department, or by calling 1-866-718-1649 or by e-mailing prospectus@morganstanley.com.

   The issuer has filed a registration statement (including a prospectus) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for the offering to which this communication relates. Before you invest, you should read the prospectus in that registration statement and the other documents the issuer has filed with the SEC for more complete information about the issuer and this offering. You may get these documents for free by visiting EDGAR on the SEC Web site at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, the issuer, any underwriter or any dealer participating in the offering will arrange to send you the prospectus if you request it by calling Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated at (866) 718-1649.

   You may also access the issuer’s most recent preliminary prospectus dated November 15, 2010 included in Amendment No. 1 to the registration statement on Form F-1 through the following link: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1483934/000119312510261165/df1a.htm.

   About Scorpio Tankers Inc.

   Scorpio Tankers Inc. is a provider of marine transportation of petroleum products worldwide. Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

   Forward-Looking Statements

   Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “intends,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project,” “plan,” “potential,” “may,” “should,” “expect,” “pending” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

   The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.

   In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the failure of counterparties to fully perform their contracts with us, the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for tanker vessel capacity, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, competition in the tanker industry, availability of financing and refinancing, charter counterparty performance, our dependence on third-party managers, ability to obtain financing and comply with covenants in such financing arrangements, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, piracy or political events, environmental damage, acts of terrorism, vessels breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties.

   

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

10. Chandlers released: Top 5 high-profile captures by Somali pirates

    soomaaliyeeytoosoo.blogspot.com — Until then, the Sirius Star oil tanker was the largest boat ever seized by Somali pirates. … In July 2010, Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker in the southern Red Sea for the first time, according

    After 388 days as prisoners of Somali pirates, Paul and Rachel Chandler were released on Sunday. They were among 1,052 hostages taken in 2009, in addition to the 773 hostages taken in the first nine months of 2010, according to a recent report by the International Maritime Bureau. Click through the following slides to read about the Chandlers’ ordeal and other high-profile captures.

    Paul and Rachel Chandler: longest held

    While sleeping on their yacht 800 miles off the coast of East Africa, near the Seychelles islands, the British couple was kidnapped and detained for more than 10 months. Paul, 61, and Rachel, 56, both from Kent, were held so long because the pirates thought they had more money, reported the Guardian.

    The pirates initially demanded $7 million in ransom for the couple, who had planned to sail the world in their retirement. According to Al Jazeera, the pirates settled for up to $1 million, including $300,000 on Saturday for the couple’s ultimate release. The ransom was possibly paid by the Somali expatriate community in London, as the British government has a policy against paying ransom to kidnappers.

    “We’d been told we’d be released in 10 days almost every 10 days for the past nine months,” Mr. Chandler told the BBC, adding: “You can see from our state that we suffered no serious physical harm.”

    The Monitor’s Scott Baldauff ventured onto the sea with a small band of Somali pirates in 2008, writing: “The brains behind this business – which raked in an estimated $80 million in ransoms in 2008 – can be as sophisticated as a CIA operation, with high-tech resources and highly placed personnel, or as haphazard as a Keystone Kops operation.” More than 400 sailors are still being held hostage.

    Richard Phillips: flashiest rescue

    While transporting aid to Africa in April 2009, the US-flagged Maersk Alabama was seized by Somali pirates. Cpt. Richard Phillips volunteered to be held hostage in order to protect his crew. He was detained for five days until US Navy snipers launched a daring rescue.

    In an appearance on The Daily Show a year later, Mr. Phillips recalled how the gunmen had initially approached the unarmed ship. “I was shooting flares, doing a jack-in-the-box scene, while they were shooting AK-47s up at me,” said the author of “A Captain’s Duty,” a memoir of the experience.

    “You’ve only 20 guys on this giant boat. Can’t one guy be, like, ‘rifle guy?’ ” replied host Jon Stewart.

    “I think we are heading in the right direction for that,” said Phillips. It is illegal for sailors to carry weapons, although cargo transporters are increasingly turning to private security contractors to arm ships.

    “We can have in the United States here guns openly in Starbucks,” Stewart replied. “My solution is quite simple: Have Starbucks open up on the boat. Then you can be in there with guns.”

    Samho Dream and Sirius Star: largest boats

    In April 2010, Somali pirates seized the supertanker Samho Dream with $170 million worth of oil aboard, the Monitor then reported, making it the biggest and most valuable boat ever seized.

    The boat and its 24 crew members were released seven months later, on Nov. 6, for an undisclosed ransom, reported the Associated Press. However, Reuters reported that a record ransom amount of $9.5 million was paid for the South Korean tanker.

    Until then, the Sirius Star oil tanker was the largest boat ever seized by Somali pirates. Carrying 25 crewmen and 2 million barrels of oil – a quarter of Saudi Arabia’s daily output – the ship was hijacked in November 2008 about 520 miles southeast of the coast of Kenya.

    Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he was “stunned” by the reach of the Somali pirates, reported Agence France-Presse. “They’re very well armed. Tactically, they are very good,” Admiral Mullen said.

    Samho Dream: biggest ransom

    The biggest boat ever captured also commanded the highest ransom. Earlier this month, Somali pirates said they had received $9.5 million in exchange for the release of South Korean supertanker Samho Dream, which was seized in April while it was transporting up to $170 million worth of oil from Iraq to the United States.

    “They initially demanded $20 million,” Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Program, told Reuters. “What I can confirm is that negotiators tell me they agreed to make the drop with an amount in excess of $9 million. This would be the highest sum paid out to pirates so far.”

    The second-biggest boat ever seized, the Sirius Star, was released in January 2009 for a ransom of $3 million – a relative bargain, considering the ship was worth $150 million and the cargo was worth $100 million. Days later, five of the Somali pirates drowned in a storm with their share of the ransom, the BBC reported.

    “The uncle of the pirate who washed ashore, Abukar Sheikh Hassan, told the BBC that the family had found $153,000 in a plastic bag in his pocket. He said some of the money was wet and the family was now trying to dry it out.”

    Thai boats: farthest afield

    In April 2010, Somali pirates seized three Thai fishing boats, carrying 77 crew, 1,380 miles off the Somali coast – about the same distance as New York City to Houston.

    “It’s the farthest east that any attack and any hijacking has taken place, certainly since Eunavfor [European Union Naval Force] arrived in the area in December 2008,” the European Union’s Naval Force spokesman John Harbour told the BBC. Commander Harbour told Xinhua that the attack so far out at sea “was a clear indication that the EU, NATO, and CMF [Combined Maritime Forces] were having a marked effect on pirate activity in the area.”

    According to this factbox from Reuters, all three ships and their crew members are still being held in detention off the coast of Somalia. In July 2010, Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker in the southern Red Sea for the first time, according to the International Chamber of Commerce International Maritime Bureau.

    Source: The Christian Science Monitor

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

11. Gas Oversupplied And Overpriced

    www.utility-exchange.co.uk — As reported by Telegraph.co.uk Britain currently gets around one third of its gas from the domestic North Sea, half from the rest of Europe via pipeline and approximately 15% via tanker in liquid form.. .

    The current global gas glut is expected to last longer than predicted according to industry experts. So the question is why are energy suppliers, such as British Gas and Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) announcing price rises?

    The International Energy Agency recently stated “The gas glut will last longer than many exporters believe or hope” – But, speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Scottish & Southern Energy chief executive Ian Marchant explained the problem is caused when people confuse the abundance of gas in the United States with much tighter supply restraints across Europe.

    As reported by Telegraph.co.uk Britain currently gets around one third of its gas from the domestic North Sea, half from the rest of Europe via pipeline and approximately 15% via tanker in liquid form.

    Consequently, operational issues with liquefied natural gas (LNG) coming from Qatar, the flow of Middle Eastern gas to Asia – where customers are willing to pay a higher price, plus the rise in demand following the recession, have all contributed to the UK’s prices increasing by 25% this year.

    But Britain, according to National Grid – whose distribution division is responsible for delivering gas to 11 million home and business premises, is still well supplied with gas. And, as the Isle of Grain station prepares to receive its first US cargo of LNG later this week, the signs suggest that wholesale gas prices should at least be stabilising – or even falling, not going up!

    In the meantime, onlookers are struggling to work out why retail prices are as high now as they were during much severer wholesale price spikes. Andrew Horstead, a risk analyst at Utilyx, remarked:

    “There are no obvious reasons why energy companies should be raising retail prices this winter…

    … The market is well supplied, and prices have risen from the lows that we saw back in March, but they still remain well below historic levels for this time of the year”

    SSE became the first energy supplier to announce price rises this winter, where from 1 December its domestic gas prices will rise by 9.4%. Then, British Gas announced that it was increasing the cost of its gas and electricity from 10 December by 7% – although those most vulnerable will not see their bills increase until after the winter. EDF Energy is the only supplier, so far, to announce a Winter Price Freeze Guarantee – with tariffs remaining at their current prices until at least March 2011.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

12. Persian Gulf tanker excess expands as Nov cargoes concluded

    www.bahrainbusinessnetwork.com — . A surplus of supertankers competing for two million-barrel cargoes of Middle East crude oil expanded as this month’s bookings were concluded, potentially hindering owners’ ability to secure bet….

    A surplus of supertankers competing for two million-barrel cargoes of Middle East crude oil expanded as this month’s bookings were concluded, potentially hindering owners’ ability to secure bet…

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

13. Invensys Operations signs services contract with Bluewater

    drillingandproduction.energy-business-review.com — Invensys Operations Management has signed a contract with Bluewater (Glas Dowr), a company specializing in the design, development, lease and operation of tanker-based production and storage systems.

    Invensys Operations Management has signed a contract with Bluewater (Glas Dowr), a company specializing in the design, development, lease and operation of tanker-based production and storage systems.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

14. Invensys Operations Management Wins Contract with Bluewater

    www.pandct.com — Plug-in migration concept drives control and environment & safety excellence on floating production, storage and offloading unit. … NOVEMBER 16, 2010/LONDON – Invensys Operations Management, a global

    Plug-in migration concept drives control and environment & safety excellence on floating production, storage and offloading unit

    NOVEMBER 16, 2010/LONDON – Invensys Operations Management, a global provider of technology systems, software solutions and consulting services to the manufacturing and infrastructure operations industries, today announced that it has entered a contract with Bluewater (Glas Dowr) NV, a company specializing in the design, development, lease and operation of tanker-based production and storage systems.

    more info…

    Published: November 17, 2010

15. LNG Is the Future of Energy – And North America is the “New Saudi Arabia”

    best-internet-work-at-home-businesses.blogspot.com — Editor’s Note: Frequent Money Morning contributor Dr. Kent Moors – the editor of the “Energy Advantage” advisory service – is an advisor to six of the world’s Top 10 oil companies and a consultant

    Editor’s Note: Frequent Money Morning contributor Dr. Kent Moors – the editor of the “Energy Advantage” advisory service – is an advisor to six of the world’s Top 10 oil companies and a consultant to some of the world’s largest oil-producing nations. He’s also one of the best-connected global-energy experts on the planet.]

    By Kent Moors, Ph.D., Contributing Writer, Money Morning

    Sometimes the most important impact on a raw material commodity comes less from its actual extraction and more from how product is introduced into new markets.

    Indeed, that is becoming the next major development in North American natural gas. The expansion in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports may well hold the key to turning a glut into advancing profit.

    The LNG process cools gas into a liquid form, allowing it to be stored and transported via tanker. The liquid is then “regasified” on the other end and injected into existing pipeline systems. This provides for the development of genuine spot markets, since the movement of gas is no longer limited by how far pipelines extend.

    The prospect of a long-term natural gas surplus has caused some to ask whether the additional volume coming on-line will simply depress prices. As I have mentioned here several times, this is not a question of conventional, freestanding gas reserves. This is all about unconventional production – primarily shale gas – and where it is likely to be increasing overall availability.

    With the gas glut turning into a more permanent energy fixture in North America, the market will progressively become (even more than currently) one in which production will primarily meet regional needs, with contract swaps acting to offset differences between regions.

    We will be moving into a very different way of balancing the market. Henceforth (and probably for decades to come) that balance will be affected by the knowledge that there is more supply than required, and it’s easily able to move into the market.

    In short, unlike crude oil – where we are beginning to see very early signs pointing to the development of a supply-constricted environment – gas will provide a supply-expansive environment.

    The regulatory changes I recently discussed are certain to spur on the accelerating transition from coal to gas and renewables for electricity generation. And that will require additional gas, as will its expanding use in the production of petrochemicals. A cold winter will also drain stockpiles. In storage volume, we are currently well below the levels at this time last year (although those were record levels). Nonetheless, gas out of the ground – but not in the market – still occupies most of the pipeline capacity in the U.S.

    And that simply points toward a continuing surplus.

    The Advantage of Two North American Plays
    Once we consider the impact beyond fulfilling local requirements, some plays will have greater benefits than others. Two are particularly noticeable in North America, and we have discussed both of them in the past.

    The first is the rapid development of the Big Horn, Montney, and related basins in western Canada. The second is the Marcellus in Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio, and West Virginia.

    Both of these are quite likely to provide volume more cheaply than some other basins.

    In a surplus condition, cheaper volume will displace more expensive – especially when you consider broader geographical applications (inter-regional trade). Both North American reserves, therefore, should see increasing drilling, even when prices in the market as a whole are going down and drilling is stagnating elsewhere.

    And that is the case currently. Despite natural gas contract prices below $4 per 1,000 cubic feet, production and rig usage are increasing in both the Marcellus and western Canada.

    But what does this do to the profitability of production companies and pipeline operators? Doesn’t feeding a glut always lead to a downward pressure on prices and a decline in profitability?

    Not when a positive spread between production costs and market prices can actually be improved upon. And that’s done simply by moving the gas to locations where the demand is so great it provides a premium on the return expected.

    The development will benefit gas sourced from both conventional and unconventional North American basins.

    But first, the current cost-pricing spread. The new shale and tight gas sources in British Columbia and Alberta are providing the likelihood of prices at a $1 to $1.25 discount to Henry Hub (the Louisiana location at which pricing for NYMEX gas contracts is determined). There are some additional costs for transport to distribution points, but recently completed spur lines to the TransCanada Mainline pipeline allow the gas to enter large markets.

    In the Marcellus, wells are coming in cheaper than anticipated. The average well spud this year will come in profitable, at less than $3.60 per NYMEX contract, with a rising percentage coming in significantly below that level. Unlike western Canada, the Marcellus has the advantages of much closer proximity to end users and an increasing network of pipelines to serve both throughput and storage.

    The concern, however, remains that the enormous amount of volume that both basins could put on-line would still flood the market and depress pricing, regardless of the additional demand for electricity generation or how cold our winters become.

    Enter LNG… and two gigantic markets seeking additional gas for which they will pay a premium over North American prices.

    Where the Demand Is
    Asia needs the increased volume of natural gas to fuel its expansion. Europe needs it to wean itself from reliance on conventionally pipelined (and overpriced) Russian Gazprom OAO (PINK: OGZPY) volume.

    Canada already has decided to move the new gas volume from western Canada to the Kitimat LNG terminal on the Pacific coast of British Columbia for export to Asia. Kitimat is scheduled to come into operation in late 2014. Already, there is a near certainty that its capacity will be doubled.

    European requirements combine well with the rapidly expanding volume coming out the Marcellus. And on that count, there is Cove Point, Maryland.

    Already in operation, Cove Point is the largest LNG facility on the U.S. east coast. As the need collapses for LNG imports into the United States – another result of our ongoing gas surplus – don’t be surprised if this terminal begins reversing operations to export volume. This is tailor-made to provide a major outlet for additional production from the Marcellus.

    LNG trade is no flash in the pan. It is becoming the single most important advance in balancing the global gas market. Currently, 86 gasification or regasification terminals exist worldwide; there are another 246 in planning stages or under construction.

    That means, as additional volume comes out of the ground in western Canada, the Marcellus, or other basins in the United States, it will be shipped to higher-paying markets abroad.

    Welcome to North America: the new Saudi Arabia of energy.

    [Editor's Note: It would be nice to believe that every investor has a fair chance to benefit from groundbreaking shifts in the global energy market. But the reality is that fewer than 50 people control 90% of this market. And, of course, they prefer it that way. Fortunately (for us, anyway), they all have Dr. Kent Moors on speed dial.

    Kent's been advising the energy industry's biggest players for more than 30 years now, including six of the world's top 10 oil producers. And Money Morning readers have had unique access to his market intelligence for more than a year now. Today, however, Kent's taking this "access" to entirely new level. Just take a look at the special broadcast he released Friday. This is big. And it could be incredibly profitable, too. As you'll see, Kent's never done anything like this... for anyone. And you could make up to 25 times your money over the next nine months. Watch Kent's special broadcast.]

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

16. Nordic American Tanker Shippin

    www.uni-network.net — a{TEXT-DECORATION:none} Nordic American Tanker Shipping Limited (NYSE: NAT) today announced that it expects to publish its dividend and 3rd quarter 2010 report November 8, 2010, before the ope

    a{TEXT-DECORATION:none} Nordic American Tanker Shipping Limited (NYSE: NAT) today announced that it expects to publish its dividend and 3rd quarter 2010 report November 8, 2010, before the ope

    more info…

    Published: November 17, 2010

17. Piracy Chart Updates from the UKHO

    futureofnavigation.wordpress.com — . Piracy continues to feature in the headlines of the world’s shipping press, with Liberian-flagged tanker Polar in the Indian Ocean one of the latest to fall victim.. .

    Piracy continues to feature in the headlines of the world’s shipping press, with Liberian-flagged tanker Polar in the Indian Ocean one of the latest to fall victim.

    To help combat the threat and keep mariners informed of the latest developments, Admiralty Chart Agents are now providing a free copy of the advice booklet ‘Best Management Practices to Deter Piracy off the Gulf Coast of Somalia and in the Arabian Sea Area’ (BMP3) with every order of the Anti-Piracy Planning Chart (Q6033).

    This information has become essential for any company operating in the region. Since its first issue in June 2009 over 15,000 copies of the Anti-Piracy Planning Chart have been distributed, largely in response to an industry demand for data about pirate attacks and safe passage in the Gulf of Aden and surrounding waters.

    The chart highlights the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden, and contains detailed information about emergency contacts, reporting requirements and procedures, suspect vessels, and what to do in the event of an attack or if military intervention is required.

    

    Anti-Piracy Planning Chart

    The booklet (BMP3) contains supplementary information to the chart and has been produced and supported by key industry bodies such as ICS, BIMCO, OCIMF, INTERTANKO and INTERCARGO, as well as defence organisations such as EUNAVFOR, UKMTO and the NATO Shipping Centre.

    It advises on strategic planning for companies who have vessels in the area, suggestions for protection measures for ship and crew, and guidelines for the actions to take in the event of a pirate attack. As with all Admiralty data, the information is designed to help improve the safety of any voyage and is particularly important for these potentially hostile environments.

    The new Anti-Piracy Planning Chart and the BMP3 booklet are available for ordering from your Admiralty Chart Agent now.

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

Piracy Blog mentions for November 17, 2010 showing 18 entries

1. Russian navy vs Somali pirates – part 2

   mybroadband.co.za — This videotape shows Russian Navy commandos on a Somali pirate ship shortly after the pirates had captured a Russian oil tanker. … After capture, the Russian Navy Commandos moved the pirates back

   Quote:

   This videotape shows Russian Navy commandos on a Somali pirate ship shortly after the pirates had captured a Russian oil tanker. The Euro Union navy that patrols these waters would not interfere because they feared there could be casualties. All explanations are in Russian with a few exceptions when a wounded pirate says something in English and the Russian Soldier comments. All conversations between the commandos are in Russian; however, the pictures speak for themselves.

   The soldiers freed their compatriots and the tanker.

   After capture, the Russian Navy Commandos moved the pirates back to the pirate ship, searched the pirate ship for weapons and explosives, and then they left the ship and exploded it with all remaining pirates hand-cuffed to it. The commandos sank the pirate ship along with the pirates and without any court proceedings, lawyers etc. That is, they used the anti-piracy laws of the 18th and 19th centuries where the captain of the rescuing ship has the right to decide what to do with the pirates. Usually, they were hung.

   http://true-turtle.livejournal.com/85315.html

   Nicely done, Russia

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

2. UN Chief Voices Concerns at Growth of Violent Pirate Attacks

   www.themaritimelawyer.com — Not only is maritime piracy a grave global concern, but these incidents of piracy are also actually increasing in violent intensity.. . … According to Sec. Gen. Ban Ki-Moon, incidences of piracy

   

   Not only is maritime piracy a grave global concern, but these incidents of piracy are also actually increasing in violent intensity.

   The UN Secretary-General presented his latest report on piracy and armed robbery off the Somali coast to the Security Council. According to Sec. Gen. Ban Ki-Moon, incidences of piracy have decreased along the Somali coastline because of patrolling by Navy ships. However, there have been a few instances in which pirate attacks have turned violent. According to the Secretary-General, these increased levels of violence are a matter of great concern. He has appealed to all ships traveling along the coast of Somalia to follow best practices for foiling pirate attacks.

   According to the Secretary-General, Kenya and the Seychelles have been doing good work in prosecuting and imprisoning suspected pirates. However, more efforts are needed. For instance, there is potential for great improvement in investigative activities after pirate attacks. This includes collection of evidence. Besides, the Secretary-General is raising questions about whether ransom payments that are paid to pirates, are being channeled to finance other illegal activities, including militia groups.

   This week, the European Union’s antipiracy wing EU NAVFOR blamed many successful pirate attacks on the failure of seafarers to follow best practices for foiling pirate attacks. According to the coalition, crewmembers are simply not doing enough to protect themselves and their vessels from pirate attacks. They could be using nonlethal deterrence and greater vigilance tactics. Both these practices that have been proven to minimize the risks of a pirate attack are being used sparingly.

   Maritime lawyer Brian Beckcom is a Board-Certified Trial Lawyer whose primary focus is the representation of Jones Act seamen, including tankermen, galley hands, deckhands, cruise line crews, fishing vessel crew members, offshore workers and other maritime workers in accidents in Texas, across the country and international waters.

   Image courtesy: flickr – mikebaird

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

3. Bahamas-flagged merchant vessel escapes pirate attack

   wireupdate.com — MOMBASA, KENYA (BNO NEWS) — A Bahamas-flagged merchant vessel on early Tuesday morning escaped a pirate attack thanks to the implementation … The Pirate Action Group then attempted to board the ship. .

   

   

   MOMBASA, KENYA (BNO NEWS) — A Bahamas-flagged merchant vessel on early Tuesday morning escaped a pirate attack thanks to the implementation of the protection measures, the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) said.

   The MV African Eagle, a Bahamas-flagged bulk carrier, was sailing approximately 30 nautical miles from Mombasa, Kenya. A pirate skiff suddenly fired upon the merchant vessel. The Pirate Action Group then attempted to board the ship.

   However, the barbed wires and electrical fences that were installed in the merchant vessel prevented the pirates from boarding the ship. After the complications presented while they attempted to board the MV African Eagle, the Pirate Action Group aborted its attack and left the scene.

   The attack was disrupted as the vessel installed security defenses pointed out in the Best Management Practices, a booklet from the EU NAVFOR intended to assist ships to avoid, deter or delay piracy attacks off the Somali coast, the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea.

   According to the data gathered by the EU NAVFOR, the application of the recommendations contained in the booklet, can make a significant difference in preventing a ship becoming a victim of piracy.

   “The fact is that there will never be enough warships to blanket cover this huge area. In the Indian Ocean, you should consider self-defense as your only defense”, said Simon Church, Merchant Navy Liaison Officer of EU NAVFOR Operational Headquarters.

   (Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

   

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

4. Somali Pirates: Common Sense Needed

   www.eaglespeak.us — Once again, the NATO Shipping Center has posted a revised piracy warning here, containing the identity and locations of probable “mother ships” suspected of being used for Somali pirate operations:.

   Once again, the NATO Shipping Center has posted a revised piracy warning here, containing the identity and locations of probable “mother ships” suspected of being used for Somali pirate operations:
   Updated 16 November.

   Weather conditions continue to be favourable for pirate operations throughout the Somali Basin and the Gulf of Oman. Activity over the past week has been focused in two main areas, one in the main north south shipping lanes at 65E between 11-16N, the other to the SW of Seychelles.

   It is assessed that at least one pirated dhow is acting as a mother vessel in each area. In addition there is assessed to be at least one whaler-based PAG (whaler is 10-12 m open boat with internal engine – capable of 6-8 knots) operating to the north of the Seychelles IVO the equator.

   Golden WavePirates continue to make use of already pirated vessels for use as mother ships. The only pirated vessel currently underway and assessed as a threat to shipping is FV GOLDEN WAVE, (image insert) last located at 12.11.2010: 0355 UTC in position 04°01S – 041°12E: This vessel is believed to be heading further to the south. ALL VESSELS ARE ADVISED TO BE CAUTIOUS. Vigilant watches, early detection of vessels manoeuvring to close, early reporting and the adoption of the Best Management Practices are the keys for remaining safe.

   Updated 16 Nov. 10

   ZulfecarThe pirated vessel MV ZULFECAR remains underway and will probably be used as a mother ship for the launching of small skiffs (5m), this vessel has previously been used by pirates as a mother ship. It is likely that she will operate within an triangular area between the Kenyan / Tanzanian coast and north point of Madagascar. All small boats in the area should be perceived as suspicious.

   All mariners transiting the area are warned that pirates operate the area, full BMP’s* are recommended in the Indian Ocean within 15°S and 78°E.OK, why would it not be easy to send a warship or an armed remotely piloted aircraft to “shadow/escort” the suspected mother ships and break up their pirate activities?

   You know, start the trail when a “suspect” vessel leaves a known Somali pirate port.

   Am I missing something really complex here?
   
   It’s not like there aren’t 25+ warships bobbing around out there.

   Get a little proactive.

   *BMP=Best Management Practices

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

5. 400 SAILORS STILL HELD BY SOMALI PIRATES

   www.nigerianbestforum.com — . 400 sailors still held by Somali pirates. … The problem of piracy is spiralling in Somalia, with more than 435 sailors being held hostage in the country‘s eastern ports, the Telegraph reports.. .

   400 sailors still held by Somali pirates

   By Agency Reporter

   Tuesday, 16 Nov 2010

   The problem of piracy is spiralling in Somalia, with more than 435 sailors being held hostage in the country‘s eastern ports, the Telegraph reports.

   The pirates from the largely lawless eastern coast of Somalia are heavily armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, and there is evidence that they are gaining in reach and confidence.

   Despite an international naval effort to secure ships sailing across the world‘s most important sea-lanes, the number of ships being hijacked and crew kidnapped appears to be on the rise.

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

6. SA Navy: Anti-piracy ops a stretch…

   www.mp3board.com — The SA Navy could mount anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast, but these would be difficult to sustain for longer than six months, Parliament has heard….

   The SA Navy could mount anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast, but these would be difficult to sustain for longer than six months, Parliament has heard….

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

7. Iran to deploy more warships to international waters

   wireupdate.com — TEHRAN (BNO NEWS) — Iran will deploy more warships to international waters as long as piracy and “sea terrorism” exists in that region, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said.

   

   

   TEHRAN (BNO NEWS) — Iran will deploy more warships to international waters as long as piracy and “sea terrorism” exists in that region, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said.

   In a statement released by local media on Tuesday, Beigham said “more flotillas and also Jamaran destroyer will be dispatched to the waters of friendly countries and distant international waters.”

   “In addition, the Islamic Republic will continue its military presence in the Gulf of Aden while piracy and marine terrorism exists in the area. The Iranian Navy is a strategic force that must have a permanent presence, particularly in the Indian Ocean,” he added .

   The Iranian regime sent three months ago part of ts ninth fleet to the Gulf of Aden and the waters around the Horn of Africa to patrol the area and protect its merchant ships from Somali-based pirates.

   (Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

   

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

8. Sailor says Somalis were stripped, cuffed…

   www.mp3board.com — NORFOLK Five Somalis on trial in federal court facing piracy charges were stripped, blindfolded and handcuffed nearly around the clock after they were captured by the Navy in the Indian Ocean earlier this year, a sailor testified Tuesday….

   NORFOLK Five Somalis on trial in federal court facing piracy charges were stripped, blindfolded and handcuffed nearly around the clock after they were captured by the Navy in the Indian Ocean earlier this year, a sailor testified Tuesday….

   more info…

   Published: November 17, 2010

9. Chandlers released: Top 5 high-profile captures by Somali pirates

   soomaaliyeeytoosoo.blogspot.com — After 388 days as prisoners of Somali pirates, Paul and Rachel Chandler were released on Sunday. … Until then, the Sirius Star oil tanker was the largest boat ever seized by Somali pirates.

   After 388 days as prisoners of Somali pirates, Paul and Rachel Chandler were released on Sunday. They were among 1,052 hostages taken in 2009, in addition to the 773 hostages taken in the first nine months of 2010, according to a recent report by the International Maritime Bureau. Click through the following slides to read about the Chandlers’ ordeal and other high-profile captures.

   Paul and Rachel Chandler: longest held

   While sleeping on their yacht 800 miles off the coast of East Africa, near the Seychelles islands, the British couple was kidnapped and detained for more than 10 months. Paul, 61, and Rachel, 56, both from Kent, were held so long because the pirates thought they had more money, reported the Guardian.

   The pirates initially demanded $7 million in ransom for the couple, who had planned to sail the world in their retirement. According to Al Jazeera, the pirates settled for up to $1 million, including $300,000 on Saturday for the couple’s ultimate release. The ransom was possibly paid by the Somali expatriate community in London, as the British government has a policy against paying ransom to kidnappers.

   “We’d been told we’d be released in 10 days almost every 10 days for the past nine months,” Mr. Chandler told the BBC, adding: “You can see from our state that we suffered no serious physical harm.”

   The Monitor’s Scott Baldauff ventured onto the sea with a small band of Somali pirates in 2008, writing: “The brains behind this business – which raked in an estimated $80 million in ransoms in 2008 – can be as sophisticated as a CIA operation, with high-tech resources and highly placed personnel, or as haphazard as a Keystone Kops operation.” More than 400 sailors are still being held hostage.

   Richard Phillips: flashiest rescue

   While transporting aid to Africa in April 2009, the US-flagged Maersk Alabama was seized by Somali pirates. Cpt. Richard Phillips volunteered to be held hostage in order to protect his crew. He was detained for five days until US Navy snipers launched a daring rescue.

   In an appearance on The Daily Show a year later, Mr. Phillips recalled how the gunmen had initially approached the unarmed ship. “I was shooting flares, doing a jack-in-the-box scene, while they were shooting AK-47s up at me,” said the author of “A Captain’s Duty,” a memoir of the experience.

   “You’ve only 20 guys on this giant boat. Can’t one guy be, like, ‘rifle guy?’ ” replied host Jon Stewart.

   “I think we are heading in the right direction for that,” said Phillips. It is illegal for sailors to carry weapons, although cargo transporters are increasingly turning to private security contractors to arm ships.

   “We can have in the United States here guns openly in Starbucks,” Stewart replied. “My solution is quite simple: Have Starbucks open up on the boat. Then you can be in there with guns.”

