NAFS MAY 2013

nafs

ΚΩΔ. Γ.Γ. 2229 ISSN 1107-3179

magazine

NAFS magazine is printed in recycled paper with eco friendly colors and without any varnishes in order to protect the environment.

APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92 - VISIT OUR NEW WEBSITE FOR BALLAST WATER TREATMENT SYSTEMS - www.nafsgreen.gr /bwts

ALEXIA BOGDANOS We have set forth to move forward

ALBA New MSc in Shipping

TED PETROPOULOS Is the failure of the supervision of banks the achilles heel of the global banking system?

CAPITAL LINK 4th annual Greek shipping forum draws 950 delegates

P.03.13

HOUSTON • ODESSA • SHANGHAI • PIRAEUS

PROFESSIONALISM • EXPERTISE • DEDICATION

Head Office - Mηχανουργείο - Aποθήκη: ΒΙ.ΠΑ Σχιστού, οδός 1, αριθµός 2, 18863, Πέραµα, ΕΛΛΑΔΑ, τηλ: 210 40 00 111 κιν: (+30) 6932210060 | 6947008961-2, fax: 210 40 00 225, turbomed@otenet.gr, www.turbomed.gr, Skype: turbomedtechnical

when a growing

BODY

covers huge distances

RINA GROUP making the best together

Index

NAFS magazine is printed in recycled paper with eco friendly colors and without any varnishes in order to protect the environment.

Nikos K. Doukas

Cover Story

06 | O Nigel, το hall of fame και οι επικριτές της ναυτιλίας...

20.

Κώστας Δούκας

ALFA LAVAL: PureBallast 3.0 Redifining leadership in ballast water treatments.

08 | Όταν κινδυνεύει ο σκορπιός αυτοκτονεί με το κεντρί του

54. KONGSBERG offshore vessel simulator 62. OOCL Berlin named in Korea 64. FURUNO accredited another training

center for specific ECDIS training

65. New Salinometer System SL8005 Tre

Ted Petropoulos

12 | Is the failure of the supervision of banks the achilles heel of the global banking system?

68. Class NK releases new PrimeShip - Hull design software of IACS harmonised rules

Victoria Liouta

70. Με επιτυχία ολοκληρώθηκε

atm

16 | Owner’s rights of remuneration after a defaulting time charterer Spyros J. Vougious

18 | ALBA Shipping Education: A new MSc in Shipping Management Program

34. Seaspan to roll out GL HullManager across entire fleet 36. GL Hellenic Technical Committee meeting held in Athens 38. From Stowage to Steel and everything in Between 40. DNV - Led JIP proves feasible LNG bunkering in Australian Ports

Features

20 Per Warg Ballast Water Treatment – Inside PureBallast 3.0 32 Alexia Bogdanos We have set forth to move forward

ο φοιτητικός διαγωνισμός “ The Negotiations Challenge”.Tent

71. INTERNAFTIKI: Καθαρισμός δεξαμενών καυσίμων και λαδιών 72. 12th Maritime Conference “NAVIGATOR 2013” 73. Norsafe continue to expand their global service network 74. Tsavliris Q1 Key Activities 2013

42. DNV and Statoil cooperate to

75. Wartsila opens a new service workshop

42. Upgraded LNG containment system

77. Κώστας Δούκας: Μετά από τον κίτρινο χρυσό έρχεται ο ηλεκτρονικός.

enchance Artctic Competence for reduced boil - off

in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

44. ERMA FIRST bwms was succesfully installed on Greek boxship newbuildings

40 Per Wiggo Richardsen Antwerp Port Authority takes the next step in LNG Bunkering 66 Capital Link

Issue 92 - APR-MAY, 2013 Publisher

Nikos K. Doukas

4th Annual Greek Shipping Forum draws 950 delegates

Editor in Chief

76 N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau

Editorial

Technical Symposium was completed with great success

Panagiotis Doukas Ted Petropoulos, Victoria Liouta, Per Wiggo Richardsen, Per Warg, Alexia Bogdanos, Spyros J. Vougious

Layout and Design

Nikos K. Doukas Publications

NAFS magazine is printed in recycled paper with eco friendly colors and without any varnishes in order to protect the environment.

MARINE TURBO Inc.

Turbochargers Repair Center

P.03.13

WORLDWIDE

all types turbocharger

info@proturbo-texas.com, www.proturbo-texas.com

MIRROR - www.nafsgreen.gr

06- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

Νίκος Κ. Δούκας Editor NAFS magazine/ www.nafsgreen.gr

O Nigel, το hall of fame, και οι επικριτές της ναυτιλίας Εδώ και δεκαετίες η Ελληνική πρωτιά στην παγκόσμια Ναυτιλιακή κοινότητα αποτελεί ίσως και γεγονός για την ένταξή της στα βραβεία Γκίνες. Καμία άλλη ναυτική δύναμη παγκοσμίως δεν έχει καταφέρει να εδραιωθεί και να βρίσκεται πάντα στην κορυφή όχι μόνο στις καλές εποχές αλλά και σε εποχές οικονομικής κρίσης, τόσο τα τελευταία χρόνια όσο και παλαιότερα. Οι πλοιοκτήτες έχουν την διορατικότητα να μυρίζονται τις εξελίξεις. Έχουν έναν μαγικό τρόπο να ξέρουν πότε και γιατί να αγοράσουν ή να πουλήσουν. Δέχονται πάντα καλοπροαίρετα να πληρώσουν με αγορά υπηρεσιών ή εξοπλισμού στα πλοία τους, τις κάθε λογής νόρμες που αναπτύσσονται στα μυαλά των νομοθετών της Ευρώπης και της Αμερικής. Πώς όμως ξεκίνησε αυτή η μεγαλειώδης ναυτική βιομηχανία; Πόσοι γνωρίζουν την ιστορία των σπουδαίων Ελλήνων πλοιοκτητών οι οποίοι έχουν φύγει από κοντά μας εδώ και δεκαετίες; Με ποιον τρόπο θα παρέμενε ζωντανή η ναυτική μας παράδοση; Πρόσφατα στο Μέγαρο Μουσικής ο καταξιωμένος και καλός συνάδελφος Nigel Lowry και η ομάδα του χάρισαν στους παρεβρισκόμενους μία βραδιά γνώσης και προβληματισμού για την μεγάλη Ελληνική Εμπορική Ναυτιλία. Είχε την ιδέα να δημιουργηθεί μία ακαδημία με καταξιωμένα στελέχη του shipping και να παρουσιάσει για πρώτη φορά το πάνθεον της Ελληνικής ναυτιλίας. Μία ιδέα που είχε το χρέος η Πολιτεία να πράξει εδώ και χρόνια, πήρε σάκρα και οστά από έναν άνθρωπο που ενώ δεν είναι Έλληνας, τρέφει αγάπη και σεβασμό προς την Ελλάδα αλλά και τους άξιους Ναυτίλους που έγραψαν ιστορία. Σκοπός ήταν να αφυπνιστούν οι Έλληνες και να γνωρίσουν το Ελληνικό ναυτιλιακό ιδεώδες, την ιστορία και την βιογραφία των μεγάλων Ελλήνων πλοιοκτητών, τον μοναδικό τρόπο που σκέφτονταν, αλλά και την αγάπη που έτρεφαν για την πατρίδα μας. Με μεγάλη μου λύπη διάβασα τις επόμενες ημέρες πικρόχολα σχόλια για τους Έλληνες πλοιοκτήτες αλλά και απαξιωτική φρασεολογία για τους διοργανωτές. Κάποιοι έμπλεξαν την ιστορία των Μεγάλων Ελλήνων Εφοπλιστών με φορολογικούς παραδείσους, offshore εταιρίες και μαύρο χρήμα. Ίσως κάποιοι να μην έχουν καταλάβει το μεγαλείο της μεγάλης ναυτικής μας παράδοσης, την προσφορά των πλοιοκτητών στην Ελληνική οικονομία, τον αριθμό των οικογενειών που έζησαν και ζουν από τη Ναυτιλία, αλλά πολύ περισσότερο δεν έχουν καταλάβει ότι χωρίς ναυτιλία θα ήμασταν ένα νεκρό κράτος. Ενώ η παγκόσμια

επιχειρηματική κοινότητα τρέφει σεβασμό, μέρος των ελληνικών media παραλληλίζουν την προσπάθεια του Nigel με κάτι απαξιωτικό, παρουσιάζοντας τους εφοπλιστές ως “πατριώτες” που αφήνουν την Ελλάδα στην τύχη της, αλλά δίνει και συμβουλές την επόμενη φορά να προστεθεί και βραβείο για τον κάτοχο των περισσοτέρων offshore. Για όσους λοιπόν θέλουν να μάθουν, η ελληνόκτητη ναυτιλία παραμένει στην πρώτη θέση τόσο διεθνώς όσο και στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ενωση, με 3.428 πλοία, χωρητικότητας περίπου 245 εκατομμυρίων τόνων, από τα οποία 820 πλοία με χωρητικότητα 74 εκατομμύρια τόνους, βρίσκονται στην ελληνική σημαία. Ειδικότερα, ο ελληνόκτητος στόλος εκπροσωπεί το 15,56% του παγκόσμιου στόλου. Η ελληνική ναυτιλία αναγνωρίζεται από την ΕΕ, τις ΗΠΑ, την Κίνα ως σημαντικός εμπορικός εταίρος που διακινεί μεγάλο ποσοστό του παγκόσμιου θαλάσσιου εμπορίου. Το κύρος της, λοιπόν, πρέπει να χρησιμοποιείται από την ελληνική πολιτεία ως διαπραγματευτικό ‘’όπλο’’ για την ανάπτυξη διακρατικών συμμαχιών, ιδιαίτερα τώρα που η εθνική οικονομία μας γίνεται αντικείμενο αμφισβήτησης. Το φορολογικό καθεστώς για τις ναυτιλαικές εταιρίες στην Ελλάδα είναι ανάλογο με εκείνο άλλων κρατών μελών τα οποία μάλιστα δημιουργούν ακόμα περισσότερες προϋποθέσεις για την προσέλκυση πλοίων στην σημαία τους αλλά και εφοπλιστικών επενδύσεων. Για έναν εφοπλιστή είναι απόλυτα φυσιολογικό να έχει τα χρήματά του στο εξωτερικό. Οι περισσότερες τράπεζες με ειδίκευση στη ναυτιλία, βρίσκονται στη δυτική Ευρώπη, πολλές στη Μεγάλη Βρετανία. Το νόμισμα των θαλασσών είναι το δολάριο, όχι το ευρώ. Αντί λοιπόν κάποιος να κάνει κριτική σε πράξεις που ενδυναμώνουν και απηχούν την μαγική συνταγή των Ελλήνων εφοπλιστών για την επιτυχία, καλό θα ήταν να ρωτήσει την ανύπαρκτη κρατική μηχανή, για το πότε θα λειτουργήσει ο Σκαραμαγκάς, πώς θα προσελύσουμε πλοία στην Ελληνική σημαία, πως θα ενδυναμώσουμε τη ναυτική εκπαίδευση, πότε θα δουλέψει η ΝΕΖ, πως θα γίνουμε πιο ανταγωνιστικοί, πότε θα αποκτήσουν νηογνώμωνα αντάξιο των ξένων χωρών, αλλά και τραπεζικό σύστημα ασφαλές. Χωρίς τα παραπάνω το ναυτιλιακό συνάλλαγμα που ήρθε στην Ελλάδα την τελευταία δεκαετία ξεπέρασε το 155 δις. ευρώ. Έτσι για ξέρουμε τι λέμε.

ΙΣΑΛΟΣ ΓΡΑΜΜΗ - www.nafsgreen.gr

08- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

Κώστας Δούκας Όταν κινδυνεύει ο σκορπιός αυτοκτονεί με το κεντρί του Το ρωσικό σύνδρομο φαίνεται ότι ακολουθεί και την απόγονη της οικογένειας Ωνάση, την Αθηνά Ρουσέλ Ωνάση. Μετά τον Σεργκέϊ Καούζωφ, που είχε παντρευτεί στην Μόσχα την Χριστίνα Ωνάση, τώρα ήλθε η σειρά του Ρώσου ολιγάρχη Ντιμίτρι Ριμπαλόβλιεφ να αγοράσει ( ή μάλλον να επινοικιάσει γιά 99 χρόνια) το πολυαγαπημένο αραξοβόλι του Αριστοτέλη Ωνάση, τον Σκορπιό, την Ιθάκη του καθώς έλεγε, αντί του ποσού γύρω στα 100 εκατομμύρια ευρώ, ή, κατ’ άλλες πληροφορίες, γύρω στα 150 εκατομμύρια δολάρια. Μετά την εντυπωσιακή αυτή αγορά, που προκάλεσε αίσθηση στο διεθνές “τζετ σετ”, φαίνεται ότι άρχισε γιά τα καλά η αφελληνιστική επιχειρηματική διείσδυση στο Ιόνιο, αν ληφθεί υπ’ όψιν ότι πρόσφατα, μία από τις Οξείες νήσους όπως αναφέρονται στην Οδύσσεια, τις Οξειές, αγόρασε ο σεΐχης του Κατάρ αντί 5 εκατομμυρίων ευρώ, ο οποίος έχει κατά νου να αγοράσει και άλλη ή άλλες νησίδες γιά την ανέγερση, όπως διαδίδεται, πανάκριβων επαύλεων, στην πραγματικότητα όμως γιά να βρίσκεται διαρκώς μέσα στο στοιχείο του, το πετρέλαιο, καθώς οι πρόσφατες έρευνες έχουν αποδείξει και επισήμως, ότι ο Ιόνιο διαθέτει τεράστια αποθέματα υδρογονανθράκων. Κατά τις υπάρχουσες πληροφορίες, ο Ριμπαλόβλιεφ προτίθεται να αγοράσει δύο νησιά, τον Σκορπιό και την Σπάρτη, δύο νησίδες που περιγράφονται από τον Όμηρο ως δύο από τα πολλά νησιά που αποτελούσαν το βασίλειο του Οδυσσέα: ἀμφί δέ νῆσοι πολλαί ναιετάουσι μάλα σχεδόν αλλοίλησιν ( Οδ. ι 23), ήτοι γύρω από την Ιθάκη υπάρχουν πολλά νησιά πολύ κοντά το ένα στο άλλο. Εξυπακούεται, ότι η αληθινή Ιθάκη του Ομήρου είναι η Λευκάδα, διότι μόνο αυτό το νησί διαθέτει τόσα πολλά νησάκια πολύ

κοντά το ένα στο άλλο, όπως αναφέρει και ο στίχος της Οδύσσειας και όπως απέδειξε με την αρχαιολογική του σκαπάνη ο Γερμανός αρχαιολόγος Γουλιέλμος Νταίρπφελντ τον 19ον αιώνα. Μάταια οι Λευκάδιοι και ιδιαίτερα οι κάτοικοι του Νυδρίου, περίμεναν να εκδηλωθεί το ενδιαφέρον της κληρονόμου Αθηνάς γιά τον Σκορπιό, τον οποίο ο παππούς της είχε αγοράσει αντί μόλις 3 εκατομμυρίων δραχμών. Δεν συγκινήθηκε ούτε από το γεγονός ότι στον Σκορπιό βρίσκονται οι τάφοι των προγόνων της, του παππού της, της μητέρας της και του θείου της. Φαίνεται ότι η Αθηνά βλέπει με ανησυχία να μειώνεται συνεχώς η περιουσία της, η οποία, σύμφωνα με διεθνείς εκτιμήσεις, δεν πρέπει να ξεπερνά τα 500 εκατομμύρια ευρώ. Έτσι, αρχίζει να ξεθωριάζει σιγά σιγά και ο μύθος της δισεκατομμυριούχου. Με την πώληση του Σκορπιού φαίνεται να απομακρύνεται ο άμεσος κίνδυνος περαιτέρω απομείωσης της περιουσίας, καθώς ο ιός του ευρωπαϊκού χρέους διευρύνεται και πολλοί μεγιστάνες του χρήματος, όπως ο Μπιλ Γκέϊτς και ο Μεξικανός πολυεκατομμυριούχος Κάρλος Σλιμ, βλέπουν τις περιουσίες τους να απομειώνονται δραστικά. Άγνωστο τι επιφυλάσσει το μέλλον όταν και οι πλούσιοι αρχίζουν να ανησυχούν, καθώς το διεθνές κλίμα διαρκώς χειροτερεύει και δεν είναι λίγοι εκείνοι που διατείνονται ότι ο κόσμος βαδίζει σταθερά προς ένα κραχ, καθώς έχει ενταθεί η αποθεματοποίηση του χρυσού. Σε πρωτοφανές ύψος έχουν φθάσει τα αποθέματα χρυσού των ΗΠΑ στο Φορτ Νοξ (τα υπολογίζουν σε 1000 εκατομμύρια τόννους). Ο κίτρινος πυρετός έχει καταλάβει επίσης την Ρωσία, την Κίνα, την Γερμανία και άλλες χώρες, που ρουφούν κυριολεκτικά τον χρυσό από τις μικρότερες. Μόνο στην Ελλάδα λειτουργούν περί τα 800 «ανταλλακτήρια» (έτσι ονομάζονται