   Samho Dream and Sirius Star: largest boats

   In April 2010, Somali pirates seized the supertanker Samho Dream with $170 million worth of oil aboard, the Monitor then reported, making it the biggest and most valuable boat ever seized.

   The boat and its 24 crew members were released seven months later, on Nov. 6, for an undisclosed ransom, reported the Associated Press. However, Reuters reported that a record ransom amount of $9.5 million was paid for the South Korean tanker.

   Until then, the Sirius Star oil tanker was the largest boat ever seized by Somali pirates. Carrying 25 crewmen and 2 million barrels of oil – a quarter of Saudi Arabia’s daily output – the ship was hijacked in November 2008 about 520 miles southeast of the coast of Kenya.

   Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he was “stunned” by the reach of the Somali pirates, reported Agence France-Presse. “They’re very well armed. Tactically, they are very good,” Admiral Mullen said.

   Samho Dream: biggest ransom

   The biggest boat ever captured also commanded the highest ransom. Earlier this month, Somali pirates said they had received $9.5 million in exchange for the release of South Korean supertanker Samho Dream, which was seized in April while it was transporting up to $170 million worth of oil from Iraq to the United States.

   “They initially demanded $20 million,” Andrew Mwangura, coordinator of the East African Seafarers Assistance Program, told Reuters. “What I can confirm is that negotiators tell me they agreed to make the drop with an amount in excess of $9 million. This would be the highest sum paid out to pirates so far.”

   The second-biggest boat ever seized, the Sirius Star, was released in January 2009 for a ransom of $3 million – a relative bargain, considering the ship was worth $150 million and the cargo was worth $100 million. Days later, five of the Somali pirates drowned in a storm with their share of the ransom, the BBC reported.

   “The uncle of the pirate who washed ashore, Abukar Sheikh Hassan, told the BBC that the family had found $153,000 in a plastic bag in his pocket. He said some of the money was wet and the family was now trying to dry it out.”

   Thai boats: farthest afield

   In April 2010, Somali pirates seized three Thai fishing boats, carrying 77 crew, 1,380 miles off the Somali coast – about the same distance as New York City to Houston.

   “It’s the farthest east that any attack and any hijacking has taken place, certainly since Eunavfor [European Union Naval Force] arrived in the area in December 2008,” the European Union’s Naval Force spokesman John Harbour told the BBC. Commander Harbour told Xinhua that the attack so far out at sea “was a clear indication that the EU, NATO, and CMF [Combined Maritime Forces] were having a marked effect on pirate activity in the area.”

   According to this factbox from Reuters, all three ships and their crew members are still being held in detention off the coast of Somalia. In July 2010, Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker in the southern Red Sea for the first time, according to the International Chamber of Commerce International Maritime Bureau.

   Source: The Christian Science Monitor

   

   

   

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

10. British Royal Navy Shows Almost Exactly How to Deal with Somali Pirates

    undhimmi.com — Photo of the Week: …unfortunately they spoiled it by rescuing the low-life maritime reprobates before deep frying their boat Full story at the Manchester Evening News. . . .

    Photo of the Week:
    …unfortunately they spoiled it by rescuing the low-life maritime reprobates before deep frying their boat
    Full story at the Manchester Evening News.

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 17, 2010

11. EU NAVFOR officers meet with merchant vessels’ crews

    www.eunavfor.eu — These meetings with the seafarers enabled the EU NAVFOR officers to share information and experience regarding the piracy threat in the area and to discuss the countermeasures to be used before and during a pirate attack.

    This visit aimed to develop contacts with the merchant vessels’ crews and to reinforce the importance of applying Best Management Practices (BMP)

    On 12 November 2010, during its visit to Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania, a group of officers from the EU NAVFOR warship ITS LIBECCIO paid a visit to some of the merchant vessels also berthed in the port.

    This visit aimed to develop contacts with the merchant vessels’ crews and to reinforce the importance of applying Best Management Practices (BMP).

    It was stressed that, in addition to MSCHOA registration and a high degree of vigilance, BMP are vital to merchant vessels security, as they have proven extremely effective in significantly decreasing the risk of being pirated.

    These meetings with the seafarers enabled the EU NAVFOR officers to share information and experience regarding the piracy threat in the area and to discuss the countermeasures to be used before and during a pirate attack. The merchant vessels’ crews were also briefed on the EU NAVFOR’s mission.

    The ships’ masters welcomed the visit of EU NAVFOR officers and showed them the self-defence measures implemented onboard their vessels.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

12. Iranian Navy Heads to International Waters and Friendly Ports, San Diego Bypassed…….

    arabiadeserta.com — “Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said on Monday. … “More flotillas and also Jamaran destroyer will be dispatched

    

    Walking on water

    

    “Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said on Monday. “More flotillas and also Jamaran destroyer will be dispatched to the waters of friendly countries and (other) distant international waters,” Khadem Beigham, the deputy commander of the Navy, said upon the return of the ninth Iranian flotilla from the Gulf of Aden. He went on to say that the Islamic Republic will maintain its military presence in the Gulf of Aden as long as piracy and “sea terrorism” exists in that region. Iran’s Navy is a strategic force, which must have a permanent presence in the region, particularly in the Indian Ocean, he added…….”

    I guess places like San Diego and Newport News will be off their itinerary. No Sea World or Busch Gardens for them. No Clydesdale horses and “other amenities”.

    Cheers

    mhg

    m.h.ghuloum@gmail.com

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

13. Pirates: Pro & Con

    bloggingtheology.wordpress.com — Pirates: Pro & Con . . … The recent ordeal of the British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler leads the priest to wonder: how bad is piracy? … First, the defence – by a pirate:. . … But then a pirates’ ship enters the harbours.

    FATHER FRANK’S RANTS

    Rant Number 420 16 November 2010

    Pirates: Pro & Con

    The recent ordeal of the British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler leads the priest to wonder: how bad is piracy? First, the defence – by a pirate:

    ‘Dear Abuna (Father), You people are irrational about us. You heard of Robin Hood, no? A famous English icon. Romantic figure. He stole from the rich to give to the poor, didn’t he? All about justice in an unjust society. It is the same with us. We are the Robin Hoods of today. We are poor folks from miserable, under-developed, exploited countries. Colonialism has turned us into the scum of the earth. Devastated our cultures. And your greedy multinationals today make it much worse. You call us pirates – we are Robin Hoods! Folk heroes. We are just redistributing wealth, a little. What’s wrong with that?’ ‘Ahem…I see, but what have a couple of old codgers like the Chandlers have to do with global wrongs? Hardly like the evil Sheriff of Nottingham, are they? Besides you beat up the poor Mrs Chandlers about the head. That was not nice.’ ‘Abuna, don’t play dumb with us, please. We can’t get to the very rich; they are shielded by mercenaries in their fortresses and tax havens. So we have to grab what we get. The Chandlers are very well off, sailing as they were in a yacht around the Indian Ocean. They must have built a fat nest’s eggs in their cosy English countryside. They surely made money by unethical investments in our poor third world. And their ancestors were slave owners, anyway. Just fair they should cough up the dough a little bit. As to the old lady, she was being unreasonable. Irrational. Human beings have reason but when they behave unreasonably they sink to the levels of beasts. They become like animals. Beasts sometimes have to be beaten, no? So the old lady had to be taught reason. Just a little. We didn’t like it but…it was her fault. Besides, you white men have a cheek to lecture us about mistreating the old! You who shut your old folks in grim prisons you call ‘homes’. Where your old folks are alone, languish, and are often starved and ill-treated. Our oldies live with us, in our families. Are loved and respected. We care for them. You Europeans are the barbarians. It is a fact.’ A pirate who argues almost like a Greek philosopher – truly amazing! I dare not mention the name of playwright Bertold Brecht, because it would fill this Robin Hood with glee. In the Threepenny Opera, there is a stirring song, Pirates’ Jenny. A lowly, despised maid, Jenny is treated like dirt by haughty, bourgeois townsfolk. But then a pirates’ ship enters the harbours. The crew comes ashore and drags away Jenny’s tormentors in chains. The world’s order is turned upside down. Jenny triumphantly sails away with the pirates. Revolutionary justice rules OK, in the Stalinist poet’s brave new world…

    Now, for the prosecution. Well, sort of. My boy Linus rants and rambles a bit:

    ‘Dad, I know you know this story. The young Julius Caesar had the misfortune of being captured by pirates once. During his captivity he taunted the riff-raff: “My ransom will earn you millions but beware! Upon my release I will have you hanged!” They scoffed at him but he meant it. Losing no time, the freed Caesar put his fleet to sea again and pursued the pirates till he had them in his power: they were all duly strung up. You did not fool around with a Roman citizen’s honour.

    The Romans had the right ideas. The law of nations stipulated that a pirate had made himself an enemy of the human race. He had put himself beyond the normal human compact. So you did not have to keep your word with pirates. Nor would the Romans swallow any self-regarding moan about pirates being ‘oppressed’. Pirates were vermin. They deserved to be hunted out and exterminated. And the Romans did that well.

    Dad, why is the British government so pusillanimous? Gone are the happy days when Britannia ruled the waves and would send gunboats to punish anyone who dared to challenge her subjects. Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston dispatched the mighty British Navy to teach the villainous Greeks a lesson for robbing Don Pacifico, a dubious Brit. As a Roman could invoke Cives Romanus Sum and be sure of Rome’s protection anywhere, Palmerston declared in Parliament, so a British subject could always rely the assistance of Britain’s strong arm. Sigh… times have changed. Today’s ludicrous Secretary, ‘Skinhead’ Hague, could not protect a frog. (Linus’ funny English – he is Swedish.) British marines were not even able to prevent the Chandlers from being captured. And now David Cameron pretends no ransom money was paid! The fibber! How do you say in English? Fudge, fudge and fudge! Pathetic! How bad can it get for the former Queen of the Seas?

    To be fair to Britain, what would be the point of pursuing the pirates? They have “human rights” and therefore they cannot be killed. After doing their time in prison they could even claim asylum and settle in Britain as refugees. Unless they enlisted in the British Army as crack units (serving in Afghanistan, perhaps?), what use could they have?’

    Huh! You see what awful right reactionary Linus is? The silly lad! He exasperates me…but how would the priest himself try the pirates? Under which law? Oh, the Bible comes to mind. I would judge the miscreants thus: Listen to the awesome Word of God! ‘You shall not rob’ (Exodus 20:15); ‘Thieves and robbers will not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven’ (I Cor. 6:10) You murderers ‘will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur and pain, which is the second death’ (Revelation 21:8). But do not despair: Your delight should be the law of the Eternal, on which you should ‘have meditated day and night’. (Psalm 1:2) Then ‘the Word of God would be a lamp and a beacon to enlighten yours paths.’ (Psalm 119, 105) Your last resort is to trust in ‘the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world’ (St John 1:29). Cast yourselves unto the Good Shepherd ‘who came to save the lost’ (St Matthew 18:11). He who promises you that ‘he will not reject those who turn to him’ (St John 6:37).

    I would preach that, and more to the pirates. And then I would deal with them according to the Law of the Lord.

    Revd Frank Julian Gelli

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

14. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — “more murdrous” perhaps but I’m not sure which I would prefer; being fragged at range by an RPG7 or salami sliced close hand by a cutlass.

    “more murdrous” perhaps but I’m not sure which I would prefer; being fragged at range by an RPG7 or salami sliced close hand by a cutlass.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

15. Norwegian Cruise Line Reports Results For Third Quarter 2010

    interlinetravelnews.com — Risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the adverse impact of the worldwide economic

    Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL Corporation Ltd., “Norwegian” or “the Company”) today reported results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2010.

    EBITDA for the third quarter of 2010 improved 21.4% to $184.1 million versus $151.6 million for the same period in 2009. The addition of Norwegian Epic to the fleet in June 2010 together with an improvement in Net Yield of 9.5% resulted in Net Revenue for the third quarter of 2010 increasing to $469.8 million from $390.0 million in the same period in 2009. The increase in Net Yield was a result of both improved passenger ticket pricing and increased onboard revenue per Capacity Day. Capacity days increased 10.1% with the addition of Norwegian Epic, which started regular service in mid-July, partially offset by the departure of Norwegian Majesty from the fleet in October 2009. Occupancy Percentage for the quarter was 113.2% versus 114.8% in 2009 with the slight decrease attributable to the initial phase-in period of Norwegian Epic. Net income for the quarter was $93.0 million on revenue of $634.1 million compared to net income of $85.6 million on revenue of $550.7 million in 2009.

    Net Cruise Cost per Capacity Day increased 8.9% primarily due to initial start-up costs related to the introduction of Norwegian Epic (which included inaugural events and advertising and promotion expenses), timing differences of maintenance and repair expenses including dry-dock costs, and a 13.9% increase in the average cost of fuel to $507 per metric ton in 2010 from $445 per metric ton in 2009.

    ”Both improved ticket pricing across our fleet and the introduction of Norwegian Epic into regular service contributed to our strong results for the quarter,” said Kevin Sheehan, chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line. “Our 21% improvement in EBITDA was achieved despite one-time costs related to Norwegian Epic’s start-up and inaugural activities, as well as an increase in the price of fuel. We continue to keep a razor-sharp focus on our cost discipline and containment measures.”

    Interest expense, net of capitalized interest, increased to $46.2 million in the quarter compared to $25.8 million in 2009 due to higher average interest rates and an increase in borrowings related to the addition of Norwegian Epic. Other income improved to $1.6 million in 2010 versus an expense of $2.1 million in 2009 primarily due to gains on fuel derivatives in 2010 versus foreign currency losses in 2009.

    Updates

    The Company recently announced an agreement to build two new 4,000 passenger berth vessels for delivery in the spring of 2013 and 2014 at an aggregate contract price of approximately €1.2 billion. The ships will include signature elements from Norwegian’s current fleet, including many from the Company’s newest ship, Norwegian Epic. This is the Company’s first order for new vessels since 2006 and marks a return to a longstanding relationship with Germany’s Meyer Werft shipyard. “With the enthusiastic feedback we’ve received surrounding Norwegian Epic, and our guests’ continued passion for Freestyle Cruising, it was only natural that we extend what we’ve learned in our 40-plus years of innovation in the cruise industry into a new, exciting class of vessel,” commented Sheehan. “This agreement is an important step forward for Norwegian as we continue to build upon the excitement surrounding our brand.” The Company has commitments in place from a syndicate of banks for export credit financing in connection with this project.

    Terminology and Non-GAAP Financial Measures

    Berths. Double occupancy per cabin even though many cabins can accommodate three or more passengers.

    Capacity Days. Berths multiplied by the number of cruise days for the period.

    EBITDA. Earnings before interest, other income (expense) including taxes, impairment loss, and depreciation and amortization.

    Gross Cruise Cost. The sum of total cruise operating expense and marketing, general and administrative expense.

    Gross Yield. Total revenue per Capacity Day.

    Net Cruise Cost. Gross Cruise Cost less commissions, transportation and other expense and onboard and other expense.

    Net Cruise Cost Excluding Fuel. Net Cruise Cost less fuel expense.

    Net Per Diem. Net Revenue per Passenger Cruise Day.

    Net Revenue. Total revenue less commissions, transportation and other expense and onboard and other expense.

    Net Yield. Net Revenue per Capacity Day.

    Occupancy Percentage or Load Factor. The ratio of Passenger Cruise Days to Capacity Days. A percentage in excess of 100% indicates that three or more passengers occupied some cabins.

    Passenger Cruise Days. The number of passengers carried for the period, multiplied by the number of days in their respective cruises.

    Non-GAAP Information

    To supplement the Company’s consolidated financial statements presented in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (”GAAP”), the Company also provides certain non-GAAP financial measures, including EBITDA, Net Revenue, Net Yield, and Net Cruise Cost.

    We define EBITDA as earnings before interest, other income (expense) including taxes, impairment loss, and depreciation and amortization and is used by management to measure operating performance of the business. Management believes EBITDA, when considered along with other performance measures, is a useful measure as it reflects certain operating drivers of the Company’s business, such as sales growth, operating costs, marketing, general and administrative expense and other operating income and expense. EBITDA is also one of the measures used by the Company to calculate incentive compensation for management-level employees. This non-GAAP financial measure has certain material limitations, including:

    * It does not include net interest expense. As the Company has borrowed money for general

    corporate purposes, interest expense is a necessary element of its costs and ability to

    generate profits and cash flows; and

    * It does not include depreciation and amortization expense. As the Company uses capital

    assets, depreciation and amortization are necessary elements of its costs and ability to

    generate profits and cash flows.

    Management compensates for these limitations by using EBITDA as only one of several measures for evaluating the Company’s business performance. In addition, capital expenditures, which impact depreciation and amortization expense, interest expense and income tax expense, are reviewed separately by management. Management believes EBITDA can provide a more complete understanding of the underlying operating results and trends and an enhanced overall understanding of the Company’s financial performance and prospects for the future. EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of liquidity or cash flows from operations or measures comparable to net income as it does not take into account certain requirements such as capital expenditures and related depreciation, principal and interest payments and tax payments.

    We define Adjusted EBITDA as EBITDA with supplemental adjustments. Each adjustment and the reasons we consider them appropriate for supplemental analysis should be evaluated. In evaluating Adjusted EBITDA, be aware that in the future we may incur expenses similar to the adjustments in this presentation. Our presentation of Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or non-recurring items. Adjusted EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of liquidity or cash flows from operations or measures comparable to net income as it does not take into account certain requirements such as capital expenditures and related depreciation, principal and interest payments and tax payments, and it is subject to certain additional adjustments. Our use of Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to other companies within our industry.

    We use certain non-GAAP financial measures, such as Net Revenue, Net Yield and Net Cruise Cost to enable us to analyze our performance. We utilize Net Revenue and Net Yield to manage our business on a day-to-day basis and believe that they are the most relevant measures of our revenue performance because they reflect the revenue earned by us net of significant variable costs and are commonly used in the cruise industry to measure revenue performance. In measuring our ability to control costs in a manner that positively impacts net income, we believe changes in Net Cruise Cost and Net Cruise Cost Excluding Fuel to be the most relevant indicators of our performance and are commonly used in the cruise industry as a measurement of costs. Accordingly, we do not believe that reconciling information for such projected figures would be meaningful. Our use of non-GAAP financial measures may not be comparable to other companies within our industry.

    About Norwegian Cruise Line

    Norwegian Cruise Line is the innovator in cruise travel with a 44-year history of breaking the boundaries of traditional cruising, most notably with the introduction of Freestyle Cruising which has revolutionized the industry by allowing guests more freedom and flexibility.

    Today, Norwegian has 11 purpose-built Freestyle Cruising ships, providing guests the opportunity to enjoy a relaxed cruise vacation on some of the newest and most contemporary ships at sea. The Company has reached an agreement for two 143,000-gross ton vessels for delivery in 2013 and 2014.

    Norwegian’s largest and most innovative Freestyle Cruising ship, Norwegian Epic, debuted in June 2010. Norwegian Cruise Line is the official cruise line of Blue Man Group, debuting for the first time at sea on Norwegian Epic, as well as the official cruise line of Legends in Concert, Second City® Comedy Troupe, Howl at the Moon Dueling Pianos, Gibson Guitar, and Nickelodeon, the number-one entertainment brand for kids. Cirque Dreams™ & Dinner is also featured on board Norwegian Epic as the first show of its kind at sea under a big top.

    High resolution, downloadable images are available at www.ncl.com/pressroom. For further information on Norwegian Cruise Line, visit www.ncl.com, follow us on Facebook and Twitter, watch us on YouTube, or contact us in the U.S. and Canada at 888- NCL-CRUISE (625-2784).

    Forward-Looking Statements

    This release may contain statements, estimates or projections that constitute “forward-looking statements” as defined under U.S. federal securities laws including the statements made under the “Outlook” section of this release. Generally, the words “expect,” “anticipate,” “goal,” “project,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek,” “will,” “may,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “intend,” “future,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, which are not historical in nature. Although management believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to have been correct. Risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the adverse impact of the worldwide economic downturn and related factors such as high levels of unemployment and underemployment, declines in the securities and real estate markets, and perceptions of these conditions that decrease the level of disposable income of consumers or consumer confidence; changes in cruise capacity, as well as capacity changes in the overall vacation industry; intense competition from other cruise companies as well as non-cruise vacation alternatives which may affect our ability to compete effectively; our substantial leverage, including the inability to generate the necessary amount of cash to service our existing debt, repay our credit facilities if payment is accelerated and the incurrence of substantial indebtedness in the future; the continued borrowing availability under our credit facilities and compliance with our covenants; our ability to incur significantly more debt despite our substantial existing indebtedness; the impact of volatility and disruptions in the global credit and financial markets which may adversely affect our ability to borrow and could increase our counterparty credit risks, including those under our credit facilities, derivative instruments, contingent obligations, insurance contracts and new ship progress payment guarantees; adverse events impacting the security of travel that may affect consumer demand for cruises such as terrorist acts, acts of piracy, armed conflict and other international events; the impact of any future increases in the price of, or major changes or reduction in, commercial airline services; changes in fuel prices or other cruise operating expenses such as crew, insurance and security; the risks associated with operating internationally; the impact of the spread of contagious diseases; accidents and other incidents affecting the health, safety, security and vacation satisfaction of passengers or causing damage to ships, which could cause the modification of itineraries or cancellation of a cruise or series of cruises; our ability to attract and retain key personnel, qualified shipboard crew, maintain good relations with employee unions and maintain or renegotiate our collective bargaining agreements on favorable terms; the continued availability of attractive port destinations; the control by certain of our shareholders whose interest may not be aligned with ours; the impact of problems encountered at shipyards, as well as, any potential claim, impairment loss, cancellation or breach of contract in connection with our contracts with shipyards; changes involving the tax, environmental, health, safety, security and other regulatory regimes in which we operate; our ability to obtain insurance coverage on terms that are favorable or consistent with our expectations; the lack of acceptance of new itineraries, products or services by our targeted customers; our ability to implement brand strategies and our shipbuilding programs, and to continue to expand our brands and business worldwide; the costs of new initiatives and our ability to achieve expected cost savings from our new initiatives; changes in interest rates or foreign currency rates; increases in our future fuel expenses related to implementing recently proposed IMO regulations, which require the use of higher priced low sulfur fuels in certain cruising areas; the delivery schedules and estimated costs of new ships on terms that are favorable or consistent with our expectations; the impact of pending or threatened litigation and investigations; the impact of changes in our credit ratings; the possibility of environmental liabilities and other damage that is not covered by insurance or that exceeds our insurance coverage; our ability to attain and maintain any price increases for our products; the impact of delays, costs and other factors resulting from emergency ship repairs as well as scheduled maintenance, repairs and refurbishment of our ships; the implementation of regulations in the U.S. requiring U.S. citizens to obtain passports for travel to additional foreign destinations; the impact of weather and natural disasters; and other risks discussed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. The Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements to reflect any change in expectations or events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based. In addition, certain financial measures in this release constitute non-GAAP financial measures as defined by Regulation G. A reconciliation of these items can be found attached hereto and on the Company’s web site at www.ncl.com/investors.

    Click here to view the financial tables.

    Media Contact

    AnneMarie Mathews

    (305) 436-4799

    PublicRelations@ncl.com

    Investor Relations Contact

    Mark A. Kempa

    (305) 436-4932

    ”

    For more information, reservations and interline discounts on NCL contact InterlineTravel.com at 800 766-2911 or in the DFW Area call metro 817 481-8631.

    

    

    
    

    more info…

    Published: November 17, 2010

16. Bahamas-flagged ship escapes pirate attack

    huntoftheseawolves.net — A Bahamas-flagged merchant vessel on early Tuesday morning escaped a pirate attack thanks to the implementation of the protection measures, … The Pirate Action Group then attempted to board the ship.. .

    Traindian News

    A Bahamas-flagged merchant vessel on early Tuesday morning escaped a pirate attack thanks to the implementation of the protection measures, the European Union Naval Force (EU NAVFOR) said.

    The MV African Eagle, a Bahamas-flagged bulk carrier, was sailing approximately 30 nautical miles from Mombasa, Kenya. A pirate skiff suddenly fired upon the merchant vessel. The Pirate Action Group then attempted to board the ship.

    However, the barbed wires and electrical fences that were installed in the merchant vessel prevented the pirates from boarding the ship. After the complications presented while they attempted to board the MV African Eagle, the Pirate Action Group aborted its attack and left the scene.

    The attack was disrupted as the vessel installed security defenses pointed out in the Best Management Practices, a booklet from the EU NAVFOR intended to assist ships to avoid, deter or delay piracy attacks off the Somali coast, the Gulf of Aden, and the Arabian Sea.

    According to the data gathered by the EU NAVFOR, the application of the recommendations contained in the booklet, can make a significant difference in preventing a ship becoming a victim of piracy.

    “The fact is that there will never be enough warships to blanket cover this huge area. In the Indian Ocean, you should consider self-defense as your only defense”, said Simon Church, Merchant Navy Liaison Officer of EU NAVFOR Operational Headquarters.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

17. Piracy Chart Updates from the UKHO

    futureofnavigation.wordpress.com — . Piracy continues to feature in the headlines of the world’s shipping press, with Liberian-flagged tanker Polar in the Indian Ocean one of the latest to fall victim.. .

    Piracy continues to feature in the headlines of the world’s shipping press, with Liberian-flagged tanker Polar in the Indian Ocean one of the latest to fall victim.

    To help combat the threat and keep mariners informed of the latest developments, Admiralty Chart Agents are now providing a free copy of the advice booklet ‘Best Management Practices to Deter Piracy off the Gulf Coast of Somalia and in the Arabian Sea Area’ (BMP3) with every order of the Anti-Piracy Planning Chart (Q6033).

    This information has become essential for any company operating in the region. Since its first issue in June 2009 over 15,000 copies of the Anti-Piracy Planning Chart have been distributed, largely in response to an industry demand for data about pirate attacks and safe passage in the Gulf of Aden and surrounding waters.

    The chart highlights the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor (IRTC) in the Gulf of Aden, and contains detailed information about emergency contacts, reporting requirements and procedures, suspect vessels, and what to do in the event of an attack or if military intervention is required.

    

    Anti-Piracy Planning Chart

    The booklet (BMP3) contains supplementary information to the chart and has been produced and supported by key industry bodies such as ICS, BIMCO, OCIMF, INTERTANKO and INTERCARGO, as well as defence organisations such as EUNAVFOR, UKMTO and the NATO Shipping Centre.

    It advises on strategic planning for companies who have vessels in the area, suggestions for protection measures for ship and crew, and guidelines for the actions to take in the event of a pirate attack. As with all Admiralty data, the information is designed to help improve the safety of any voyage and is particularly important for these potentially hostile environments.

    The new Anti-Piracy Planning Chart and the BMP3 booklet are available for ordering from your Admiralty Chart Agent now.

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

18. Somali Pirates Free British Couple for Ransom After More Than a Year in Captivity

    rssbroadcast.com — NAIROBI, Kenya – A British couple who had been kidnapped by Somali pirates and held in captivity in a remote, sweltering patch of central Somalia for more than a year was finally released, Somali

    

    NAIROBI, Kenya – A British couple who had been kidnapped by Somali pirates and held in captivity in a remote, sweltering patch of central Somalia for more than a year was finally released, Somali officials said Sunday, apparently after a ransom was paid.

    The couple, Paul and Rachel Chandler, were hijacked in October 2009 while sailing in a small yacht in the Indian Ocean in what they had described to friends as “the trip of a lifetime.”

    At a news conference on Sunday shortly after their release, Ms. Chandler said, “We are happy to be alive, happy to be here, desperate to see our family, and so happy to be amongst decent, everyday people, Somalis, people from anywhere in the world who are not criminals, because we’ve been a year with criminals and that’s not a very nice thing to be doing.”

    Somali elders said the couple’s friends and relatives paid the pirates several hundred thousand dollars in ransom. The Chandlers said in earlier interviews, from captivity, that the pirates had whipped them and kept them apart from each other, in solitary confinement, for months. Ms. Chandler is in her mid-50s and Mr. Chandler is about 60.

    They were released around midnight on Saturday in central Somalia, and flew to the capital, Mogadishu, on Sunday afternoon, where they met the prime minister of Somalia’s weak transitional government. That government has little influence over the pirates, or much else in Somalia, though the prime minister quickly called a news conference and stood side by side with the Chandlers.

    The “Transitional Federal Government of Somalia exerted every humanly possible effort to bring you back to your loved ones,” Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed said.

    The Chandlers looked thin but smiled brightly. Afterward, they flew to Nairobi.

    Their ordeal seems to have been prolonged and complicated by the fact that they were not wealthy and had few valuable assets besides their 38-foot sailboat, which the pirates snatched and then abandoned off the coast of the Seychelles. Somali pirates, by their own admission, are in it for the money. Most cases are resolved and the hostages released once a ransom has been paid.

    The Chandlers appear to have known of the dangers. Before their capture, the retired couple spent much of the previous several years sailing through the Mediterranean, the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, blogging regularly and occasionally mentioning the Somali pirates.

    On Oct. 23, 2009, a group of pirates stormed their sailboat, the Lynn Rival, as they were cruising from the Seychelles to Tanzania. The pirates stripped the sailboat clean of all valuables and pushed the Chandlers onto a hijacked freighter, known in the piracy business as a mother ship, which is used as a decoy to attack unsuspecting vessels and which allows the pirates to extend their range to more than 1,000 miles from shore. The Chandlers put out an S O S, but the naval ships in the area arrived too late.

    The pirates then sailed to Xarardheere, a pirate den in central Somalia, and the Chandlers spent much of the next year in a small town near there. The pirates, one named Red Teeth, wanted $7 million, and when it was clear the Chandlers did not have access to that kind of money, the pirates became frustrated and internal arguments broke out over strategy.

    In the end, a local Somali leader who had recently returned from the United States to set up a regional government in central Somalia helped smooth the way for more negotiations. Mohamed Aden, who is called president in his clan’s area in central Somalia, had been asking the pirates for months to release the Chandlers for far less money than the pirates were expecting.

    He said the pirates finally settled for a relatively small ransom because local elders and businessmen were putting increasing pressure on the pirates, who were getting worried that the Chandlers might die in captivity because of their age and the harsh conditions. “We told these guys that if the Chandlers died you will be hunted down,” Mr. Aden said. “They were worried.”

    Several people, including Somalis living in London, tried to help and cobbled together around $400,000 to pay off the pirates, Somali elders said, but that money was stolen by middlemen.

    A new ransom was assembled and the Chandlers were handed over to Mr. Aden’s militia.