τώρα τα ενεχειροδανειστήρια-σαράφικα), οι εκπρόσωποι των οποίων αλωνίζουν την χώρα και συγκεντρώνουν, σύμφωνα με τις εκτιμήσεις των Ελλήνων αργυροχρυσοχόων, περί τα 1000 κιλά χρυσού από κοσμήματα μηνιαίως, που τα λυώνουν και τα εξάγουν παράνομα και ανεξέλεγκτα από την Ελλάδα, η οποία χάνει περί τα 35 εκατομμύρια ευρώ μηνιαίως. Η Αθηνά έχει αρχίσει ήδη από το 2006 να εκποεί την ακίνητη περιουσία της και όχι μόνο, πουλώντας το ρετιρέ στην Avenue Fosh στο Παρίσι, όπου είχαν μείνει ο Ωνάσης και η Κάλλας, την βίλα Crystal στο Σαιν Μόριτζ της Ελβετίας, καθώς επίσης πίνακες και κοσμήματα της μητέρας της. Η ανακοίνωση πώλησης του Σκορπιού φαίνεται να αιφνιδίασε ακόμη και το Ίδρυμα Αλέξανδρος Ωνάσης, οι διαχειριστές του οποίου διαχειρίζονται την μισή περιουσία του Αριστοτέλη Ωνάση. Αυτό φάνηκε από την παρέμβαση μιάς δημοσιογράφου φίλα προσκείμενης στο Ίδρυμα, η οποία σε ειδησεογραφικό δελτίο του SKY, διέψευσε κατηγορηματικά, ως καλά πληροφορημένη, την πώληση του νησιού, διότι, όπως είπε, δεν το επιτρέπει η διαθήκη του Ωνάση. Ίσως η δήλωση αυτή να σχετίζεται με μελλοντική νομική αντίδραση του Ιδρύματος. Η διαθήκη του Ωνάση είχε συνταχθεί ιδιοχείρως στο Βαντούζ του Λιχτενστάϊν και είχε κατατεθεί από τον ίδιο στο Πρωτοδικείο του Πειραιώς, όπου την ανεκάλυψε ο αείμνηστος δημοσιογράφος Μάνος Χωριανόπουλος και την δημοσίευσε σε παγκόσμια αποκλειστικότητα στην εφημερίδα ΑΚΡΟΠΟΛΙΣ ευθύς μετά τον θάνατο του Ωνάση. Ωστόσο, η πώληση του Σκορπιού φαίνεται ότι είναι γεγονός και επιβεβαιώνεται τόσο από πηγές της Μόσχας όσο και από διεθνή media. Αναφέρονται μάλιστα και πολλές λεπτομέρειες τύπου κουτσομπολιού γιά το πώς επετεύχθη η πολύκροτη συμφωνία πώλησης του Σκορπιού, καθώς και γιά τον

ΙΣΑΛΟΣ ΓΡΑΜΜΗ - www.nafsgreen.gr

νέο ιδιοκτήτη του. Ο Ντιμίτρι Ριμπαλόβλιεφ, ηλικίας μόλις 47 ετών, ήταν ο μεγιστάν των λιπασμάτων διαθέτοντας την μεγαλύτερη βιομηχανία καλίου παγκοσμίως, που επώλησε προς 6,5 δισεκατομμύρια δολάρια σε άλλον Ρώσο. Η περιουσία του υπολογίζεται σε 50 δισεκατομμύρια δολάρια. Και καθώς ο βήχας και ο παράς δεν κρύβονται, ο Ριπμαλόβλιεφ αγόρασε το πιό ακριβό σπίτι στην Φλώριδα προς 100 εκατομμύρια δολάρια. Και επειδή, λένε οι πληροφορίες, βρίσκεται σε διάσταση με την σύζυγό του, η οποία μπλοκάρει νομικά κάθε επιχειρηματική του απόφαση, η αγορά του Σκορπιού θα γίνει από την κόρη του Κάτια, ηλικίας 24 ετών, που γνωρίστηκε με την Αθηνά στο Σάο Πάολο λόγω του πάθους των δύο γυναικών γιά τους αθλητικούς ίππους. Το χόμπυ του Ρώσου δισεκατομμυριούχου είναι το ποδόσφαιρο και γι’ αυτό έχει αγοράσει την ομάδα του Μονακό. Ο

APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 09

ίδιος, λένε οι πληροφορίες, σκέπτεται να αποσυρθεί από τις «μπίζνες» και να απολαύσει μεταξύ άλλων, τα νησιά του Ομήρου στο Ιόνιο, επιδεικνύοντας με δικαιολογημένο καμάρι τους τάφους των Ωνάσηδων στη νέα του ιδιοκτησία. Φαίνεται λοιπόν ότι όχι μόνο η ζωή είναι εφήμερη, αλλά και οι περιουσίες, ιδίως όταν οι κληρονόμοι είναι πολίτες του κόσμου (αν και η Αθηνά έχει την ελληνική υπηκοότητα, διότι η μητέρα της είχε σκεφθεί να δηλώσει την γέννησή της στο Ληξιαρχείο Πειραιώς), «κοσμοπιλίτες κατά τους αρχαίους προπάτορές μας, και δεν τρέφουν καμμία αγάπη ή κάποιο συναίσθημα ευγνωμοσύνης γιά τους προπάτορές τους που τους έκαναν πλούσιους. Ανεμομαζώματα διαβολοσκορπίσματα, όπως λέει και ο θυμόσοφος Ελληνικός λαός. Κάποιος από τους εγαζομένους στην συντήρηση του Σκορπιού Λευκαδίτης μου έλεγε πως ο Σερκέϊ Καούζωφ υπήρξε ο

μόνος που αγάπησε πραγματικά την Χριστίνα, διότι ερχόταν μυστικά κάθε χρόνο στον Σκορπιό, κάθε Κυριακή του Θωμά και στεκόταν σιωπηλός στον τάφο της κρατώντας και εναποθέτοντας στην συνέχεια ένα κόκκινο τριαντάφυλλο στο μνήμα της. Τώρα, λένε κάποιοι από την Λευκάδα, η πώληση του Σκορπιού με τους τάφους των Ωνάσηδων, δεν απέχει πολύ από το δράμα του πραγματικού σκορπιού, που όταν περιβληθεί από φωτιά, γυρίζει το κεντρί στο σώμα του και αυτοκτονεί με το ίδιο το δηλητήριό του. Και αν ο Οδυσσέας ήταν ο μοναδικός άνθρωπος στον κόσμο που κατέβηκε δυό φορές στον Άδη («δισθανής», ήτοι πεθαμένος δυό φορές), οι Ωνάσηδες θα είναι οι σύγχρονοι Οδυσσείς που θα πεθάνουν δυό φορές αν το deal αυτό τελικά πραγμα τοποιηθεί. Κ. ΔΟΥΚΑΣ

sense

the marine

of technology

London Office INTRA MARE LTD Southgate N14 5BP, U.K Tel: +44 20 8242 5520 e-mail: info@intramare.com

Piraeus Office INTRA MARE HELLAS, 4 Skouze Str. - 185 36 Piraeus - Greece tel: +30-210-4293843 - fax: +30-210-4293845 e-mail: info@intramare.gr

Oslo Office TANKER ENGINEERING AS Colbjornsens Gate 13 - 0256 Oslo - Norway Tel: +47 22441515 e-mail: haaarset@online.no web: www.intramare.gr

Cyprus Office Limassol - Cyprus Tel: + 357 25 348568 e-mail: info@intramare.net

FIANCIAL FOCUS - www.nafsgreen.gr

12- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

Ted Petropoulos Head, Petrofin Research, www.petrofin.gr

Is the failure of the supervision of banks the achilles heel of the global banking system?

The last five years have been marked by bank instability and / or failures. Bank failure is nothing new. Often, the management of banks fails to adequately assess the risk associated with the loans it provides. On other occasions, market changes bring about a deterioration of loans and the need to take substantial loan provisions.

More recently, banks have become involved in riskier, sophisticated products, which, themselves, are highly leveraged, thus increasing further their risk. Banks have developed large dealing and investment departments, not only to service client demand but to make profits from taking positions in foreign exchange, commodities, financial and real estate products etc. These positions are invariably speculative and may involve a web of highly complex product or commodity structures.

The inevitable result of all the above developments has been that the capital of banks has needed bolstering, not only to cover the above risks and / or losses but to, also, provide a higher buffer in the capital solvency of banks. This has been one of the main aims of Basle I, II, and III, which has sought to, also, better regulate the banks.

Internally, risk has been addressed by banks by the development of sizeable and powerful risk handling departments.

New loans, nowadays, require the approval both of the credit, as well as the risk departments. The latter have developed sophisticated risk assessment models, which determine risk, the bank’s capital that is “allocated” for each loan and the pricing that is required to compensate the bank both for the risk and the capital requirement.

In addition, changes in each loan results in changes in the risk weighing. Hence, loans are being reviewed periodically (usually annually) or when significant events dictate an additional review.

The banks’ internal audit department and auditors, also, play an important role in ensuring that all external and internal regulations are being adhered to and that the bank’s financial statements represent an accurate picture of the bank’s financial condition.

Such financial statements and bank reports to the Central Bank are important both to the bank supervisory authorities, as well as to other banks and the bank’s clients, including its depositors.

Banks and the Economy Banks handle a very important function in a free economy. They receive deposits from individual and corporate depositors and use

such deposits to grant loans. As banks are very highly leveraged (over 10%), they need to be extra careful, as the capital supporting such leverage is relatively thin i.e. often less than 10%.

The role of ensuring that banks are adequately capitalised and that their bad loan provisions are adequate, has rested with each bank’s central bank authority that is responsible to supervise each bank. Central banks closely scrutinize all the loan exposure and all the other risk assets of each bank. Should they find that a bank’s liquidity and capital adequacy levels fall to below the prescribed ratios, then pressure is applied on to the bank’s management and they on the bank’s shareholders, to provide more capital.

Should a bank have liquidity problems, i.e. loan and other risk exposure cannot be safely covered by its depositors base, including other forms of liquidity e.g. bank bonds, convertible bonds, etc. then the bank is pressed to reduce its loan book and / or other risk assets i.e. to deleverage. In all countries, there are emergency funding mechanisms in place, to assist banks through the above transition and to provide short-term liquidity, in order to prevent a “bank run”. As all readers know, once a bank is seen as being in trouble, depositors rush to withdraw their monies. Due to the leverage of banks, this quickly develops into a bank run and the eventual closure of the bank.

Central banks receive continuous information from each bank and can detect early signs of trouble / bank run. Provided a bank remains solvent and its management is adequately and swiftly addressing its problems, a central bank would (within reason) support banks. It would provide the necessary liquidity cushion until the bank’s financials and liquidity would return to satisfactory levels.

The main aim of the central bank is not only to effectively supervise each bank and preserve an orderly market but to also preserve the deposits of “innocent” depositors, who have entrusted banks with their savings. Such deposit preservation is vital, as deposits represent the cornerstone of our banking system and allow banks to fulfill the primary task of supporting businesses in their investments and their ongoing financial requirements.

Should depositors take flight and hoard their monies or invest in

www.nafsgreen.gr - FINANCIAL FOCUS

APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 13

non-productive assets only, e.g. gold, then the banking system slows down or even collapses. This is often described as the “multiplier effect”, whereby based on higher depositors the banks generate credit and support an economy to expand. Withdrawal of depositors, restricts bank lending and this, if severe, may lead to the economy entering into a recession, with profound implications.

There have been many bank failures, in the recent past, the best known, perhaps, Lehman Brothers and Northern Rock. However, every day many smaller banks in the US and elsewhere close and there have been banks that nearly closed e.g. Royal Bank of Scotland and, closer to home, Agricultural Bank of Greece, Proton Bank and others. In general, small banks may be allowed to fail or be bought by other banks but large banks may be “too big to fail”.

Some of the fallen banks may be nationalized, via the injection of state funds, with RBS being a good example, some are sold into stronger banks and some may receive and later pay back state funds, in the form of emergency loans, such as Citibank and other US banks, following the Lehman Brothers’ bank collapse.

A common theme, running through each bank rescue, has been to safeguard deposits. This is provided up to €100,000, in the Euro zone, for each depositor. However, the aim has been for all depositors not to lose their deposits, as this would destabilize the banking sector. The protection of depositors has been EU public policy for over 15 years.

Recently, some affected banks have been divided into good banks and bad banks, e.g. HSH in Germany, as well as Agricultural Bank of Greece and Proton Bank, in Greece. Under this scheme, the good bank i.e. performing loans and deposits would be acquired by another bank, whilst the bad bank would go into runoff.

Whereas the bank’s shareholders and holders of debt instruments, e.g. bonds, convertibles, etc., would, normally, lose a substantial and often all of their investments, the depositors’ position would be preserved.

The provision to a bank of short-term or long-term financial support, by the central bank or, in the case of the Eurozone, the Central European Bank, would need to be kept under control for each bank and each country. Where country debt exceeds permissible levels, in order to reduce each country’s debt, higher taxes would need to be raised and / or expenditure cuts as part of an austerity programme (see graph).

Ultimately, therefore, each bank rescue and / or widespread financial support to a country’s banks would be “paid” by the country’s tax payers. This is ethically and politically unacceptable, as the failure of such banks should have affected the bank’s shareholders and bondholders only. Had bank supervision been adequate and swift, a bank’s slide into insolvency would have been detected and action taken at an early stage. Provided all shareholder value had not been lost, shareholders (existing and new) would have been called to provide more capital into the bank. This plus adherence to all the other measures undertaken by a bank’s own management, as well as compliance to the directives of the central bank should have corrected the problem at an early stage.

For a bank to collapse or to be nationalized or supported to prevent a bank run, it is self-evident that both the bank’s own management, as well as its supervision by the Central Bank, have failed.

Central banks, nowadays, have in-house experienced teams, dedicated to bank supervision. In addition, they can call in international firms, such as Black Rock, specializing in loan assessment, to conduct individual loan audits and determine loan loss provisions.

How can, therefore, the Central Bank failure be explained?

In the past, a problem may have arisen when a rogue trader with no effective internal supervision entered into massive loss making transactions that endangered the whole bank. An example of this was Barings Bank. It is arguable that the Central Bank could have been “surprised” by such an event. However, although the magnitude of such losses may have been hidden by fraudulent reporting, their liquidity implications could not. Therefore, early liquidity warnings should have been given.

On other occasions, such as the subprime crisis in the US, a sudden collapse of a market through unreported high leveraged risks may have caught the Central Bank by surprise. Once again, however, effective supervising mechanisms and tools are available to prevent this.

On other occasions, a bank’s management may have withheld or altered information that may have hidden the size of the problem from the supervisory body. Whatever the explanations or excuses, the failure of Central Bank supervision has resulted in the buildup of enormous losses and additional fundings falling onto the tax payers’ shoulders.

Surprisingly enough, there have been no accusations against central banks, as to “dereliction of duty” or “concealment” or simple “ineptness”. No central banker was called to account for his bank’s failure to detect and remedy a problem at an early stage.

In addition, different reporting standards, financial presentation and

COVER STORY - www.nafsgreen.gr

14- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

bank supervision from country to country, has resulted in a widespread loss of confidence by depositors and the essential demise of the US dollar Interbank Market that had been such a good funding tool to banks, in the past.

In an effort to apply uniform supervision to all Eurozone member countries, a decision was passed six months ago by the EU that the ECB shall be responsible for uniform supervision across the whole Eurozone. For political reasons, though, this has not become effective in practice and, until it shall, depositors will continue to be wary of depositing with many banks.

Banks and the Depositor Until recently, the position of the “innocent depositor” has been sacrosanct. This is no longer the case, though. The recent treatment of Cyprus and its main two banks have radically altered the position. In Cyprus, for unknown reasons, the two main banks (Bank of Cyprus and Laiki Bank) had been allowed to build up enormous bad loans and lost considerable monies in Greek state bonds that faced the impact of a haircut, last year. It is now emerging that what are essentially relatively small banks by international standards were being increasingly funded by the ECB to the tune of about €17 billion and that their problems had been unfolding over the last 3 – 4 years. One wonders what were the Central Bank in Cyprus, the ECB and EU doing all this time, as well as what were the Government of Cyprus and the banks’ own managements doing to address the liquidity and capital issues.

What is more important, though, is that the EU decided, for the first time, to swift the cost of failure by banks under the supervision of the ECB and the national central banks to the bank’s depositors over €100,000. This has been an unprecedented act. To justify their decision, they renamed “depositors” as “investors”. Consequently, in the case of Laiki, the depositors’ losses are expected to be near 100% and in the case of Bank of Cyprus it is discussed that it might reach up to 60%. Moreover, strict withdrawal limitations have been applied to all depositors. It is a clear shift away from tax payers paying the cost of bank and central bank failure to depositors. It is ironic, of course, that for country nationals, most tax payers are also the depositors.

selves, it is not surprising tht the EU focused on the bank’s depositors.

In order to make the shift in policy more acceptable in their homelands, Eurozone countries that have up to now funded the support of weaker members, justified the shift by making reference to tax payers being unwilling to bail out “depositor investors”, who were often earning higher interest rates or were depositors, who were using tax heavens to “wash clean” their monies.

There is an argument that investors that earn 3% and more on the US Dollar deposits, as opposed to 0.25% - 0.5% in Northern Europe, should have known that hey were running a risk. However, until recently, all depositors were lulled into a state of false security that their deposits would be defended by the EU, as per directive 94/19/EC of the European Parliament and the council of 30 May 1994 on deposit – guarantee schemes and subsequent confirmations thereafter.

Implications Looking at the implications of the EU decision and its shift of focus towards depositors, we can foresee the following implications: 1) Massive flight of deposits away from Southern Europe states, e.g. Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal towards Northern EU states, such as Germany, Holland etc. This would weaken the already weak EU states further.

2) Massive flight of deposits from the whole Eurozone banking sector towards the Far East, where depositors are not in immediate haircut risk.

3) Many depositors in fear of losing their deposits shall withdraw them (above €100,000 per bank) and either hoard them or invest in gold coins.

4) The above changes shall affect negatively the Eurozone and will exacerbate the forces that are building up for its breaking and the collapse of the Euro, and 5) The loss of confidence in banks will add as further impetus to the recessionary forces in the EU.

With the ECB having provided over €2 trillion in “emergency funding” to Eurozone banks and with further funds being provided under the EFSF EU fund, it can be argued that there are limits to the support to be provided to banks directly or indirectly, via tax payers. It should be noted that according to Bllomberg, the total assets of the global central banks shot up from approx. $8tr in 2008 to $15tr by end 2012.

The shift in viewing depositors as investors and the increased risk of a haircut is, therefore, a negative development for the Eurozone that could have been avoided altogether, had the banks’ supervision been more effective. An early diagnosis and cure is much better than a prolonged illness and an operation.

Finally, in view of the profound forces unleashed by the recent shift of EU policy, it is envisaged that this policy shall be reviewed in the future with a view to effecting damage limitation by the EU. My overriding point is that had bank supervision worked, neither ECB / EFSF support nor deposit haircut would have been necessary and the capital bolstering process of banks would have been achieved more gradually and smoothly. Any banks failing to comply with the regulatory requirements, would have been forced to close at an earlier stage, which would have lessened the impact (if any) to the bank’s shareholders. Hence, the supervision of banks is the true Achilles heel of our bank system.

Looking for alternative “pools of wealth” within the banks them-

In the meantime, uncertainty and loss of confidence rule.

Recently, the president of the Eurogroup and various other officials, as well as member country ministers of finance, have made it clear that the “bail in” as recently baptized by the EU in Dublin, is a legitimate tool in the hands of the EU.

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INSURANCE NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

16- FEBRUARY-MARCH 2013 - ISSUE 91

Victoria Liouta Managing Director, Vilmar International, S.A

Owner’s rights of remuneration after a defaulting time charterer A Court of Appeal decision has been recently published in London regarding the owners’ rights for compensation in case the time charterer is in default and it is worth reading that owners were only entitled to the bunkers consumed during discharge of the cargo back to charterers and could not recover the loss of use of the vessel at the market rate as there was no element of emergency or necessity. The owners appealed to Supreme Court as referred below.

Referring to the charter agreement, owners entered into a time c/p on the Shelltime form which included the standard form of withdrawal clause providing a right of the owners to withdraw the vessel in the event of non payment of hire and there was no anti-technicality clause in the c/p. Charterers failed to pay an instalment of advance hire and so the owners withdrew the vessel after completing loading of cargo in Brazil and whilst no Bills of Lading had been issued to anyone in relation to cargo on board.

Discussions were fruitless and charterers made arrangements to take back the cargo which was discharged and vessel sailed.

The charterers challenged the withdrawal unsuccessfully and threatened to arrest the vessel and owners presented additional claims for expenses incurred in providing and maintaining a first class bank guarantee in order to avoid arrest.

The Commercial Court only allowed owners’ claim relying on the principal of “Winson” in that owners were gratuitous bailees of the cargo and could recover the bunkers as well as time spent during the period of bailment and the bank guarantee expenses as litigation costs.

The Supreme Court decision considered the “indemnity” clause and the “bailment” and the leading Judgment was by Lord Sumption.

Lords agreed that the indemnity was to protect the Owners against losses arising from risks or costs which they had not expressly or implicitly agreed in the charterparty to bear, and not from anything for which they were already remunerated for by the payment of hire. The clause did not cover typically ordinary risks and costs

associated with the performance of the chartered service. Secondly, the indemnity only covered losses caused by complying with the Charterers’ orders.

Lord Sumption held that both conditions were satisfied. The need to discharge the cargo at the time and expenses of the Owners was not a risk that they had assumed under the charterparty, as it had already come to an end under the withdrawal clause. The cargo had to be discharged because the Charterers ordered it to be loaded and came within clause 13. The Owners’ reasons for the withdrawal of the vessel were irrelevant.

The Owners’ decision to withdraw the vessel was adventitious in timing and merely determined the place Lord Mance, although he agreed with the other four Lords on the bailment point, he delivered a dissent on the indemnity point. He was of the view that the Charterers’ order had to be the “proximate “or “determining” cause of the Owners’ loss in order to trigger the indemnity clause. It was necessary to establish an unbroken chain of causation between the Charterers’ orders and the loss in the light of the White Rose decision [1969]. It was not sufficient that the Charterers’ order was “a” cause of the loss. The Owners’ loss was not as a result of complying with the Charterers’ instructions, rather it was caused because the charterparty was at an end.

While no cargo would have been on board the vessel but for the Charterers’ instructions, this did not make the latter the proximate cause of the Owners’ loss. It was unrealistic to attribute the loss to instructions to load, ignoring the failure to carry. Recovery of such loss was sufficiently taken care of by the principle in the Winson case without “stretching” the scope of the indemnity clause. There was no “direct” or “unbroken” causal link.

The Supreme Court unanimously allowed the appeal on the basis of the principle in the “ Winson”. Strictly speaking, it was not necessary to address this point in view of the decision on the indemnity point but this was so found in the

High Court. A coherent system of law produced a consistent answer under both heads. Lord Sumption noted that there was no general right under English law to recover benefits conferred on others or expenses incurred in the course of conferring them. However, one exception appeared under the law of bailment. Relying on the “Winson” case the Owners could recover in bailment when (1) The cargo was originally bailed under a contract of carriage and the carrier had no choice but to remain in possession after the contract had ended (2) As a matter of law, their obligation to look after the cargo continued notwithstanding the termination of the charterparty; and (3) the only reasonable or practical option open to them once the charterparty had come to an end was to retain the cargo until it could be discharged at the port where the vessel was located.

The bailee had a duty to take reasonable care of the cargo. It would be manifestly unjust if the bailee did not have a correlative right to charge the bailor for the expenses incurred. This right was based on the existence of a continuing duty to take care of the cargo. It was not dependant on the existence of any emergency or of the carrier being an agent of necessity of the cargo owner. So long as the bailee had to incur those expenses in discharging, being his responsibility to care for the property, they were recoverable. The bailment between the Owners and Charterers over the cargo was initially a consensual one under the charterparty. When the vessel was withdrawn, the Owners became a gratuitous bailee and had the duty to take reasonable care.

The Owners claim for expenses and loss of time succeeded. at which the cargo was to be discharged. It did not break the chain of causation between the Charterers’ order and the detention of the vessel after withdrawal. Thus the losses, namely for the market hire and the bunkers were recoverable. The two heads of loss must stand or fall together.

ilmar

International s.a

Claims Consultants & Insurance Brokers

107-109, Filonos Str. 6th Fl. - Piraeus 18536, Greece Tel: +30 210 4511615 - Fax: +30 210 4511616 Email: info@vilmar.gr

EDUCATION & TRAINING - www.nafsgreen.gr

18- FEBRUARY-MARCH 2013 - ISSUE 91

Spyros J. Vougious

MBA in Shipping, MSc in Shipping Management & MSc in International Shipping & Finance, ALBA Graduate Business School at The American College of Greece

ALBA Shipping Education: A new MSc in Shipping Management Program Greek ship-owners control more than 16% of the world merchant fleet and hold a leading position in the global maritime shipping market continuing the long tradition in shipping operations.

More than seven hundred shipping companies are situated in Piraeus and the surrounding areas while shipping is one of the most important sectors in the Greek economy.

According to a recent research by IOBE, “The role of ocean-shipping in the Greek economy”, maritime transport contributed to the Greek economy €8,4 billion for 2009 - about 4% of the total economy.

The minister of economics in his speech in the presentation of the same research described the shipping industry as one of the sectors that can drive the development of Greek economy and referred to a potential unused workforce of about 370,000 jobs directly and indirectly associated with the shipping sector.

Recognizing the role and importance of the shipping sector for the Greeks and the Greek economy, ALBA Graduate Business School at The American College of Greece (hereinafter ALBA) has served the shipping industry since 2005 by delivering two specialized graduate programs, the “MBA in Shipping” and the “MSc in International Shipping and Finance”.

The ALBA “MBA in Shipping” designed

to offer a unique educational experience, one that combines and balances the need for rigor and academic thinking with the practical aspects of the dynamic and competitive “real world” of shipping. It prepares aspiring and seasoned professionals to become the future leaders (CEOs) of the modern shipping companies.

tions of a shipping company is of primary importance for those who want to start their careers in shipping.

The “MSc in International Shipping and Finance” is offered in collaboration with one of the top finance departments in Europe, the ICMA Centre at the University of Reading.

Thus while the “MBA in Shipping” program addresses the needs of senior shipping executives and the “MSc in International Shipping and Finance” focuses on a profound aspect of the shipping business i.e. shipping finance, the “MSc in Shipping Management” addresses the needs of recent graduates and young officers of the Merchant Marine providing a thorough and deep understanding of all the major theories and practices that can be encountered in a modern shipping company.

It is jointly delivered by world renowned ICMA Centre and ALBA academics with the aim to address the needs of the capital intensive and rapidly evolving shipping industry by bridging the gap between academic theory and business practice.

The most recent development, however, is the delivery of a new graduate shipping program, that of the “MSc in Shipping Management”.

The MSc in Shipping Management is a program designed especially for recent graduates looking for a career within the shipping industry and young officers of the Merchant Marine serving both at sea and onshore.

The program provides students with a holistic and in depth knowledge of the most important issues in modern commercial shipping. Holistic knowledge of the opera-

The program balances academic rigor with practical experience in order to serve the needs of tomorrow’s ship managers in the most effective ways.

All three shipping programs are validated by the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers (ICS) and our graduates are exempted from certain exams required to acquire the ICS professional qualification.

Last but not least, our Shipping Business Advisory Committee, which consists of a selected group of shipping professionals from Greece and abroad, ensures that the experience of all our Shipping Programs are relevant and applicable to the practical aspects and needs of the international shipping community.

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COVER STORY - www.nafsgreen.gr

20- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

Cover story

Alfa Laval

Redefining leadership in ballast water treatment:

inside PureBallast 3.0

Per Warg

Business Manager PureBallast, Alfa Laval Marine & Diesel

April marks the official unveiling of the third generation of Alfa Laval’s chemical-free system for ballast water treatment. Less of an update than a sweeping redefinition of the system, PureBallast 3.0 reestablishes Alfa Laval as a groundbreaker in ballast water treatment.

PureBallast, which was developed in cooperation with Wallenius Water, was originally launched in 2006 as the world’s very first commercially available ballast water treatment system. Since then it has matured considerably, arriving in an updated PureBallast 2.0 version with EX options in 2010. Already then there were improvements to its energy efficiency and its basic construction, but nothing to compare with the advances in PureBallast 3.0.

“This time we’ve completely rewritten the book when it comes to PureBallast,” says Per Warg, the Alfa Laval Business Manager responsible for the system. “We’ve achieved space savings of 50%, energy savings of up to 60% and huge improvements in flexibility and flow capacity. But we’ve also learned a great deal that can be of impact for ballast water treatment in general.”

Going back to the beginning The development of PureBallast 3.0 began almost immediately after the release of its predecessor, with Alfa Laval returning to the drawing board in in early 2011. Jonas Alván, Product Development Manager for PureBallast, points out that this was really a new start for the system. “The original construction had been streamlined as much as was possible, which meant we were forced to think in new ways to move forward,” he says.

That original construction had been decided at a time when no supplier knew what would be needed to pass the IMO tests. Not being a company to take risks with compliance, Alfa Laval had thus created PureBallast with a good margin of error in terms of biological efficiency. Now, drawing on real experience from around 100 PureBallast systems commissioned and hundreds more sold, it was possible to reevaluate. So the development team set tough goals for the new system, especially when it came to energy efficiency.

Identifying potential parameters The key component in a UV-based system is its reactor, the chamber where UV treatment actually occurs. In standard UV treatment, organisms are eliminated directly or rendered unable to reproduce through damage to their DNA and biological structure. In PureBallast, the treatment process is enhanced by AOT (advanced oxidation technology), which creates free radicals that cause irreversible cell membrane damage. The AOT effect has a proven biological impact leading to better treatment performance and lower energy consumption.

In approaching a new PureBallast system, the development team asked itself one fundamental question: What factors determine the effectiveness of a UV-based reactor to be used with seawater at a high flow rate?

The latter part of that question was critical, according to Jonas Alván.