    Mohammed Ibrahim contributed reporting from Mogadishu, Somalia.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

BDI Blog mentions for November 17, 2010 showing 4 entries

1. Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 16/11/2010

   hi.baidu.com — Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 16/11/2010. . … BDI 2219 (DOWN 42) BCI 3490 (DOWN 40) BPI 2216 (DOWN 78). … ‘Sam Dragon’ 1997 46841 dwt dely Baltic spot trip via Gulf of Aden. … 类别：Baltic Dry Index 查看评论

   Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 16/11/2010

   BDI 2219 (DOWN 42) BCI 3490 (DOWN 40) BPI 2216 (DOWN 78)

   BSI 1474 (DOWN 21) BHSI 816 (DOWN 12)

   Last published BDTI 826 (UP 23) BCTI 642 (UP 23)
   TIMECHARTER

   ‘Mineral Haiku’ 2010 180200 dwt dely Qingdao 15/18 Nov trip via EC

   Australia redel China $31800 daily – Pacific Shipping

   ‘Kanaris D’ 2010 178000 dwt dely Kaohsiung 21/25 Nov trip via Brazil

   redel China $33000 daily – Cetragpa

   ‘King Sail’ Bunge relet 2002 177643 dwt dely China 8/11 Dec trip via

   West Australia redel Japan $29000 daily – ‘K’ Line

   ‘Hebei Genius’ 1990 148779 dwt dely S.Korea in d/c ppt trip via

   Australia redel Singapore-Japan rge $24000 daily – Hanjin

   ‘Rosco Ginkgo’ 2005 77000 dwt dely CJK 18/20 Nov trip via EC

   Australia redel India $19500 daily – BHP Billiton

   ‘Mineral Star’ 2005 76286 dwt dely Jorf Lasfar 20/22 Nov 2 laden legs

   1st leg Kamsar/US Gulf redel Skaw-Cape Passero $21500 daily – Practica

   ‘GH Fortune’ 2005 75214 dwt dely Lanshan 20/25 Nov trip via Prince

   Rupert redel China $17000 daily – DHL

   ‘Oregon’ 2002 74204 dwt dely Niihama spot trip via Newcastle redel

   China $19000 daily option via Lyttelton $21000 daily – Noble

   ‘Sanmar Paragon’ 1996 73080 dwt dely Xiamen 20/24 Nov trip via

   Indonesia redel Philippines $17000 daily – Oldendorff

   ‘Stefania’ 1981 64848 dwt dely aps Kamsar 1/7 Dec trip redel Stade

   $15000 daily – Proline

   ‘Toxotis’ 2010 57000 dwt dely N China spot trip via SE Asia redel

   China approx $13000 daily – cnr

   ‘Serenity 1′ 2006 53688 dwt dely N.China spot trip via Indonesia

   redel India approx $11300 daily – cnr

   ‘Sea Elegance’ 2002 51097 dwt dely aps Santos end Nov/ely Dec trip

   redel Singapore-Japan approx $20000 daily + approx $250000 bb – Greig

   Star

   ‘Sam Dragon’ 1997 46841 dwt dely Baltic spot trip via Gulf of Aden

   redel India approx $21500 daily – Oldendorff

   ‘Achilles 1′ 1984 37740 dwt dely Luoyuan 16/20 November trip via N

   China redel EC India-Bangladesh $12500 daily – cnr -
   PERIOD

   ‘Aeolian Glory’ 1995 158000 dwt dely Rizhao ppt 14/16 months trading

   redel worldwide $26000 daily – Swiss Marine

   ‘Maple Pioneer’ 2008 33170 dwt dely Falmouth 18/21 November about

   3/about 5 months trading redel worldwide $14000 daily – TA Bulk -
   ORE

   ‘TBN’ 160000/10 West Australia/Qingdao 27 Nov/6 Dec $10.30 fio

   scale/30000sc – Noble

   ‘TBN’ 160000/10 West Australia/China 25 Nov/5 Dec $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – NS United -

   ‘Setsuyo Star’ 1985 150000/10 CSN/Qingdao 1/10 Dec $27.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – RGL

   ‘Classic Maritime TBN’ 150000/10 CSN/Caofeidian 5/14 Dec $29.25 fio

   scale/30000sc – STX Pan Ocean

   COAL

   ‘TBN’ 60000/10 Mobile/Swinoujscie 1/10 Dec $21.50 fio 25000sc/22000sc

   - Cobelfret 阅读全文

   类别：Baltic Dry Index 查看评论

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

2. Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 16/11/2010

   hi.baidu.com — BDI 2219 (DOWN 42) BCI 3490 (DOWN 40) BPI 2216 (DOWN 78). … ‘Sam Dragon’ 1997 46841 dwt dely Baltic spot trip via Gulf of Aden. … scale/30000sc – RGL. ‘Classic Maritime TBN’ 150000/10 CSN/Caofeidian 5/14 Dec $29.25 fio. … 类别：Bdi Daily Report 查看评论

   BDI 2219 (DOWN 42) BCI 3490 (DOWN 40) BPI 2216 (DOWN 78)

   BSI 1474 (DOWN 21) BHSI 816 (DOWN 12)

   Last published BDTI 826 (UP 23) BCTI 642 (UP 23)
   TIMECHARTER

   ‘Mineral Haiku’ 2010 180200 dwt dely Qingdao 15/18 Nov trip via EC

   Australia redel China $31800 daily – Pacific Shipping

   ‘Kanaris D’ 2010 178000 dwt dely Kaohsiung 21/25 Nov trip via Brazil

   redel China $33000 daily – Cetragpa

   ‘King Sail’ Bunge relet 2002 177643 dwt dely China 8/11 Dec trip via

   West Australia redel Japan $29000 daily – ‘K’ Line

   ‘Hebei Genius’ 1990 148779 dwt dely S.Korea in d/c ppt trip via

   Australia redel Singapore-Japan rge $24000 daily – Hanjin

   ‘Rosco Ginkgo’ 2005 77000 dwt dely CJK 18/20 Nov trip via EC

   Australia redel India $19500 daily – BHP Billiton

   ‘Mineral Star’ 2005 76286 dwt dely Jorf Lasfar 20/22 Nov 2 laden legs

   1st leg Kamsar/US Gulf redel Skaw-Cape Passero $21500 daily – Practica

   ‘GH Fortune’ 2005 75214 dwt dely Lanshan 20/25 Nov trip via Prince

   Rupert redel China $17000 daily – DHL

   ‘Oregon’ 2002 74204 dwt dely Niihama spot trip via Newcastle redel

   China $19000 daily option via Lyttelton $21000 daily – Noble

   ‘Sanmar Paragon’ 1996 73080 dwt dely Xiamen 20/24 Nov trip via

   Indonesia redel Philippines $17000 daily – Oldendorff

   ‘Stefania’ 1981 64848 dwt dely aps Kamsar 1/7 Dec trip redel Stade

   $15000 daily – Proline

   ‘Toxotis’ 2010 57000 dwt dely N China spot trip via SE Asia redel

   China approx $13000 daily – cnr

   ‘Serenity 1′ 2006 53688 dwt dely N.China spot trip via Indonesia

   redel India approx $11300 daily – cnr

   ‘Sea Elegance’ 2002 51097 dwt dely aps Santos end Nov/ely Dec trip

   redel Singapore-Japan approx $20000 daily + approx $250000 bb – Greig

   Star

   ‘Sam Dragon’ 1997 46841 dwt dely Baltic spot trip via Gulf of Aden

   redel India approx $21500 daily – Oldendorff

   ‘Achilles 1′ 1984 37740 dwt dely Luoyuan 16/20 November trip via N

   China redel EC India-Bangladesh $12500 daily – cnr -
   PERIOD

   ‘Aeolian Glory’ 1995 158000 dwt dely Rizhao ppt 14/16 months trading

   redel worldwide $26000 daily – Swiss Marine

   ‘Maple Pioneer’ 2008 33170 dwt dely Falmouth 18/21 November about

   3/about 5 months trading redel worldwide $14000 daily – TA Bulk -
   ORE

   ‘TBN’ 160000/10 West Australia/Qingdao 27 Nov/6 Dec $10.30 fio

   scale/30000sc – Noble

   ‘TBN’ 160000/10 West Australia/China 25 Nov/5 Dec $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – NS United -

   ‘Setsuyo Star’ 1985 150000/10 CSN/Qingdao 1/10 Dec $27.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – RGL

   ‘Classic Maritime TBN’ 150000/10 CSN/Caofeidian 5/14 Dec $29.25 fio

   scale/30000sc – STX Pan Ocean

   COAL

   ‘TBN’ 60000/10 Mobile/Swinoujscie 1/10 Dec $21.50 fio 25000sc/22000sc

   - Cobelfret
   阅读全文

   类别：Bdi Daily Report 查看评论

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

3. Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 15/11/2010

   hi.baidu.com — BDI 2261 (DOWN 52) BCI 3530 (DOWN 82) BPI 2294 (DOWN 71). … BSI 1495 (DOWN 21) BHSI 828 (DOWN 5). … ‘Triton’ 2001 75336 dwt – PTE Ltd relet and the ship fixed to Resource Marine at $19500 for 35. … 类别：Bdi Daily Report 查看评论

   BDI 2261 (DOWN 52) BCI 3530 (DOWN 82) BPI 2294 (DOWN 71)

   BSI 1495 (DOWN 21) BHSI 828 (DOWN 5)

   Last published BDTI 803 (UP 28) BCTI 619 (UP
   TIMECHARTER

   ‘Yasa Neslihan’ 2005 82849 dwt dely Santos 4/6 Dec trip via Dammam

   redel PMO int grain $27000 daily + $650000 bb – Noble

   ‘Grain Express’ 2004 76466 dwt dely Aughinish ppt trip via

   St.Lawrence redel Continent (breaking IWL) $19000 daily – Pioneer

   Navigation

   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2008 75756 dwt dely Dangjin ppt trip via EC

   Australia redel EC India $21000 daily – PGSC

   ‘Brave Star’ 2000 73981 dwt dely Kosichang 13/15 Nov trip via

   Indonesia redel Malaysia $17000 daily – OBS

   ‘Azure’ 1982 64200 dwt dely PMO 18/19 Nov trip via WC India redel

   China $17000 daily – cnr

   ‘Fortune Plum’ 2010 57053 dwt dely China spot trip via SE Asia redel

   China intention Nickel ore $17000 daily – cnr -

   ‘Aquitania’ 2006 55932 dwt dely Rizhao spot trip redel Nigeria

   intention bulk cement $12000 daily – cnr

   ‘Avra’ 2004 53806 dwt -

   to be incorrect>

   ‘Spar Lyra’ 2005 53565 dwt dely Map Ta Phut spot trip via Indonesia

   redel India $16250 daily – cnr

   ‘Baytur’ 2001 52261 dwt dely North China 16/21 November trip redel

   PG or owners option PMO $17000 daily if redel PG $16250 daily if PMO -

   Sunrise Shipping

   ‘Jin Li’ 2001 50777 dwt dely Beilun spot trip via Indonesia redel

   China $12000 daily – cnr

   ‘Normannia’ 1997 42648 dwt dely Japan spot trip via Nopac redel

   Singapore-Japan $10000 daily – Daeyang

   ‘Maple Pioneer’ 2008 33170 dwt dely Falmouth 18/21 Nov 2/3 laden legs

   redel Atlantic approx $14500 daily – TA Bulk
   PERIOD
   ‘Triton’ 2001 75336 dwt -

   PTE Ltd relet and the ship fixed to Resource Marine at $19500 for 35

   to 38 months and not $19570 for 3 years as reported 5/11>

   ‘Pollux’ 2007 32017 dwt dely Rotterdam 20/22 Nov 3/5 months trading

   redel Atlantic approx $14000 daily – Cargill

   ORE
   ‘ZOSCO Shaoxing’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 17/25 Nov $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   ‘Christina J’ 2010 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 25/30 Nov $10.80 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   ‘Great Hebei’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 20/30 Nov $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   COAL
   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2006 75000/5 coking coal Dalrymple Bay/EC India

   1/10 Dec $24.00 fio 35000satpmshex/20000satpmshex – SAIL
   阅读全文

   类别：Bdi Daily Report 查看评论

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

4. Sensex : -445 ; 19865 ; 16 /11/2010

   bharatmarkets.wordpress.com — This man felled a king.Read here. . … CAG report on 2G allocation.Read here here here and here. . … Capital flows,due to US QE2.UPA optimistic.Read here. . … The Baltic Tiger.Read here. . … bdi 2161; Shipping in SERIOUS trouble BELOW 200 DMA 2814 .

   MM Singh sells India to the USA,which is going to enter Education in India in a big way.

   This man felled a king.Read here

   CAG report on 2G allocation.Read here here here and here

   Capital flows,due to US QE2.UPA optimistic.Read here

   RBI May Take Steps to Ease Liquidity.Read here

   China begins damming Brahmaputra river for hydropower project.Read here

   Fake notes: Pakistan to be taken to global body.Read here

   The Baltic Tiger.Read here

   Silver Manipulators.Read here

   FII:Rs Crores D/M/Y: -197;+8024 ;+65527; DII: +450 ; -466 ; -24,831

   bdi 2161; Shipping in SERIOUS trouble BELOW 200 DMA 2814

   gold 1341 $/Oz

   silver 820 $/Kg

   Dr COPPER 3.7207 $/Lb

   us dollar index 79.20

   Re v Dollar 45.31

   crude 82.16 $/bbl

   Reuters CRB Index 296.22;-9.08 (-3.202%)

   Nifty Futures discount/premium:- September 2010, 5.3,points premium 16 /11/2010 ;P/C 0.37; 15 /11/2010PMI 55.5 for July,2010:dipped from 56.2;rate of growth slow;above 50 good for the economy.;India 57.20 from 57.6

   Sensex : -445 ; 19865

   VIX(Fear Index) :- india 21.13 ; +0.88; +4.35%

   usa 22.58; +2.38, +11.78%

   

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

Tanker Blog mentions for November 16, 2010 showing 30 entries

Navios Maritime Acquisition to offer 6M shares

1. biz-ideas-4u.com — . Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp., a Greek company that owns and operates tanker vessels, announced Monday that it intends to offer 6 million common shares in a public sale.. . … To read/view the full story Click Here .

   Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp., a Greek company that owns and operates tanker vessels, announced Monday that it intends to offer 6 million common shares in a public sale.

   To read/view the full
   story Click Here

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

2. Exploring Nuclear Power Propulsion for Commercial Tankers

   www.swzonline.nl — A consortium of British, American and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors (SMRs) as commercial tanker-owners search for new

   A consortium of British, American and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors (SMRs) as commercial tanker-owners search for new designs that could deliver safer, cleaner and commercially viable forms of propulsion for the global fleet.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

3. Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation Announces Public Offering of 6,000,000 Shares of Common Stock

   www.prnewswire.com — PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 15, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that

   PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 15, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that it plans to offer 6,000,000 shares of common stock in a public offering. Navios Acquisition expects to gr

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

4. Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation Announces Pricing of Follow-On Offering

   www.prnewswire.com — PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that

   PIRAEUS, Greece, Nov. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that it has priced its follow-on public offering of 6,500,000 shares of common stock at $5.50 per share. Navio

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

5. Navios at it again

   www.tradewinds.no — . New York-listed tanker owner emerges as the latest Angeliki Frangou affiliate to call on capital markets for cash. .

   New York-listed tanker owner emerges as the latest Angeliki Frangou affiliate
   to call on capital markets for cash.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

6. Scorpio wants more

   www.tradewinds.no — . Emanuele Lauro-led tanker owner looks for $57.5m from shareholders with Lolli-Ghetti family member chipping in $5m. .

   Emanuele Lauro-led tanker owner looks for $57.5m from shareholders with
   Lolli-Ghetti family member chipping in $5m.

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

7. SFL – Invitation to Presentation of 3Q 2010 Results

   stockmarketsreview.com — . HAMILTON, BERMUDA — (Marketwire) — 11/15/10 — Ship Finance International Limited (“Ship Finance”) (NYSE: SFL) plans to release. … tanker market as a result of changes in OPEC’s petroleum production levels and.

   HAMILTON, BERMUDA — (Marketwire) — 11/15/10 — Ship Finance International Limited (“Ship Finance”) (NYSE: SFL) plans to release

   its financial results for third quarter 2010 on Tuesday November 23, 2010.

   The Company plans to host a conference call and a webcast for all shareholders

   and interested parties on Tuesday November 23, 2010 at 10:00 AM (EST) / 4:00 PM

   (Central European Time). Relevant material will be available from the Investor

   Relations section at Hwww.shipfinance.orgH as of the same day.

   In order to listen to the presentation you may do one of the following:

   a. Webcast

   Go to the Investor Relations section at Hwww.shipfinance.orgH and click on the

   link to “Webcast”. To listen to the conference call from the web, you need to

   have installed Windows Media Player, and you need to have a sound card on your

   computer.

   b. Conference Call

   Participants dial in numbers:

   US Toll Free # 1-866-239-0753

   International Dial In # +44 207 138 0825

   Norwegian Toll Free # 800 19639

   Conference ID: 8521048

   There will be a Q&A session after the presentation. Information on how to ask

   questions will be given at the beginning of the Q&A session.

   A replay of the conference call will be available until September 2, 2010,

   Midnight by dialing:

   US Toll Free # 1-866-932-5017

   International Dial In # +44 207 111 1244

   The replay access code is: 8521048#

   About Ship Finance

   Ship Finance is a major ship owning company listed on the New York Stock

   Exchange (NYSE: SFL). Including newbuildings, the Company has a fleet of 72

   vessels, including 30 crude oil tankers (VLCC and Suezmax), two chemical

   tankers, eight oil/bulk/ore vessels, 13 drybulk carriers (including 11

   newbuildings and one vessel agreed sold with expected delivery in December

   2010), nine container vessels, six offshore supply vessels, one jack-up drilling

   rigs, one ultra-deepwater drillship and two ultra-deepwater semi-submersible

   drilling rigs. The fleet is one of the largest in the world and most of the

   vessels are employed on long-term charters.

   Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Statements

   This press release may contain forward looking statements. These statements are

   based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further

   assumptions, including Company management’s examination of historical operating

   trends. Although Ship Finance believes that these assumptions were reasonable

   when made, because assumptions are inherently subject to significant

   uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and

   are beyond its control, Ship Finance cannot give assurance that it will achieve

   or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or intentions.

   Important factors that, in the Company’s view, could cause actual results to

   differ materially from those discussed in this presentation include the strength

   of world economies and currencies, general market conditions including

   fluctuations in charter hire rates and vessel values, changes in demand in the

   tanker market as a result of changes in OPEC’s petroleum production levels and

   world wide oil consumption and storage, changes in the Company’s operating

   expenses including bunker prices, dry-docking and insurance costs, changes in

   governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities,

   potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and

   international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due

   to accidents or political events, and other important factors described from

   time to time in the reports filed by the Company with the United States

   Securities and Exchange Commission.
   [HUG#1462389]

   This announcement is distributed by Thomson Reuters on behalf of

   Thomson Reuters clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that:

   (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and

   other applicable laws; and

   (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and

   originality of the information contained therein.

   Source: Ship Finance International Limited via Thomson Reuters ONE

   Contact Persons:

   Ole B. Hjertaker

   Chief Executive Officer

   Ship Finance Management AS

   +47 2311 4011 / +47 9014 1243

   Magnus T. Valeberg

   Vice President

   Ship Finance Management AS

   +47 2311 4012 / +47 9344 0960

   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

8. Bryant’s Maritime Blog–16 November 2010

   brymar-consulting.com — . Headlines: NOAA – trustees receive $27.5 million for natural resource damages; DOJ – $6 million to be paid for natural resource damages; CBP – coastwise transportation of merchandise and equipment;

   Headlines: NOAA – trustees receive $27.5 million for natural resource damages; DOJ – $6 million to be paid for natural resource damages; CBP – coastwise transportation of merchandise and equipment; Arctic Ocean – Russian researchers threatened by shifting ice; USACE – Great Lakes & Mississippi River Interbasin Study; BOEMRE – oil and gas activities on Alaska OCS; EPA – meeting re Vessel General Permit program; Georgia & NE Florida – mandatory ship reporting & speed reduction; Indian Ocean – pirate action group disrupted; New Zealand – Fiordland arrival and departure; Panama Canal – Miraflores Locks lane outages; and Panama Canal – October operations summary.

   November 16, 2010

   Bryant’s Maritime Blog
   Bryant’s Maritime Consulting – 4845 SW 91st Way – Gainesville, FL 32608-8135 – USA

   Tel: 1-352-692-5493 – Email: dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com – Internet: http://brymar-consulting.com

   Note: This blog is one section of the Bryant’s Maritime Consulting website. Visit the site for more extensive maritime regulatory information. Individual concerns may be addressed by retaining Dennis Bryant directly. Much of the highlighted text in this newsletter constitutes links to Internet sites providing more detailed information. Links on this page may be in PDF format, requiring use of Adobe Acrobat Reader. Comments on these postings are encouraged and may be made by clicking the envelope that appears at the end of each posting. Be aware that the daily blog entry is a single posting, even though it contains a number of individual items. He who is lost, hesitates.

   NOAA – trustees receive $27.5 million for natural resource damages

   The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a news release stating that federal and state trustees received $27.5 million from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (OSLTF) in compensation for natural resource damages resulting from the 2004 oil spill from the tanker Athos I. The monies will be used to fund nine restoration projects in areas near the Delaware River and Bay. (11/15/10).

   DOJ – $6 million to be paid for natural resource damages

   The Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a news release stating that the responsible parties with respect to the April 2003 oil spill into Buzzards Bay have agreed to pay more than $6 million to federal and state trustees to pay for natural resource damages. The parties previously paid almost $1.6 million in natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) costs, as well as a fine of $10 million. (11/15/10).

   CBP – coastwise transportation of merchandise and equipment

   The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has withdrawn its proposed rulemaking regarding transportation of certain merchandise and equipment between coastwise points. CBP proposed to make a significant policy change in this respect in July 2009, but withdrew the proposed ruling letter in September 2009. The agency then drafted a proposed rulemaking and submitted that proposal to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for consideration on March 17, 2010. (11/15/10). Note: It is unclear at this stage whether CBP has gone back to the status quo on this issue or whether it will approach from a different perspective.

   Arctic Ocean – Russian researchers threatened by shifting ice

   The US Coast Guard issued a news release stating that it dispatched an aircraft to assess the safety of an imperiled mobile Russian research station in the Arctic Ocean 560 miles northeast of Point Barrow, Alaska. The 15 researchers, who are being threatened by shifting ice, reported that they are in no immediate distress and are awaiting arrival of a Russian icebreaker. (11/15/10).

   USACE – Great Lakes & Mississippi River Interbasin Study

   The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) issued a notice stating that it intends to prepare a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) analyzing the effects of aquatic nuisance species (ANS) controls on the Chicago Area Waterway System (CAWS) and other aquatic pathways between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins. A public scoping meeting will be held in Chicago on December 15, 2010. Written comments should be submitted by February 28, 2011. 75 Fed. Reg. 69983 (November 16, 2010).

   BOEMRE – oil and gas activities on Alaska OCS

   The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement (BOEMRE) issued a notice stating that it has finalized Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Findings of No Significant Impact (FONSIs) relating to two oil and gas activities proposed on the Alaska outer continental shelf (OCS). 75 Fed. Reg. 70021 (November 16, 2010).

   EPA – meeting re Vessel General Permit program

   The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is co-sponsoring an open meeting in Houston on November 19 to receive comments on the Vessel General Permit program. (11/15/10). Note: Shortly after the permit program was first established, I presented a paper on Regulation of discharges incidental to the normal operations of a vessel.

   Georgia & NE Florida – mandatory ship reporting and speed reduction

   The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued a Compliance Guide for the North Atlantic right whale ship strike reduction program. Among other things, it reminds mariners that the mandatory ship reporting requirement for vessels 65 feet or greater in overall length is in effect from November 15 through April 15 for waters of the North Atlantic from just north of Brunswick, Georgia to just south of Jacksonville, Florida. Ships in the Southeast Seasonal Management Area must keep their speeds to ten knots or less during this period. (11/15/10).

   Indian Ocean – pirate action group disrupted

   The EU NAVFOR issued a press release stating that one of its warships intercepted and disrupted a pirate action group in the Indian Ocean approximately 200 nautical miles off the coast of Somalia. A whaler with four suspected pirates and a number of fuel drums was boarded. The whaler was sunk and the individuals were returned to shore. (11/15/10).

   New Zealand – Fiordland arrival and departure

   The New Zealand Customs Service issued a notice reminding ship owners and operators that Fiordland, including Milford Sound, is restricted to the arrival and departure of specified cruise vessels under a Deed of Trust signed between Environment Southland and the New Zealand Cruise Ship Industry. There is no provision for other overseas craft to arrive or depart from there. (11/15/10).

   Panama Canal – Miraflores Locks lane outages

   The Panama Canal Authority issued an advisory stating that Miraflores Locks will require four separate lane outages of approximately 16 hours each for installation of miter gates on November 15-16; November 18-19; November 22-23; and November 25-26. Transit Reservation System Condition 1.a will be in effect on November 16, 19, 23, and 26. Advisory 18/2010 (11/12/10).

   Panama Canal – October operations summary

   The Panama Canal Authority issued an advisory summarizing Canal operations during October. In addition, it includes the schedule for locks maintenance work for the remainder of the fiscal year. Advisory 19/2010 (11/12/10).

   If you have questions regarding the above items, please contact the editor:

   Dennis L. Bryant

   Bryant’s Maritime Consulting

   4845 SW 91st Way
   Gainesville, FL 32608-8135

   USA

   1-352-692-5493
   dennis.l.bryant@gmail.com

   http://brymar-consulting.com

   © Dennis L. Bryant – November 2010

   Redistribution permitted with attribution

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

9. Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation Announces Public Offering of 6,000,000 Shares of Common Stoc

   pr-usa.net — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that it plans to offer 6,000,000 shares of common stock in a public offering.

   Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation, an owner and operator of tanker vessels (“Navios Acquisition”) (NYSE: NNA), announced today that it plans to offer 6,000,000 shares of common stock in a public offering. Navios Acquisition expects to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase an additional 900,000 shares of common stock to cover over-allotments, if any. Navios Acquisition expects to use the net proceeds from the public offering for general corporate purposes.
   The joint book-running managers for this offering are Citi and Wells Fargo Securities and the manager is S. Goldman Advisors LLC.
   When available, copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying base…

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

10. What’s your niche and what do you do? Part 2 [Andrew Priestley]

    www.ecademy.com — Highly specialised and if you have a super tanker and you are concerned about the hull – which apparently a lot of super-tanker owners are – he is the go-to guy..

    I started looking at anything I could about identifying your niche.

    In marketing terms there are horizontal and vertical niches.

    As I understand it, a horizontal niche is the typical way most of us position ourselves. “I’m a accountant and I can work with any business.” “I sell software that is appropriate for any business.”

    A client of mine owns a subsidiary of a major oil and gas company and his business looks after everything from geo-surveys, drilling, pumping, shipping, refining, storing, wholesaling and retailing of oil and gas products. But its just oil and gas – vertical marketing.

    Which best describes you? (Any marketing people feel free to update or clarify).

    Then there is a specialist niche.

    A client does under-hull surveys of supertankers – that’s it. Highly specialised and if you have a super tanker and you are concerned about the hull – which apparently a lot of super-tanker owners are – he is the go-to guy.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

11. Scorpio Tankers Inc. Launches Public Offering of Its Common Stock

    thegreenjournal.ca — Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

    MONACO–(Marketwire – November 15, 2010) – Scorpio Tankers Inc. (NYSE: STNG) (the “Company” or “Scorpio Tankers”) announced today an underwritten public offering of 4,575,000 shares of its common stock. The proceeds of the offering are expected to be used, after assessing any working capital and other general corporate expense needs, to pursue vessel acquisitions consistent with the Company’s acquisition strategy.

    Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated is acting as the sole bookrunning manager and Fearnley Fonds ASA, Dahlman Rose & Company, LLC, Lazard Capital Markets LLC, Knight Capital Markets LLC and DVB Capital Markets LLC are acting as co-managers in the offering. The Company expects to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 686,250 common shares to cover over-allotments.

    This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities and shall not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale is unlawful. The offering is being made by means of a prospectus. A preliminary prospectus related to the offering will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. When available, copies of the preliminary prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained from the offices of Morgan Stanley at 180 Varick Street, New York, NY 10014, Attention: Prospectus Department or by calling 1 866 718-1649 or by e-mail at Prospectus@morganstanley.com.

    About Scorpio Tankers Inc.

    Scorpio Tankers Inc. is a provider of marine transportation of petroleum products worldwide. Scorpio Tankers Inc. currently owns one LR2 tanker, four LR1 tankers, four Handymax tankers, and one post-Panamax tanker with an average age of 5.1 years.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Matters discussed in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides safe harbor protections for forward-looking statements in order to encourage companies to provide prospective information about their business. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance, and underlying assumptions and other statements, which are other than statements of historical facts. The Company desires to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and is including this cautionary statement in connection with this safe harbor legislation. The words “believe,” “anticipate,” “intends,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “project,” “plan,” “potential,” “may,” “should,” “expect,” “pending” and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements.

    The forward-looking statements in this press release are based upon various assumptions, many of which are based, in turn, upon further assumptions, including without limitation, our management’s examination of historical operating trends, data contained in our records and other data available from third parties. Although we believe that these assumptions were reasonable when made, because these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies which are difficult or impossible to predict and are beyond our control, we cannot assure you that we will achieve or accomplish these expectations, beliefs or projections.

    In addition to these important factors, other important factors that, in our view, could cause actual results to differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements include the failure of counterparties to fully perform their contracts with us, the strength of world economies and currencies, general market conditions, including fluctuations in charter rates and vessel values, changes in demand for tanker vessel capacity, changes in our operating expenses, including bunker prices, drydocking and insurance costs, the market for our vessels, competition in the tanker industry, availability of financing and refinancing, charter counterparty performance, ability to obtain financing and comply with covenants in such financing arrangements, changes in governmental rules and regulations or actions taken by regulatory authorities, potential liability from pending or future litigation, general domestic and international political conditions, potential disruption of shipping routes due to accidents, piracy or political events, vessels breakdowns and instances of off-hires and other factors. Please see our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a more complete discussion of these and other risks and uncertainties.

    

    

    
    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

12. Turkey: IMO II Double Hull tanker

    www.apolloduck.com — Total Deadweight amp Draft 3 945 on 5 10 m draft Built Date July 2005 Cubic Capacity 4 593 cbm Class …

    Total Deadweight amp Draft 3 945 on 5 10 m draft Built Date July 2005 Cubic Capacity 4 593 cbm Class …

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

13. Tunisian ship hijacked off Gulf of Aden

    www.skyscrapercity.com — TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.. .

    TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.

    The sum demanded was not immediately known as company manager Farid Abbas could not be reached late Friday.

    Tunisian authorities have said they are working to release the tanker while at the same time safeguarding the lives of the crew.

    The 24,105-tonne vessel, the Hannibal II, was attacked and boarded by pirates early Thursday while carrying vegetable oils from the Malaysian port of Pasir Gudang to Suez, according to the European Union’s anti-piracy mission.

    The ship’s crew consists of 23 Tunisians, four Filipinos, a Croatian, Georgian, Russian and Moroccan.

    Somali pirates are becoming more brazen and keeping ahead of the international naval force seeking to end their high seas marauding, a top UN official said in New York earlier this week.

    The pirates have kidnapped almost 100 new crew and passengers from ships in less than a month and there are now at least 438 seafarers and 20 ships held by bandits, according to latest International Maritime Organization figures.