“The UV treatment of seawater is a very different process from the UV treatment of drinking water on land,” he explains. “In drinking water applications, which many ballast water treatment systems are adapted from, the process is continuous and targets mainly bacteria in pre-cleaned and well-regulated water. In ballast water treatment, the process is intermittent and involves a lot of standstill with saline water in the reactor. Plus the organisms targeted are hardier and more varied.”

At sea, continuous treatment is not practically feasible. Neither is increasing residence time in the reactor, since ballasting and deballasting have to occur quickly. Adding stronger UV lamps or increasing the lamp number can increase biological efficiency, but only at the expense of energy efficiency. So the team was left with two main reactor parameters that could be adjusted: flow patterns and lamp placement.

Developing the new reactor “One of the things we were looking for was greater mixing, which

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APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 21

Alfa Laval PureBallast 3.0 system

would both increase the effect of the AOT and help to compensate for low UV transmittance,” Alván says, referring to the distance UV light travels in water. “With more fluid mixing, the chance of an organism passing close to the UV lamps – and thereby the biological efficiency – increases.”

“A lot of suppliers leave out CIP as a way to save space and cost,” says Alván. To evaluate the consequences of doing so, the team performed its own tests, allowing PureBallast to run for many cycles without performing CIP. “As it turns out, CIP was even more important than we expected,” Alván says.

Again, the difference between land-based and marine UV treatment was important. As Alván puts it, “Finding an acceptable balance of parameters is easier in a drinking water application, where clear and consistent water provides high UV transmittance. But the varying UV transmittance of ballast water, along with the need to minimize power consumption, makes it a more complex challenge to find an ideal reactor design.”

The reason is the build-up of calcium chlorides and metal ions on the UV lamp sleeves, which occurs not only in PureBallast, but in all UV treatment involving seawater. This build-up degrades the sleeves’ UV transmittance, which greatly lowers the biological effect.

That design was finally found with the help of a unique CFD (computational fluid dynamics) model, which was developed around a wellestablished model for standard UV treatment. In the new model, light sources were introduced into the equation, making it possible to see the UV dose for each of 50,000 theoretical particles (organisms) passing through the reactor.

“In our visualizations, we assigned each particle a colour according to the UV dose incurred,” Alván explains. “By optimizing the reactor design for a uniform colour among exiting paths, we could ensure the most even UV dose possible. And that gave us the reactor design with the least possible energy consumption. The end result is startling.”

Taking a hard look at CIP Of course, the reactor was not the only focus of the PureBallast 3.0 development project. Another component re-evaluated was PureBallast’s CIP (Cleaning-In-Place) unit, which cleans the UV lamp sleeves between treatments by circulating a non-toxic, low-pH fluid. In this case, however, the unit was left unchanged.

“We saw clear value in performing CIP to retain full equipment performance after ballasting or deballasting,” Alván says. “Mechanical wipers remove calcium chlorides but not metal ions, and both wipers and manual cleaning will eventually cause performance-reducing scratches on the quartz glass. CIP is the most gentle and effective means available to keep performance at type-approved levels.”

The finished system – a small wonder The completed PureBallast 3.0 system, while based on the same treatment technology as its predecessors, is a remarkable leap forward in terms of its compactness, energy efficiency and flexibility. Most striking at a first glance is its size.

Where previous PureBallast reactors handled 250 m3/h each, individual PureBallast 3.0 reactors can handle either 300 m3/h or 1000 m3/h.

Using the larger reactor, which is not much bigger than the original 250 m3/h version, the footprint of a 1000 m3/h system is literally cut in half. The bigger the system, the bigger the space savings.

“Needless to say, the new reactor capacities greatly reduce the footprint of larger systems,” says Per Warg. “With one reactor doing the same job that four did before, PureBallast 3.0 is competitive across the

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Alfa Laval

1

1. PureBallast 3.0 300 system 2. PureBallast 3.0 1000 reactor 3. PureBallast 3.0 1000 system

2

3

entire flow range up to 6000 m3/h.”

Energy savings of 30-60% The size, however, is not the only thing that makes PureBallast 3.0 competitive. The new system is also as energy efficient as it is compact.

“The new 1000 m3/h reactors consume just 100 kW at full power, which is a minimum energy savings of 30% over previous versions,” Warg says. “And when full power isn’t needed, the energy savings can be as much as 60%.”

Warg is referring to the new dimming function in PureBallast 3.0, which lowers the system’s power consumption in clearer waters with good UV transmittance. In such conditions, less energy is needed to neutralize the organisms present. “PureBallast 3.0 has a dimming capacity of 50% and handles the dimming process automatically,” says Warg. “The system will operate with some level of dimming in the majority of circumstances, providing up to 60% energy savings over previous versions in fully dimmed mode.”

Installation flexibility and economy For shipyards, the most appealing aspect of PureBallast 3.0 will not be its energy-efficient operation, but rather its high degree of flexibility and ease of installation – even when it comes to the highest flow rates.

With the new reactor capacities, only one reactor will be needed per 1000 m3/h, which makes designing a system considerably simpler.

“When individual reactors can handle a greater amount of ballast water, there are fewer reactors and lamp drive cabinets to install,” says Warg. “That means not only less installation time, but also easier and more economical installation, since it does away with a considerable amount of pipework.”

When it comes to the lamp drive cabinets, there is an additional bit of flexibility. Whereas reactors and cabinets were attached in previous versions of PureBallast, the cabinets can now be placed anywhere up to 150 m away. “The free placement of lamp drive cabinets within 150 metres simplifies the design of EX systems, since the power supply is easy to place outside the hazardous zone,” says Warg. “But it’s of benefit to everyone, since it can save space in the engine room where it’s needed most.”

Leadership redefined Warg and Alván are visibly proud of the new PureBallast 3.0, and certainly not without reason. Its capabilities and features place the new system firmly at the cutting edge of ballast water treatment.

“Alfa Laval has always been at the forefront of ballast water treatment, but PureBallast 3.0 truly redefines that leadership,” says Warg.

“We’re looking not just at a new generation of the system, but rather at a whole new standard that lives up to the tougher demands raised by today’s customers.” His colleague Alván agrees, concluding, “Where size, economy and energy efficiency are important, I’ve no doubt that customers will find what they’re looking for in PureBallast 3.0.”

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Alfa Laval gas combustion unit for LNG carriers gives owners economical alternative

With rising fuel costs, environmental regulations and the continuing shortage of qualified seagoing engineers to operate marine steam turbines, diesel propulsion continues to gain ground as a sound economical alternative to traditional steam propulsion for liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers. Alfa Laval’s recent acquisition of gas combustion technology provides owners of LNG carriers using dual-fuel diesel electric (DFDE) engines or low-speed diesel (LSD) engines with a compact gas combustion unit (GCU) that has lower installation costs and operating expenditures than comparable units. Moreover, the Alfa Laval GCU comes backed by the company’s global sales and service network.

The growing global demand for LNG has increased the demand for new LNG carriers. While LNG carriers have recently been touted as the global shipping industry’s most profitable sector, LNG shipping companies continue to look for ways to lower costs as a measure to ensure long-term profitability. While steam propulsion has been the mainstay on LNG carriers for decades, rising fuel costs, environmental regulations and the continuing shortage of qualified seagoing engineers are forcing LNG ship owners to re-evaluate critical systems onboard.

As more countries look to LNG for power generation and production needs, LNG shipping companies must determine how best to build new LNG carriers or retrofit existing vessels to ensure long-term profitability. The selection of DFDE or LSD engines as economical green alternatives to the traditional steam propulsion systems onboard is one example of fuel-saving and environmental conservation efforts undertaken by LNG ship owners. This use of these engines provides additional means with which to regulate LNG cargo tank pressure. In some cases, this is accomplished by re-liquefaction but, in most cases, gas combustion units have been introduced to burn excess boil-off gas safely.

According to industry estimates, approxi-

mately 85% of all LNG carriers using either twoor four-stroke dual fuel engines today have some type of combustion chamber to regulate the pressure in the cargo tanks by burning excess boil-off gas from the cargo tanks under safe and controlled conditions. With its recent acquisition of gas combustion technology from Snecma, part of the Safran Group, Alfa Laval is well positioned to meet the future needs of LNG carriers. The Alfa Laval GCU offers LNG ship owners a smart way to lower total cost of ownership further.

“The Alfa Laval GCU is not, by any means, new technology,” admits René Fich Jespersen, Alfa Laval’s General Manager, New Boiler & Global Sales Support, Marine & Diesel Division. “The big news here is that LNG ship owners can rely on Alfa Laval as a well-known partner who is focusing on providing what is essential for the marine industry to succeed in this competitive business environment and who has the infrastructure in place to ensure the delivery of the service and support required.”

By extending the company’s broad portfolio of products and solutions for the marine industry with the Alfa Laval GCU, Alfa Laval now offers a comprehensive LNG carrier product range, which includes Aalborg marine boiler systems with dual-fuel burners, waste heat recovery systems, inert gas generators and heat exchangers that are widely used by the LNG industry.

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By extending the company’s broad portfolio of products and solutions for the marine industry with the Alfa Laval GCU, Alfa Laval now offers a comprehensive LNG carrier product range, which includes Aalborg marine boiler systems with dual-fuel burners, waste heat recovery systems, inert gas generators and heat exchangers that are widely used by the LNG industry.

Alfa Laval The beauty of the Alfa Laval GCU is that it is by far a simpler and more reliable system than the other gas combustion units out there. It is easier for shipyards to install.

Simple, streamlined design for 100% natural BOG disposal Why consider the Alfa Laval GCU over comparable gas combustion units? Jespersen says that the unit has the simplest design overall with fewer parts than comparable systems, straightforward operation, compact design, no pilot fuel and the smallest footprint in the business, all of which translates into cost-effective installation and operation.

“Only the burner, combustion chamber and monitoring sensors are in the stack of the Alfa Laval GCU,” says Jespersen. “The design philosophy behind the Alfa Laval GCU essentially shares the same approach as that of our heat exchangers, separators and other equipment and solutions; in other words, we always put great effort into making designs simpler, more reliable, more economical and more efficient.”

Available in four standard sizes, Alfa Laval GCU handles capacities of 3, 4.5, 6 and 9 t/h methane using either single or dual combustion chambers. In addition, the Alfa GCU is approved by major classification societies, including American Bureau of Shipping, Bureau Veritas, Det Norske Veritas and Lloyd’s Register.

Lowest OPEX According to Jespersen, the Alfa Laval GCU provides the LNG industry with the lowest possible operating expenditures for gas combustion technology. When asked how this is possible, he points to these facts: No oil is needed for ignition of the flame; the reduced parts count and smaller footprint; and, no perforated dome, refractory lining or expansion joints required.

“The beauty of the Alfa Laval GCU is that it is by far a simpler and more reliable system than the other gas combustion units out there,” says Jespersen. “It is easier for shipyards to install, allowing great flexibility to arrange the unit in the vessel, and it’s easier for the crew to operate and maintain as well.”

Fewer parts translate into reduced installation and maintenance costs.

Unlike other gas combustion units, the Alfa Laval gas combustion unit has low-noise fans that serve a dual purpose – both as combustion air fans as well as dilution air fans for exhaust gas. This effectively does away with the need for separate combustion air fans and dilution air fans along with the associated ductwork, cabling and silencers.

Operating costs are reduced because the Alfa Laval GCU uses an electrical ignition device that enables fast start-up. This eliminates the

Only the burner, combustion chamber and monitoring sensors are in the stack of the Alfa Laval GCU

requirement for a marine diesel oil (MDO) or distillate marine fuel (DMA) system with the requisite tank, pilot and oil lines. The selfpurging burner is another example of smart design that reduces maintenance costs because it has no rotating parts. It also promotes safety due to its ability to handle combustion under conditions with high excess air and/or high inert gas content.

Without the additional fans and oil system required for other GCUs, the overall space requirement of the all-stainless-steel combustion chamber for the Alfa Laval GCU is much smaller than that required for other GCUs. Available immediately All this good news begs the question: Why then aren’t all LNG ship owners with DFDE or LSD engines installing Alfa Laval GCUs onboard? Jespersen is candid in his assessment.

“We often see that new technology has a very slow adoption rate in our industry, which makes sense because safety is the number one concern. However, new technology should not be confused with ‘unsafe’,” Jespersen states. “Using electronic ignitors on gas burners is often questioned, but Alfa Laval has been using these on our traditional gas burners for years – and these have a proven safety record. We see the same holding true for combustion and the GCU.” “Despite using a principle which differs from the traditional burners used on our boilers, for instance, the flame is maintained across variable loads,” he adds. “Ship owners sometimes forget that the objective of the combustion on a GCU differs from that of a boiler.”

It is Jespersen’s belief that ship owners, operators and yards will benefit immediately from Alfa Laval’s acquisition of the LNG carrier gas combustion unit because they can now take full advantage of the company’s global sales and service network.

“The Alfa Laval GCU is a beautiful product as it is,” remarks Jespersen. “It is high on reliability, simplicity and safety, yet low on installation, operation and maintenance costs,” he adds.

The Alfa Laval GCU is available for sale immediately from Alfa Laval, either on its own, together with inert gas generators or boilers, or as part of a turnkey solution with a broad range of Alfa Laval marine equipment.

www.nafsgreen.gr - COVER STORY

Pure products and energy advantages aboard Norwegian Breakaway

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Alfa Laval Pauli Kujala

, Business Manager, Oily waste, Alfa Laval Marine & Diesel In April 2013, the first of two remarkable cruise ships will be delivered to Norwegian Cruise Line from Meyer Werft in Germany. The vessels are notable not only for their size, but also for the fact that Alfa Laval’s new PureDry heads up an extensive range of environmental and energy-efficient equipment on board.

With New York as its home port, Norwegian Breakaway will be the first of Norwegian’s new Breakaway Class vessels. Together with its sister ship Norwegian Getaway, slated for delivery in January 2014, Norwegian Breakaway will combine all the best from Norwegian’s existing ships with breathtaking architecture and new dining and entertainment concepts, as well as innovative technologies.

An unprecedented number of those technologies, including the PureDry waste fuel recovery system, have been delivered by Alfa Laval. Together, they constitute the broadest order Norwegian has ever placed with a single marine equipment supplier.

A record-breaking cruise ship Norwegian Breakaway has drawn the attention of both cruise operators and the marine industry at large ever since its first steel was cut at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. Able to house 4000 passengers in 2014 staterooms and suites, the vessel is 324 m long and 146,600 GT in size. This makes it the largest cruise ship ever built in Germany.

The vessel will also be the largest cruise ship to sail from New York City, where it will depart from the New York Passenger Ship Terminal in Manhattan. Following inaugural celebrations upon its arrival in New York, it will begin an itinerary of seven-day cruises, bound either for Bermuda or for Florida and the Bahamas depending on the time of year.

A groundbreaking installation – Alfa Laval’s PureDry Norwegian Breakaway will lead in areas other than size, however. For example, it will be the first cruise ship to take advantage of the new MARPOL rule MEPC.1/Circ.642. Under the new legislation, it is permitted to recover and re-use the HFO fraction of waste oil as fuel for the diesel engines.

“We’re using Alfa Laval’s new waste oil separator, PureDry, which we have high hopes for,” says Christer Karlsson, Vice President of Newbuilding for Norwegian Cruise Line. “Instead of burning or land-

ing our sludge, we can take care of it in a much better way and even put some of it back in the fuel tanks.”

PureDry makes this possible through an unconventional approach to highspeed separation. Although technically a centrifugal disc-stack separator, Pure Dry has only two moving parts: the outer bowl and a separator insert, which rotate at slightly different speeds. There is no bowl aperture or sensitive hydraulic system to facilitate discharge. Instead, a patented, spiral-shaped device called the XCavator transports the separated solids to the base of the machine, where they exit into a container below.

A win for Norwegian as well as the environment As its name suggests, PureDry requires no process water and leaves only non-pumpable ‘super-dry’ solids that can be landed as dry waste.

Waste oil volumes are thus reduced by 99%, leaving around 5-15 kg per day of solids for disposal. The separated water, now with an oil content of less than 1000 ppm, is pumped to the bilge water tank as part of an integrated waste oil and bilge water handling system.

But the more interesting fraction from a ship operator perspective is the HFO recovered in the process, which can represent up to 2% of a vessel’s total fuel consumption. “The environmental savings is combined with a financial savings,” says Karlsson. “We expect PureDry to save us EUR 100,000 in Norwegian Breakaway’s first year. So even if we’re the first cruise operator to implement PureDry, Norwegian didn’t hesitate.”

Stig Björklund, Norwegian Team Leader Hull and Machinery, concurs.

“It was very easy for us to get PureDry through the decision process.

It’s a huge gain if you can get so much fuel back, and recovering fuel is a very important driver.”

Designing with PureDry in mind In order for waste oil recovery to work, the traditional single waste oil tank has to be divided into one tank for fuel oil and one tank for lube oil. On Norwegian Breakaway, this was done in the design stage in anticipation that PureDry would be available.

“We came to the shipyard with the intent of purchasing PureDry, and with separate lines for lube and waste oil sludge in our specification,”

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Alfa Laval

Pure Dry

Pure Bilge says Björklund. “I knew that PureDry existed, because I have former colleagues on the Silja Symphony, where the there is a test installation installed.”

“In fact we conducted a visit aboard the Silja Symphony, where we saw the PureDry test unit in operation,” adds Karlsson. “And of course we talked to the guys on board, who are people you can really trust.

They said that it worked really well, and we could see that with our own eyes. We could actually see the high rate of oil return.”

Karlsson continues, “The two-line waste oil system was incorporated into Norwegian Breakaway at the design stage because we were so confident that we wanted to get this product in.”

Two sides to the coin: environment and energy efficiency In some ways, PureDry is representative of the entire range of Alfa Laval products comprised in Norwegian’s order for Norwegian Breakaway. Like PureDry, the order provides environmental protection and energy efficiency in equal measure.

“Our target at Norwegian is of course zero pollution, as far as we can possibly reach it,” says Karlsson. “Obviously we still need to run the engine, but that’s the only significant source of environmental impact.

We land our ash, we work with the most environmentally friendly oils possible and we have environmental officers on board. And we also employ waste heat recovery systems. There’s a greener thinking all over today.”

As for energy efficiency, this is an area Karlsson sees as growing in importance. “Up to now, energy use has been part of our overall environmental policy,” he says. “But with coming regulations such as the Energy Efficiency Design Index, it’s becoming a clearer component.”

With the equipment Norwegian Breakaway has on board, it will clear EEDI demands by a very substantial margin.

Pure products on board In addition to PureDry, the environmental scope of the Alfa Laval delivery includes PureBilge, which was the first bilge water treatment system to pass the new, more stringent DNV 5 ppm type approval process. Providing cleaning performance in real-life conditions of 0-5 ppm oil content without chemicals, adsorption filters or membranes, PureBilge will be used in conjunction with PureDry as part of Norwegian Breakaway’s integrated waste oil and bilge water handling

system.

Also aboard Norwegian Breakaway will be PureBallast, Alfa Laval’s chemical-free ballast water treatment system. “This is the first of our newbuilds to have PureBallast on board and the first purpose-built ship with ballast water treatment in our fleet,” says Karlsson, who stresses the importance of a trusted supplier in this new application. “We looked at several ballast water treatment systems, but our thinking was that Alfa Laval is there after delivery as well. That’s important to us. If there are any issues, we know they’ll be sorted out.”

Energy savings vessel-wide As for energy efficiency, the new possibility of recovering fuel oil puts PureDry in the spotlight. But the Alfa Laval delivery comprises other tried-and-true products that also contribute to Norwegian Breakaway’s energy profile.

Among these are high-speed separators with Alcap technology, as well as two Aalborg OM-TCi boilers, whose optimized thermal design ensures lower fuel consumption and a total efficiency of 89-92% depending on boiler load conditions. After Norwegian Breakaway’s main engines, four Aalborg XW waste heat recovery boilers will recover heat energy for use in steam production.

Waste heat will also be involved in the generation of fresh water, which is a critical application for any cruise ship. Norwegian Breakaway will employ the Alfa Laval Multi-Effect Plate (MEP) evaporator, whose patented plate design and thin-film process yields both high distillate purity and high thermal efficiency. Typical electrical energy consumption for the MEP evaporator lies between 1.3 and 3.0 kWh/m3, thanks to an optimized pump configuration and the application of a frequency-controlled motor on the sea water pump.

Björklund is also keen to emphasize the maintenance aspects of the MEP evaporator, which only needs to be cleaned once per year with the help of non-toxic agents. “We’ve discussed freshwater generation a lot with Marine Operations and are convinced that the maintenance cost will be lower, just like the energy consumption,” he says.

No doubts about Alfa Laval capabilities Given that Alfa Laval’s delivery to Norwegian Breakaway involves so much equipment and so many key applications, one might expect a

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APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 27

Alfa Laval degree of anxiety on the part of Norwegian Cruise Line. “This is quite a big order, and to my knowledge we haven’t placed an order this big with a single supplier before,” Karlsson admits. Asked if he feels concerned entrusting so much to a single supplier, however, he answers that he feels confident.

Aalborg XW

Thermal fluid systems

“All of these products were on the makers list and proposed to us by the shipyard,” Karlsson explains.

“We had no hesitations. Alfa Laval is not exactly a backyard company, and we have previous experience of their high-speed separators and Aalborg boilers. This is a long-term business relationship.”

Speaking from the standpoint of technical integration, Björklund can only agree. “We have very good experience of working with Alfa Laval from a technical perspective,” he says. “In the equipment we discuss with the yard and eventually choose, we always aim for the highest quality. And Alfa Laval is a very well-known maker.”

MEP S Separator

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Alfa Laval Eliminator The Win-Win value proposition

Total Cost of Ownership for end-­‐user (NPV* in k€) 200

-­‐ 46 %

150

Value-­‐Added for OEM (NPV* in k€) 15

+ 72 % 10

100 5

50 0

Cartridge

Eliminator

0

Cartridge

Eliminator

* Net Present Value Example on a 2500 hp mining engine after 60 000 hours of operation 66% market-share on cartridge after-sales has been considered

Alfa Laval is committed to offer value to all parties involved in the development, sales, maintenance and operation of diesel and gas engines, thus contributing to a sustainable path forward for the development of our business, together.

The Eliminator filter is a prime example of this philosophy combining state of the art technology with a tailored made offering for all partners of the supply-chain.

Lower total cost of ownership The Eliminator filter combines self-cleaning filtration with advanced centrifuge technology. The filter manages the full back-flush flow to improve cleaning efficiency and increase oil drain interval. You won’t need to inventory cartridge filters or dispose them which means reduced costs and eliminated liability associated with spilled oil.

The facts • Improved oil cleanliness • No cartridge change or disposal • More than double oil drain interval • Reduced down-time • Sealed oil system

Add value to your engine Developed in co-operation with the leading Original Equipment Manufacturers, the Eliminator technology offers a significant plus to the value-proposition, creating differentiation when selecting your engine. The Eliminator filter can be easily configured to be installed on your engine, with little to no modifications. Lightweight and compact, it easily adapts to your specifications and requires no external power source.

A light maintenance is done at engine overhaul and the use of genuine spare parts ensures full protection of your engine throughout its life-time.

The facts • Easy integration on your engine • No external power source • Increase differentiation • Secure the use of genuine spares • Aligned maintenance schedule with engine overhaul

Alfa Laval automatic filters

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APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 29

Innovations

Alfa Laval offers a complete range of automatic fuel and lube oil filters for trunk piston and cross head engines in the size from 500–100,000 kW.

Automatic filter with integrated centrifuge

Customized solutions. In addition to the standard products range Alfa Laval offers customized solutions, with an interface and housing designed to meet the specific demands of the engine manufacturer.

Working Principle of the Alfa Laval Eliminator Design The Alfa Laval “Eliminator” filter consists of: Full Flow automatic filter • The filter housing.

• The filtering unit and distributor.

The automatic filter is very modular in • The hydraulic motor. design. It is made of stackable, robust • The centrifuge. aluminum, die-casted triple mesh filter

Combination of filter and centrifuge

Centrifuge

The Alfa Laval Eliminator configuration where the back-flush flow is directly treated by the centrifuge has proven to show superior capability in maintaining elements providing very high filtration The first chamber, where harmful the concentration of contaminant at a efficiency and the durable forparticles the life are of the The rotor contains an Alfa Laval disc stopped before they can find their way to the engine, is low level in the lube circuit and a more engine.

Figure 16.

Full-flow filtering element. enhances the performance called the full-flow chamber. The particles trapped in the stack which robust behavior in case of an abnormal of the centrifuge between 6-8 times A distributor directs continuously the oil full-flow chamber are driven to the solid bowl centrifuge elevated amount of pollution entering by backflushing, where the particles, compared to a similar centrifuge with through theallfilter elementseven as the wellsmallest as Backflushed oilthe circuit (cf. publication in Diesel & Gas ones, are trapped on thedirects centrifuge wall. Clean oil isof no discs. sequentially a small amount (to the centrifuge) oil to TurbineClean Worldwide - November 2012 Distributor driven backclean from the centrifuge to the oil sump.

The oil backward through one sector the engine Edition).

Particles down to 2 µm and below in size centrifuge is by the circuit oil pressure . Crossatdriven a time of the filter stack, efficiently are retained on the rotor wall, when the section of the filter is shown in Figure 15.distributor is The full-flow filter and the centrifuge can removing any debris.

The relative density of the particles to that be installed in combination in a shared driven by an hydraulic motor using the of the oil allows. A paper insert allows The filteringoilunit contains disc-type filter elements. housing (as shown below). Depending pressure. for simple removal of the contaminants Assembled together they form a robust disc stack. The on the engine, the Eliminator housing The rate back into flushing oil isbyregulated filtering elements areof divided sections ribs. When collected on the wall of the centrifuge can beUnfiltered adapted for direct engineoil rotor. the centrifuge to independent 3-5% of the filtering Lube Oil assembledby together, they form mounting in place of the existing filters, columns. (LO) flow-rate. or installed separately from the engine Figure 17. Flow distribution through the full-flow filtering element. itself and connected through suitable pipework.

The back-flushed oil containing the debris is directed onto the centrifuge.

The rotor of the centrifuge is simply driven by the oil pressure.

Full-flow chamber

Filtered oil to the engine

Centrifuge chamber

Centrifuge

Unfiltered oil

Hydraulic motor

Contaminants removed in form of a cake from the centrifuge Cleaned oil back to oil sump Distributor

Filtering unit

Figure 15. Automatic lubricating oil filter with centrifuge.

Figure 1. The full-flow filter and the centrifuge can be installed in combination in a shared housing.

14

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Alfa Laval

AQUA - Titanium-plate freshwater generator

The AQUA freshwater generator The AQUA freshwater generator is a major advance based on proven Alfa Laval expertise. AQUA’s optimized process cuts seawater needs in half, which minimizes pipework and allows the installation of smaller seawater pumps. This in turn reduces installation costs, fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. AQUA makes use of 3-in-1 plate technology, which enables desalination in a single plate pack with one type of titanium plate. Since the plate pack also contains the process vacuum, AQUA has no outer shell and is smaller than other freshwater generators. The plate pack slides open for easy access to the interior without an additional service area. The use of corrosion- and erosionresistant titanium, combined with an optimized process that inhibits natural scaling, ensures that AQUA needs little maintenance. The system has been fully tested both on and off shore, and is designed to last the lifetime of the ship.

Application AQUA uses vacuum distillation to convert seawater into high-quality fresh water for domestic and process utilization. By providing a constant supply of low-salinity water and continuously controlling the water quality, it eliminates the need for bunker water.

AQUA is designed for automatic operation in periodically unmanned engine rooms and other automated operations. It is suitable for installation on ships and rigs, as well as in remote onshore locations. Jacket water, steam injection or a Hot Water Loop can all be used as heating media.

Features and benefits • Half the seawater flow.

AQUA requires only half the seawater needed by other freshwater generators, which means smaller seawater pumps can be used.

Optimized distribution prevents dry spots and inhibits the natural scaling process.

• Lower costs and emissions.

The reduction in seawater pumping needs has a corresponding effect on the consumption of electrical energy. Less fuel has to be burned, which reduces both operating costs and CO2 emissions.

• 3-in-1 plate technology.

AQUA incorporates the evaporation, separation and condensation processes into a single type of titanium plate. Desalination is handled within a single plate pack that also contains the process vacuum. No outer shell is necessary.

• Simple, compact installation.

With no outer shell and no additional service area, AQUA has a minimal weight and footprint. Assembly can be handled on site and installation is simplified by the ability to use smaller seawater pumps and pipes. Since AQUA is not sensitive to roll and pitch, it can also be installed in any direction.

• Easy operation and maintenance.

AQUA offers start-and-forget operation, which saves time for the crew. Maintenance intervals are long and the plate pack slides open for easy access to the interior.

• Proven technology.

AQUA has been thoroughly tested in full scale, both in Alfa Laval’s thermal laboratory and onboard vessels at sea. Roll and pitch tests have been performed to ensure that AQUA can be installed in any direction.

• Long product lifetime.

High-grade materials that resist corrosion and erosion, including titanium for the plates and other wetted parts, ensure that AQUA will last as long as the ship.

• Low-salinity water.

The fresh water supplied by AQUA has a lower content of salt and other dissolved solids than that supplied by other freshwater generators. It can be used directly by the steam boilers.

• Continuous quality control.

AQUA’s salinometer-equipped control system continuously monitors the quality of the outgoing fresh water.

Please visit www.alfalaval.com/marine to access the information direct.

Half of the story …

… and the other half

With only half the seawater requirements of other

In reducing seawater use by half, the AQUA freshwater

freshwater generators, the new AQUA from Alfa Laval

generator offers good news for shipyards as well. Half

means savings for ship owners and operators. AQUA’s

the seawater flow means that smaller pipes and pumps

plate technology cuts pumping needs in half – which

can be used – which lowers investment costs and

reduces both energy consumption and CO2 emissions.

simplifies installation in any engine room layout.

AQUA, a better freshwater generator.

Get the full story at www.alfalaval.com/marine

Hilanders EMD00185EN 0809

Freshwater generation – a story of savings

INTERVIEW - www.nafsgreen.gr

32- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

INTERview

Alexia Bogdanos Vice President & CEO, N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau Ltd.

h t r o f t e s e We hav d r a w r o f e to mov

N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau Ltd. established in Piraeus in 1956 is the oldest firm of marine consultants, surveyors, valuers and appraisers in Greece. The company today also acts as agents in the areas of vessel drydockings and underwater ship-repairs globally, as well as eco-friendly marine paints & coatings and other major marine & industrial equipment like the NOV/FGS Group.

Nico Bogdanos established BOGDANOS MARINE in Piraeus in 1956.

Looking back now, were those the good old days?

A.B: When Nico Bogdanos established the company in 1956 he was part of the genesis of the Greek shipping as we know it today.

Looking back through the data we keep in the company we can see how shipping has developed and also observe its cycles. As the industry grew, different needs were appearing and were met accordingly. For example: arbitration, representations of drydocking yards or marine equipment, let alone environmental protection, were nothing like what they are today. We have followed the brilliant cases of how some of today’s established shipping companies developed but also the mistakes of the ones who failed. This insight is in our records and in our minds. Surveying vessels on behalf of Underwriters and representing AHIS for decades gave BOGDANOS MARINE vast experience from a technical aspect and not only. Being able to use this experience today is why “those were the good old days” and it does not mean we look back nostalgically wanting to turn the clock backwards.

find solutions that are Green and Efficient. With our new management we are dedicated to expand our already existing collaborations and we have set out for new ones. During the last year we have extended our agreement with NOV/FGS into the Industrial sector and made new agreements with drydocking yards such as Constanta, in Romania, Naval in Gdynia, Poland, Cosco, C.I.C., Longshan, Haizhou and Nasco in China, as well as the Antwerp-based specialists Hydrex and Ecospeed. As technical experts, which is our core expertise, we are looking for best quality products and services with excellent value for money.