    The pirates announced last weekend they had received a record nine-million-dollar ransom for a South Korean supertanker.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

14. Tanker sector eyes savings potential from a timely arrival

    www.lloydslist.com — A charterparty clause allowing tanker owners to sail at a more economical speed when facing port delays could be ready by the end of the year

    A charterparty clause allowing tanker owners to sail at a more economical speed when facing port delays could be ready by the end of the year

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

15. Seadrill in $380 Million China Oil Project

    bernews.com — Norwegian-born oil tanker shipping tycoon John Fredrickson — who owns Bermuda-based Frontline is a major shareholder.. . … Frontline Buoyed by China’s Oil Demands Seawell To Buy Allis-Chalmers

    Bermuda-based Seadrill has entered into an agreement for the construction of two jack-up drilling rigs with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore Co., Ltd (DSIC) in China. The new units are scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter 2012 and first quarter 2013 respectively, and total project cost is estimated at $380 million, which include project management, drilling and handling tools, spares and capitalised interest.

    In addition, Seadrill has option agreements for construction of further two similar units with DSIC.

    A jack-up rig is a type of mobile platform that is able to stand still on the sea floor, resting on a number of supporting legs. The most popular designs use three independent legs, although some jack-ups have four legs or more.

    The two rigs ordered from Dalian represent the latest generation, high specification jack-up drilling rigs with greater capacities and capabilities than current more conventional units. The units have the capability to operate in water depths up to 400 feet and drill to depths of 30,000 feet. They also offer improved drilling efficiencies with off-line pipe handling, simultaneous operations support and increased accommodation capacity.

    Alf C. Thorkildsen, chief executive officer in Seadrill Management AS, says: “We expect market and conditions for premium jack-up rigs to continue to improve. These newbuild orders position our company to meet the demand from our customers and further strengthen our position as the leading operator of modern, high quality offshore drilling units. Our jack-up rig fleet will, including the recent acquisition of Scorpion and the two recently ordered rigs from Jurong, constitutes the world largest modern jack-up fleet with a total of 18 units built after 2006.”

    Seadrill is a Norwegian-Bermudian offshore drilling company with operations in Angola, Brunei, the Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Norway, Thailand and the United Kingdom. The company operates a fleet of semi-sumbersibles, jack ups, tender rigs, semi-tenders and drill ships. Domiciled in Bermuda and listed on bothe the Oslo Stock Exchange and New York Stock exchange, its operational headquarters are based in Norway. Norwegian-born oil tanker shipping tycoon John Fredrickson — who owns Bermuda-based Frontline is a major shareholder.

    Related Posts:

    • Seawell To Buy Allis-Chalmers
    • Nabors Buys Superior Well For $900 Million
    • Aspen Estimates $25 Million In Oil Disaster Claims
    • Seadrill Rig: Gulf Of Mexico Cleanup

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

16. DNREC, other agencies get $27M settlement from Athos I oil spill

    www.dnrec.delaware.gov — 15, 2010) – State and federal natural resource agencies including Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control have reached a settlement of $27.5 million for ecological

    DOVER (Nov. 15, 2010) – State and federal natural resource agencies including Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control have reached a settlement of $27.5 million for ecological restoration of the Delaware River following an oil spill six years ago from the tanker Athos I.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

17. The Netherlands: Maastank Invests €30 million in Terminal Expansion

    www.dredgingtoday.com — Maastank is investing €30 million in the expansion of its terminal in the Botlek area. … The investment sum was announced during the christening of the inland tanker Piz Palü belonging to the Fluvia Group, which owns [...]

    Maastank is investing €30 million in the expansion of its terminal in the Botlek area. By 2012, the storage capacity for vegetable oils and fats and for chemicals must have doubled to 65,000 m3. The investment sum was announced during the christening of the inland tanker Piz Palü belonging to the Fluvia Group, which owns [...]

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

18. Today in Maritime History: 16th November

    www.yousaytoo.com — oceantreasures.org – 1835 – Charles Darwin’s voyage published in Cambridge Philosophical Society.1841 – Life preservers made of cork are patented by Napoleon Guerin (NYC).1856 – Barrier Forts

    oceantreasures.org – 1835 – Charles Darwin’s voyage published in Cambridge Philosophical Society.1841 – Life preservers made of cork are patented by Napoleon Guerin (NYC).1856 – Barrier Forts reduction began at Canton China.1882 – British HMS Flirt fire at & destroy Abari village in Niger.1939 – German U-boat torpedoes tanker Sliedrecht near Ireland.1942 – Navy’s first Night Fighter squadron established at Cherry Point, NC.1955 – 1st speed-boat to exceed 200 mph (322 kph) (D M Campbell).1963 – President John F. Kennedy on USS Observation Island witnesses launch of Polaris A-2 missile by USS

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

19. International Shipping and Power Experts Join Forces to Explore Potential for Nuclear “Batteries” to Propel Future …

    www.omegashipping.org — . A consortium of British, American, and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors as commercial tanker-owners search for new designs

    A consortium of British, American, and Greek interests have agreed to investigate the practical maritime applications for small modular reactors as commercial tanker-owners search for new designs that could deliver safer, cleaner and commercially viable forms of propulsion for the global fleet.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

20. Jury awards $14 million to employee burned in explosion

    www.jerebeasleyreport.com — . A jury has awarded a Plaintiff, Carl Cotright, $14 million in his lawsuit, which arose out of the explosion of a tanker that blew up three years ago. … He was on the tanker in April of 2007 just before it exploded.

    A jury has awarded a Plaintiff, Carl Cotright, $14 million in his lawsuit, which arose out of the explosion of a tanker that blew up three years ago. Mr. Cotright was on that tanker and was burned over much of his body. He was on the tanker in April of 2007 just before it exploded. He was loading it with a flammable liquid when it ignited. By the time the Plaintiff realized what was happening, it was too late. Flames had already reached him and he was on fire.

    The tanker was not grounded, which would have prevented the fire. The Plaintiff suffered second- and third-degree burns on his torso, arms and legs. He sued the Transport Company C & G Hot Shot Service. The company had offered to settle for $15,000 which was rejected. Jason Gibson, a lawyer based in Houston, represented the Plaintiff and did a very good job.

    Source: ABC

    SOURCE: Jere Beasley Report › Jury awards $14 million to employee burned in explosion

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

21. Invensys Operations Management Wins Contract With Bluewater

    www.virtualizationconference.com — Invensys Operations Management, a global provider of technology systems, software solutions and consulting services to the manufacturing and infrastructure operations industries, today announced

    Invensys Operations Management, a global provider of technology systems, software solutions and consulting services to the manufacturing and infrastructure operations industries, today announced that it has entered a contract with Bluewater (Glas Dowr) NV, a company specializing in the design, development, lease and operation of tanker-based production and storage systems.read more

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

22. Occupational exposure to toxic chemicals

    helplibrary.blogspot.com — The Bhopal tragedy is replayed almost daily on a much smaller scale in cities all over India; for instance, when a tanker carrying toxic chemicals overturns and releases its poisonous load into

    

    Occupational exposure to toxic chemicals is also becoming increasingly common. However, the risk of exposure to these chemicals is no longer restricted to factory workers alone. The 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy is an outstanding example of how thousands were adversely affected because of the failure to implement simple precautions, even though the factory from which the deadly fumes emanated was dealing with toxic chemicals. The Bhopal tragedy is replayed almost daily on a much smaller scale in cities all over India; for instance, when a tanker carrying toxic chemicals overturns and releases its poisonous load into the environment, or when manufacturing units operating from residential areas spew out toxic waste products.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

23. Tunisian ship hijacked off Gulf of Aden

    www.wp-wordpress.com — . TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday..

    TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.

    The sum demanded was not immediately known as company manager Farid Abbas could not be reached late Friday.

    Tunisian authorities have said they are working to release the tanker while at the same time safeguarding the lives of the crew.

    The 24,105-tonne vessel, the Hannibal II, was attacked and boarded by pirates early Thursday while carrying vegetable oils from the Malaysian port of Pasir Gudang to Suez, according to the European Union’s anti-piracy mission.

    The ship’s crew consists of 23 Tunisians, four Filipinos, a Croatian, Georgian, Russian and Moroccan.

    Somali pirates are becoming more brazen and keeping ahead of the international naval force seeking to end their high seas marauding, a top UN official said in New York earlier this [...]

    Original post by CARTHAGINOIS

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

24. Big Run on Tankers

    shipfax.blogspot.com — There has been a lot of tanker activity at Imperial Oil over the past few days, with more to come. … Chemical/product tanker Nordic Copenhagen (see Nov 10) moved alongside today and Chemtrans Havel sailed.

    1. Kimolos at anchor in the harbour and Atlantic Leo on the horizon.

    2. Kimolos arriving.

    3. Chemtrans Havel sailing.

    There has been a lot of tanker activity at Imperial Oil over the past few days, with more to come. Chemical/product tanker Nordic Copenhagen (see Nov 10) moved alongside today and Chemtrans Havel sailed. The this afternoon Kimolos came in to anchor.Chemtrans Havel is German owned, Liberian registered and was built in 2009. She measures 8539 gross tons.Kimolos is Greek owned and registered, was built in 2010 and measures 29,663 gross tons. Both are chemical and oil product tankers.

    The crude oil tanker Nordbay sailed yesterday, but remained at anchor off Halifax until this afternoon, while Atlantic Leo awaits in the outer anchorages. .

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

25. Navios Maritime Acquisition to offer 6M shares

    businessrover.com — . Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp., a Greek company that owns and operates tanker vessels, announced Monday that it intends to offer 6 million common shares in a public sale. … Read Original Post Here .

    Navios Maritime Acquisition Corp., a Greek company that owns and operates tanker vessels, announced Monday that it intends to offer 6 million common shares in a public sale. Read Original Post Here

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

26. Maharlika Funds Increases Holdings in NAT; Picks Up FRO

    blog.imobhq.com — increases it’s positions in Nordic American Tanker (NAT). … The Oil and Tanker shipping industry has been under pressure due to the decreased global economic demand thus making the stock prices of the companies in this sector under pressure.

    November 23, 2010. California, USA. Maharlika Funds, the flagship portfolio of iMOBHQ.COM increases it’s positions in Nordic American Tanker (NAT). It has also taken positions in Frontline (FRO).

    Maharlika Funds is currently in the process of rebalancing it’s portfolio holdings. The fund looks at opportunities in the following sectors:

    • Oil and Energy
    • Maritime
    • Telecom and Utilities
    • REITS (Real Estate Investment Trusts)
    • Technology
    • Pharmaceuticals
    • Financials
    • Conglomerates
    • Food and Beverage

    The Oil and Tanker shipping industry has been under pressure due to the decreased global economic demand thus making the stock prices of the companies in this sector under pressure. Investors should consider looking at companies that are well positioned and are market leaders in this industry.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

27. Piracy in Somalia: key facts

    hornofafrica-abdikarim.blogspot.com — According to the IMB, pirates are using oceangoing fishing vessels to reach as far as the southern Red Sea, where they hijacked a chemical tanker in July 2010 – the first such hijacking recorded in the area.

    An armed Somali pirate. Photograph: Mohamed Dahir/AFP/Getty Images
    • Somali pirates were responsible for 44% of the 289 piracy incidents on the world’s seas in the first nine months of 2010, according to the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB).
    • Of 39 ship hijackings, 35 were carried out by Somali pirates.
    • There is evidence that Somali pirates are gaining in confidence, carrying out more attacks away from their own coast. According to the IMB, pirates are using oceangoing fishing vessels to reach as far as the southern Red Sea, where they hijacked a chemical tanker in July 2010 – the first such hijacking recorded in the area. Pirates are heavily armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, the IMB says.
    Read More

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

28. Agencies Receive Settlement From 2004 Athos I Oil Spill

    outdoornewsdaily.com — State and federal natural resource agencies including Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control have reached a settlement of $27.5 million for ecological restoration

    State and federal natural resource agencies including Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control have reached a settlement of $27.5 million for ecological restoration of the Delaware River following an oil spill six years ago from the tanker Athos I. DNREC, along with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Fish and [...]

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

29. Invensys Operations Management Wins Contract With Bluewater

    www.financialeveryday.com — The Glas Dowr FPSO is leased by Eni, the largest oil and gas association in Italy. … All alternative brands and product names might be trademarks of their particular owners..

    Plug-In Migration Concept Drives Control and Environment & Safety Excellence on Floating Production, Storage and Offloading Unit

    LONDON–(Marketwire – Nov 16, 2010) – Invensys Operations Management, a tellurian provider of record systems, program solutions and consulting services to the prolongation and infrastructure operations industries, currently voiced that it has entered a stipulate with Bluewater (Glas Dowr) NV, a association specializing in the design, development, franchise and operation of tanker-based prolongation and storage systems.

    Under the conditions of the agreement, Invensys will refurbish the bequest distributed carry out complement (DCS) and reserve systems aboard the Glas Dowr floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) unit, that will be handling we estimate 170 kilometers south of the Timor-Leste seashore in the Timor Sea. Invensys will supply the Foxboro® I/A Series® distributed carry out and Triconex® vicious carry out solutions, as good as glow and gas showing systems, instrumentation, fume showing systems, cabinets and consoles. The association will additionally yield engineering, plan management, installation, training, design, commissioning and begin up services.

    “Our innovative plug-in emigration record is the key differentiator to on condition that the smoothest passing from one to another at the lowest cost,” pronounced Dirk outpost der Meulen, comment manager, Invensys Operations Management. “It is vicious to elect the Bluewater plan inside of the accessible timeframe and inside of budget. Our rarely gifted Invensys emigration group is auxiliary closely with Bluewater’s engineering group not usually to encounter the severe time schedule, but additionally to assistance them grasp carry out and reserve excellence. This open plan proceed and jointly concluded aim price indication will lessen plan risks and reduces Bluewater’s altogether investment.”

    The Glas Dowr FPSO is leased by Eni, the largest oil and gas association in Italy. The Glas Dowr will be stationed in the Kitan oil margin located in between Australia and Timor-Leste. Invensys has additionally supposing the distributed control, reserve and industrialisation systems for the Bleo Holm, the sixth Bluewater-designed, built, owned and operated FPSO.

    About Invensys Operations Management

    Invensys Operations Management, a multiplication of Invensys, is a heading provider of industrialisation and report technology, systems, program solutions, services and consulting to the tellurian prolongation and infrastructure industries. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, the solutions have been used by some-more than 40,000 clients around the universe in some-more than 200,000 plants and facilities.

    Invensys Operations Management’s offerings have been delivered underneath multiform distinguished attention brands, together with Avantis, Eurotherm, Foxboro, IMServ, InFusion, Skelta, SimSci-Esscor, Triconex and Wonderware. The company’s we estimate 9,000 employees and the tellurian partner ecosystem confederate these products and services to assistance clients combine opposite systems and enterprises in genuine time, extracting vicious interpretation to have faster, improved decisions and synchronize their operations from the plant building to the senior manager offices, aligning prolongation goals with commercial operation objectives. To sense some-more about Invensys Operations Management, revisit http://iom.invensys.com.

    Invensys plc (www.invensys.com) is headquartered in London and is listed on the London Stock Exchange (ISYS.L), with we estimate 20,000 employees operative in 50 countries.

    Invensys, the Invensys logo, Avantis, Eurotherm, Foxboro, I/A Series, IMServ, InFusion, Skelta, Triconex and Wonderware have been trademarks of Invensys plc, the subsidiaries or affiliates. All alternative brands and product names might be trademarks of their particular owners.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

30. A sailor’s life – 48. Oil tanker apprentice, 1919

    monkbarns.wordpress.com — The old square-riggers’ crowd of apprentices had dwindled to just three on Bill’s oil tanker, and even before these greenhorns reached their ship a plausible bloke posing as the shipping agent

    Tilbury docks, 1920s. Collection: National Education Network

    Most of Britain’s sailing ships had been sunk or sold by the time Bill Jefferies was old enough to go to sea in 1919. So he signed on with the British Tanker company and became devoted to oil tankers instead. (“Remarkable ships, in many ways” he murmured, half to himself, as he committed his memories to a tape recorder at the end of his life.)

    He remembered the “lovely women” who had brazenly boarded his ship during the month he as a “first tripper” had spent in Trinidad in 1919 waiting for cargo. The crew had dropped lines over the side to haul the girls up, and sold the shirts off their backs when their money ran out. By the time the ship got to Port Arthur, Texas, where the Americans inspected every man jack of them, there were less than a dozen men aboard who had not got VD, he recalled.

    

    Oil tanker in channel outside Port Arthur, Texas, undated

    The captain had forcibly seen to it that the three apprentices kept their noses, and everything else, clean. “He put his big fist under each of our chins and shoved our heads back. And he said, ‘If I catch any of you boys going with any of these women, I’ll smash your faces in so your mothers never recognise you…” Then he took them to the hospital and made them look under the dressings at the ulcerated, seeping genitals of a seaman he knew who was dying there. Bill said: “I told my mother seven months later, when I got home, and she said Thank God for that captain.”

    Bill’s mother was a doughty woman who had signed her younger son’s indentures and paid the bond as soon as shipping firms began to recruit apprentices again after the war. Bill’s brother Alf had been an apprentice on John Stewart’s barque Lorton with Algie Course and was one of the crowd of boys in Newcastle NSW with Bert Sivell in September 1913, revelling in the tennis, tea dances and charabanc trips organised by the mission while their ships lay along the Dyke. Bill recalled the excitement he had felt as a ten-year-old being rowed out to his brother’s ship at Tilbury when a wave splashed over him, and the burly seamen nodded sagely and said “that means you’ll go to sea too, lad”.

    

    Apprentices from the sailing ship Lorton, Sydney 1911 – including AG Course, second right, front. From The Wheel’s Kick and The Wind’s Song, by AG Course

    When Lorton was “sold foreign” in 1914, Alf transferred to the barque Edinburgh. But in 1916 she was captured by the raider Möwe. The Germans had hauled out the crew and two live pigs and sent the old barque to the bottom of the sea with all sails set. The tropical night had been so clear, Alf Jefferies used to claim, that they could see her canvas shimmering whitely under the water after she’d vanished. Even the enemy commander was supposed to have sighed “Beautiful even in death”. Among the prisoners below decks, the squeals of the pigs being hoisted aboard the raider were reported to have given rise to the rumour that the Edinburgh’s captain had his wife with him, and that she was hysterical.

    By the time Bill Jefferies went to sea, it was a much lonelier life than Alf had sketched. The old square-riggers’ crowd of apprentices had dwindled to just three on Bill’s oil tanker, and even before these greenhorns reached their ship a plausible bloke posing as the shipping agent managed to relieve them of their luggage so they had to be kitted out from the slop chest. Once underway they got seasick and the mate, an old sailing ship man, sent them down the hold to scrape paint pots while the tanker heaved and plunged in a south-westerly gale. After they’d been sick, to windward — another mistake they did not make twice, he ordered them to shift stores. For two days they were kept constantly on the move. But it worked. Bill never suffered sea sickness again.

    “They really were a motley crowd, seamen of all nations except our enemies,” said Bill aged 90, remembering that first ship in 1919. “We had a British bosun, a Belgian carpenter – a tall man with fierce whiskers who used to cause a lot of trouble when he was drunk. We had Latvians and Estonians, two Chinese cooks, and a Dutch chief steward. The average seaman in those days was either very old or a foreigner.” The fierce Welsh captain who kept his apprentices out of trouble had been torpedoed five times, or so he claimed.

    By 1920, US production of gasoline (petrol) alone was 116 million barrels (42 US gallons per barrel) – from less than 7 million barrels in 1901. Across the world the oil industry was booming.

    Coming next: Clan line or Shell?

    Previously: In Remembrance

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

Piracy Blog mentions for November 16, 2010 showing 40 entries

1. Handy tip #1 for surviving Somali pirate hostage-taking: don’t get high with them

   www.boingboing.net — Over at Wired’s Danger Room, Adam Rawnsley blogs a helpful series of tips on how to increase the odds you will survive if you are ever taken hostage by seafaring pirates off the Horn of Africa. .

   Over at Wired’s Danger Room, Adam Rawnsley blogs a helpful series of tips on how to increase the odds you will survive if you are ever taken hostage by seafaring pirates off the Horn of Africa.The short version, “Don’t get high, don’t piss anyone off, and try to smile every once in a while.” More:

   

   Hijackings by Somali pirates are on the upswing this year, deadly shootouts with mercs and hijack attempts against warships continue and pirates are holding hostages for as long as 13 months. EU Navfor, the European Union’s naval forces countering piracy off the coast of Somalia, has responded to this crisis with a handy pamphlet, “Surviving Piracy Off the Coast of Somalia,” containing all the wisdom you need to make the most of your captivity.

   One tip from elementary school is particularly helpful: Just say no to drugs. Khat is a leaf with amphetamine-like effects common in Somalia, particularly among pirates, and may be available to you while detained on board your captured ship. Though borrowing from your captors’ stash may provide you with some “temporary relief” from the drudgery of captivity, it can bad for your health in the form on an acute pirate beatdown. The “negative effects of withdrawal symptoms and increased tension due to cravings,” the pamphlet warns, can irritate your pirate hosts and result in “unnecessary violence.” In other words, nobody likes a cranky junky, particularly not pirates, so be smart and politely decline if offered drugs.

   Rule #1 for Pirate Hostages: Don’t Get Stoned (wired.com)

   
   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

2. Pirates Hijack “Panamanian” Ship

   waronterrornews.typepad.com — Pirates Hijack Ship Off Coast of Oman VoA News: The European Union’s anti-piracy force says a vessel with 29 Chinese crew members has been hijacked off the coast of Oman.

   Pirates Hijack Ship Off Coast of Oman VoA News: The European Union’s anti-piracy force says a vessel with 29 Chinese crew members has been hijacked off the coast of Oman. The naval force Monday said the Panamanian-flagged MV Yuan Xiang was seized Saturday about 1,200 kilometers east of the Omani…

   

   

   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

3. Pirates release British couple

   www.theworld.org — British citizens Paul and

   

   Somali pirates release British couple (Photo: 1st Class Edward L. Pruitt, US Navy)

   British citizens Paul and Rachel Chandler were released Sunday after being held 388 days by Somali pirates. The BBC’s Will Ross reports about the couple’s ordeal and the circumstances of the release. (Audio available after 5PM Eastern) (Photo: US Navy)

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

4. Piracy in Somalia: more than 400 sailors still being held

   www.openyoureyesnews.com — . Daily Telegraph – The problem of piracy is spiralling in Somalia, with more than 435 sailors being held hostage in the country’s eastern ports. … The pirates from the largely lawless eastern coast

   Daily Telegraph – The problem of piracy is spiralling in Somalia, with more than 435 sailors being held hostage in the country’s eastern ports. The pirates from the largely lawless eastern coast of Somalia are heavily armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, and there is evidence that they are gaining in reach and confidence. Despite an international naval effort to secure ships sailing across the world’s most important sea-lanes, the number of ships being hijacked and crew kidnapped appears to be on the rise. The number of ships successfully taken so far this year this year already stands at 40 against 47 in the whole of last year, while the number of crew kidnapped stands at 790 and is expected to exceed last year’s number of 867. Some have been rescued, leaving the number still captive at just over 435. Read Article

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

5. Roger Middleton: Only by tackling poverty can piracy be eradicated

   www.eastafricaforum.net — Author’s Chatham House report, Piracy in Somalia, October 2008, in PDF format.. . … Pirates can be chased on the ocean, but piracy can only be eradicated on land. .

   Independent, UK

   November 15, 2010

   Author’s Chatham House report, Piracy in Somalia, October 2008, in PDF format.

   The release of Rachel and Paul Chandler brings to an end the highest profile and longest running incident of Somali piracy – and while their family and supporters will delight in the reunion, many others are still waiting for their relatives to be released. Despite huge international attention and millions of dollars spent on counter-piracy operations, hundreds of sailors are still being held by pirates.

   The core of the problem lies in Somalia. As long as a political situation exists that allows criminality to flourish it is very hard for the navies of the world to put an end to this problem. Pirates can be chased on the ocean, but piracy can only be eradicated on land.

   Pirates have proved remarkably adaptive in the face of increased pressure. Once they operated within 50 miles of the Somali coast; now they regularly work over 1,000 miles from Somalia. Navies have made the Gulf of Aden very difficult for pirates but all that has done is to displace the problem into the wider Indian Ocean.

   The multi-national naval response has, considering its limited resources, been effective and has captured hundreds of pirates. But the reality remains that most of the ocean across which Somali pirates operate is unprotected, and for every pirate taken there are many more ready to replace him.

   For piracy remains an exceptionally lucrative exercise. In the last few weeks ransom payments of $7m and $9m have been made. Even the most expendable links in the piracy operation, the young men who go out on small plastic boats to capture ships, will make around $10,000 for a successful attack – more than 10 times what they could otherwise expect to earn in a year.

   Piracy is such big business that its value dwarfs everything but remittances from Somalia’s huge diaspora in the amount of money it brings into the country. Pirates made around $100m last year while the regional government of Puntland, where most pirate leaders hail from, has an annual budget of $25m. International efforts to build government in Somalia in the last two decades have been a failure but home-grown solutions in the north of the country have been remarkably successful.

   In the self-declared independent republic of Somaliland in the north-west piracy is not a problem. The key is the effectiveness of the Somaliland government; it is widely accepted by the people and saw a peaceful democratic transfer of power earlier this year.

   It is the growth of effective government in other parts of Somalia that will create the environment for tackling the connected problems of piracy, poverty, war, hunger, people smuggling and gun running.

   As pirates become richer they become harder to dislodge. So, as we celebrate the return of the Chandlers, we should not forget the hundreds of sailors still held by pirates, nor the people of Somalia whose attempts to improve their country are undermined by crime lords.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

6. Satire: Andy Borowitz, “Somali Pirates Refuse to Board Carnival Cruise Ships”

   coyoteprime-runningcauseicantfly.blogspot.com — “Somali Pirates Refuse to Board Carnival Cruise Ships” by Andy Borowitz . … MOGADISHU, Somalia- “In yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today

   “Somali Pirates Refuse to Board Carnival Cruise Ships”by Andy Borowitz

   MOGADISHU, Somalia- “In yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today said they would no longer board Carnival Cruise ships, citing “unsafe working conditions.” “If Carnival thinks that it’s going to be business as usual between them and the Somali pirates, they need to have their heads examined,” said Somali pirate spokesman Sugule. “We Somali pirates may be bold, but we’re not crazy.”

   The pirate said that the recent fire that crippled the giant cruise ship Carnival Splendor “has sent a shiver through the pirate community.” “We Somali pirates face enough risks without dealing with decks bursting into flames,” he said. “And don’t get me started on the nonfunctioning toilets.” When asked if the Somali pirates might attempt to board Carnival ships in the future, he responded, “I am telling me hearties that if they were thinking of pillaging a Carnival ship of its booty over the holidays, they should make alternative plans.”

   Carol Foyler, a spokesperson for Carnival Cruises, said that the company “would be working overtime to win back the pirates’ trust.” In the meantime, Foyler said, Carnival would be unveiling a new slogan in the weeks to come: “Come for the fun, stay for the raging inferno.”- http://www.truthdig.com/

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

7. Handy tip #1 for surviving Somali pirate hostage-taking: don’t get high with them

   feeds.boingboing.net — Over at Wired’s Danger Room, Adam Rawnsley blogs a helpful series of tips on how to increase the odds you will survive if you are ever taken hostage by seafaring pirates off the Horn of Africa.

   Over at Wired’s Danger Room, Adam Rawnsley blogs a helpful series of tips on how to increase the odds you will survive if you are ever taken hostage by seafaring pirates off the Horn of Africa. The short version, “Don’t get high, don’t piss anyone off, and try to smile every once in a while.” More: Hijackings by Somali pirates are on the upswing this year, deadly shootouts with mercs and hijack attempts against warships continue and pirates are holding hostages for as long as 13 months. EU Navfor, the European Union’s naval forces countering piracy off the coast of Somalia, has responded to this crisis with a handy pamphlet, “Surviving Piracy Off the Coast of Somalia,” containing all the wisdom you need to make the most of your captivity. One tip from elementary school is particularly helpful: Just say no to drugs. Khat is a leaf with amphetamine-like effects common in Somalia, particularly among pirates, and may be available to you while detained on board your captured ship. Though borrowing from your captors’ stash may provide you with some “temporary relief” from the drudgery of captivity, it can bad for your health in the form on an acute pirate beatdown. The “negative effects of withdrawal symptoms and increased tension due to cravings,” the pamphlet warns, can irritate your pirate hosts and result in “unnecessary violence.” In other words, nobody likes a cranky junky, particularly not pirates, so be smart and politely decline if offered drugs. Rule #1 for Pirate Hostages: Don’t Get Stoned (wired.com)…

   
   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

8. Pirates Hijack “Panamanian” Ship

   waronterrornews.typepad.com — Pirates Hijack Ship Off Coast of Oman VoA News: The European Union’s anti-piracy force says a vessel with 29 Chinese crew members has been hijacked off the coast of Oman.

   Pirates Hijack Ship Off Coast of Oman VoA News: The European Union’s anti-piracy force says a vessel with 29 Chinese crew members has been hijacked off the coast of Oman. The naval force Monday said the Panamanian-flagged MV Yuan Xiang was seized Saturday about 1,200 kilometers east of the Omani…

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

9. Couple freed by Somali pirates ‘happy to be alive’

   www.orange.ug — Paul and Rachel Chandler said they were “happy to be alive” after the Somali pirates who hijacked the couple’s yacht near the Seychelles last year released them for a ransom.. .

   MOGADISHU (AFP)

   Paul and Rachel Chandler said they were “happy to be alive” after the Somali pirates who hijacked the couple’s yacht near the Seychelles last year released them for a ransom.

   The retired couple appeared in good health and smiled as they briefly spoke to journalists during a stopover in Mogadishu, on their way to Nairobi from the town of Adado where their 388-day ordeal came to an end earlier Sunday.

   “We are feeling very happy to be alive and happy to be here… among decent everyday people,” Rachel Chandler said, adding they were “desperate to see family and friends” and thanking the Somalis who worked for their release.

   Prime Minister David Cameron in a statement welcomed the pair’s release as “tremendous news”, thanked all those who contributed to their freedom and promised to swiftly reunite the couple with their family.

   Instead of flying directly from Adado to the safety of Nairobi, where they landed in the evening, the pair left the country of their ordeal from war-torn Mogadishu, one of the world’s most dangerous cities.

   

   After being greeted by officials at Somalia’s presidential palace, which has been routinely attacked by Al Qaeda-inspired insurgents in recent months, Rachel Chandler climbed back onto the plane wearing a red cap and fresh clothes.

   Her husband Paul followed her after taking pictures on the tarmac.

   They eventually landed at a military base in Nairobi, avoiding media attention, and were expected to be debriefed and undergo medical treatment at the British high commission in Kenya.

   In Adado they were given breakfast and a chance to make phone calls and shower, hosted in the compound of Mohamed Aden “Tiiceey”, the president of the local self-styled administration of Himan and Heeb.

   He contributed to the Chandlers’ release, together with Abdi Mohamed Helmi “Hangul”, a Somali surgeon who had already managed to see the pair in January.

   

   “They look in relatively good health but they need to be checked,” Hangul told AFP from Adado.

   Rachel Chandler explained there how they communicated with their captors using a Somali-English phrasebook.

   The couple had been driven overnight from the town of Amara, where they spent most of their captivity.

   Somalia’s newly appointed prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, said after greeting the Chandlers that the government, much in need of credibility, “exerted every humanly possible effort” to free them.

   A deal was struck with the pirates this week and, according to Somali elders and sources close to the tortuous negotiations, a total of at least 750,000 dollars was paid in ransom.

   The Chandlers’ plight generated considerable interest in Britain and became one of the most high-profile hostage cases in Somalia’s recent, troubled history but the British government has a strict policy of not paying any ransoms.

   

   The money known to have been paid — a much smaller amount than what pirates have been earning from ship owners for cargo, fishing and other vessels — is believed to have been gathered by family and members of the Somali diaspora.

   The pirates had initially demanded seven million dollars.

   The Chandlers’ family in England issued a statement saying “it would be irresponsible to discuss any aspect of the release process as this could encourage others to capture private individuals” for ransom.

   The Chandlers were kidnapped on October 23 last year, a day after leaving the Seychelles for Tanzania.

   Abdi Yare, a senior pirate commander, expressed surprise that such a vulnerable boat “would have dared to venture out” at the peak of the piracy season, when he spoke to AFP shortly after the hijacking last year.

   Somali sea-jackers prowling the region’s busy trade routes capture dozens of vessels each year to seek ransoms from large ship owners, but cases involving small yachts are rare.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

10. Royal Fleet Auxiliary Ship Disrupts Pirates

    www.asdnews.com — A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean. … The ship intercepted the suspected pirate boat – which was identified as a whaler

    A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    During a patrol of the waters between the Somali coast and the Seychelles yesterday, Sunday 14 November 2010, RFA Fort Victoria was alerted to a suspicious vessel in the area.

    The ship intercepted the suspected pirate boat – which was identified as a whaler often used by pirates in the Indian Ocean – and sent armed members of the ship’s company to investigate.

    During a search o…

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

11. SA Navy: Anti-piracy ops a stretch…

    www.mp3board.com — The SA Navy could mount anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast, but these would be difficult to sustain for longer than six months, Parliament has heard….

    The SA Navy could mount anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast, but these would be difficult to sustain for longer than six months, Parliament has heard….

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

12. Judge Upholds Case Of 5 Somali Piracy Suspects

    www.wsbtv.com — A judge in Virginia says the government can try five Somali men on piracy charges related to an alleged assault on a U.S. Navy ship off the coast of Africa.

    A judge in Virginia says the government can try five Somali men on piracy charges related to an alleged assault on a U.S. Navy ship off the coast of Africa.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

13. British Couple Freed By Pirates After 388 Days

    kosu.org — . A British couple held for more than a year by Somali pirates were released yesterday. … Related posts: British Threat Level Raised The Real Story Behind Britain’s Rock ‘N’ Roll Pirates Marines Storm Ship Seized By Pirates .

    A British couple held for more than a year by Somali pirates were released yesterday. Paul and Rachel Chandler had retired and planned to take the trip of a lifetime, sailing around the world, when they were taken last year off the coast of Somalia. A ransom, some reports have it at about $800,000, was reportedly paid for their release. The BBC talked to the couple shortly after they were freed.

    Mr Chandler told the BBC: “We’re fine, we’re rather skinny and bony but we’re fine.”

    The couple were told they were to be released two days ago, he said.

    “We were told on Friday in a way which gave us some confidence to believe it. Otherwise we’d been told we’d be released in 10 days almost every 10 days for the past nine months. So we’d taken all these suggestions with a pinch of salt.”

    The Chandlers said they were beaten once but were otherwise unharmed physically. Paul Chandler learned yesterday that his father had died during his captivity. The Guardian reports that the two were held so long because the pirates thought they had far more money than they did.

    In a statement, the Chandler family said: “Throughout the protracted discussions with the pirates it has been a difficult task for the family to get across the message that these were two retired people on a sailing trip on a small private yacht and not part of a major commercial enterprise involving tens of millions of pounds of assets.”

    The British government says it paid no money to the couple’s captors. [Copyright 2010 National Public Radio]

    Related posts:

    1. British Threat Level Raised
    3. Marines Storm Ship Seized By Pirates

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

14. Pakistan Navy gets third F-22P frigate

    idrw.org — The third F-22P Frigate PNS Saif constructed at Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai, China was inducted in the fleet of Pakistan Navy in a ceremony held at the PN Dockyard here on Thursday..

    BY: TheNews.

    The third F-22P Frigate PNS Saif constructed at Hudong Zhonghua Shipyard in Shanghai, China was inducted in the fleet of Pakistan Navy in a ceremony held at the PN Dockyard here on Thursday.

    Commander Pakistan Fleet Vice Admiral Tanveer Faiz was the chief guest on the occasion. Senior naval officers and distinguished guests from Chinese Shipbuilding and Trading Corporation (CSTC) also attended the ceremony. Addressing the ceremony, Commander Pakistan Fleet said: “We are continuously monitoring the developments taking place in the maritime sector of littoral countries of the region.

    Although cognisant of the expansion beyond the defence needs taking place in neighbours, we do not want to engage in arms race with any country.” “Our developmental plans are purely aimed at meeting minimum credible defence,” said the PN fleet commander.

    The chief guest further said that in recent times, Navy’s role had enhanced due to our national commitment to fight the rogue of terrorism and piracy at high seas. To fulfill these obligations, Pakistan Navy is continuously participating in Coalition Maritime Campaign Plan as well as Anti Piracy Operations. These undertakings have increased Navy’s requirements of surface combatants. He said that with joining of PNS Saif, the Navy would have more flexibility to manage its national and international commitments.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

15. A Chandlers’ Ransom

    www.longrider.co.uk — They were victims of piracy on the high seas – and if we are going to get all historical about it, the way the Royal Navy dealt with pirates didn’t involve talking nicely to them, it involved rope and a scaffold.. .

    Andrew Brown is the latest columnist to express some dubious morality – it does appear to be catching. Janet Daley suggesting that torture is okay, and now we have Andrew Brown pontificating in the Groan, suggesting that actually, after all, it isn’t so bad to ransom captives. I really cannot help wondering if the earth’s magnetic field has just switched, affecting all those moral compasses. This isn’t so much moral relativism, as a complete loss of the ability to distinguish between right and wrong, to be drifting without a tiller in a fog bound Atlantic – indeed with cases such as this, the difference is so easy to depict, it beggars belief that people can even consider it okay – even for an intellectual exercise.

    Brown’s driving thrust for this is that it has a long history – it was normal in medieval times to hold prisoners for ransom during times of war. Well, yes, it was. However, I would like to think that we’ve moved on a bit since then. These days we don’t simply slaughter the common men at arms when it isn’t necessary, we take prisoners of war and treat them according to the Geneva convention. But, then, the Chandlers were not prisoners of war, were they? They were victims of piracy on the high seas – and if we are going to get all historical about it, the way the Royal Navy dealt with pirates didn’t involve talking nicely to them, it involved rope and a scaffold.

    Ransoming prisoners – a practice in the news now because of Paul and Rachel Chandler – has been so common in so many societies that it is odd that we now regard it as immoral.

    It is not odd at all, it is immoral. We now realise that keeping slaves – something Brown moves onto in his article – is immoral, but people used to so it. That people used to do it does not change the morality. What has happened is that we have realised that it is inherently wrong and stopped doing it.

    Brown’s comparison of the exchange of prisoners of war and slaves is something of a strawman, as what has happened to the Chandlers is neither of these things. They were taken by criminals and kidnapping innocents for a ransom is not the same as taking prisoners who have deliberately put themselves in harms why by taking up arms. That said, yes, the Chandlers were to an extent the victims of their own foolishness. They sailed into a piracy zone, when common sense would have dictated a different course, but that isn’t the point. They are not prisoners of war and they are not slaves. What happened to them was the execution of criminal behaviour.

    The ransoming of slaves and prisoners of war can be distinguished from straightforward kidnapping for ransom, which seems always and everywhere to have been despised. But was it necessarily immoral?

    Yes, and I’m appalled that someone could pose the question in all seriousness.

    The modern objection is that ransoming prisoners is wrong because it provides incentives to the kidnappers.

    This is not a moral argument, it is a pragmatic one. The Chandlers release has sent a message to the pirates in Somalia and that message has pound signs plastered across it in bold letters. Despite the family saying that they were not well off, that they were not part of a large corporation and that they did not have the wherewithal, they came up with the moohlah and as such, the pirates will now assume that any Briton passing through the area is a ripe target, despite not being well off. So, yes, damn right it encourages more of the same, and the Chandlers’ release is tempered with that knowledge.

    As the article draws to a close, there is some real fuckwittery. Try this, for example:

    But it is precisely the fact that ransom is a mark of your individual worth that makes it so heartening for a prisoner, or a slave. The grimmest part of slavery is dehumanisation and the loss of personhood. This is, I think, the deepest reason why slaves and prisoners are in favour of being ransomed. But there is also a much less woolly reason. If a prisoner has no cash value, he might as well be dead, or worked to death.

    It isn’t because the slave would prefer to be free, then? I would have though the lack of liberty was the grimmest part, not the fact that someone isn’t paying a ransom to get you back – and, presumably continue the enslavement.

    Tags: morality, chandlers, piracy, somalia

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

16. Iran to deploy more warships to international waters

    wireupdate.com — TEHRAN (BNO NEWS) — Iran will deploy more warships to international waters as long as piracy and “sea terrorism” exists in that region, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said.

    

    

    TEHRAN (BNO NEWS) — Iran will deploy more warships to international waters as long as piracy and “sea terrorism” exists in that region, Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham said.

    In a statement released by local media on Tuesday, Beigham said “more flotillas and also Jamaran destroyer will be dispatched to the waters of friendly countries and distant international waters.”

    “In addition, the Islamic Republic will continue its military presence in the Gulf of Aden while piracy and marine terrorism exists in the area. The Iranian Navy is a strategic force that must have a permanent presence, particularly in the Indian Ocean,” he added .

    The Iranian regime sent three months ago part of ts ninth fleet to the Gulf of Aden and the waters around the Horn of Africa to patrol the area and protect its merchant ships from Somali-based pirates.

    (Copyright 2010 by BNO News B.V. All rights reserved. Info: sales@bnonews.com.)

    

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

17. Translator testifies Somalis confessed to being pi…

    www.mp3board.com — NORFOLK Three Somalis captured after an attack on a U.S. Navy warship initially told investigators that they were fishermen before confessing that they were actually pirates, an interpreter testified today….

    NORFOLK Three Somalis captured after an attack on a U.S. Navy warship initially told investigators that they were fishermen before confessing that they were actually pirates, an interpreter testified today….

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

18. Admiral: Iran to Dispatch More Warships to International Waters

    www.malaysiandigest.com — . BANDAR ABBAS, 16 NOVEMBER, 2010: Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against

    BANDAR ABBAS, 16 NOVEMBER, 2010: Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against Somali pirates, Mehr News Agency cited Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham as saying.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

19. Admiral: Iran to Dispatch More Warships to Interna…

    www.mp3board.com — BANDAR ABBAS, 16 NOVEMBER, 2010: Iran?s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against Somali

    BANDAR ABBAS, 16 NOVEMBER, 2010: Iran?s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against Somali pirates, Mehr News Agency cited Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham as saying….

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

20. Iran To Dispatch More Warships To International Wa…

    www.mp3board.com — BANDAR ABBAS, Nov 16 (Bernama) — Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against Somali

    BANDAR ABBAS, Nov 16 (Bernama) — Iran’s Navy plans to deploy more battleships and destroyers in the international waters, in order to protect commercial vessels sailing in the area against Somali pirates, Mehr News Agency cited Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Beigham as saying….

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

21. Spanish take action against Pirates

    englandexpects.blogspot.com — Operating with the EUNVFOR, that is the nacsent EU navy off the coast of Somalia the ship which has been the subject an attack by pirates in the last week turned the tables, .

    They must be remembering the Barbary coast but the actions of SPS INFANTA CRISTINA seem to be interesting.
    Operating with the EUNVFOR, that is the nacsent EU navy off the coast of Somalia the ship which has been the subject an attack by pirates in the last week turned the tables,On 13 November, the EU NAVFOR warship SPS INFANTA CRISTINA intercepted a whaler with four suspected pirates on board. The whaler was located 200 nautical miles off the Somali Coast. The SPS INFANTA CRISTINA was patrolling the area as part of the EU NAVFOR’s Operation ATALANTA. The whaler, which had been initially spotted by an EU NAVFOR Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRA), was found to be operating with a skiff and was suspected of being a support vessel for pirate activities in the region.The Spanish warship launched its Rigid-Hulled Inflatable Boat (RHIB) with a specialist boarding team to intercept both vessels. The whaler was successfully intercepted and four suspected pirates found to be onboard. The skiff fled the scene.
    All well and good, what strikes me is what they did next,
    There was insufficient evidence to pursue a prosecution. Therefore the whaler was destroyed and the four suspected pirates were returned to Somalia. This disruption has hampered pirate action and avoided highly probable attacks on merchant and vulnerable vessels.Not enough evidence for a prosecution but they sank it anyway, as from what they saw as the balance of probabilities it was involved in piracy
    Way to go the Spaniards, though I do wonder the legal basis for the action, would the the RN would do the same.

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

22. Tunisian ship hijacked off Gulf of Aden

    www.skyscrapercity.com — TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.. .

    TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.

    The sum demanded was not immediately known as company manager Farid Abbas could not be reached late Friday.

    Tunisian authorities have said they are working to release the tanker while at the same time safeguarding the lives of the crew.

    The 24,105-tonne vessel, the Hannibal II, was attacked and boarded by pirates early Thursday while carrying vegetable oils from the Malaysian port of Pasir Gudang to Suez, according to the European Union’s anti-piracy mission.

    The ship’s crew consists of 23 Tunisians, four Filipinos, a Croatian, Georgian, Russian and Moroccan.

    Somali pirates are becoming more brazen and keeping ahead of the international naval force seeking to end their high seas marauding, a top UN official said in New York earlier this week.

    The pirates have kidnapped almost 100 new crew and passengers from ships in less than a month and there are now at least 438 seafarers and 20 ships held by bandits, according to latest International Maritime Organization figures.

    The pirates announced last weekend they had received a record nine-million-dollar ransom for a South Korean supertanker.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

23. Somali Pirates: Some good news, but still much bad

    soomaaliyeeytoosoo.blogspot.com — Somalia’s piracy problem seems to be growing, despite dozens of naval ships trying to essentially ring off the country’s pirate-infested coastline.. . … According to Ecoterra International, an organization

    Rachel and Paul Chandler and Somali prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed

    The good news: As the New York Times reports:

    A British couple who had been kidnapped by Somali pirates and held in captivity in a remote, swelteringly hot patch of central Somalia for more than a year were finally released, Somali officials said Sunday.The couple, Paul and Rachel Chandler, were hijacked at sea in October 2009 while sailing in a small yacht in the Indian Ocean in a trip they described to friends as “the trip of a lifetime.”

    The bad news: The Pirates “physically abused the Chandlers and kept them locked up separately for months.”

    More bad news:

    The Chandler’s ordeal seems to have been complicated and prolonged by the fact that the Chandlers were not wealthy and had few valuable assets besides their 38-foot sailboat, which the pirates snatched and then abandoned off the coast of the Seychelles.

    Several people, including members of the Somali diaspora in London, had raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay off the pirates but according to Somali officials, that money got diverted and ended up being stolen by middlemen.

    Ultimately, reports indicate, “a ransom of several hundred thousand dollars” was paid.

    And still more bad news:

    Somalia’s piracy problem seems to be growing, despite dozens of naval ships trying to essentially ring off the country’s pirate-infested coastline.

    According to Ecoterra International, an organization with offices in East Africa that keeps track of Somali piracy, pirates are currently holding more than 25 foreign ships and 500 people hostage.

    Some of the ships have been hijacked hundreds of miles offshore, closer to India than to Africa. The crews are often held at gunpoint for months while ransom negotiations play out. The ransoms are getting bigger, drawing more young men from Somalia’s ruined economy — the country has not had a functioning central government for nearly 20 years — into the piracy business.

    Last week, a band of pirates received what is widely believed to be a record ransom, around $10 million, for a hijacked South Korean supertanker, the Samho Dream. The ship had been commandeered in April and anchored for months off the city of Hobyo, in central Somalia, in plain sight of the beach.

    Sadly, it seems that unless the economy and governance structures of Somali are transformed, these pirate attacks will continue.

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

24. China says pirates hijack cargo ship with 29 aboard in the Arabian Sea

    www.ecaptain.com — (AP) BEIJING, China — Pirates hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors aboard in the Arabian Sea and told the shipping company they were taking it toward Somalia, Chinese officials and state media said Saturday.

    (AP) BEIJING, China — Pirates hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors
    aboard in the Arabian Sea and told the shipping company they were
    taking it toward Somalia, Chinese officials and state media said
    Saturday. READ MORE

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

25. China says pirates hijack cargo ship with 29 aboard in the Arabian Sea

    www.spinnak3r.com — (AP) BEIJING, China – Pirates hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors aboard in the Arabian Sea and told the shipping company they were taking it toward Somalia, Chinese officials and state media said Saturday.

    (AP) BEIJING, China – Pirates hijacked a cargo ship with 29 Chinese sailors
    aboard in the Arabian Sea and told the shipping company they were
    taking it toward Somalia, Chinese officials and state media said
    Saturday.

    READ MORE

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

26. EU NAVFOR warship rescues fishermen in the Gulf of Aden

    www.eunavfor.eu — EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Program (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

    EU NAVFOR warship rescues fishermen in the Gulf of Aden

    In the early hours of 14 November, EU NAVFOR warship BNS LOUISE MARIE located an overturned Yemeni fishing vessel in the Gulf of Aden, 70 nautical miles off the Yemeni coast.

    The Belgian warship, which had been patrolling the area as part of the EU NAVFOR Operation ATALANTA, discovered six fishermen clinging to the stricken vessel which had overturned but was still floating.

    The fishermen (2 Yemeni, 2 Somali and 2 Tanzanian) reported that they were originally part of a ten-man crew. The EU NAVFOR ship’s helicopter was immediately launched and a wider search of the area carried out to no avail. Three of the crew were missing and one man was found to be dead at the scene. The deceased fisherman was subsequently buried at sea.

    The surviving crew members were taken on board the BNS LOUISE MARIE and given medical assistance, food and water before being handed over to Yemeni authorities on the morning of 15 November.

    EU NAVFOR Somalia – Operation ATALANTA’s main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the World Food Program (WFP) and vessels of African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). EU NAVFOR also protects vulnerable vessels in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, deters and disrupts piracy. EU NAVFOR finally monitors fishing activity off the coast of Somalia.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

27. EU NAVFOR thanks Swedish warship HSwMS CARLSKRONA after 7 months of operations

    www.eunavfor.eu — Among the various tasks that the HSwMS CARLSKRONA fulfilled whilst deployed was … During her time on the operation, the ship and crew helped deliver 17,859 tons of humanitarian aid to Somalia.. .

    EU NAVFOR thanks Swedish warship HSwMS CARLSKRONA after 7 months of operations

    On 14 November 2010, HSwMS CARLSKRONA fulfilled her last day of operations as an EU NAVFOR warship after 7 months conducting counter-piracy activities in the Gulf of Aden and the Somali Basin.

    Rear-Admiral Philippe Coindreau, EU NAVFOR Force Commander, expressed his great satisfaction for everything that the crew has achieved. Among the various tasks that the HSwMS CARLSKRONA fulfilled whilst deployed was the escort of six vessels chartered by the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and five vessels chartered by the World Food Program. During her time on the operation, the ship and crew helped deliver 17,859 tons of humanitarian aid to Somalia.

    In his farewell speech, the Force Commander said: “I am convinced that your proactive role and your engagement in this operation have had a great impact on the counter-piracy mission led by the European Union.”

    The Swedish HSwMS CARLSKRONA, with its 120 crewmembers, served as an EU NAVFOR warship from 14 August to 14 November 2010. Before that, she operated as EU NAVFOR Flagship from 14 April to 14 August 2010. She is now heading home to Sweden.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

28. Iran to increase presence in intl. waters

    al-darb.blogspot.com — The deputy commander of the Iranian Navy says the country plans to deploy more warships and destroyers in international waters.. . … “Today Iran’s Navy is a strategic force, which must have a continuous

    Mon Nov 15, 2010

    The deputy commander of the Iranian Navy says the country plans to deploy more warships and destroyers in international waters.

    “In the near future more flotillas as well as the Jamaran destroyer will be deployed in the waters of friendly countries and international waters far far away,” Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Bigham was quoted by Mehr News Agency as saying on Monday.

    “As long as the sinister phenomena of piracy and sea terrorism exist in the Gulf of Aden, we will continue our mission [there],” he added.

    “Today Iran’s Navy is a strategic force, which must have a continuous and widespread presence in the region, particularly in the Indian Ocean,” the deputy Navy commander said.

    Admiral Khadem Bigham made the remarks upon the return of the ninth Iranian flotilla from its prolonged mission in the Gulf of Aden.

    Iran’s ninth flotilla along with two destroyers was dispatched to the Gulf of Aden three months ago with the objective of protecting Iranian commercial vessels against Somali pirates.

    The tenth Iranian flotilla along with the Chiro and Lark destroyers has been dispatched in the Gulf of Aden.

    Iran decided to send its warships in line with the international community’s efforts to provide security for ships traveling in the world’s busiest and most dangerous commercial route.

    Over the past years Somali pirates have hijacking dozens of ships, making tens of millions of dollars in ransoms.

    The Gulf of Aden, which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea, is the quickest route for more than 20,000 vessels going from Asia to Europe and the Americas every year.

    Source: PressTV.
    Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/151105.html.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

29. We are bony but fine: British couple after kidnap ordeal

    www.news.pushpi.com — London, Nov 15 (IANS) ‘We are rather skinny and bony but we’re fine,’ said a British couple after their release by Somali pirates who had beaten and starved them during their terrifying 13-month kidnap ordeal.

    London, Nov 15 (IANS) ‘We are rather skinny and bony but we’re fine,’ said a British couple after their release by Somali pirates who had beaten and starved them during their terrifying 13-month kidnap ordeal.
    Freed hostages Paul and Rachel Chandler announced their freedomContinue reading We are bony but fine: British couple after kidnap ordeal

    Related news:

    1. Somali pirates free British couple
    2. Somali pirates hijack ship with 29 Chinese crew (Lead, Changing dateline)
    3. German shipping firm says pirates have taken its vessel

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

30. Piracy in Somalia: key facts

    hornofafrica-abdikarim.blogspot.com — An armed Somali pirate. … • Somali pirates were responsible for 44% of the 289 piracy incidents on the world’s seas in the first nine months of 2010, according to the International Chamber of Commerce’s

    An armed Somali pirate. Photograph: Mohamed Dahir/AFP/Getty Images
    • Somali pirates were responsible for 44% of the 289 piracy incidents on the world’s seas in the first nine months of 2010, according to the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB).
    • Of 39 ship hijackings, 35 were carried out by Somali pirates.
    • There is evidence that Somali pirates are gaining in confidence, carrying out more attacks away from their own coast. According to the IMB, pirates are using oceangoing fishing vessels to reach as far as the southern Red Sea, where they hijacked a chemical tanker in July 2010 – the first such hijacking recorded in the area. Pirates are heavily armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, the IMB says.
    Read More

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

31. Tunisian ship hijacked off Gulf of Aden

    www.wp-wordpress.com — . TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday..

    TUNIS (AFP) – Pirates who seized a Panamanian-flagged chemical tanker carrying 31 crew in waters between India and Somalia demanded a ransom from Tunisian shipping company GMT, a source close to the owner said Friday.

    The sum demanded was not immediately known as company manager Farid Abbas could not be reached late Friday.

    Tunisian authorities have said they are working to release the tanker while at the same time safeguarding the lives of the crew.

    The 24,105-tonne vessel, the Hannibal II, was attacked and boarded by pirates early Thursday while carrying vegetable oils from the Malaysian port of Pasir Gudang to Suez, according to the European Union’s anti-piracy mission.

    The ship’s crew consists of 23 Tunisians, four Filipinos, a Croatian, Georgian, Russian and Moroccan.

    Somali pirates are becoming more brazen and keeping ahead of the international naval force seeking to end their high seas marauding, a top UN official said in New York earlier this [...]

    Original post by CARTHAGINOIS

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

32. Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship disrupts pirates

    www.government-news.co.uk — A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

33. British Couple Freed by Somali Pirates

    hawaiipoliticalinfo.org — . Held for more than a year. … “Reports:” $430,000 ransom paid, pirates currently holding more than 500 hostages and 20 ships..

    Held for more than a year. “Reports:” $430,000 ransom paid, pirates currently holding more than 500 hostages and 20 ships.

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

34. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — [i][b]“The pirates escaped more lightly, being dropped ashore on the Somali coast. … “Most importantly, we have removed one more pirate group from the Somali Basin and destroyed their whaler. … The combined actions of all onboard have saved merchant

    [i][b]“The pirates escaped more lightly, being dropped ashore on the Somali coast.

    “Most importantly, we have removed one more pirate group from the Somali Basin and destroyed their whaler. The combined actions of all onboard have saved merchant

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

35. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — You are thinking and feeling exactly the same as many of us. … Regrettably, International Law and RoE dictate otherwise. … I suspect that Nelson would have had his own solution but he didn’t have itchy fingered twonks with mobile telephone cameras.

    You are thinking and feeling exactly the same as many of us. Regrettably, International Law and RoE dictate otherwise. I suspect that Nelson would have had his own solution but he didn’t have itchy fingered twonks with mobile telephone cameras.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

36. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — Spidiver wrote Quote:: They’d have been better off by leaving the twats to starve or blowing them out of the water along with their “mothership” No, they’d be looking at some serious consequences for themselves, the Service and t

    Spidiver wrote

    Quote::

    They’d have been better off by leaving the twats to starve or blowing them out of the water along with their “mothership”

    No, they’d be looking at some serious consequences for themselves, the Service and t

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

37. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — Quote:: Regrettably, International Law and RoE dictate otherwise. … Those pesky Rules of Engagement, depriving the booties and RFA gunners of the opportunity to kill in cold blood. … Bloke surrenders and is disarmed, he’s entitled not to be sh

    Quote::

    Regrettably, International Law and RoE dictate otherwise.

    Those pesky Rules of Engagement, depriving the booties and RFA gunners of the opportunity to kill in cold blood. Bloke surrenders and is disarmed, he’s entitled not to be sh

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

38. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — Seadog . … I think we agree that the Rules are there for good reason; even if they can occasionally be a pain in the bum. … The thought that the commander at sea had more freedom of action than he actually has is rather apealing, though. … The mo

    Seadog . I think we agree that the Rules are there for good reason; even if they can occasionally be a pain in the bum. The thought that the commander at sea had more freedom of action than he actually has is rather apealing, though.

    The mo

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

39. The Corps: Navy News: “Marines Destroy Another Pirate Mother Ship”

    www.navy-net.co.uk — Quote:: The thought that the commander at sea had more freedom of action than he actually has is rather apealing, though. … Mission Command doesn’t and didn’t extend to being judge, jury and executioner. … There is something of a myth about h

    Quote::

    The thought that the commander at sea had more freedom of action than he actually has is rather apealing, though.

    Mission Command doesn’t and didn’t extend to being judge, jury and executioner. There is something of a myth about h

    more info…

    Published: November 16, 2010

40. Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship disrupts pirates

    www.arrse.co.uk — Quote: . … Originally Posted by Ministry of Defence A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.. . … More… .