What are the most interesting and challenging parts of your work?

What motivates you and what is the secret of your success?

A.B: Due to internal reasons our company did not evolve as we expected during the latest boom shipping years 2003-2008 and after consideration, changes in management had to be made last year.

Now we have set forth to move forward. We have set ambitious goals and with our competent and enthusiastic new team we are confident we will realize them. Our deep knowledge of the Greek market and our solid foundations are our assets towards our collaborations. We have been told at times by shipping companies that, from their point of view, Agents are not necessary.

But an Agent is necessary for a foreign company that wants to successfully penetrate the highly demanding Greek market. By understanding each party’s point of view, we anticipate, efficiently communicate and meet the needs of our principals’ customers’. This is what we do and why we are compensated.

By offering our expertise on technical matters and by introducing products & services, we find solutions aiming at eco-friendly and efficient sea transports.

The challenge is to achieve the maximum benefit for all parties involved. My motivation is to sustain the reputation of integrity reliability and trust that the company through my father has earned after all these years and pass it on to my son who after obtaining his masters degree from LSE and working in London, recently joined the firm.

Tell us about BOGDANOS MARINE and the diversity of its business activities?

In the early years the office mainly conducted marine surveys. Due to Nico Bogdanos’ integrity and thoroughness the company mostly cooperated with Underwriters and Classification Societies. This eventually led to exclusive collaborations with various drydocking yards worldwide who wanted to penetrate the Greek market through an office with knowledge and credibility.

This also led to collaborations with companies of marine products and thus a new department was created. At this point I have to mention that it was the yards and manufacturers that approached us for these cooperations. The same happened when we were first asked to undertake a new building supervision, which led to our cooperation with an office in Shanghai. Asked to conduct a factory survey, eventually led to our industrial department, which now deals with inland projects. Offering our friendly advice on technical issues for private yachts, led to the yacht maintenance department. I am looking forward to see how the offshore, our new sector, will develop. All this is approached by a team of highly qualified experts, each one a professional in his field.

What is important is to follow every promising lead and explore any opportunity.

How about your growth plans?

A.B: We are living a period where efficiency and Eco-friendliness has to be on the same side and not contradicting each other. We are constantly updated with the recent developments and demands of the marketplace, and

What are the current challenges for the shipping industry?

How to adjust business after the boom years. How to hold on until the market cycle starts lifting up again. How to judge the right time to close the right deal. How to efficiently transport goods while securing environmental safety.

How to comply with regulations and be profitable. How to be more efficient in an already efficient and highly regulated market.

What key messages would you like to deliver to your clients?

We are dedicated to serve the shipping and industrial community 24/7.

We are here to provide solutions & facilitate transactions.

Whether it is regarding a pre-sale survey or a damage report or negotiating a drydocking or introducing GRE pipes or Eco coatings, our concern is our customers’ utmost satisfaction.

We support innovative solutions to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions For more information, please contact: Bureau Veritas Greek Central Office 23, Etolikou Str. - 185 45 PIRAEUS Tel: +30 (210) 40 63 000 Fax: +30 (210) 40 63 063 Email: grc_lpr@gr.bureauveritas.com Visit us on: www.bureauveritas.com - www.veristar.com www.bureauveritas.gr

Move Forward with Confidence

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Seaspan to roll out GL HullManager across entire fleet

Seaspan Ship Management Ltd. (Vancouver) one of the leading container vessel managers, has chosen Germanischer Lloyd’s (GL) GL HullManager system to upgrade its in-house hull integrity management system. The condition based monitoring software will be implemented across Seaspan’s entire fleet of 76 vessels over the next several years.

“We developed our own temporary Hull Structure monitoring system at Seaspan in order to help us understand our needs and to quickly help us manage hull defects until we could assess and decided on our preferred system,” explained Peter Jackson, Director of the Projects and Technology Department at Seaspan Ship Management Ltd. “Three different systems were reviewed and as a result, GL HullManager was selected as the software most closely meeting our needs.”

GL HullManager is a part of GL’s fleet management software portfolio and provides ship owners, managers and operators hull inspection and thickness measurement support. It supports the complete hull integrity process, from inspections to reporting and condition assessments of tanks, cargo holds and coatings, throughout its entire lifecycle by means of crew inspections and thickness measurements.

schemes and GL HullManager enables them to spot potential problems early on, minimise their operational down time, and smooth inspections through improving and standardising their documentation,” commented Dr. Torsten Büssow, Head of GL’s Maritime Software business. Ryan Bishop, GL’s Vice President Business Development for the Americas, also noted “Clients are finding that the system is one that they can easily integrate into their existing maintenance processes, with the added benefit of on- and offshore teams having access to the same data. With the training we can provide from local offices, we are confident that this partnership with Seaspan will see them roll out GL HullManager without a hitch.”

GL HullManager can make information on the condition of hull structures available to any employee across the company once the inspection results have been approved and synchronized. Stored in a lifecycle database, hull condition data for each individual vessel can be traced over time. Sister vessels from the same fleet can be compared easily. A dashboard overview of the entire ship makes it easy to pinpoint any critical findings by crew or third-party inspectors.

The use of a vessel-specific 3D model enables visualization and assessment of the hull’s structural condition. The crew can mark any coating or structural failures on the 3D model, such as marking an individual finding or adding a photo and descriptions, which can then be assessed by superintendents onshore.

Since its introduction onto the market in 2011, GL HullManager has built an impressive user community of some 350 vessels of all kinds worldwide. The system was recently upgraded with a mobile client version for use in compartments and upcoming extra features in development include an automatic proposal for the amount of steel to be replaced for a dry dock tender specification, integration of hatch cover tightness measurement results and hot spot marking functionality.

“Owners are looking for ways to optimise their maintenance

Image: Screenshot from the GL HullManager system.

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GL Hellenic Technical Committee Meeting Held in Athens 25

The annual GL Hellenic Technical Committee was held in Athens yesterday. The Committee brings together representatives from the Greek maritime community, to hear and discuss presentations from both GL and external experts. This year, GL’s experts provided the Committee members with an update on the latest market trends and shipbuilding technology and examined some key topics for the future of the industry: LNG as ship fuel, the Ballast Water Convention and a new development from GL – route specific cargo stowage The Committee Chairman Mr Dimitrios Korkodilos, CEO of Andriaki Shipping Co. Ltd., welcomed the participating members and guests and gave the floor to Mr. A. Reisopoulos, Area Manager of Southern Europe and Secretary to the Committee, who introduced the new Chairman, Mr Dimitrios Vastarouchas, Technical Manager and Deputy COO of Danaos Shipping Co.Ltd. Mr. Vastarouchas will succeed Mr. Dimitrios Korkodilos, after 5 years of chairing the Committee.

Mr Reisopoulos thanked Mr. Korkodilos, for his efforts and outstanding contribution as Chairman of the GL Hellenic Technical Committee for the last five years. “Under his leadership many interesting topics were discussed and lively debates took place, which have strengthened the Committee’s reputation as a leading platform for information exchange on technical issues.”

Jan-Olaf Probst, GL’s Global Ship Type Director, showed how GL would soon be able to offer containership operators more flexibility in on-deck container stowage - without compromising safety. Based on long-term statistical data on wave conditions, GL has developed a new class notation for Route Specific Container Stowage RSCS, he said, which is due for release in May. The new scheme accounts for the fact that sea conditions vary from sea region to sea region. The point of reference for both ship and lashing system design has traditionally been the stormy North Atlantic. But in reality, vessels are deployed in many other regions during their lifetime, as well, including much calmer ones.

Benjamin Scholz, GL’s Ship Type Expert for Gas Carriers, discussed the latest developments in LNG as ship fuel. He looked at the many LNG projects ongoing at GL, which examine the technology’s use in vessels, the regulatory and technical requirements for safe bunkering, supply and port operations, and the potential economic and ecological benefits of LNG as ship fuel. Several new designs had received

approval in principle (AiP) from 5 GL recently, he noted, including a 0 13,000 TEU container vessel from IHIMU and a range of smaller container vessels from TECHNOLOG, where GL had issued an extra AiP for an extension to the LNG tank system.

One of the keys to the more widespread use of LNG in shipping is developing a regulatory framework for bunkering in ports, said Mr Schulz. As such GL has been involved in a number of research projects in the area. As part of the Clean North Sea Shipping project, GL performed safety assessments for LNG bunker vessel operation in ports and looked at safe LNG transfer, bunker stations and the compatibility of the involved systems as part of the BunGas R&D project. As well, GL has undertaken a study on behalf of German Ministry of Transport to develop a draft safety guidance for ports.

The Ballast Water Convention, adopted by the IMO in 2004, only requires the ratification of countries representing 4% of global gross tonnage to enter into force, said Evangelos Moschoulis, Plan Approval Engineer (FS Hellas). When that occurs, all trading vessels over 400GT will need to comply with the regulations. This would require intensive and detailed preparation for measures to meet the required Ballast Water Management (BWM) performance standard (“D2”), he noted. In the meantime, however, US regulations have entered into force requiring all ships calling at US ports and intending to discharge ballast water to use an approved ballast water treatment (BWT) system.

Mr Moschoulis looked at some of the BWT systems on the market today and the approval system for the systems. Choosing an appropriate system was not as simple as it might appear he suggested, with the installation, ship type, route, maintenance costs and energy consumption of the system all having to be taken into account. What the future would hold for the Ballast Water Convention and how owners would comply was uncertain, Mr Moschoulis noted. Some 68000 vessels would have to fit a BWT system before the end of the decade, under the current implementation regime, a huge technical and financial challenge. The BWT systems themselves were also largely unproven in practice, he said, leading to a potential gap between the regulations and the technology available for implementation.

100 GL has updated its “Instructions to Surveyors” and the list of survey items for BWMS has been finalised. As well, GL published a model95 booklet on effective ballast water management in 2011. Presently 75 GL reviews BWT documents based on its existing rules and the BWM Convention as amended. GL has also already approved several BWMS from various manufacturers for use in both retrofits and newbuilt vessels, for different ship types.

25 After the presentations and a final discussion session, the lively conversation continued during a dinner reception with participants and 5 members of the press.

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GL Container Ship Forum: From Stowage to Steel and Everything in Between A comprehensive programme awaited the attendees at Germanischer Lloyd’s (GL) latest forum in Hamburg. The Forum looked at a broad spectrum of topics concerning container shipping including: stowage and lashing, the potential for LNG vessels and bunkering, trends in the liner markets, high tensile steel and thick materials for ship building, pilotage and manoeuvring XXL container ships in the Hamburg harbour and the advantages of having an Emergency Response Service.

Some 50 representatives from the container industry met with GL experts at the Container Ship Forum, to hear the presentations and participate in informal discussions. The speakers were introduced

by GL’s Hans-Günther Albers, who also moderated the Forum and the discussion.

Leading off, Marcus Ihms, GL’s Ship Type Expert for Container Vessels, examined some of the new and incoming regulations impacting container shipping. The new Annex 14 to the IMO Code of Safe Practice for Cargo Stowage and Securing (CSS Code) will be important for newbuildings and existing vessels, he said, and applies to ships specifically designed and fitted for the purpose of carrying containers on deck, both containerships and vessels with the GL class notation “equipped for carriage of containers.” The space requirements in the Annex 14 regulations for the Design of Lashing Positions could have an impact on the length of new container vessels, adding up to 2 metres to a typical 14,000 TEU container vessel. GL has developed interpretations of the rules to provide clear guidance to owners, yards and suppliers.

The Ballast Water Convention, adopted by the IMO in 2004, only requires the ratification of countries representing 4% of global gross tonnage to enter into force, said Mr Ihms. When that occurs, all trading vessels over 400GT will need to comply with the regulations. This would require intensive and detailed preparation for measures to meet the required Ballast Water Management (BWM) performance standard (“D2”), he noted. GL’s latest tool to help prepare owners for the changes is the BWM D2 Due Date Calculator, which enables owners to easily calculate the due date of compliance with the D2 treatment standard for any vessel. This is based on the construction date and the size of vessel (measured by ballast water capacity) and covers both vessels in service and newbuildings. The calculation requires only a minimal amount of input and produces a clear illustration of a vessel’s individual timeline for compliance, suitable for fleet records. The calculator is available online on the GL website: http://www.gl-group.com/en/gltools/ GL-Tools.php.

Mathias Galle, GL’s Deputy Chief Surveyor, looked at the experience gained from the extended dry docking (EDD) programme, which has been running since 2010. GL was the first class society to implement EDD in their rules and some 140 vessels were cur-

rently using the service, he said. During the EED period class renewal could be conducted by in water survey, with dry docking shifted to every seven and a half years over the first 15 years of a vessel’s lifecycle.

The shipping industry has faced tough economic times over the last several years, but Jeffrey van der Gugten, from GL’s Global Sales & Business Development team, set out some grounds for guarded optimism in the container sector. Agencies were predicting overall growth of four to six percent he said, but as in the past this would most likely be unevenly distributed. With intra Asian routes looking at stronger growth, while others lagged behind. Ever larger boxships were entering the market, with new tonnage concentrated in the 12000 TEU sector. This was pushing smaller vessels out of the main Europe to Asia trade route, he noted, which led to a “cascade” effect whereby displaced larger tonnage moved into smaller markets and so on down the line. GL prepares a quarterly trend report which provides a compact overview regarding demand & supply as well as prices and charter rates and can be obtained by contacting GL directly.

Jan-Olaf Probst, GL’s Global Ship Type Director, showed how GL would soon be able to offer containership operators more flexibility in on-deck container stowage - without compromising safety. Based on long-term statistical data on wave conditions, GL has developed a new class notation for Route Specific Container Stowage RSCS, he said, which is due for release in May. The new scheme accounts for the fact that sea conditions vary from sea region to sea region.

The RSCS notation will take this into account. On suitable routes, ship operators will be able to place heavier boxes on the upper tiers of deck stacks, more units on outside stacks and even an additional tier of empty containers where the line of sight is not affected. This could result in as much as ten percent more cargo carried on deck, depending on vessel size and route. As part of the route specific container stowage scheme GL offers container lines a tailor-made stowage and loading plan for individual vessels and routes. The new notation requires the use of lashing software.

As container vessels have steadily grown in size, so too has the use of high tensile steel and thick materials. In his presentation, Dr Olaf Doerk, from GL’s consulting subsidiary FutureShip, assessed the effect of the upcoming IACS unified requirements (UR) on GL’s rules in this area. New URs for the application of HT47 steel and the use of extreme thick steel plates will come into force in January 2014. So GL, in cooperation with a steel mill and ship yards, decided to undertake two joint development projects (JDPs), to investigate both the fatigue strength and fracture mechanic properties of HT47 welded joints. The JDPs examined butt welds as well as longitudinal stiffener attachments and block joints. The extensive testing generally confirmed GL’s procedures and rules, but also gave some indications for areas of adjustment.

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DNV -led JIP proves feasible LNG bunkering in Australian ports Attractive payback periods from the additional investments required for LNG fuelled shipping, along with no significant legal restrictions hindering development of LNG bunkering in Australia. This is the conclusion of a Joint Industry Project (JIP) focusing on LNG fuelled tugs and OSVs, managed by DNV with nine partners in Australia.

The use of Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) as a fuel for ships is seen as one of the options to address the future environmental and com-

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mercial challenges in the shipping industry. With proper combinations of bunkering solutions such as tank trucks, permanent tanks and barges in the different ports, efficient LNG bunkering can be established.