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Ministry of Defence

    A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    More…

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

BDI Blog mentions for November 16, 2010 showing 3 entries

1. Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 15/11/2010

   hi.baidu.com — Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 15/11/2010. . … BDI 2261 (DOWN 52) BCI 3530 (DOWN 82) BPI 2294 (DOWN 71). … ‘Triton’ 2001 75336 dwt – PTE Ltd relet and the ship fixed to Resource Marine at $19500 for 35. … 类别：Baltic Dry Index 查看评论

   Baltic Exchange Daily Fixture/Index List 15/11/2010

   BDI 2261 (DOWN 52) BCI 3530 (DOWN 82) BPI 2294 (DOWN 71)

   BSI 1495 (DOWN 21) BHSI 828 (DOWN 5)

   Last published BDTI 803 (UP 28) BCTI 619 (UP
   TIMECHARTER

   ‘Yasa Neslihan’ 2005 82849 dwt dely Santos 4/6 Dec trip via Dammam

   redel PMO int grain $27000 daily + $650000 bb – Noble

   ‘Grain Express’ 2004 76466 dwt dely Aughinish ppt trip via

   St.Lawrence redel Continent (breaking IWL) $19000 daily – Pioneer

   Navigation

   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2008 75756 dwt dely Dangjin ppt trip via EC

   Australia redel EC India $21000 daily – PGSC

   ‘Brave Star’ 2000 73981 dwt dely Kosichang 13/15 Nov trip via

   Indonesia redel Malaysia $17000 daily – OBS

   ‘Azure’ 1982 64200 dwt dely PMO 18/19 Nov trip via WC India redel

   China $17000 daily – cnr

   ‘Fortune Plum’ 2010 57053 dwt dely China spot trip via SE Asia redel

   China intention Nickel ore $17000 daily – cnr -

   ‘Aquitania’ 2006 55932 dwt dely Rizhao spot trip redel Nigeria

   intention bulk cement $12000 daily – cnr

   ‘Avra’ 2004 53806 dwt -

   to be incorrect>

   ‘Spar Lyra’ 2005 53565 dwt dely Map Ta Phut spot trip via Indonesia

   redel India $16250 daily – cnr

   ‘Baytur’ 2001 52261 dwt dely North China 16/21 November trip redel

   PG or owners option PMO $17000 daily if redel PG $16250 daily if PMO -

   Sunrise Shipping

   ‘Jin Li’ 2001 50777 dwt dely Beilun spot trip via Indonesia redel

   China $12000 daily – cnr

   ‘Normannia’ 1997 42648 dwt dely Japan spot trip via Nopac redel

   Singapore-Japan $10000 daily – Daeyang

   ‘Maple Pioneer’ 2008 33170 dwt dely Falmouth 18/21 Nov 2/3 laden legs

   redel Atlantic approx $14500 daily – TA Bulk
   PERIOD
   ‘Triton’ 2001 75336 dwt -

   PTE Ltd relet and the ship fixed to Resource Marine at $19500 for 35

   to 38 months and not $19570 for 3 years as reported 5/11>

   ‘Pollux’ 2007 32017 dwt dely Rotterdam 20/22 Nov 3/5 months trading

   redel Atlantic approx $14000 daily – Cargill

   ORE
   ‘ZOSCO Shaoxing’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 17/25 Nov $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   ‘Christina J’ 2010 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 25/30 Nov $10.80 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   ‘Great Hebei’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 20/30 Nov $11.00 fio

   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto

   COAL
   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2006 75000/5 coking coal Dalrymple Bay/EC India

   1/10 Dec $24.00 fio 35000satpmshex/20000satpmshex – SAIL 阅读全文

   类别：Baltic Dry Index 查看评论

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

2. The Daily Fixtures Report – 15/11/2010

   shipchartering.blogspot.com — Technorati Tags: Baltic Dry Index,Baltic Dry Indices,Ship Chartering,Ship Charter,Shipchartering,Voyage Fixtures,Time Charter Fixtures,Panamax,Capesize,Handymax,Handysize,Supramax,Steel Cargo,

   Technorati Tags: Baltic Dry Index,Baltic Dry Indices,Ship Chartering,Ship Charter,Shipchartering,Voyage Fixtures,Time Charter Fixtures,Panamax,Capesize,Handymax,Handysize,Supramax,Steel Cargo, HRB, World Steel Prices, Steel Prices, Chinese Steel, Dry Cargo Fixtures,Bulk Cargo Fixtures,Baltic Exchange,Freight Review,News, Coal, Free Fall Baltic Index, Maritime Baltic Index,TNT Freight Review

   BDI 2261 DOWN 52
   BCI 3530 DOWN 82
   BPI 2294 DOWN 71
   BSI 1495 DOWN 21
   BHSI 828 DOWN 5

   TIMECHARTER
   ‘Yasa Neslihan’ 2005 82849 dwt dely Santos 4/6 Dec trip via Dammam redel PMO
   int grain $27000 daily + $650000 bb – Noble
   ‘Grain Express’ 2004 76466 dwt dely Aughinish ppt trip via St.Lawrence redel
   Continent (breaking IWL) $19000 daily – Pioneer Navigation
   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2008 75756 dwt dely Dangjin ppt trip via EC Australia
   redel EC India $21000 daily – PGSC
   ‘Brave Star’ 2000 73981 dwt dely Kosichang 13/15 Nov trip via Indonesia redel
   Malaysia $17000 daily – OBS
   ‘Azure’ 1982 64200 dwt dely PMO 18/19 Nov trip via WC India redel China $17000
   daily – cnr
   ‘Fortune Plum’ 2010 57053 dwt dely China spot trip via SE Asia redel China
   intention Nickel ore $17000 daily – cnr -
   ‘Aquitania’ 2006 55932 dwt dely Rizhao spot trip redel Nigeria intention bulk
   cement $12000 daily – cnr
   ‘Avra’ 2004 53806 dwt -
   incorrect>
   ‘Spar Lyra’ 2005 53565 dwt dely Map Ta Phut spot trip via Indonesia redel
   India $16250 daily – cnr
   ‘Baytur’ 2001 52261 dwt dely North China 16/21 November trip redel PG or
   owners option PMO $17000 daily if redel PG $16250 daily if PMO – Sunrise
   Shipping
   ‘Jin Li’ 2001 50777 dwt dely Beilun spot trip via Indonesia redel China $12000
   daily – cnr
   ‘Normannia’ 1997 42648 dwt dely Japan spot trip via Nopac redel
   Singapore-Japan $10000 daily – Daeyang
   ‘Maple Pioneer’ 2008 33170 dwt dely Falmouth 18/21 Nov 2/3 laden legs redel
   Atlantic approx $14500 daily – TA Bulk

   PERIOD
   ‘Triton’ 2001 75336 dwt -
   relet and the ship fixed to Resource Marine at $19500 for 35 to 38 months and
   not $19570 for 3 years as reported 5/11>
   ‘Pollux’ 2007 32017 dwt dely Rotterdam 20/22 Nov 3/5 months trading redel
   Atlantic approx $14000 daily – Cargill

   ORE
   ‘ZOSCO Shaoxing’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 17/25 Nov $11.00 fio
   scale/30000sc – Rio Tinto
   ‘Christina J’ 2010 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 25/30 Nov $10.80 fio scale/30000sc
   - Rio Tinto
   ‘Great Hebei’ 2009 160000/10 Dampier/Qingdao 20/30 Nov $11.00 fio scale/30000sc
   - Rio Tinto

   COAL
   ‘Navios Sagittarius’ 2006 75000/5 coking coal Dalrymple Bay/EC India 1/10 Dec
   $24.00 fio 35000satpmshex/20000satpmshex – SAIL

   more info…

   Published: November 16, 2010

3. Baltic Dry Index (BDI) – 2366!

   sg-stock.blogspot.com — Quote:. . … The index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities including iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertiliser, dropped 3.59 per cent, or 88 points, to 2,366 points in an eleventh … End Quote

   Quote:

   The index, which gauges the cost of shipping commodities including iron ore, cement, grain, coal and fertiliser, dropped 3.59 per cent, or 88 points, to 2,366 points in an eleventh straight drop and was at its lowest since Aug 10.

   End Quote

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

Tanker Blog mentions for November 15, 2010 showing 24 entries

1. Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation will build two new LR1 product tanker for $ 82.8 million for 4th Quarter 2011 delivery

   bestshippingnews.com — Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation (‘Navios Acquisition’ or the ‘Company’) (NYSE: NNA), an owner and operator of tanker vessels, today announced that the Company has entered into an agreement

   

   

   Navios Maritime Acquisition Corporation (‘Navios Acquisition’ or the ‘Company’) (NYSE: NNA), an owner and operator of tanker vessels, today announced that the Company has entered into an agreement to acquire two 75,000 DWT LR1 product tankers scheduled for delivery in Q4 2011 from a South Korean shipyard.

   The nominal acquisition price of?$87.0 million?will be financed with:

   • Issuance of?$5.4 million?mandatorily convertible preferred stock (‘preferred stock’)
   • New credit facility of?$52.2 million
   • $29.4 million?cash on hand

   The effective acquisition price for the two vessels is?$82.8 million?or?$41.4 million?per vessel, giving effect to the preferred stock.

   Angeliki Frangou, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Navios Acquisition stated, ‘We purchased these vessels at attractive prices. This deal demonstrates the strength of our relationships and our belief in the product tanker sector. We are also pleased that, in connection with this deal, we were able to extend the maturity of the purchase options for two other LR1 tankers and defer delivery of two LR1 tankers to the second half of 2012.’

   Ms. Frangou continued, ‘We continue to look to grow the fleet. ?Our ability to use mandatorily convertible preferred stock to partially fund the acquisition of two LR1 product tankers suggests that our equity is attractive as an acquisition currency.’

   Details of Mandatorily Convertible Preferred Stock

   In general, 30% of the outstanding preferred stock will mandatorily convert into common stock five years from the date of such issuance and any remaining preferred stock will mandatorily convert into common stock ten years from the date of such issuance, all at a?$25.00?price per share of common stock. The holder shall have the right to convert the outstanding shares of such preferred stock into common stock before to the scheduled maturity date at a price of?$35.00?per share of common stock. In addition, the preferred stock will mandatorily convert into common stock after the third anniversary of such issuance, if the common stock closing price is at least?$20.00?per share for 10 consecutive business days, at a conversion price of?$35.00?per share of common stock.

   The number of shares of common stock that may be issued upon conversion ranges from 154,286, if all preferred shares are converted at?$35.00?per share of common stock, to 216,000 million, if all preferred shares are converted at?$25.00?per share of common stock.

   Details of Credit Facility for Two New LR1s

   The new credit facility that the Company has entered into has an amortization profile of approximately 19 years and bears an interest of (i) LIBOR plus 250 bps before to delivery of the vessels and (ii) 275 bps thereafter. The credit facility also requires compliance with certain financial covenants.

   Details of Credit Facility for Two Existing LR1s

   The Company is also in agreement with a commercial bank for an additional credit facility of?$52.0 millionwith amortization profile of approximately 19 years and interest of LIBOR plus 300 bps to finance the construction and delivery of two LR1 Product tankers in the existing fleet.

   Extension of Two Existing Purchase Options

   The Company announced the extension of the two existing options on two LR1 product tankers. These options were to originally expire in?January 2011?but have now been extended through?March 2011.

   Adjustment of Two LR1 Product Tanker Delivery Dates

   The Company announced the adjusted delivery of two LR1 product tankers in the existing fleet. Delivery is now scheduled for H2 2012.

   ?

   Source: Navios Maritime

   

   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

2. Pirates hijack ship with 29 Chinese sailors – report

   www.eastafricaforum.net — SHANGHAI – Pirates hijacked a Chinese ship … The latest attack was made just one day after pirates took control of a Panama-flagged chemical tanker with a crew of 31 off the coast of Somalia.. .

   Reuters

   November 13, 2010

   SHANGHAI – Pirates hijacked a Chinese ship carrying 29 sailors in the Arabian Sea and told the ship’s owner that they were sailing the vessel to Somalia, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday.

   The Panama-flagged ship, named Yuan Xiang, was seized on Friday night by an unknown number of pirates, with officials receiving a report from ship owner Ningbo Hongyuan Ship Management Ltd just before midnight, Xinhua said, citing the China Marine Rescue Centre (CMRC).

   CMRC was unable to get in touch with the hijacked ship and the fate of the sailors remained unclear, Xinhua said, adding that the attack occurred outside a region protected by a multinational force, including China’s navy.

   The latest attack was made just one day after pirates took control of a Panama-flagged chemical tanker with a crew of 31 off the coast of Somalia.

   Piracy is rife off the coast of Somalia in east Africa, disrupting shipping lanes between Europe and Asia, putting crews and vessels in danger and jacking up insurance rates for ship owners.

   (Reporting by Fayen Wong, editing by Ron Popeski)

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

3. DPR, POLICE INTERCEPT TANKER LOAD OF CRUDE OIL

   www.nigerianbestforum.com — . DPR, Police intercept tanker load of crude oil. … According to Saidu, the sample of the product being conveyed by the tanker has been subjected to analysis at the DPR laboratory and confirmed to be crude oil.. .

   DPR, Police intercept tanker load of crude oil

   By Segun Olatunji, Kaduna

   Monday, 15 Nov 2010

   The Department of Petroleum Resources said that it had uncovered attempts by some persons to smuggle crude oil out of the country through the Northern borders.

   The DPR said, while working in collaboration with the Police, its officials in the North West zone intercepted a tanker fully loaded with a substance, which it had since confirmed to be Nigerian crude oil.

   It said that the tanker, which was conveying the crude oil, was intercepted in Kano and preliminary investigations had revealed that the consignment was destined for one of the countries bordering the Northern part of Nigeria.

   The DPR North West, Public Relations Officer, Alhaji Bulama Saidu, disclosed this during an interactive session with newsmen in Kaduna on Friday.

   According to Saidu, the sample of the product being conveyed by the tanker has been subjected to analysis at the DPR laboratory and confirmed to be crude oil.

   He added that the report of the laboratory analysis of the product had been sent back by the DPR to the police investigating the matter in Kano.

   The department’s spokesman, however, neither revealed the identity of the persons nor the registration number of the tanker involved in the deal claiming that this could jeopardise ongoing investigations by the police.

   Saidu said that the DPR and the various security agencies in the nation’s borders would intensify their patrol efforts to ensure that the smuggling of petroleum products into the neighbouring countries was effectively checked.

   He warned that if caught, such economic saboteurs would be punished in accordance with the laws regulating their activities.

   Saidu appealed to the general public to report any petroleum marketer suspected of smuggling Nigerian products across the nation’s borders to the nearest security agency for prompt action.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

4. How The Biggest Ships Were Built (36 pics)

   izismile.com — . The Batillus class supertankers are the largest vessels by gross tonnage ever built. … A gross tonnage of Batillus is 275,276 tons. … They are edged out by the Seawise Giant ship that serves as an oil tanker.

   The Batillus class supertankers are the largest vessels by gross tonnage ever built. There were 4 of them, each at 555,000 metric tons DWT, constructed by France in the 1970s. A gross tonnage of Batillus is 275,276 tons. Still, if considering fully-loaded displacement, the Batillus ships don’t hold the world’s record. They are edged out by the Seawise Giant ship that serves as an oil tanker. Still, the Batillus class ships are records for tankers (with the depth of 36 meters and full load draft of 28.5 meters), and, inside this post, you can see how these largest ships were built.

   

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

5. China: 3200 TONNES OIL TANKER

   www.apolloduck.com — 3200 TONNES OIL TANKER Wright International Ltd has the ideal opportunity for you to consider with this superb 2006 3200 Dwt Double Hulled Oil Tanker …

   3200 TONNES OIL TANKER Wright International Ltd has the ideal opportunity for you to consider with this superb 2006 3200 Dwt Double Hulled Oil Tanker …

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

6. Turkey: 60mt OIL PRODUCT TANKER

   www.apolloduck.com — Oil Products Tanker DWT d ABT1160MT on ABT4 0M Built May 1992 Matuura Tekko Japan Flag Japan Class JG Costal Last SS …

   Oil Products Tanker DWT d ABT1160MT on ABT4 0M Built May 1992 Matuura Tekko Japan Flag Japan Class JG Costal Last SS …

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

7. How to Get In Early On America’s Next Great Commodity Boom

   www.gold-speculator.com — This is a disparity someone can make a lot of money on. … It is not as easy to ship natural gas into a country as it is to ship oil. … Then you can put it on a tanker and ship it to a terminal where your buyer can regasify it.

   By Chris Mayer, editor, Capital & Crisis Saturday, November 13, 2010
   If you’re interested in safely making money in commodities over the coming decade, I have two important numbers for you…

   The first is the price of natural gas in the U.S. – which is less than $4 per million British thermal units (mBtu).

   The second is the price of natural gas in Asia, where people will pay $10 per mBtu for natural gas they import from overseas.

   This is a disparity someone can make a lot of money on. The only reason it exists at all is because the natural gas market is still mainly a local market. It is not as easy to ship natural gas into a country as it is to ship oil. You have to supercool it so it liquefies. Then you can put it on a tanker and ship it to a terminal where your buyer can regasify it. This is the LNG trade.

   There are problems. U.S. energy companies, before the shale gas boom changed everything, thought the U.S. would need to import natural gas. So th…

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

8. Red Flag cancelled due lack of tankers

   australianaviation.com.au — The USAF was forced to cancel one of its Red Flag exercises scheduled for late October due to a lack of tanker support being available for the exercise.

   The USAF was forced to cancel one of its Red Flag exercises scheduled for late October due to a lack of tanker support being available for the exercise. Held about four times a year and with allied forces attending one of two of the exercises, Red Flag is designed to simulate a combat pilot’s first [...]

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

9. Max Hardberger: Repo man of the seas

   www.urbanmusic2000.com — Yet there are many easier ways to steal a ship than making a mid-ocean boarding raid and hijacking a tanker. … Here’s how semi-legalised piracy works: you wait until the cargo has been offloaded

   

   Max Hardberger makes his living by stealing back stolen cargo ships, beating pirates at their own game from Haiti to Russia. John Crace talks to the ultimate repo man

   May 1987. The day after the Naruda had finished offloading its rice cargo in Haiti, armed guards boarded the freighter. Moments later the captain, Max Hardberger, had a grubby, badly photocopied piece of paper placed in his hands. “Pour les dettes,” the guard said.

   “What debts?” Hardberger asked.

   The guard shrugged and said: “It’s a matter for the courts. In the meantime my men will remain on board.”

   There were no debts, but that was beside the point. Haiti was a law unto itself; a place where court officials could be bought. And one clearly had been. The Naruda was about to be stolen from under Hardberger’s nose.

   He played for time. He pumped the guards with booze and waited for dark before ordering his engineer to lock them into their cabin. It was a toss-up whether they would try to shoot their way out, but they were either too drunk or not being paid enough to bother. Hardberger started the engines, switched off all the lights and sneaked out of harbour. If they were spotted, the Naruda would be seized, and he’d be slung in jail. Only when he was in international waters could he relax. Hardberger called down to the guards. He offered to set them loose in a lifeboat or take them to Venezuela; the choice was theirs. They chose the lifeboat.

   This event was the making of the man who looks a bit like a salty Hulk Hogan, whose life could be a Hollywood film and whose name is a scriptwriter’s dream. And the man with one of the world’s wildest jobs. As far as he knows, Hardberger is the only man who makes a living by stealing back stolen cargo boats. When you think of modern-day piracy you probably imagine Somali gunmen holding men and boats for ransom. Yet there are many easier ways to steal a ship than making a mid-ocean boarding raid and hijacking a tanker. Throughout the more lawless ports of the world, piracy is a great deal more frequent than you might imagine. In fact, it’s almost an institution in some places.

   “The shipping business can be worse than the Wild West,” says Hardberger in his southern drawl. “The normal rule of law just doesn’t apply in some places; if you can bribe an official to say you have a claim against the boat or its owners, then you can have the boat impounded in that port indefinitely. Possession really is nine-tenths of the law.”

   Here’s how semi-legalised piracy works: you wait until the cargo has been offloaded – the cargo’s owner and the boat’s owner are rarely one and the same, and you don’t want to confuse the issue legally – and then bribe a local court official to validate your claim. And there’s nothing the owner can do about it because the boat is subject to the court’s jurisdiction.

   “One of two things usually then happen,” says Hardberger. “The owner either pays out on the bogus claim just to get his ship back, or the claimant uses his court order to sell it.” It sounds absurd, but it’s true. A chancer can’t take the ship out of port, as once it is in international waters it would no longer be under local law and the claim would instantly be recognised as invalid elsewhere; but he can sell it at auction. Under International Maritime Law, all auction sales are deemed to be final; even if the claim against you is subsequently proven to be invalid, there is no means of redress, either against the new owner or the one who stole it off you. Once it’s sold and renamed, it’s out of reach . . . And it’s financially rewarding; a 20-year old, 4,000-tonne freighter can fetch $500,000.

   There is actually a third thing that can happen. You can get Hardberger to get your boat back. Word got round after he saved the Naruda, and since then Hardberger has retrieved “about 15″ – he’s not saying precisely how many – from ports in the Caribbean, South America and Russia. Though not Somalia. “That really is dangerous.” It will cost you, mind; simple extraction starts at about $100,000, and the price rises sharpish the more complicated it gets. Even so, he reckons he’s worth every cent.

   “I’ve never actually failed to get a boat back,” he says. This is less a boast; more a statement of the obvious. If he had failed, he’d probably be still stuck in a hellhole of a jail. “And I’ve got some basic rules. I never use violence and I don’t accept jobs where there’s a chance of someone getting killed.”

   Apart from that, pretty much anything goes. Over the years, he’s distracted crews with prostitutes and witch doctors, bribed officials to look the other way, conned Russian mobsters and hidden from naval radar by riding out thunderstorms at sea; he’s even taken a 10,000-tonne freighter out of Haiti while the 2004 revolution was going on around him. “It’s basically a matter of planning,” he says. “To get a boat out of port, you need a chief engineer and a one or two crewmen in your team, so everyone has to know exactly what they are doing.

   “I make sure we all arrive in port separately. The aim is to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible, so none of us fly in; rather we come in by ferry or cargo ship. I always stay in lowlife hotels in the seediest part of town, as it fits with my usual cover story of a sea captain looking for work. During the daytime I will scope out the port, working out the easiest way to get the boat out of port; it’s always best to have a plan where you can board it brazenly, rather than creep on surreptitiously. In the evenings I act the stereotypical drunk captain, tipping my whiskey down the sink while no one is looking. And when it’s time, we move in.”

   Is it really that simple? “I guess not,” he concedes. “I get scared each time I go in. Who wouldn’t? You’re in places where the normal rule of law doesn’t apply. The secret is to be able to keep thinking straight under pressure and not panic. There have been times when I haven’t been sure that everyone was on my side, and times when I’ve been fairly sure the local guys knew something was up. You just have to stay on your guard and try and stay ahead of the game.”

   And you can’t help feeling it is the challenge of the game that is the main attraction for Hardberger. The job has already cost him his marriage – his wife couldn’t stand the strain of not knowing if he was going to end up in jail each time he went away – but he keeps going back for more. He even lives for part of the year – “I’m not saying exactly where” – in one of the most lawless parts of Haiti.

   “There’s no real legal structure there,” he laughs, “but it’s surprisingly peaceful. Sure, you can have someone killed for $50, but the murder rate is very low. Apart from the passion killings. There’s a lot of pilfering, but people leave me alone. I guess it’s because I drive a white SUV with blacked-out windows and people aren’t sure I’m not the local police chief . . . “

   With most people, the longer you spend talking to them, the more normal they appear. With Hardberger, the reverse applies. Just when you think you’ve heard it all, he comes up with something wilder. He could just as easily have made a career in academia. He’s got an English degree from the University of New Orleans, an MA in poetry and fiction from the Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa (one of the best creative-writing programmes in the US), has a law degree from the University of Northern California, and has taught English and history at high school.

   It’s just that his seemingly hotwired need for an adrenaline rush kept tempting him away. First, to light aircraft, where he made a living flying dead bodies round the country, towing banners and cropdusting. “It wasn’t the danger that stopped me,” he says. “I had no worries flying so close to the ground; I just thought I was getting exposed to too many toxic chemicals.” His piece de resistance was organising a squadron of young pilots to help him spirit 47 light aircraft out of East Germany shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, by flying them under radar to Rostock on the Baltic.

   He eventually settled on a career at sea in his late 30s. “Like most kids from New Orleans, I’d been messing about in boats since I was 15, getting work on the oil-rig supply boats to pay my way through college,” he says. “And while I was at a loose end, I kept noticing cargo freighters being sold at super-cheap prices; so I thought I might get one. Within a couple of days I was a captain . . . “

   For a long while he made a living by plying a junk route between Miami and Haiti, transporting buckets, bicycles and cooking oil, until one day someone tried to steal his boat. It was a defining moment. Hardberger made his choice, and has gone on to carve out one of the more unusual careers on offer, and is still going strong at 62. But for how long? “Who knows?” he says, though he’s in no mood to quit any time soon. And what next? “There’s talk of a Hollywood movie and a videogame of my life.” Silly me. I should have guessed.

   • If you would like to comment on any of the stories in G2, or just want to join in the debates, go to guardian.co.uk/g2 to add your comments, tweet us @guardiang2 or email us at g2feedback@guardian.co.uk.

   • Piracy at sea

   John Crace

   guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

   More…

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

10. Repo man of the seas

    www.isavesmart.com — Yet there are many easier ways to steal a ship than making a mid-ocean boarding raid and hijacking a tanker. … Here’s how semi-legalised piracy works: you wait until the cargo has been offloaded

    Max Hardberger makes his living by stealing back stolen cargo ships, beating pirates at their own game from Haiti to Russia. John Crace talks to the ultimate repo man

    May 1987. The day after the Naruda had finished offloading its rice cargo in Haiti, armed guards boarded the freighter. Moments later the captain, Max Hardberger, had a grubby, badly photocopied piece of paper placed in his hands. “Pour les dettes,” the guard said.

    “What debts?” Hardberger asked.

    The guard shrugged and said: “It’s a matter for the courts. In the meantime my men will remain on board.”

    There were no debts, but that was beside the point. Haiti was a law unto itself; a place where court officials could be bought. And one clearly had been. The Naruda was about to be stolen from under Hardberger’s nose.

    He played for time. He pumped the guards with booze and waited for dark before ordering his engineer to lock them into their cabin. It was a toss-up whether they would try to shoot their way out, but they were either too drunk or not being paid enough to bother. Hardberger started the engines, switched off all the lights and sneaked out of harbour. If they were spotted, the Naruda would be seized, and he’d be slung in jail. Only when he was in international waters could he relax. Hardberger called down to the guards. He offered to set them loose in a lifeboat or take them to Venezuela; the choice was theirs. They chose the lifeboat.

    This event was the making of the man who looks a bit like a salty Hulk Hogan, whose life could be a Hollywood film and whose name is a scriptwriter’s dream. And the man with one of the world’s wildest jobs. As far as he knows, Hardberger is the only man who makes a living by stealing back stolen cargo boats. When you think of modern-day piracy you probably imagine Somali gunmen holding men and boats for ransom. Yet there are many easier ways to steal a ship than making a mid-ocean boarding raid and hijacking a tanker. Throughout the more lawless ports of the world, piracy is a great deal more frequent than you might imagine. In fact, it’s almost an institution in some places.

    “The shipping business can be worse than the Wild West,” says Hardberger in his southern drawl. “The normal rule of law just doesn’t apply in some places; if you can bribe an official to say you have a claim against the boat or its owners, then you can have the boat impounded in that port indefinitely. Possession really is nine-tenths of the law.”

    Here’s how semi-legalised piracy works: you wait until the cargo has been offloaded – the cargo’s owner and the boat’s owner are rarely one and the same, and you don’t want to confuse the issue legally – and then bribe a local court official to validate your claim. And there’s nothing the owner can do about it because the boat is subject to the court’s jurisdiction.

    “One of two things usually then happen,” says Hardberger. “The owner either pays out on the bogus claim just to get his ship back, or the claimant uses his court order to sell it.” It sounds absurd, but it’s true. A chancer can’t take the ship out of port, as once it is in international waters it would no longer be under local law and the claim would instantly be recognised as invalid elsewhere; but he can sell it at auction. Under International Maritime Law, all auction sales are deemed to be final; even if the claim against you is subsequently proven to be invalid, there is no means of redress, either against the new owner or the one who stole it off you. Once it’s sold and renamed, it’s out of reach . . . And it’s financially rewarding; a 20-year old, 4,000-tonne freighter can fetch $500,000.

    There is actually a third thing that can happen. You can get Hardberger to get your boat back. Word got round after he saved the Naruda, and since then Hardberger has retrieved “about 15″ – he’s not saying precisely how many – from ports in the Caribbean, South America and Russia. Though not Somalia. “That really is dangerous.” It will cost you, mind; simple extraction starts at about $100,000, and the price rises sharpish the more complicated it gets. Even so, he reckons he’s worth every cent.

    “I’ve never actually failed to get a boat back,” he says. This is less a boast; more a statement of the obvious. If he had failed, he’d probably be still stuck in a hellhole of a jail. “And I’ve got some basic rules. I never use violence and I don’t accept jobs where there’s a chance of someone getting killed.”

    Apart from that, pretty much anything goes. Over the years, he’s distracted crews with prostitutes and witch doctors, bribed officials to look the other way, conned Russian mobsters and hidden from naval radar by riding out thunderstorms at sea; he’s even taken a 10,000-tonne freighter out of Haiti while the 2004 revolution was going on around him. “It’s basically a matter of planning,” he says. “To get a boat out of port, you need a chief engineer and a one or two crewmen in your team, so everyone has to know exactly what they are doing.

    “I make sure we all arrive in port separately. The aim is to draw as little attention to ourselves as possible, so none of us fly in; rather we come in by ferry or cargo ship. I always stay in lowlife hotels in the seediest part of town, as it fits with my usual cover story of a sea captain looking for work. During the daytime I will scope out the port, working out the easiest way to get the boat out of port; it’s always best to have a plan where you can board it brazenly, rather than creep on surreptitiously. In the evenings I act the stereotypical drunk captain, tipping my whiskey down the sink while no one is looking. And when it’s time, we move in.”

    Is it really that simple? “I guess not,” he concedes. “I get scared each time I go in. Who wouldn’t? You’re in places where the normal rule of law doesn’t apply. The secret is to be able to keep thinking straight under pressure and not panic. There have been times when I haven’t been sure that everyone was on my side, and times when I’ve been fairly sure the local guys knew something was up. You just have to stay on your guard and try and stay ahead of the game.”

    And you can’t help feeling it is the challenge of the game that is the main attraction for Hardberger. The job has already cost him his marriage – his wife couldn’t stand the strain of not knowing if he was going to end up in jail each time he went away – but he keeps going back for more. He even lives for part of the year – “I’m not saying exactly where” – in one of the most lawless parts of Haiti.

    “There’s no real legal structure there,” he laughs, “but it’s surprisingly peaceful. Sure, you can have someone killed for $50, but the murder rate is very low. Apart from the passion killings. There’s a lot of pilfering, but people leave me alone. I guess it’s because I drive a white SUV with blacked-out windows and people aren’t sure I’m not the local police chief . . . “

    With most people, the longer you spend talking to them, the more normal they appear. With Hardberger, the reverse applies. Just when you think you’ve heard it all, he comes up with something wilder. He could just as easily have made a career in academia. He’s got an English degree from the University of New Orleans, an MA in poetry and fiction from the Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa (one of the best creative-writing programmes in the US), has a law degree from the University of Northern California, and has taught English and history at high school.

    It’s just that his seemingly hotwired need for an adrenaline rush kept tempting him away. First, to light aircraft, where he made a living flying dead bodies round the country, towing banners and cropdusting. “It wasn’t the danger that stopped me,” he says. “I had no worries flying so close to the ground; I just thought I was getting exposed to too many toxic chemicals.” His piece de resistance was organising a squadron of young pilots to help him spirit 47 light aircraft out of East Germany shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, by flying them under radar to Rostock on the Baltic.

    He eventually settled on a career at sea in his late 30s. “Like most kids from New Orleans, I’d been messing about in boats since I was 15, getting work on the oil-rig supply boats to pay my way through college,” he says. “And while I was at a loose end, I kept noticing cargo freighters being sold at super-cheap prices; so I thought I might get one. Within a couple of days I was a captain . . . “

    For a long while he made a living by plying a junk route between Miami and Haiti, transporting buckets, bicycles and cooking oil, until one day someone tried to steal his boat. It was a defining moment. Hardberger made his choice, and has gone on to carve out one of the more unusual careers on offer, and is still going strong at 62. But for how long? “Who knows?” he says, though he’s in no mood to quit any time soon. And what next? “There’s talk of a Hollywood movie and a videogame of my life.” Silly me. I should have guessed.

    • If you would like to comment on any of the stories in G2, or just want to join in the debates, go to guardian.co.uk/g2 to add your comments, tweet us @guardiang2 or email us at g2feedback@guardian.co.uk.

    • Piracy at sea

    John Crace
    guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

    

    

    Get Full Details

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

11. Tanker Weekly – November 15, 2010

    www.taintedalpha.com — Baltic Dirty Tanker Index rose 3.5%; Baltic Clean Tanker Index rose 3.2%.. . … I would say that crude oil price rise sparked some optimism in tanker demand; the market is still oversupplied and the gains will be hard to hold on to.. .

    (For The Week Ending November 12, 2010)

    Baltic Dirty Tanker Index rose 3.5%; Baltic Clean Tanker Index rose 3.2%.

    Despite popular belief that China is driving crude oil demand the data for October shows that China imported just 16.4 million tons of crude oil. This is the lowest level since April 2009 and it is 30% bellow September imports. In the U.S., despite the recent draw stockpiles are still high and the demand probably will not change much.

    I would say that crude oil price rise sparked some optimism in tanker demand; the market is still oversupplied and the gains will be hard to hold on to.

    Chart 1. Baltic Tanker Indexes Relative Performance

    

    Chart 2. Baltic Tanker Indexes

    

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

12. Somali pirates seize chemical tanker in Indian Ocean

    www.gctl8.com — MUMBAI, Nov 15 (GCTL) – GAC Protective Solutions have issued a maritime security alert that Somali pirates have hijacked a chemical tanker in the Indian ocean. … It was travelling towards the Gulf of Aden and Suez Canal with 31 crew members o…

    MUMBAI, Nov 15 (GCTL) – GAC Protective Solutions have issued a maritime security alert that Somali pirates have hijacked a chemical tanker in the Indian ocean.