The partners of the JIP, Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), BOC Limited (Linde Group), Farstad Shipping Pty. Ltd., Ports Australia, Rolls-Royce Marine AS, SVITZER Australia, Swire Pacific Offshore Operations (Pte) Ltd., Teekay Shipping (Australia) Pty. Ltd., Woodside Energy Ltd. and DNV are optimistic about the future of LNG as maritime fuel in Australia after having screened the possibilities to establish LNG bunkering in ten Australian ports.

This study recommends more technical guidelines and a clearer regulatory framework to be established, along with financial incentives to kick-start the development. When establishing LNG bunkering, the critical business phase is the first 2-4 years of operation when the LNG suppliers rely on a few brave ship owners willing to be industry forerunners. After some years of successful operation a second wave of ships is expected to enter the market, which will reduce suppliers’ uncertainty and reinforce the business case. The JIP focused specifically on the initial phase, and created roadmaps for necessary action for most rapid establishment of LNG bunkering in shortlisted ports. An accelerated approach can open up LNG bunkering in Australia by 2016.

DNV Maritime Country Manager, Tim Holt, states “We have been impressed with the interest and commitment shown by the Australian shipping industry in investigating LNG as a cleaner and locally available marine fuel.” JIP Project Manager Henning Mohn adds, “Increasing LNG production along with new international regulations boost the interest in LNG fuelled shipping; this may actually to some extent switch ships from fuelling with imported fuel to using domestically produced LNG.”

Antwerp Port Authority takes the next step in LNG Bunkering The Antwerp Port Authority has commissioned DNV to develop operational procedures for LNG bunkering in preparation for supporting clean shipping in the region. The port aims to position itself among the leaders in the Hamburg-Le Havre region ahead of stricter emissions controls entering into force in 2015.

As part of its sustainability policy, the Antwerp Port Authority seeks to encourage the use of LNG as a fuel for ships and barges in the region. “We are committed to the highest standards of safety in this venture and anticipate strong growth in LNG with the right infrastructure and the best operational practices,” said Eddy Bruyninckx, CEO of Antwerp Port Authority.

He continues: “Antwerp is acting as ‘lead port’ of the working group LNG under the auspices of the World Ports Climate Initiative. The port authority anticipates increasing use of LNG particularly in the shortsea sector where ships will be operating in IMO Emission Control Areas for much of their voyages, and by 2020, as many as every second new ships might be built to use LNG as fuel.”

DNV’s contribution will involve a hazard assessment of the bulk transport of dangerous goods before and after the introduction of LNG bunkering and the development of operational procedures that guarantee safe bunkering. The risks to be addressed span the port and also the wider community and environment.

“We are taking a multi-disciplined approach to the analysis of the movement and storage of LNG in the region,” says Mohamed Houari, DNV Head of Solutions for Central Europe. “DNV has been at the forefront of LNG vessel design and bunkering, first in Norway, but now increasingly throughout Europe.” DNV also heads the ISO working group commissioned to develop global LNG bunkering standards. In 2012, DNV completed preliminary studies for the Antwerp Port Authority including a market survey, risk analysis and logistics modelling for LNG bunkering. “With this project, LNG bunkering in Europe is now moving from feasibility studies to operational work, and our joint co-operation with the Port of Antwerp will ensure the safe introduction of LNG as bunker fuel,” said Mr Houari.

Author: Per Wiggo Richardsen

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DNV and Statoil cooperate to enhance Arctic competence DNV and Statoil are today launching a competence programme that aims to enhance the two organisations’ knowledge about particular Arctic challenges. “Due to Arctic-specific risks such as remoteness, darkness, ice and low temperatures, it is utterly important to take a stepwise approach in which we learn and improve from the experience gained. Our complementary roles as operator and risk-management expert in challenging environments are the best reason for sharing best practices and enhancing our own expertise,” says Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, COO DNV Norway, Finland and Russia.

The growing interest in the commercial use and exploitation of Arctic resources is driven by the high demand for energy. To be able to meet the particular Arctic challenges with sound knowledge and safe technologies, Statoil and DNV are today launching the Arctic Competence Escalator (ACE) programme. This has been developed to enhance the expertise of our own specialists and to

share and improve solutions for specific Arctic issues.

“We will implement the ACE Programme as a joint effort because we have similar ambitions and backgrounds. We have a long history of successful technology collaboration. Although this is an internal programme, we aim to share our developments with the industry,” says Ørbeck-Nilssen.

“Statoil already has many years of experience of Arctic offshore operations, for example in the Barents Sea and at Newfoundland in Canada. But the Arctic is a highly diverse part of the world and operating in the more challenging areas, with longer distances, lower temperatures and ice-covered waters, may require enhanced knowledge and solutions. I hope the ACE programme will be an important driver in obtaining these. Deep insight matched with respect for the Arctic’s particular conditions will be necessary to manage the risks in this promising but sensitive part of the world,” says Morten Karlsen, head of Statoil’s Arctic Technology Research Programme.

Upgraded LNG containment system for reduced boil-off GTT’s Mark III cargo containment system has been further developed to reduce the boil-off rate from LNG carriers by one third. DNV is the first class society to qualify this new GTT technology called Mark III FLEX. Mark III is GTT’s well-established containment system. This has now been further developed to reduce the boil-off rate from 0.15% to 0.10% of the cargo volume per day.

The common industry practice has been to build LNG carriers with boil-off rates of 0.15% of the cargo volume per day, reflecting the typical need for boil-off gas as fuel on board. The Mark III Flex system has been developed in response to the reduced need for fuel gas due to the improved efficiency and changed operational practice of LNG carriers. For current standard LNG carrier designs with a cargo capacity in the range of 160,000–170,000 m3, the 0.05% reduction in the boil-off rate is equivalent to 85 m3 or 36 tonnes per day.

The improvements have been achieved by increasing the containment’s insulation thickness from 270 mm to 400 mm. This change in thickness affects the design of system elements that penetrate the insulation, such as the lower pump tower support and gas dome.

The modified proportions of the insulation panels have a potential effect on the loading of the secondary barrier. The new system also implements GTT’s modified liquid dome design. GTT has carried out an extensive qualification programme for the new system to ensure that the safety and reliability levels remain equivalent to or

better than those of the conventional Mark III system.

Approval in Principle (AiP) was granted by DNV in June 2011.

In mid-September 2012, the system was given DNV’s General Approval for Ship Application (GASA), which means it is qualified for shipboard use. So far, 27 new vessels with the new Mark III FLEX system have been ordered from Korean yards. Twenty of these will be built to DNV class.

GTT’s other LNG containment system, NO 96, is being developed to meet similar boil-off rate (BOR) requirements, and a similar qualification process by DNV is ongoing Author: Per Wiggo Richardsen

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The Grimaldi Group recognised by General Motors as a 2012 supplier of the year Last 13th March, during the 21st annual awards presentation ce emony which took place at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, the Grimaldi Group has been recognised by General Motors as a 2012 world class automotive Supplier of the Year.

“It has been a great honour for us to have been chosen for the twelfth time as the best supplier by one of our biggest customers” said Emanuele Grimaldi, Managing Director of the Grimaldi Group. “We are pleased to receive this award which is the result of the continuous efforts of our Group to offer high-quality logistics services to General Motors”, concluded Mr. Grimaldi.

The Grimaldi Group is one of the 83 suppliers awarded by GM, having consistently exceeded the expectations of GM thanks to its innovative services, the timely delivery of products, the high quality services and the high creation value. This is the 12th time that

the Neapolitan group receives the GM Supplier of the Year award in the last 13 years.“The Grimaldi Group played an important role in contributing to achieve GM’s excellent results in 2012 with its dedication and commitment to consistently exceed our expectations thanks to its innovative nature, the timely delivery of products, the high quality services and the exceptional creation value,” said Grace Lieblein, GM vice president, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain. “We are very happy to award the Grimaldi Group, which we consider a worldwide supplier”. The Supplier of the Year Award is recognised to less than 1 percent of the nearly 18,500 suppliers to GM worldwide. The winners are awarded for their contribution of innovative technologies, their superior quality, the high quality crisis management and their cost-competitive services. With over 60 years of experience in shipping, the Grimaldi Group is specialised in the operation of rollon/roll-off vessels, car carriers and ferries.

It is a dedicated supplier of integrated logistics services based on maritime transport to the world’s major vehicle manufacturers. With regards to General Motors, the Grimaldi Group provides logistics services for the transport of GM vehicles between North Europe, the Mediterranean, West Africa, North and South America.

Picture: From Left, Mr. Constantino Baldissara, Commercial, Operations & Logistic Director Grimaldi Group & Mr. Daniel F. Akerson, Chairman and CEO, General Motors Co.

ERMA FIRST BWMS was successfully installed on Greek boxship newbuildings

Supreme Rudder Protection

ERMA FIRST ESK Engineering Solutions S.A. has successfully concluded the installation of its Ballast Water Management System “Erma First” in two containerships being built at Zhejiang Ouhua Shipbuilding for Greek owner Evalend Shipping Co. S.A. An agreement for the installations was signed in 2012 with ERMA FIRST being handed the contract against seven competitors. The top quality, greater cost effective BWMS Erma First and double filter system it carries were considered key in the company winning the contract.

Furthermore, Zhejiang Ouhua Shipbuilding conducted inspections at the ERMA FIRST headquarters in Schisto (Greece) in July 2012, deeming completely satisfactory all the necessary tests of the system conducted on Costamare’s boxship “Cosco Guanzhou”.

ERMA FIRST also worked in close collaboration with “Neptun Ship Design” of Germany, a Zhejiang Ouhua Shipbuilding partner, which provided expertise.

ERMA FIRST has also secured contracts for one bulker newbuilding (blt in Japan for Niovis Shipping), two PCTC newbuidlings (blt in S.Korea for Neptune Lines), three OSV newbuildings (blt in India) while the ERMA FIRST BWM system has also been installed on one Greek-controlled M/V and a Turkish Mega Yacht.

Finally, the company has secured deals with two Greek owners to install its system on four more vessels (two bulkers and two containerships).

Ecospeed gives a very thorough and lasting defense against cavitation and corrosion damage for a ship hull’s entire service life.

The coating provides the rudder with an impenetrable protective layer while its flexibility enables absorption of the forces that are produced by cavitation. This prevents the damage normally caused by this phenomenon.

Without proper protection against cavitation and the resulting erosion and corrosion damage, the financial consequences can be severe. With an Ecospeed application no full repaint will be needed during drydocking. Ecospeed is guaranteed for ten years. At the most, minor touch-ups will be required. Planning the maintenance of the vessel’s stern area therefore becomes much easier.

This is illustrated by an amusing anecdote about an incident that occurred in 2012. A shipowner had recently bought a container vessel. When the ship was scheduled to come into drydock, the owner wanted to have Ecospeed applied to the rudder on his vessel and placed an order. When the ship came out of the water, he called us to cancel the order because the coating on the rudder was still in perfect condition. It turned out that the ship had been coated with Ecospeed five years earlier by its previous owner. The lesson here is simple: If the coating is still on there years later, it must be Ecospeed!

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31η Γενική Συνέλευση των Μελών της HELMEPA υποστήριξη του στο εθελοντικό έργο της. Ο Πρόεδρος, ευχαριστώντας τα Μέλη, τόνισε πως πρέπει τα μηνύματα της HELMEPA να φτάσουν σε κάθε Έλληνα και Ελληνίδα για να προστατευθούν οι θάλασσες, ο εθνικός μας πλούτος. Προέτρεψε δε τους παρόντες να βοηθήσουν στις προσπάθειες προσέλκυσης νέων μελών.

Η 31η Τακτική Γενική Συνέλευση των Μελών της ΗELMEPΑ φιλοξενήθηκε από την εταιρεία Μέλος CERES στον Πειραιά, την Πέμπτη, 11 Απριλίου 2013, στον ίδιο χώρο όπου ιδρύθηκε πριν από 31 χρόνια. Στη Συνέλευση, υπό τον Πρόεδρο της HELMEPA, Δρα Ι. Κούστα και με Γραμματείς τους κ.κ. Σ. Δαφέρμο της Avin International S.A. και Σ. Στυλιανό της Andriaki Shipping Co. Ltd, ο Γενικός Διευθυντής της ένωσης κ. Δ.Κ. Μητσάτσος παρουσίασε τα πεπραγμένα του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου κατά το 2012. Η Συνέλευση τα ενέκρινε ομόφωνα όπως και την οικονομική κατάσταση που παρουσίασαν οι Ελεγκτές Moore Stephens ενώ απήλλαξε το Συμβούλιο και τους Ελεγκτές από κάθε διαχειριστική ευθύνη και διέγραψε 4 μέλη λόγω μη καταβολής οφειλομένων εισφορών. Ακόμη, η Συνέλευση αποδεχόμενη πρόταση του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου και σύμφωνα με το Καταστατικό της ένωσης, ανακήρυξε ως Επίτιμα Μέλη της HELMEPA τους κ.κ: • Ευθύμιο Μητρόπουλο, Επίτιμο Γενικό Γραμματέα του Διεθνούς Ναυτιλιακού Οργανισμού - ΙΜΟ. Για την προσφορά του στην πρόληψη της ρύπανσης της θάλασσας από τα πλοία και την προβολή του έργου των παιδιών της Παιδικής HELMEPA. • Καπετάν Παναγιώτη Τσάκο, Ιδρυτικό και Μέλος της πρώτης Εκτελεστικής Επιτροπής και του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου. Για την επί μια 30ετία συνεχή υποστήριξη του στους σκοπούς της HELMEPA. • Νικόλαο Τσαβλίρη, Μέλος των Διοικητικών Συμβουλίων επί 20ετία. Για την ευαισθησία του προς το θαλάσσιο περιβάλλον και τις προσπάθειες του για την προστασία του.

• Joseph Angelo, τέως αξιωματούχο της Αμερικανικής Ακτοφυλακής, επικεφαλής της αντιπροσωπείας των ΗΠΑ στον ΙΜΟ και τώρα Διευθυντή της Intertanko - Μέλος HELMEPA. Για τη μακρόχρονη συνεργασία του με τη HELMEPA και την

Η εκδήλωση έκλεισε με την προβολή βίντεο της Australian Maritime Safety Authority-AMSA, στο οποίο συνέβαλαν η AUSMEPA (Australian Marine Environment Protection Association) και η HELMEPA και το οποίο χρηματοδότησε το Ιδρυτικό Μέλος της HELMEPA κ. Γρ. Χατζηελευθεριάδης και έχει σκοπό να ενημερώσει τα πληρώματα των πλοίων που ταξιδεύουν στην Αυστραλία για την ανάγκη προστασίας των ευαίσθητων εκεί οικοσυστημάτων και την ισχύουσα σχετική νομοθεσία.