    The Panama-flagged MV Hannibal II was seized by suspected Somali pirates over 850 nautical miles east of the Somali coastline on the morning of 11 November. It was travelling towards the Gulf of Aden and Suez Canal with 31 crew members o…

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

13. Calculus

    www.jiskha.com — Oil is leaking out of a ruptured tanker at a rate of r = 19e^(2t) gallons per hour. … Write a definite integral that represents the total quantity of oil which leaks out of the tanker in the first 3 hours.

    Oil is leaking out of a ruptured tanker at a rate of r = 19e^(2t) gallons per hour. Write a definite integral that represents the total quantity of oil which leaks out of the tanker in the first 3 hours. Using your formula answer the following questions:

    A. Estimate the integral using a left hand sum with 3 subdivisions of equal length. Round your answer to one decimal place.
    Answer:

    B. Use your calculator to estimate the ‘exact’ amount. (Your calculator does not give the exact value, therefore your answer to this question is also an approximation, but much more precise than the one you gave in part A. In this case round your answer to two decimal places.)
    Answer:

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

14. Corn, Wheat, Soybean Complex Market Commentary for 5/25/2010

    credit-cards-for-people-with-no-credit.com — We have apparently seen the first example of the potential for disruption of shipping into the Gulf after an oil-stained tanker was detained upon entering the Mississippi River.

    Corn Recap

    July Corn finished down 6 3/4 at 364 1/4, 6 off the high and 1 3/4 up from the low. December Corn closed down 6 1/4 at 382 3/4. This was 2 1/2 up from the low and 5 3/4 off the high.

    The corn, wheat and soybean markets moved for the most part in tandem today starting with weakness overnight and further selling to start the day session. This was followed by modest firming into mid session and a setback to near the middle third of the day’s trading range into the close. We have apparently seen the first example of the potential for disruption of shipping into the Gulf after an oil-stained tanker was detained upon entering the Mississippi River. No word yet as to what the cleanliness standards will be as more and more ships are forced to sail through contaminated waters before entering Gulf ports. Traders said that the sharp rise in the dollar and sharply lower crude oil and equity markets contributed to today’s weakness in corn. Forecasts of cooler weather across much of the Corn Belt, starting this weekend, and the possibility of scattered light rains across major growing areas during the first half of next week added to the negative tone. Some longer term forecasts call for moderate to heavy rains to move into the western and NW Corn Belt by Thursday of next week followed by more moderate totals in the central and SW Corn Belt into the end of next week. China’s latest weekly auction of corn reserves resulted in the sale of 939,600 tonnes out a total of 993,300 tonnes that were offered.

    Wheat Recap

    July Wheat finished down 7 at 460 1/2, 6 1/4 off the high and 4 1/4 up from the low. December Wheat closed down 7 3/4 at 508 3/4. This was 3 3/4 up from the low and 6 3/4 off the high.

    The July wheat contract moved lower overnight and then made a new contract low to start the day session. The market firmed into mid session with further gains extending into early afternoon. However, the July contract failed to reach yesterday’s close on the rally and the day culminated with a sharp sell off into the lower half of the day’s trading range. Today’s close marked a new contract low close for the July wheat contract. The hard red winter wheat harvest is underway in the southern Plains with harvest expected to reach the Northern High Plains of Texas in the next couple of weeks. Some areas in the Southern Low Plains of Texas were damaged by hail from recent thunderstorms. South Korea is looking to buy 45,000 to 55,000 tonnes of feed wheat. Tunisia is tendering to buy 100,000 tonnes of soft wheat with the sale expected to go to France. They are also looking to buy 25,000 tonnes of durum wheat.

    Soybeans Recap

    July Soybeans finished down 10 at 930 1/2, 10 1/2 off the high and 3 up from the low. November Soybeans closed down 12 1/2 at 903. This was 3 up from the low and 12 1/2 off the high.

    Soybeans traded lower throughout the day today against a backdrop of sharply lower crude oil and equities and a sharply higher dollar. Favorable crop weather also added to the negative tone. The July soybean contract attempted a mid-session rally, but this fell short of yesterday’s close and the market finished near the middle third of the day’s trading range. New crop November and December contracts and lost to the old crop July contracts in both the soybean and meal markets. The Gulf (export) market continues to see background support from expectations that rising prices in Brazil and Argentina will result in further shifting of export business from South America to the US. Light farmer selling is also helping to support cash markets in the US. However, favorable crop weather in the US is reinforcing ideas that this year’s US soybean yields could be higher than the USDA’s current projection of 42.9 bushels per acre. Last year’s US soybean yield was 44.0 bushels per acre under, cool, wet and nearly ideal conditions. One analyst noted that the cooler forecast for the coming weekend and into next week and the possibility of improved rainfall later next week was particularly favorable in that it would keep the current hot and relatively dry spell from lasting long enough to cause stress to recently planted soybean fields.

    July Soymeal closed down 2.6 at 271.1. This was 1.1 up from the low and 3.3 off the high.

    July Soybean Oil finished down 0.35 at 37.17, 0.32 off the high and 0.35 up from the low.

    July Oats closed down 7 1/2 at 191 1/2. This was equal to the low and 9 off the high.

    July Rice finished down 0.45 at 11.62, 0.03 off the high and 0.04 up from the low.

    The daily commentaries provide a review of any reports released that day, a recap of each commodity’s traded price activity, an analysis of the factors that influenced price activity, and a look ahead at the schdule for the next day. Market commentaries for soybeans, corn, wheat, gold and silver are provided by CME Group.

    We do not guarantee the accuracy of the information in the Market Commentaries, but we believe the information obtained is from reliable sources. Neither the information nor any opinion expressed therein constitutes a solicitation of the purchase or sale of any futures or options contracts.

    This blog is published by Andy Waldock. Andy Waldock is a analyst, broker, asset manager and trader. For that reason, Andy Waldock may have positions for himself, his customers, or his relatives in any market discussed. The blog is meant to develop a dialogue and educate those with an interest in the commodity markets. The commodity markets employ a high degree of leverage and may not be suitable for all investors. There is considerable risk in investing in futures.

    Related Credit Card Blogs

    • Corn, Wheat, Soybean Complex Market Commentary for 9-24-10 | insurancestuffblog.com
    • Wheat, Corn and Soybean Complex Market Recap Report for 10-26-10 | Loan modification blog.
    • CornbeltBaseball.com » Australia putting new spin on baseball | MiLB.com

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

15. Chemical Tanker Falling Off French Coast – Hot News

    101mortgagerefinancing.com — A tanker carrying 6,000 tonnes of well-off is falling off France’s Atlantic seashore after a incident with a freighter forced its organisation to desert ship, nautical officials say.

    A tanker carrying 6,000 tonnes of well-off is falling off France’s Atlantic seashore after a incident with a freighter forced its organisation to desert ship, nautical officials say.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

16. Chemical Tanker Abandoned Off France After Collision – Hot News

    101mortgagerefinancing.com — The YM Uranus, a 120-meter 390-foot containing alkali tanker, was deserted by its organisation off the French seashore after receiving on water, following a illusive incident with a load ship.

    The YM Uranus, a 120-meter 390-foot containing alkali tanker, was deserted by its organisation off the French seashore after receiving on water, following a illusive incident with a load ship.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

17. Chemical Tanker In Difficulty Off French Coast – Hot News

    101mortgagerefinancing.com — A containing alkali tanker carrying thousands of tons of well-off was in worry Friday off France’s northwestern seashore after an strong incident with an additional ship, French nautical officials said.

    A containing alkali tanker carrying thousands of tons of well-off was in worry Friday off France’s northwestern seashore after an strong incident with an additional ship, French nautical officials said.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

18. Chemical Tanker Being Towed Toward French Coast – Hot News

    101mortgagerefinancing.com — A containing alkali tanker carrying thousands of tons of a gasoline product was being towed toward France’s northwestern seashore Friday after it collided with an additional ship, the boat’s physical education instructor and nautical officials said.

    A containing alkali tanker carrying thousands of tons of a gasoline product was being towed toward France’s northwestern seashore Friday after it collided with an additional ship, the boat’s physical education instructor and nautical officials said.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

19. Chemical Tanker In Difficulty Near France Crew Airlifted After Collision – Hot News

    101mortgagerefinancing.com — The Uranus, a containing alkali tanker, is in worry off the French seashore and may have collided with a load ship, the country’s nautical administration department group pronounced in a inform on its website.

    The Uranus, a containing alkali tanker, is in worry off the French seashore and may have collided with a load ship, the country’s nautical administration department group pronounced in a inform on its website.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

20. 1069 – SMALL TANKER FOR SALE

    seaforemoj.com — 1) OIL BUNKERING TANKER.. DWT : ABOUT 500 MT. … M/E : YANMAR 6MF24UT, 800PS/420RPM. … Cargo pipes and valves were renewed.. NO heating coil.. . … 2) TYPE OF VESSE : IMO III TYPE CHEMICAL.. GRT : 1,134 TONS. … 3) TYPE OF VESSE : OIL TANKER.

    GOOD DAY.

    RENINDING YOU THAT FROM CLOSE SOURCE, WE CAN STILL DEVELOP FOR SALE THE

    FOLLOWING 3 SMALL TANKEERS;

    1) OIL BUNKERING TANKER.

    DWT : ABOUT 500 MT

    BUILT IN 1989 JAPAN

    GRT : 199 Tons

    L/B/D : 44.00/7.90/3.40 Meters

    Tanks : 6+2 / ABT 600 CBM

    Pumps : 150M3/HR x 2 Sets

    M/E : YANMAR 6MF24UT, 800PS/420RPM

    G/E : YANMAR 75PS x 2 Sets

    Single Hull / Single Bottom

    Cargo pipes and valves were renewed.

    NO heating coil.

    PRICE : USD350,000.

    ++++++++++++++++++

    2) TYPE OF VESSE : IMO III TYPE CHEMICAL.

    GRT : 1,134 TONS

    NRT : 646 TONS

    DWT : 1,843 TONS

    BUILT : MAR. 1980

    LOA : 69.40 M

    L x B x D : 63.63 x 10.50 x 5.25 M

    SPEED : 10 KNOT

    SUMMER DRAFT : 4.77 M

    CAPACITY : 2,270 M3

    TANK No. CAPACITY SLOP TANK CAPACITY

    1 P-S 550 M3 C 142 M3

    2 P-S 582 M3

    3 P-S 571 M3

    4 P-S 567 M3

    TOTAL 2,270 M3

    GRADES : 2

    TK COATING : ZINC

    CARGO PUMP : GEAR TYPE 300 x 2 SETS / TAIKO KIKAI JAPAN

    PIPI LINE : 8 INCH

    M/E : HANSHIN 6LUN-28

    M.C.R 1,600 PS x 395 RPM

    N.C.R 1,360 PS x 374 RPM

    PRICE : USD300,000.-

    ++++++++++++++++++++++

    3) TYPE OF VESSE : OIL TANKER

    BUILT : JAPAN

    LAUNCHING DATE : 1981

    DWT : 2,300 TONS

    DISPLACEMENT : 3,284.50 TONS

    LOA : 77.30 M

    LBP : 72.01 M

    POB : 39.60 M

    BREADTH MLD : 12.00 M

    DECK MLD : 5.50 M

    DRAFT MLD : 4.97 M

    SPEED : 11.5 KNOT

    SUMMER DRAFT : 5.068 M

    M/E : YANMAR 350HP x 2SET

    G/E : 750KG/HR x 2SET (GEAR TYPE)

    HEATING COIL : EQUIP

    MANIFOLD : 8 INCH x 2

    TANK No. : 10

    CARGO TANK CAPACITY

    No.1 (P) : 140.215 (S) : 140.182 (T) : 280.397

    No.2 (P) : 272.461 (S) : 272.461 (T) : 544.922

    No.3 (P) : 277.848 (S) : 277.779 (T) : 555.627

    No.4 (P) : 275.983 (S) : 275.704 (T) : 551.687

    No.5 (P) : 183.264 (S) : 183.186 (T) : 366.450

    TOTAL : 2,229.083 LITERS.

    95% : 2,184.128 LITERS

    90% : 2,069.174 LITERS

    PRICE : USD350,000.

    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

21. Somali Pirates Seize Tanker With 31 Aboard

    www.thirdage.com — . Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker almost 1,300 miles from the Horn of Africa in waters closer to India than to Somalia, home to many pirates, authorities said.. .

    Somali pirates hijacked a chemical tanker almost 1,300 miles from the Horn of Africa in waters closer to India than to Somalia, home to many pirates, authorities said.

    The European Union Naval Force said the Hannibal II, a Panamanian-flagged ship with a crew of 31, was boarded while carrying vegetable oil from Malaysia toward the Suez Canal, the BBC reported Friday.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

22. MARITIME | Piracy in Somalia: key facts

    safewaters.wordpress.com — According to the IMB, pirates are using oceangoing … • In November 2008, Somali pirates hijacked the Saudi oil tanker Sirius Star, carrying 2m barrels of crude oil worth £68m, in the Indian Ocean.

    Figures show Somali pirates were responsible for 44% of 289 piracy incidents on world’s seas in first nine months of 2010

    • Somali pirates were responsible for 44% of the 289 piracy incidents on the world’s seas in the first nine months of 2010, according to the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB).

    • Of 39 ship hijackings, 35 were carried out by Somali pirates.

    • There is evidence that Somali pirates are gaining in confidence, carrying out more attacks away from their own coast. According to the IMB, pirates are using oceangoing fishing vessels to reach as far as the southern Red Sea, where they hijacked a chemical tanker in July 2010 – the first such hijacking recorded in the area. Pirates are heavily armed with automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, the IMB says.

    • In the past nine months, pirates boarded 128 ships and fired at 52, with 70 vessels reportedly thwarting attacks. Pirates used guns in 137 incidents and knives in 66, killing one crew member, injuring 27 and taking 773 hostages, according to the IMB.

    • In April last year, pirates attacked the container ship Maersk Alabama, taking the captain, Richard Phillips, hostage and holding him in a lifeboat at gunpoint. After five days, the US navy freed Phillips while killing three pirates in a night attack. In November, the ship was targeted for second time in seven months, but private guards on board repelled the attack with gunfire.

    • In November 2008, Somali pirates hijacked the Saudi oil tanker Sirius Star, carrying 2m barrels of crude oil worth £68m, in the Indian Ocean. Pirates released the supertanker and its 25-strong crew, which included two Britons, after a ransom of £2m was reportedly paid on behalf of the ship’s owners in January 2009. The pirates had initially demanded more than £17m.

    • Somali pirates seized a yacht being sailed by French couple, Chloé and Florent Lemaçon, in April last year. When negotiations broke down, the French stormed the boat and the pirates opened fire. Florent Lemaçon was killed during the operation, as were two of the five pirates.

    Source: The Guardian, 2010.11.14

    Filed under: Articles Tagged: piracy, security, Somalia

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

23. Marine transportation, rental of bulk, marine services

    www.agahisaz.com — Marine transportation, rental of bulk services, maritime transport of sea time, equipment, mineralsRent on bulk ships, Kntynr, tanker, tug, Crowe boot, boot Splay fuel types of ships in the Persian

    Marine transportation, rental of bulk services, maritime transport of sea time, equipment, mineralsRent on bulk ships, Kntynr, tanker, tug, Crowe boot, boot Splay fuel types of ships in the Persian GulfOman Sea and sales of float sale, manufacture floating dockDredged marine equipment companies, international projects to provide naval vessels needed marine projectsProvide the expertise for marine projects supplying parts of the ship follo …

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

24. Marine transportation, rental of bulk, clearance

    www.agahisaz.com — Marine transportation, rental of bulk, clearanceMarine transportation and customs clearance of time, equipment, minerals and port services and customs Ayjnty 20% discount by our benefitRent on

    Marine transportation, rental of bulk, clearanceMarine transportation and customs clearance of time, equipment, minerals and port services and customs Ayjnty 20% discount by our benefitRent on bulk ships, Kntynr, tanker, tug, Crowe boot, boot Splay, Barj and tow ship fuel types in the Persian GulfOman Sea and sales of float sale, manufacture floating dockDredged marine equipment companies, international projects to provide naval vessels n …

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

Piracy Blog mentions for November 15, 2010 showing 44 entries

1. Somali Pirates Refuse to Board Carnival Cruise Ships

   truthdig.com — Fake news by Andy Borowitz In yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today said they would no longer board Carnival Cruise ships, citing “unsafe working conditions.”

   Fake news by Andy Borowitz In yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today said they would no longer board Carnival Cruise ships, citing “unsafe working conditions.”

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

2. Kenya: Navy Kills Three Somali Pirates

   allafrica.com — Three Somali pirates were shot dead on Friday night after they mistook a Kenya Navy vessel for a merchant ship and attacked it.

   Three Somali pirates were shot dead on Friday night after they mistook a Kenya Navy vessel for a merchant ship and attacked it.

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

3. Somali Pirates Refuse to Board Carnival Cruise Ships

   www.truthdig.com — Fake news by Andy Borowitz By Andy Borowitz . … In yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today said they would no longer board Carnival Cruise ships, citing “unsafe working conditions.” .

   Fake news by Andy Borowitz
   By Andy BorowitzIn yet another public relations setback for the beleaguered cruise ship company, Somali pirates today said they would no longer board Carnival Cruise ships, citing “unsafe working conditions.”

   Related Entries

   • November 12, 2010 Connecting the Dots on the Great Disconnect
   • November 12, 2010 Ass

   

   

   

   
   

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

4. UK warship seizes pirate vessel

   www.dailyexpress.co.uk — . . … A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed.

   

   A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed.

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

5. British Couple Released By Pirates After a Year in Captivity

   www.netnewspublisher.com — Rampant pirates have intensified their attacks against foreign ships out of Somali waters while the world’s largest warships patrol the Somali territorial water.. .

   Reports from the city of Adado in the central Somali region of Galgadud (near Ethiopian border) say that notorious buccaneers who have been holding an old British couple, Paul and Richard Chandler, have freed them early on Sunday morning after more than a year in captivity.

   “They are safe and doing well,” said Abdullahi Aden, an elder who talked with the reporters in the Adado town.

   The couple are in a secured place in a building under the Humen and Heeb administration.

   The couple were abducted on 23 October last year out of Somali water when they sailed from Seychelles to Tanzania.

   “Our administration, intellectuals and elders from the region helped release the couple and we are very happy that they are now free,” Mohamed Aden Tiicey the president of the Himan and Heeb administration told reporters early Sunday morning.

   It is not clear whether a ransom is paid, but reports say that the pirates were paid 320,000 US dollars.

   Rampant pirates have intensified their attacks against foreign ships out of Somali waters while the world’s largest warships patrol the Somali territorial water.

   Somalia is without a functioning central government since 1991 when warlords toppled Mohamed Siad Barre, and it has met terrible attacks from rampant pirates and Islamist insurgent.

   Source African Press Agency
   

   African News from NetNewsPublisher.com

   Related articles

   • Measles Outbreak Kills Nearly 19 Children in Southern Somalia (netnewspublisher.com)
   • Kidnapped Yachtsman Returns to South Africa (netnewspublisher.com)
   • Landmine Blast Kills At Least Five People in Somali Capital (netnewspublisher.com)

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   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

6. UK: Found After 300 Years, The Scourge of the British Navy

   www.sott.net — For up to a decade, the French frigate terrorized English ships by seizing their cargoes and crew under a form of state-sanctioned piracy designed to cripple British trade.

   Wreck found off Plymouth is identified as feared French corsair

   With 25 guns and a plunder-thirsty crew, La Marquise de Tourny was the scourge of the British merchant fleet some 260 years ago. For up to a decade, the French frigate terrorized English ships by seizing their cargoes and crew under a form of state-sanctioned piracy designed to cripple British trade.

   Then, in the mid-18th century, the 460-ton vessel from Bordeaux, which seized three valuable cargo ships in a single year and distinguished itself by apparently never being captured by the English, disappeared without a trace. Nearly 300 years later, the fate of La Marquise and its crew can finally be revealed.

   Wreckage from the frigate, including the remarkably well-preserved ship’s bell carrying its name and launch date of 1744, has been found in the English Channel some 100 miles south of Plymouth by an American exploration company, suggesting that the feared privateer or “corsair” sank with the loss of all hands in a storm in notoriously treacherous waters off the Channel Islands.

   The vessel is the first of its type to be found off British waters and one of only three known around the world, offering a unique insight into a frenetic phase of Anglo-French warfare when both countries set about beefing up their meagre navies in the mid-1700s by providing the captains of armed merchant vessels with “Letters of Marque” to take to the seas and capture enemy ships in revenge for attacks on other cargo convoys.

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

7. Pirates hijack ship with 29 Chinese sailors – report

   www.eastafricaforum.net — SHANGHAI – Pirates hijacked a Chinese ship carrying 29 sailors in the Arabian Sea and told the ship’s owner that they were sailing the vessel to Somalia, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday.. .

   Reuters

   November 13, 2010

   SHANGHAI – Pirates hijacked a Chinese ship carrying 29 sailors in the Arabian Sea and told the ship’s owner that they were sailing the vessel to Somalia, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday.

   The Panama-flagged ship, named Yuan Xiang, was seized on Friday night by an unknown number of pirates, with officials receiving a report from ship owner Ningbo Hongyuan Ship Management Ltd just before midnight, Xinhua said, citing the China Marine Rescue Centre (CMRC).

   CMRC was unable to get in touch with the hijacked ship and the fate of the sailors remained unclear, Xinhua said, adding that the attack occurred outside a region protected by a multinational force, including China’s navy.

   The latest attack was made just one day after pirates took control of a Panama-flagged chemical tanker with a crew of 31 off the coast of Somalia.

   Piracy is rife off the coast of Somalia in east Africa, disrupting shipping lanes between Europe and Asia, putting crews and vessels in danger and jacking up insurance rates for ship owners.

   (Reporting by Fayen Wong, editing by Ron Popeski)

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

8. Somali piracy: Kenyan navy kills three, Chinese ship hijacked, British couple freed

   rambergmedia.com — Monday, November 15, 2010 This weekend saw several developments among Somali pirates. … In Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local

   Monday, November 15, 2010 This weekend saw several developments among Somali pirates. In Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local military ship late Friday; a ship with a Chinese crew was seized off the Arabian Sea near India. And, yesterday pirates freed a British … Read the Full Story on Somali piracy: Kenyan navy kills three, Chinese ship hijacked, British couple freed

   more info…

   Published: November 15, 2010

9. British Couple Released by Somali Pirates

   www.voanews.com — . A British couple captured by Somali pirates more than one year ago has been released by their captors. … Though the Chandlers are perhaps the highest profile hostages taken by Somali pirates in

   A British couple captured by Somali pirates more than one year ago has been released by their captors.

   After just more than a year spent in Somalia, British citizens Paul and Rachel Chandler are finally going home. After a stop in Mogadishu to meet with the Somali prime minister, the two arrived at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport en route to their final destination: London.

   The Chandlers were being held near Adado, a town in central Somalia along the Ethiopian border. Another Englishman working for Save the Children, Frans Barnard, was kidnapped along with a local guide near Adado in mid October, but unlike the Chandlers, Barnard was released just one week later.

   Administrator Mohammed Aden, of the Himan and Heeb region that includes Adado, told reporters in Nairobi it was the release of Barnard that moved negotiations to free the Chandlers. “As soon as Frans Barnard was released, which was two months ago, we put a lot of pressure to the community, and the diaspora and everybody put a lot of pressure to release Paul and Rachel,” he said.

   Aden, who received the chandlers in Adado before they were brought to Mogadishu, said the couple was drained by their experience, but otherwise in good health. “They were in good spirits and they were happy to be alive and happy to have their freedom,” he said.

   The Chandlers will receive full medical examinations before returning them to England.

   The two were kidnapped by Somali pirates on October 23 of last year, while sailing in their 38-foot yacht Lynn Revival off the coast of Seychelles.

   While no official figure has been released, the ransom paid to secure the couple’s release is estimated to be nearly $1 million.

   As much as $500,000 in ransom was initially paid several months earlier, but the captors failed to release the Chandlers, prompting fears the money had landed in the wrong hands.

   Though the Chandlers are perhaps the highest profile hostages taken by Somali pirates in recent years, there are estimated to be hundreds more hostages being held by Somali pirates – mainly crews of large tankers crossing the Indian Ocean. Analysts say the recent spike in ransoms paid for hijacked ships has spurred more piracy, and also increased the amount of time ships are being held by captors.

   A British couple captured by Somali pirates more than one year ago has been released by their captors.

   After just more than a year spent in Somalia, British citizens Paul and Rachel Chandler are finally going home. After a stop in Mogadishu to meet with the Somali prime minister, the two arrived at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport en route to their final destination: London.

   The Chandlers were being held near Adado, a town in central Somalia along the Ethiopian border. Another Englishman working for Save the Children, Frans Barnard, was kidnapped along with a local guide near Adado in mid October, but unlike the Chandlers, Barnard was released just one week later.

   Administrator Mohammed Aden, of the Himan and Heeb region that includes Adado, told reporters in Nairobi it was the release of Barnard that moved negotiations to free the Chandlers. “As soon as Frans Barnard was released, which was two months ago, we put a lot of pressure to the community, and the diaspora and everybody put a lot of pressure to release Paul and Rachel,” he said.

   Aden, who received the chandlers in Adado before they were brought to Mogadishu, said the couple was drained by their experience, but otherwise in good health. “They were in good spirits and they were happy to be alive and happy to have their freedom,” he said.

   The Chandlers will receive full medical examinations before returning them to England.

   The two were kidnapped by Somali pirates on October 23 of last year, while sailing in their 38-foot yacht Lynn Revival off the coast of Seychelles.

   While no official figure has been released, the ransom paid to secure the couple’s release is estimated to be nearly one-million dollars.

   As much as $500,000 in ransom was initially paid several months earlier, but the captors failed to release the Chandlers, prompting fears the money had landed in the wrong hands.

   Though the Chandlers are perhaps the highest profile hostages taken by Somali pirates in recent years, there are estimated to be hundreds more hostages being held by Somali pirates – mainly crews of large tankers crossing the Indian Ocean. Analysts say the recent spike in ransoms paid for hijacked ships has spurred more piracy, and also increased the amount of time ships are being held by captors.

   more info…

   Published: November 14, 2010

10. Somali piracy: Kenyan navy kills three, Chinese ship hijacked, British couple freed

    blodic.us — WikiNews – This weekend saw several developments among Somali pirates.In … Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local military ship late Friday; a s…

    WikiNews – This weekend saw several developments among Somali pirates.In Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local military ship late Friday; a s…

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

11. Somali piracy: Kenyan navy kills three, Chinese ship hijacked, British couple freed

    en.wikinews.org — In Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local military ship late Friday; a ship with a Chinese crew was seized off the Arabian Sea near India.

    Monday, November 15, 2010

    

    This weekend saw several developments among Somali pirates. In Kenyan coastal waters, in the Indian Ocean, three pirates were killed when they mistakenly attacked a local military ship late Friday; a ship with a Chinese crew was seized off the Arabian Sea near India. And, yesterday pirates freed a British couple taken with their yacht a year ago.

    More…
    

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

12. EU Piracy Force blaming seafarers for attacks, sources say

    www.maritimeaccidentattorney.com — EU NAVFOR, the European Union anti-piracy military … Meanwhile, Somali pirates are reportedly holding over 30 ships and 500 crewmembers hostage while asking for ransoms approaching $10 million..

    EU NAVFOR, the European Union anti-piracy military coalition, is blaming many successful attacks on mariners’ inability to follow best management practices, said a high ranking source from a major international shipping coalition. The official charged that, rather than supporting the embarkation of armed security teams on vessels transiting high risk areas such as the Horn of Africa region, EN NAVFOR believes crews are not doing enough to protect themselves with vigilance and non-lethal deterrence measures. Meanwhile, Somali pirates are reportedly holding over 30 ships and 500 crewmembers hostage while asking for ransoms approaching $10 million.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

13. U.S. Navy is trying to close

    www.economyincrisis.org — U.S. Navy is trying to close arrested nine pirates. … pirate ship company went so far as to call pirates boarded more than three hours after the find, but could not find the crew, so he called to

    In reply to Chinese Suppliers Guilty of Customs Fraud:

    U.S. Navy is trying to close arrested nine pirates. Operation lace wigs, there were no casualties. This is the first time the U.S. military has been hijacked by pirates, and the seizure of a freighter hostage raid. 11 crew members hid in the Chamber of Secrets Turkey and the U.S. warships then rushed to the scene, monitoring the implementation of the ship. Hijacked, the crew off the engine and hid on board a private room, locked the door. pirate ship company went so far as to call pirates boarded more than three hours after the find, but could not find the crew, so he called to the ship belongs to the company’s headquarters in Hamburg rolex watches, Germany, asked where the crew went to hide, and asked how to open engine. Company told the pirates, U.S. Navy concluded that rescue operations would not jeopardize the safety of the crew. At 5:00 on the 9th or so Synthetic Hair Pieces, part of the U.S. Navy Fifth Fleet, the 15th Marines Expeditionary Unit Special Operations units to implement raid. 24 special operations team from the U.S., operation lasted about one hour, from the Philippines and Russia, all 11 crew members were rescued, nine pirates were arrested. Course of action without firing a shot hair Lace Wigs, no one was injured. According to Xinhua News Agency

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

14. Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship disrupts pirates

    www.mod.uk — A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    A Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) ship has disrupted a group of pirates operating in the west of the Indian Ocean.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

15. Somali piracy flourishes into lucrative business

    www.hiiraan.com — Somali pirates have set up a sophisticated network of agents to negotiate and launder ransom money that has turned the seizing of ships into a lucrative business, experts say.

    Somali pirates have set up a sophisticated network of agents to negotiate and launder ransom money that has turned the seizing of ships into a lucrative business, experts say.

    more info…

    Published: November 15, 2010

16. UK warship seizes pirate vessel

    uknews.expatlifespain.com — A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed. … The RFA Fort Victoria, part of Nato’s …See all stories on this topic »

    A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed. The RFA Fort Victoria, part of Nato’s …See all stories on this topic »

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

17. Somali Pirates

    www.cruises.co.uk — I have just heard that the couple kidnapped by the Somali pirates were released today, now bearing in mind that this was supposed to have happened under the noses of the Royal Navy , and the

    I have just heard that the couple kidnapped by the Somali pirates were released today, now bearing in mind that this was supposed to have happened under the noses of the Royal Navy , and the dreadfully humiliating performance by HMS Cornwall whilst in Iraq waters, what can we do to stop these Somali pirates, and what added powers can we give to the Navy in these politically correct times ?:mad:

    Remember it could be a cruise ship next and one of us could be on it, do they deserve sympathy or should we fight them tooth and nail?(I know what I would like to do)

    How do others feel regarding this blatant kidnapping of ships and crews?:confused:

    CG

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

18. Once again Somali Pirates Punk the World: British Couple Paul and Rachel Chandler released after 1 yr as Pirates held out for ransom

    thelasttradition.blogspot.com — . I’m reading this CBS report that goes on and on about this British couple finally being released after being held for 1 yr by Somali pirates. … Somali Pirates 2 World Punks 0. .

    
    I’m reading this CBS report that goes on and on about this British couple finally being released after being held for 1 yr by Somali pirates. But, here is the key part of this story “the world” along with the British government wants to ignore.

    Key section of story as far as I’m concerned:

    “Despite the Chandlers’ release, Somali pirates still hold close to 500 hostages and more than 20 vessels. The pirates typically only release hostages for multimillion dollar ransoms.Conflicting reports from Somali officials about the Chandlers’ release said either a $300,000 ransom for “expenses” was paid or that a $1 million ransom that was contributed to by the Somali diaspora was paid.”

    Full story here
    
    It’s nice that this one British couple is safe and sound. But, a bigger point is being missed. If you continue to pay off these Somali thugs, it will only encourage them to continue hijack any ship like they’re free ATM machines. They’ve already proven they have the resolve to wait as long as it takes to get their money. And once again, another nation, this time Britain follows Spain’s lead of paying off ransom.

    Somali Pirates 2 World Punks 0

    Tell two friends about this blog

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

19. Families React To Hijacking, Kidnapping

    www.wmur.com — The captain of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship that was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Africa on Wednesday is still being held hostage, according to a crewmember.

    The captain of a U.S.-flagged cargo ship that was hijacked by pirates off the coast of Africa on Wednesday is still being held hostage, according to a crewmember.

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

20. Somali pirates free British couple

    soomaaliyeeytoosoo.blogspot.com — Somali pirates on Sunday freed British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler, ending an ordeal that started when their yacht was hijacked off the idyllic shores of the Seychelles a year ago.. .

    Somali pirates on Sunday freed British couple Paul and Rachel Chandler, ending an ordeal that started when their yacht was hijacked off the idyllic shores of the Seychelles a year ago.

    An AFP correspondent said the Chandlers arrived in Adado, a central Somali town near the Ethiopian border, after the pirates handed them over to the forces of the local self-proclaimed administration of Himan and Heeb.

    The couple looked tired but happy as they were given mobile phones to make calls as soon as they entered the safety of the compound housing the administration headquarters under heavy guard.

    “They are OK. They are being given breakfast now,” said Abdi Mohamed Helmi “Hangul”, a Somali surgeon who was instrumental in the Chandlers’ release.

    “They look in relatively good health but they need to be checked,” he told AFP. “Security is huge here, inside and outside the compound, nothing can happen to them now.”

    The Chandlers were wearing the same clothes they have worn during most of their captivity and were invited to take a shower upon arriving at the compound of Himan and Heeb president, Mohamed Aden “Tiiceey”.

    A deal was struck with the pirates this week and although no official involved in the negotiation spoke of a ransom, local elders in the region said the Chandlers were exchanged for money.

    The couple were driven overnight from the central Somali town of Amara, around which they spent most of their captivity, to Adado.

    The freed couple from Kent were expected in the coming hours to fly out of Adado, where an aircraft is waiting for them, and stop in Nairobi before going home to their friends and relatives.

    An elder had told AFP on Saturday that the pirates had agreed to free the Chandlers following the payment of 320,000 dollars on top of 400,000 dollars already received during an aborted release attempt earlier this year.

    “Close to 320,000 dollars have been paid to the pirates, the hostages are only waiting to be transferred now,” Abdullahi Mohamoud, an elder in Adado, had said Saturday before the Chandlers left Amara.

    The British government has a strict policy of not paying any ransoms.

    The money known to have been paid to the pirates, a considerably smaller amount than what their colleagues have been earning from shipowners for cargo, fishing and other vessels, is believed to have been gathered by the Chandler family and members of the Somali diaspora.

    The Chandlers were kidnapped on October 23 last year, a day after leaving the Seychelles, where they had spent several weeks on holiday.

    The blog chronicling the journeys of their yacht — the Lynn Rival — remained frozen on an abrupt last entry posted in capital letters at 6:41 am on the day of their kidnapping: “PLEASE RING SARAH”.

    Abdi Yare, a senior pirate commander, expressed surprise that such a vulnerable boat would set sail at the peak of the piracy season, when he spoke to AFP shortly after the hijacking.

    “This was an unexpected catch because nobody could have predicted that two people on their own would have dared to venture out in the Indian Ocean at this time,” he said.

    Somali sea-jackers prowling the region’s busy trade routes capture dozens of vessels each year to seek ransoms from large ship owners, but cases involving small yachts are rare.

    The couple were swiftly brought back to shore by the pirates for an ordeal that has become one of the longest and most high-profile hostage cases in Somalia’s recent, troubled history.

    Source: AFP

    

    

    

    more info…

    Published: November 14, 2010

21. Couple freed by Somali pirates ‘happy to be alive’
    (AFP)

    1-news.net — . MOGADISHU (AFP) – Paul and Rachel Chandler said they were “happy to be alive” after the Somali pirates who hijacked the couple’s yacht near the Seychelles last year released them for a ransom..

    MOGADISHU (AFP) – Paul and Rachel Chandler said they were “happy to be alive” after the Somali pirates who hijacked the couple’s yacht near the Seychelles last year released them for a ransom.

    The retired couple appeared in good health and smiled as they briefly spoke to journalists during a stopover in Mogadishu, on their way to Nairobi from the town of Adado where their 388-day ordeal came to an end earlier Sunday.

    “We are feeling very happy to be alive and happy to be here… among decent everyday people,” Rachel Chandler said, adding they were “desperate to see family and friends” and thanking the Somalis who worked for their release.

    Prime Minister David Cameron in a statement welcomed the pair’s release as “tremendous news”, thanked all those who contributed to their freedom and promised to swiftly reunite the couple with their family.

    Instead of flying directly from Adado to the safety of Nairobi, where they landed in the evening, the pair left the country of their ordeal from war-torn Mogadishu, one of the world’s most dangerous cities.

    After being greeted by officials at Somalia’s presidential palace, which has been routinely attacked by Al Qaeda-inspired insurgents in recent months, Rachel Chandler climbed back onto the plane wearing a red cap and fresh clothes.

    Her husband Paul followed her after taking pictures on the tarmac.

    They eventually landed at a military base in Nairobi, avoiding media attention, and were expected to be debriefed and undergo medical treatment at the British high commission in Kenya.

    In Adado they were given breakfast and a chance to make phone calls and shower, hosted in the compound of Mohamed Aden “Tiiceey”, the president of the local self-styled administration of Himan and Heeb.

    He contributed to the Chandlers’ release, together with Abdi Mohamed Helmi “Hangul”, a Somali surgeon who had already managed to see the pair in January.

    “They look in relatively good health but they need to be checked,” Hangul told AFP from Adado.

    Rachel Chandler explained there how they communicated with their captors using a Somali-English phrasebook.

    The couple had been driven overnight from the town of Amara, where they spent most of their captivity.

    Somalia’s newly appointed prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, said after greeting the Chandlers that the government, much in need of credibility, “exerted every humanly possible effort” to free them.

    A deal was struck with the pirates this week and, according to Somali elders and sources close to the tortuous negotiations, a total of at least 750,000 dollars was paid in ransom.

    The Chandlers’ plight generated considerable interest in Britain and became one of the most high-profile hostage cases in Somalia’s recent, troubled history but the British government has a strict policy of not paying any ransoms.

    The money known to have been paid — a much smaller amount than what pirates have been earning from ship owners for cargo, fishing and other vessels — is believed to have been gathered by family and members of the Somali diaspora.

    The pirates had initially demanded seven million dollars.

    The Chandlers’ family in England issued a statement saying “it would be irresponsible to discuss any aspect of the release process as this could encourage others to capture private individuals” for ransom.

    The Chandlers were kidnapped on October 23 last year, a day after leaving the Seychelles for Tanzania.

    Abdi Yare, a senior pirate commander, expressed surprise that such a vulnerable boat “would have dared to venture out” at the peak of the piracy season, when he spoke to AFP shortly after the hijacking last year.

    Somali sea-jackers prowling the region’s busy trade routes capture dozens of vessels each year to seek ransoms from large ship owners, but cases involving small yachts are rare.

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    Published: November 14, 2010

22. UK warship seizes pirate vessel

    story.northkoreatimes.com — A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed.The … RFA Fort Victoria, part of Nato’s counter piracy mission Operation Ocean Shiel…

    A British warship has seized a pirate ship loaded with ammunition in the western Indian Ocean, Nato sources confirmed.The RFA Fort Victoria, part of Nato’s counter piracy mission Operation Ocean Shiel…

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    Published: November 14, 2010

23. British couple released by pirates

    justthenews.info — . A British couple kidnapped off their private yacht by Somali pirates more than a year ago was set free Sunday, ending one of the most drawn-out and dramatic hostage situations since a rash of piracy began off East Africa.. .

    A British couple kidnapped off their private yacht by Somali pirates more than a year ago was set free Sunday, ending one of the most drawn-out and dramatic hostage situations since a rash of piracy began off East Africa.

    Paul and Rachel Chandler appear at a news conference at the presidential palace in Mogadishu on Sunday, accompanied by Somali prime minister Mohamed Abdulahi Mohamed, centre. (Farah Abdi Warsameh/Associated Press)

    Paul and Rachel Chandler looked relaxed and smiled through a small ceremony held in the Somali town of Adado after their morning release.

    “We are happy to be alive,” Rachel Chandler told The Associated Press by phone.

    Pirates boarded the Chandler’s 11-metre yacht the night of Oct. 23, 2009, as it sailed from the island nation of Seychelles.

    The couple, married for almost three decades, took early retirement about four years ago and were spending six-month spells at sea.

    Despite an international flotilla of warships and aircraft, pirates continue to prowl the Indian Ocean off Somalia seemingly at will, pouncing on pleasure craft, fishing vessels and huge cargo ships.

    Efforts to free the couple by the Somali diaspora, the weak Mogadishu-based government and Britain had failed until now.

    On Sunday, the couple flew from Adado to Mogadishu and, after a short stop, continued on to Kenya.

    “We are happy to be alive, happy to be here, desperate to see our family, and so happy to be amongst decent, everyday people, Somalis, people from anywhere in the world who are not criminals, because we’ve been a year with criminals and that’s not a very nice thing to be doing,” Rachel Chandler said at a news conference in Mogadishu.

    The pirates set the couple free at about 4 a.m. local time, said Mohamed Aden, the leader of the government administration in Adado.

    When they arrived in Adado they were taken to a safe house, took a shower and changed clothes. They then took about a 90-minute nap, Aden said. When they awoke they had what he called a “British” breakfast of fried eggs.

    The couple attended a ceremony with several dozen people seated in blue plastic chairs.

    Both appeared thin, suggesting they did not eat very much while in the control of pirates in a sweltering region near the Ethiopian border.

    In the Somali capital, the couple walked across the airport tarmac, smiling and thanking people. Paul Chandler had a large camera around his neck and was taking photos.

    Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed met the couple and said the government was pleased they had been freed. The pair then got back aboard a private jet for the trip to Nairobi, Kenya.

    Despite the Chandlers’ release, Somali pirates still hold close to 500 hostages and more than 20 vessels. The pirates typically only release hostages for multimillion dollar ransoms.

    Conflicting reports from Somali officials about the Chandlers’ release said either a $300,000 US ransom for “expenses” was paid or that a $1 million ransom, partly contributed to by the Somali diaspora, was paid.

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    Published: November 14, 2010

24. Ship with 29 Chinese hijacked on Arabian Sea

    news4u.co.in — . News4u-News Desk-BEIJING: A Panama-flagged freighter with 29 Chinese sailors on board has been hijacked by pirates in the Arabian Sea, the China Marine Rescue Centre (CMRC) said.. .

    News4u-News Desk-BEIJING: A Panama-flagged freighter with 29 Chinese sailors on board has been hijacked by pirates in the Arabian Sea, the China Marine Rescue Centre (CMRC) said.

    CMRC received a report from the Ningbo Hongyuan Ship Management Co. Ltd at 11.26 p.m. (1526 GMT) Friday, saying the company’s sailors on board the ‘Yuan Xiang’ were hijacked by pirates, Xinhua reported.

    The pirates told the company that the ship is being taken to Somalia.

    CMRC has so far failed to get in touch with the hijacked ship and the fate of the sailors remained unclear.

    The Arabian Sea, where the hijacking occurred, is not protected by the Chinese Navy fleet, CMRC said. IANS

    

    China

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    Published: November 15, 2010

25. South Korea Pays Pirates $9 Million For Release Of Supertanker

    www.offbeat-news.com — Somali pirates claim they have received $9.5 million in ransom from the owners of a South Korean supertanker they hijacked in April. … The pirates have freed the ship together with its 24 crew members..

    Somali pirates claim they have received $9.5 million in ransom from the owners of a South Korean supertanker they hijacked in April. The pirates have freed the ship together with its 24 crew members.South Korea Pays Pirates $9 Million For Release Of Supertanker is a post from: Offbeat News

    Related posts:

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    4. Calif. Pirates Go For Guinness World Record
    5. Report: 4 Million British Women, 3 Million Men Are Shopping Addicts

    

    

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    Published: November 14, 2010

26. Freed couple ‘happy to be alive’

    www.isavesmart.com — . Paul and Rachel Chandler say they are ’skinny and bony but fine’ after a ransom secures their release from Somali pirates. . … Today the Navy ship RFA Port Victoria intercepted a broken-down pirate

    Paul and Rachel Chandler say they are ’skinny and bony but fine’ after a ransom secures their release from Somali pirates

    A British couple held captive for more than a year by Somali pirates said they were “skinny and bony” but otherwise fine today after a substantial ransom was paid to secure their release.

    Taken hostage after pirates boarded their yacht during what was meant to be the retirement trip of a lifetime, Paul and Rachel Chandler, 61 and 56, from Tunbridge Wells, landed in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi on a charter flight, and were taken to a “place of safety” by diplomats from the British high commission.

    Earlier, the pirate gang holding them had ended their terrifying 388-day ordeal by handing them to officials in Adado, central Somalia. An agreement to release them was finally sealed last week with the payment of the second part of a ransom reported to have totalled about $800,000 (£500,000).

    “We’re fine, we’re rather skinny and bony but we’re fine,” Paul Chandler told the BBC in Adado before flying on to the capital, Mogadishu, for a brief press conference at the presidential palace.

    Looking painfully thin but smiling broadly, Rachel Chandler told reporters: “We’re happy to be alive, happy to be here, desperate to see our family and friends, and so happy to be amongst decent, everyday people, Somalis, people from anywhere in the world who are not criminals, because we’ve been a year with criminals and that’s not a very nice thing to be doing.”

    The Chandlers’ family refused to comment on how their freedom was negotiated, saying only that common sense had “finally prevailed”. In a statement, they said: “The family believes it would be irresponsible to discuss any aspect of the release process as this could encourage others to capture private individuals and demand large ransom payments, something that we are sure none of us wants.”

    There were reports tonight that the deal to finally release the Chandlers was brokered by a London taxi driver of Somali origin. Minicab driver Dahir Abdullahi Kadiye, who splits his time between his wife and children in Leytonstone, east London, and Somalia, told Channel 4 News that he had taken on the role six months ago because his children had told him they felt ashamed at school when they saw the Chandlers’ appeals for help.

    David Cameron described the couple’s release as “tremendous news”, adding: “Their long captivity is over at last. We will ensure that they are reunited with their family as quickly as possible.” He added: “I unreservedly condemn the actions of those that held the Chandlers for so long. Kidnapping is never justified.”

    Foreign secretary William Hague said the British government would never pay ransoms: “We do not pay ransom or make significant concessions to hostage takers.”

    The Chandlers, who retired early to sail around the world in their 38ft yacht, the Lynn Rival, were kidnapped in the early hours of 23 October last year in the Indian Ocean between the Seychelles and Tanzania. The Royal Navy located them as they were being taken to Somalia, and a supply vessel was sent to intercept them. But though they could see the Chandlers, the crew could not stop them being transferred to a pirate mothership and on to land. The navy later had to defend its actions after it put out a misleading account of the incident.

    Paul Chandler, who spent much of the early part of his captivity separated from his wife, said they had been told only two days before that they were to be released.

    “We were told on Friday in a way which gave us some confidence to believe it. Otherwise we’d been told we’d be released in 10 days almost every 10 days for the past nine months. So we’d taken all these suggestions with a pinch of salt.”

    Asked if he had felt their lives had been in danger during captivity, he said: “That’s something we’ll talk about later, but we were not really directly endangered by the gang, after the initial seizure.” Giving a hint of the ordeal the pair had undergone, Rachel Chandler described the moment that the pirates had tried to separate her from her husband. “They decided to separate us and we were very distraught,” she said. “We were very frightened and refused to be separated and we were beaten as a result and it was very traumatic.”

    The Chandlers’ captivity was unusually long due to difficulties in raising a ransom and deciding on a negotiating team. It is understood that they were close to being released earlier this year after a ransom of about $400,000 was paid, but the deal was aborted at the last moment. The Somali government and diaspora groups also tried to help, unsuccessfully.

    The British government has a policy not to pay ransoms or make “substantive concessions” to hostage takers or kidnappers, and was unable to offer financial help. A Foreign Office spokeswoman said that no “operational details” of the Chandler episode would be released.

    The Chandlers spent most of their captivity been shifted around Somalia’s arid central region. Both suffered health problems at various times, and will receive a thorough medical checkup in Nairobi before returning to the UK. Despite his ordeal, Paul Chandler said that “ideally” he would like to get back to sea soon.

    Patrols by more than 30 warships that form part of the international anti-piracy mission off Somalia have decreased the number of successful attacks on foreign ships, but have not deterred hijack attempts, which are occurring ever further from the Somali coast. Today the Navy ship RFA Port Victoria intercepted a broken-down pirate ship near the Seychelles, with ten armed pirates on board.

    • Somalia
    • Piracy at sea

    Xan Rice
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    Published: November 14, 2010

27. Somali pirates announcement British couple

    www.elasbooks.com — . It presently emerged with the aim of their kidnapping was witnessed by sailors on the train the Royal Navy refueling vessel, the RFA Wave Knight, who did not intervene on behalf of be afraid of of putting lives on expose.paramount

    It presently emerged with the aim of their kidnapping was witnessed by sailors on the train the Royal Navy refueling vessel, the RFA Wave Knight, who did not intervene on behalf of be afraid of of putting lives on expose.paramount Sea noble Admiral Sir indication Stanhope launched a robust protection of their procedures solitary month in a while, decisive an audience by Chatham igloo in the sphere of London: Had in attendance been the opportunity to intervene while being by all in no doubt of guaranteeing Rachel and Paul Chandlers safety, they would receive through so. The decision not to intervene was undeniably the well lone inside the circumstances.on several months, the Chandlers appeared on camera to plead British powers that be to drive on behalf of their freedom.Our kidnappers are behind patience, the pair appealed down the lens most recent November, for instance gunman lurked modish the background. They are concerned with the aim of present has been veto response next to all to their difficulty instead of money, Paul Chandler understood.
    Toshiba Black Copier Toner

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    Published: November 15, 2010

28. The Asian Balance: Policing the Indian Ocean

    acorn.nationalinterest.in — Now, while the Indian Navy has discharged itself admirably in escorting convoys and fighting pirates, it is primarily a war-fighting force. … At this time, assigning more ships to maritime constabulary

    Doing more maritime chowkidari

    Excerpts from my column in Business Standard:

    What can we do in the short term? Now, while the Indian Navy has discharged itself admirably in escorting convoys and fighting pirates, it is primarily a war-fighting force. New Delhi’s priority must remain equipping it to become a blue-water navy capable of projecting power in India’s extended maritime domain. At this time, assigning more ships to maritime constabulary duties off the Horn of Africa could risk blunting the navy’s war-fighting edge. At the same time, India must not underestimate the growing pirate menace that threatens its commerce and the lives of a large number of its seafaring citizens.

    One way out of this dilemma is for New Delhi to lease a handful of commercial vessels, equip them with adequate fire power, and place them under the operational control of the Indian Navy. After all, you don’t need BrahMos missile-equipped Talwar class battle axes to tackle pirates armed with assault rifles. Operating commercial vessels on lease can be adequate to the task, is less expensive and will allow the navy’s combatant warships to focus on their core competence.

    In parallel, India should use its upcoming presence at the UN Security Council to strengthen the mandate, personnel strength and international support for the African Union (AU) force that is currently deployed in Somalia. Ugandan officials have long been asking the UN for more troops so that the AU force can take effective control over Somalian territory and secure its ports. This makes sense. The challenge will be to manage the complexities of Africa’s regional politics so that the international effort has both robust international oversight and legitimacy. It is uncertain, perhaps unlikely, that the AU force will fully succeed in establishing order in the near-anarchic world of Somalian civil wars. There is, however, a good chance that it will seal off the pirates’ main launching pads.

    Read the whole thing at Business Standard

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    Published: November 14, 2010

29. Iran to increase presence in intl. waters

    www.islamidavet.com — The deputy commander of the Iranian Navy says the country plans to deploy more warships and destroyers in international waters. . … “Today Iran’s Navy is a strategic force, which must have a continuous

    

    The deputy commander of the Iranian Navy says the country plans to deploy more warships and destroyers in international waters.

    “In the near future more flotillas as well as the Jamaran destroyer will be deployed in the waters of friendly countries and international watersfar far away,” Admiral Gholamreza Khadem Bigham was quoted by Mehr News Agency as saying on Monday.

    “As long as the sinister phenomena of piracy and sea terrorism exist in the Gulf of Aden, we will continue our mission [there],” he added.

    “Today Iran’s Navy is a strategic force, which must have a continuous and widespread presence in the region, particularly in the Indian Ocean,” the deputy Navy commander said.

    Admiral Khadem Bigham made the remarks upon the return of the ninth Iranian flotilla from its prolonged mission in the Gulf of Aden.

    Iran’s ninth flotilla along with two destroyers was dispatched to the Gulf of Aden three months ago with the objective of protecting Iranian commercial vessels against Somali pirates.

    The tenth Iranian flotilla along with the Chiro and Lark destroyers has been dispatched in the Gulf of Aden.

    Iran decided to send its warships in line with the international community’s efforts to provide security for ships traveling in the world’s busiest and most dangerous commercial route.

    Over the past years Somali pirates have hijacking dozens of ships, making tens of millions of dollars in ransoms.

    The Gulf of Aden, which links the Indian Ocean with the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean Sea, is the quickest route for more than 20,000 vessels going from Asia to Europe and the Americas every year.

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    Published: November 15, 2010

30. Italian Ambassador to Tanzania welcomes ITS LIBECCIO in Dar Es Salaam

    www.eunavfor.eu — On 12 November, the Italian EU NAVFOR warship ITS LIBECCIO, arrived in the port of Dar Es Salaam, on its first visit to this port whilst on the EU anti piracy mission, OP ATALANTA.. .

    Italian Ambassador addressing crew of ITS LIBECCIO

    On 12 November, the Italian EU NAVFOR warship ITS LIBECCIO, arrived in the port of Dar Es Salaam, on its first visit to this port whilst on the EU anti piracy mission, OP ATALANTA.

    The Italian Ambassador to Tanzania, Dr. Francesco Catania, welcomed the warship on arrival in Dar Es Salaam and, following a briefing from the Italian Frigate Commanding Officer, Commander Antonio Galiuto, the Ambassador gave a speech to the crew, thanking them, on behalf of the Italy and Tanzania authorities, for their important work during OP ATALANTA, under the European Union flag.

    After this short visit, ITS LIBECCIO will return to patrol in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, to continue the work of assisting in the freedom of passage and safety of movement, of the commercial maritime shipping community, in its contribution to the fight against piracy.

    ATALANTA main tasks are to escort merchant vessels carrying humanitarian aid of the ‘World Food Program’ (WFP), to protect vulnerable ships in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean and to deter and disrupt piracy.

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    Published: November 14, 2010

31. Kenyan Navy – Kenya Navy kills three suspected Somali pirates

    www.nosi.org — . – Reuters – Kenyan navy officers on patrol in the India Ocean shot dead three suspected Somali pirates who boarded their vessel after mistaking it for a merchant ship..

    - Reuters – Kenyan navy officers on patrol in the India Ocean shot dead three suspected Somali pirates who boarded their vessel after mistaking it for a merchant ship.

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    Published: November 15, 2010

32. Somali piracy flourishes into lucrative business

    www.arabtimesonline.com — DOHA, (AFP): Somali pirates have set up a sophisticated network of agents to negotiate and launder ransom money that has turned the seizing of ships into a lucrative business, experts say. … The sea pirates use the financial hub of Dubai and Somali…

    DOHA, (AFP): Somali pirates have set up a sophisticated network of agents to negotiate and launder ransom money that has turned the seizing of ships into a lucrative business, experts say.
    The sea pirates use the financial hub of Dubai and Somali…

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    Published: November 15, 2010

33. Somali Pirates: Some good news, but still much bad

    anthonyclarkarend.com — Somalia’s piracy problem seems to be growing, despite dozens of naval ships trying to essentially ring off the country’s pirate-infested coastline.. . … According to Ecoterra International, an organization

    Rachel and Paul Chandler and Somali prime minister, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed

    The good news: As the New York Times reports:

    A British couple who had been kidnapped by Somali pirates and held in captivity in a remote, swelteringly hot patch of central Somalia for more than a year were finally released, Somali officials said Sunday.The couple, Paul and Rachel Chandler, were hijacked at sea in October 2009 while sailing in a small yacht in the Indian Ocean in a trip they described to friends as “the trip of a lifetime.”

    The bad news: The Pirates “physically abused the Chandlers and kept them locked up separately for months.”

    More bad news:

    The Chandler’s ordeal seems to have been complicated and prolonged by the fact that the Chandlers were not wealthy and had few valuable assets besides their 38-foot sailboat, which the pirates snatched and then abandoned off the coast of the Seychelles.

    Several people, including members of the Somali diaspora in London, had raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay off the pirates but according to Somali officials, that money got diverted and ended up being stolen by middlemen.

    Ultimately, reports indicate, “a ransom of several hundred thousand dollars” was paid.

    And still more bad news:

    Somalia’s piracy problem seems to be growing, despite dozens of naval ships trying to essentially ring off the country’s pirate-infested coastline.

    According to Ecoterra International, an organization with offices in East Africa that keeps track of Somali piracy, pirates are currently holding more than 25 foreign ships and 500 people hostage.

    Some of the ships have been hijacked hundreds of miles offshore, closer to India than to Africa. The crews are often held at gunpoint for months while ransom negotiations play out. The ransoms are getting bigger, drawing more young men from Somalia’s ruined economy — the country has not had a functioning central government for nearly 20 years — into the piracy business.

    Last week, a band of pirates received what is widely believed to be a record ransom, around $10 million, for a hijacked South Korean supertanker, the Samho Dream. The ship had been commandeered in April and anchored for months off the city of Hobyo, in central Somalia, in plain sight of the beach.

    Sadly, it seems that unless the economy and governance structures of Somali are tranformed, these pirate attacks will continue.

    

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    Published: November 14, 2010

34. Somali pirates hijack ship with 29 Chinese

    www.gctl8.com — NAIROBI – Somali pirates have hijacked a Panama-flagged cargo ship with 29 Chinese crew onboard in the Arabian Sea, China Daily reported, citing a regional maritime official.

    NAIROBI – Somali pirates have hijacked a Panama-flagged cargo ship with 29 Chinese crew onboard in the Arabian Sea, China Daily reported, citing a regional maritime official.

    Andrew Mwangura, the East Africa Coordinator of Seafarers Assistance Program (SAP) said the ship, Yuan Xiang, was seized on Friday night, outside the pirate infested waters of Gulf of Aden.

    “I can confirm the pirat…

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    Published: November 14, 2010

35. Somali pirates free British couple after a year

    www.currentnewsindia.com — The couple, married for almost three decades, took early retirement about four years ago and were spending six-month spells at sea.. Despite an international flotilla of warships and aircraft,

    

    Nairobi: A British couple kidnapped off their private yacht by Somali pirates more than a year ago were set free today, ending one of the most

    drawn-out and dramatic hostage situations since the rash of piracy began off East Africa.

    Paul and Rachel Chandler looked relaxed and smiled through a small ceremony held in the Somali town of Adado after their morning release. Rachel Chandler told The Associated Press by phone: “We are happy to be alive.”

    Pirates boarded the Chandler’s 38-foot yacht the night of October 23, 2009, while sailing from the island nation of Seychelles. The couple, married for almost three decades, took early retirement about four years ago and were spending six-month spells at sea.

    Despite an international flotilla of warships and aircraft, pirates continue to prowl the Indian Ocean off Somalia seemingly at will, pouncing on pleasure craft, fishing vessels and huge cargo ships.

    Efforts to free the couple by the Somali diaspora, the weak Mogadishu-based government and Britain had failed until now. The couple today flew from Adado to Mogadishu and after a short stop continued on to Kenya’s capital.

    “We are happy to be alive, happy to be here, desperate to see our family, and so happy to be amongst decent, everyday people, Somalis, people from anywhere in the world who are not criminals, because we’ve been a year with criminals and that’s not a very nice thing to be doing,” Rachel Chandler said at a news conference in Mogadishu.

    The pirates set the couple free at about 4 am, said the leader of the government administration in Adado, Mohamed Aden. When they arrived in Adado they were taken to a safe house, took a shower and changed clothes. They then took about a 90-minute nap, Aden said.

    When they awoke they had what he called a “British” breakfast of fried eggs.

    The couple attended a ceremony with several dozen people seated in blue plastic chairs. Rachel Chandler wore a bright red dress and red scarf. Paul Chandler wore a mauve-coloured short shirt and a green patterned sarong. Both appeared thin, suggesting they did not eat very much while in the control of pirates in a sweltering region near the Ethiopia border.

    “The community expressed their sorrow over their captivity and they told them that the pirates don’t represent all Somalis but they represent a fringe part of the community,” Aden told AP. “The Chandlers thanked the community in return and they said they are grateful for anyone who played a role in their release.”

    Referance:-http://ibnlive.in.com/news/somali-pirates-free-british-couple-after-a-year/135003-2.html?from=tn

    

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    Published: November 15, 2010

36. British pair ‘beaten by pirates’

    www.newsgab.com — A retired British couple who spent almost 400 days held hostage in Somalia have spoken of their “traumatic” time.. . … They were held in harsh conditions, with intense heat, in rural Somalia for 13 months.

    14 November 2010
    Last updated at 16:02 ET

    Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

    Rachel and Paul Chandler speak to the BBC’s Andrew Harding in Nairobi

    A retired British couple who spent almost 400 days held hostage in Somalia have spoken of their “traumatic” time.

    Paul and Rachel Chandler, kidnapped off their yacht near the Seychelles in October 2009, said they had been beaten when they refused to be separated.

    “We were really distraught, we were very frightened at that point,” Mrs Chandler, 56, of Tunbridge Wells, Kent, said after arriving safely in Kenya.

    They said they had only the vaguest idea of how the rescue had come about.

    Mr Chandler, 60, said they had be