Σεμινάρια Ναυτικής Μετεωρολογίας Την Τετάρτη 20 και την Πέμπτη 21 Μαρτίου 2013, η HELMEPA προσέφερε στα μέλη της 2 μονοήμερα, εξειδικευμένα σεμινάρια Ναυτικής Μετεωρολογίας με θέμα “Ανάλυση – Πρόγνωση – Αποφυγή Τροπικών Κυκλώνων”. Τα σεμινάρια παρακολούθησαν με ιδιαίτερο ενδιαφέρον συνολικά 44 άτομα, 40 αξιωματικοί γέφυρας και 4 στελέχη γραφείου από 7 εταιρείες – μέλη. Κατά τη διάρκεια των διαλέξεων αλλά και της πρακτικής άσκησης που ακολούθησε, οι συμμετέχοντες είχαν την ευκαιρία να αποκτήσουν βασικές γνώσεις σχετικά με τη δομή των τροπικών κυκλώνων, να εξοικειωθούν με τις πληροφορίες, την ορολογία και τους συμβολισμούς που χρησιμοποιούνται για την αποτύπωσή τους πάνω σε χάρτες επιφανείας και να εξασκηθούν σε μεθόδους πρόγνωσης της τροχιάς τους. Τις εισηγήσεις πραγματοποίησε ο Δρ. Νίκος Μαζαράκης, Φυσικός – Μετεωρολόγος, συνεχίζοντας την επιτυχημένη συνεργασία με τη HELMEPA που ξεκίνησε τον Ιούνιο του 2011. Τα σεμινάρια φιλοξένησαν στις εγκαταστάσεις τους οι εταιρείες-μέλη Neda Maritime Agency Co. Ltd. και Tsakos Columbia Shipmanagement (“TCM”) S.A. Με την ευκαιρία του αυριανού (23 Μαρτίου) εορτασμού της Παγκόσμιας Ημέρας Μετεωρολογίας, η HELMEPA σημειώνει πως το φετινό μήνυμα που είναι “Παρακολουθούμε τον καιρό για την προστασία της ζωής και της περιουσίας” έχει εφαρμογή και στον χώρο της ναυτιλίας.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

Fast bow thruster operation in Congo and Gabon avoids drydocking Near the end of 2012, an 86-meter research vessel needed the stainless steel belt in one of its thruster tunnels replaced. A Hydrex diver/ technician team therefore flew to Pointe- Noire, Congo to perform the repairs.

The stainless steel belt is installed around the perimeter of a thruster tunnel at the location of the thruster blades. There the impact of the cavitation caused by the movement of the blades is the most severe.

Extra protection against cavitation damage is therefore essential. When the stainless steel belt in the thruster tunnel of the research vessel suffered cracks, the underlying steel was exposed to cavitation. The belt needed to be replaced as soon as possible to prevent the thruster tunnel from getting damaged too severely. The owner of the vessel would have had to take his vessel to drydock if no on-site solution was found.

Repair and maintenance to thrusters without the need for drydock saves time and money. Hydrex provides a worldwide fast-response solution to deal with most thruster problems, including complete overhaul and replacement of blades or seals of all types. The work is done on-site and underwater and can usually be completed within a few days of contact.

Underwater solution proposed by Hydrex A tailor-made open-top cofferdam was designed by the Hydrex technical department. It was constructed in a local workshop in Pointe-Noire under the supervision of Hydrex diver/technicians. At the same time a regular shaped second cofferdam was also built. Cofferdams like these are used to close off the thruster tunnel on both sides. Water can then be drained from the tunnel, creating a dry working place. This allows the team members to descend into the tunnel through the open top.

They can then carry out any necessary welding work in drydock-like

conditions.

This prevented an unscheduled drydock visit for the ship and saved the owner precious time and money.

After the cofferdams had been constructed they were transported to the vessel’s location in Congo. The diver/technician team then started the underwater operation. However, infrastructure and dredging work in the port of Pointe-Noire brought the visibility down to almost zero. The safety of the divers could not be guaranteed. For this reason Hydrex proposed a new location for the operation.

Moving the ship to a sheltered location close by The owner gladly accepted the proposal to move the research vessel to Port Gentil, Gabon. Port Gentil offers safe anchorage for all types of vessels (up to ULCC) on a sand/mud seabed with depths up to 50 meters and more. Thanks to the sheltered environment of the bay the swell is limited. This makes it an excellent location to carry out repair or maintenance work on a ship, barge or rig and this in ideal conditions.

The central location on the African West coast also makes Port Gentil the ideal place for a Hydrex logistic and equipment support base for the entire region. This allows us to mobilize to any other suitable location in West Africa in a very short time frame, making both emergency and scheduled operations possible.

After a short trip the ship arrived in Port Gentil with the Hydrex team and all the equipment on board. A diving station was set up and the diver/technicians started the installation of the cofferdams. Next they emptied all water from the thruster tunnel. They then descended into the tunnel and carried out the repair. The old, damaged, belt was removed and replaced with a new stainless steel belt.

The actual operation was finished in only five days. The team removed the cofferdams and the ship was ready to continue its schedule with its thruster tunnel fully protected against cavitation once more.

Fast underwater stern tube seal replacement with new generation mobdock Hydrex diver/technician team carried out underwater stern tube seal repairs on a 190-meter bulker vessel in Zeebrugge, not far from headquarters in Antwerp. The repair was performed in icy weather conditions.

The vessel was suffering from an oil leak, making a fast repair necessary. Using one of the company’s flexible mobdocks the team was able to carry out the entire operation on-site and underwater, saving time and money for the owners.

Hydrex continues to invest in the research necessary to keep evolving repair techniques and procedures. Over the years the Hydrex R&D department has constantly improved the flexible mobdock (mobile mini drydock) technique to make it possible for Hydrex diver/technicians to

perform permanent repairs on seals, thrusters, rudders and almost any other part of the underwater vessel without going to drydock.

The latest generation of flexible mobdocks allows Hydrex to carry out the replacement of virtually any type of stern tube seals very quickly on-site. These flexible mobdocks are stored at the fast response centers.

Designed specifically to increase speed of service, these centers are equipped with all the latest facilities, lightweight equipment and tools.

This allowed us to mobilize a team together with all the needed equipment to the bulker’s location within the shortest possible time frame.

After the diving team had set up a monitoring station, the operation started with a thorough underwater inspection of the stern tube seal assembly. The divers discovered that the rope guard was missing.

The team then installed the flexible mobdock around the stern tube seal assembly creating a dry underwater environment, a necessity for permanent stern tube seal repairs. Next the team removed the damaged seals one by one and replaced them with new ones.

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Underwater bow thruster removal in Rotterdam using new Hydrex workboats A Hydrex diver/technician team mobilized to Rotterdam last month to remove the bow thruster of a 300-meter container vessel. The unit needed to be overhauled. Hydrex performed the operation underwater using the company’s own workboats based at the Antwerp depot. This made it possible for the owner to keep his vessel out of drydock.

The team mobilized from the Hydrex headquarters in Antwerp after all basic preparations had been made and the needed equipment was loaded onto one of the Hydrex workboats. The Hydrex catamarans are fully equipped as dive support stations with hydraulic cranes, winches, nautical and communication equipment and a dive control room. They can be used for a wide range of operations in Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and France, permitting even more rapid deployment from the Antwerp depot. This increases flexibility of operations and helps to keep costs down for the client.

After they arrived in Rotterdam, the divers installed flexible mobdocks on both sides of the thruster tunnel. Next they emptied all water from the tunnel. This created a dry working area around the bow thruster unit. The team could then detach the bow thruster blades one by one.

The blades were replaced by a blind flange to prevent oil leaking from the thruster and water from ingressing. Next the diver/technicians

removed the flexible mobdocks again, concluding the first part of the operation.

The following step was to secure the gearbox with hoisting equipment.

The team then disconnected the bow thruster unit from the engine room and lowered it onto a cradle. This cradle was designed especially for thruster operations. It can be adjusted to the size of the unit. In this manner the thruster is prevented from tipping over and Hydrex divers can remove the unit in one take.

The bow thruster was then brought onboard the Hydrex workboat, ready to be overhauled. Next the team securely sealed off the engine room by positioning a flange over the space connecting the thruster tunnel to the room. This allows the vessel to sail until the overhauled unit is reinstalled.

With the bow thruster unit on deck the team sailed back to the Hydrex headquarters. From there the unit was transported to the manufacturer to be overhauled.

Performing a job like this on a tight schedule takes a lot of planning.

This can only be done successfully by staff who have familiarity with such operations and the relevant know-how and equipment. Hydrex has a technical department capable of executing all the required planning. Our diver/technicians are trained and qualified to perform the full range of required class-approved repair procedures in even the harshest conditions. Hydrex also has very well-equipped rapid response centers including customized workboats, ready to mobilize directly to the job site. This saved the owner precious time and money.

On-site permanent insert repairs in Belgium, the Netherlands and Cameroon Over the last couple of months Hydrex teams of diver/technicians mobilized to vessels berthed in Zeebrugge (Belgium), Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and Douala (Cameroon) to perform insert repairs on a roro vessel and two tankers. These repairs were carried out according to the Hydrex class approved procedure for the welding of inserts in a vessel’s shell plating while afloat by using an external cofferdam.

A 560 mm crack in the bottom shell plating of a 203-meter roro vessel needed to be repaired during the ship’s stop in Zeebrugge. The Hydrex team therefore carried out a detailed inspection of both the onboard as well as the water side of the shell plating, after which they installed a cofferdam over the affected area.

This allowed them to remove the frames covering the damage and cut away a 610 mm x 320 mm piece of the shell plating around the 560 mm crack. Next they positioned a new insert plate of the same dimensions and secured it with a full penetration weld. An independent tester then carried out ultrasonic testing and the repair was approved by the DNV surveyor who was present during the operation.

In Amsterdam a round insert with a diameter of 300 mm was installed on a 144-meter tanker to stop the leak in one of the ballast tanks of the vessel. After the ship had been declared gas free, the Hydrex diver/

technician team started with a detailed inspection of the damaged area, both underwater and inside the ballast tank. The team then installed a cofferdam over the crack and removed the damaged area.Next the diver/technicians prepared the edges of the hole and installed the new insert with a full penetration weld. This was done under the supervision of an LR surveyor.

Another Hydrex diver/technician team removed the cavitated area on the flat bottom area in the ballast tank of a 228-meter tanker. The operation was carried out during the ship’s stop in Douala, Cameroon.

A temporary doubler plate had been installed over the cavitation. The team therefore performed the underwater part of the inspection after which they installed the cofferdam. The diver/technicians then removed the doubler plate and inspected the onboard side of the cavitation damage. A 1100 mm x 580 mm area was cut away, removing the area that had been damaged the most. After the team installed and welded the new insert plate, they filled up three smaller cavitation spots around the insert. The BV surveyor approved the operation.

These permanent repairs allowed the owners of the vessels to continue their schedule without having to go to drydock.As a result, no further attention to the hull cracks will be needed.

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Fast underwater stern tube seal repairs in U.S.A. and Panama keep ships out of drydock technique to perform permanent underwater seal repairs which previously would have had to be done in drydock.

Galveston, U.S.A. Every Hydrex office has a fast response center equipped with all the latest facilities, lightweight equipment and tools. These centers were designed specifically to increase speed of service. This allowed us to mobilize a team together with all the needed equipment to the general cargo vessel’s location within the shortest possible time frame.

After the diving team had set up a monitoring station, the operation started with a thorough underwater inspection of the stern tube seal assembly. The divers then removed the rope guard.

Recently Hydrex diver/technician teams carried out two underwater stern tube seal repairs. One on a 143-meter general cargo ship in Galveston, Texas, U.S.A., and one on a 292-meter container vessel in Panama. Both vessels were experiencing oil leaks and a fast repair was required by the classification societies.

Using the company’s flexible mobdocks, Hydrex teams were able to perform both operations on-site and underwater. This saved time and money for both owners.

Both stern tube seal repairs were carried out in less than perfect conditions. There was almost no water visibility in Galveston at the time of the repair. This made the diving operations a lot more challenging than expected. In Panama the circumstances were better, but still far from ideal. This did not present any problem to the Hydrex diver/ technicians.

They are trained to be flexible and adapt to constantly changing working conditions. On top of this, our technical department has many years of experience in dealing with all kinds of weather circumstances in locations around the world.

The combination of this theoretical knowledge and the means for a practical execution, allowed Hydrex to perform both stern tube seal repairs in these harsh circumstances. This was done under the strictest safety regulations, to the highest quality standards and without any unnecessary delay.

Hydrex has carried out on-site, underwater repairs and replacements on all types of seals for a number of years now. A dry environment is created underwater, in which the divers can work.

Several major classification societies have also awarded Hydrex certificates that accept the Hydrex revolutionary flexible mobdock

The team then installed the flexible mobdock around the stern tube seal assembly creating a dry underwater environment for the divers to work in drydock-like conditions.

This is a necessity for permanent stern tube seal repairs. After cleaning the entire assembly, the divers disconnected the split ring and brought it to the surface to be cleaned. Next the team removed the three damaged seals one by one and replaced them with new ones.

Panama Oil was leaking from the stern tube seal assembly of a container vessel. Hydrex diver/technicians therefore mobilized to the vessel’s location in Panama, together with all the needed equipment.

The diving team first set up a monitoring station. Next they started the operation with a thorough underwater inspection of the stern tube seal assembly.

The underwater inspection revealed that the rope guard was missing.

Fishing lines tangled around the liner had caused the oil leak. These were removed by the diver/technicians.

The team then installed the flexible mobdock around the assembly.

After cleaning the entire assembly, the divers removed the first seal and replaced it with a new one which was then bonded. This procedure was repeated with the other two damaged seals.

Both operations ended with the conducting of pressure tests with positive results, the removal of the flexible mobdock and the reinstallation of the rope guard.

Off-hire causes a substantial loss of money. The teams therefore worked in shifts to perform the stern tube seal repairs within the shortest possible time frame. This saved both owners the time and money which going to drydock would have entailed.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

54- APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92

Capital Shipmanagement Corporation’s first boxship newbuildings

Alexandros

Evangelos Marinakis

LR classed Alexandros and Aristotelis are the first of five new 5,000 teu super-efficient new ships, all to be delivered from HHI Gunsan by June 2013, that sees Capital expand its operations into the container sector Capital Shipmanagement has marked the delivery of their new containerships, Alexandros (on charter as Hyundai Prestige) and Aristotelis (on charter as Hyundai Premium) delivered at HHI Gunsan, respectively, last month and on Monday this week. It is understood that the order represents the first such series of post-boom super-efficient container ships of this size.

Speaking in Piraeus on Friday at a Capital reception to mark the event, Evangelos Marinakis, CEO of Capital commented: “These are demanding times for all of us. We are doing our upmost to serve as best as possible the needs of our clients for the years to come. With fuel prices high and with our increasing environmental responsibilities we are investing in high performance, truly eco, environmentally-friendly new tonnage.”

Mr Marinakis added: “When contracting for this new series of 5000 teu container ships, we paid special attention to obtaining a design with engines which offer high efficiency throughout the entire load range in order to achieve speed flexibility with the best fuel consumption and a reduced carbon footprint. It’s great to see this new design in the water and safely delivered to our charterers Hyundai Merchant Marine.”

Apostolos Poulovassilis, Lloyd’s Register’s Regional Marine Manager, Europe, Middle East and Africa, said: “Congratulations to Capital and all involved. We have been very proud to be working with HHI and Capital on this new series of LR classed container ships – our technical experts have been providing support every step of the way. This included our specially established design optimisation/verification service which examined many aspects of this high-specification design and how these features interact together holistically in order to meet the required standards of safety, environmental performance and energy efficiency across the whole operational envelope of the ships.”

The ships are equipped with AMP (Alternative Marine Power System), often known as a ‘cold ironing’ system facility, where shore can provide electrical supply while in port with maximum power of 3.2 MW. This is a system where a container vessel can, whilst in port, shut down its generators and ‘plug’ into the shore power. This reduces emissions from the exhausts whilst in port. It is not yet a widely used system but is particularly suitable for container vessels, which traditionally have a high consumption in port in order to run their generators for the reefer containers. In addition to this, each ship’s main engine has advanced automatic surveillance, performance, evaluation and diagnostic systems.

The ships are also fitted with an ‘X’ – twisted full spade rudder. The benefits of using such a rudder is that a twist in the upper and lower part of the rudder blade prevents cavitation and associated erosion problems developing as a consequence of rotational flow aft of the propeller. As well as this, the vessels are designed for one man bridge control and capable of sailing at slow and super slow speeds.

Gerry Ventouris and Apostolos Poulovassilis with entry to class certificate

KONGSBERG offshore vessel simulator for Bibby Ship Management India Bibby Ship Management India Pvt. Ltd has contracted Kongsberg Maritime to deliver a KONGSBERG Offshore Vessel Simulator (KOVS) including an upgrade of the customer’s existing KONGSBERG Dynamic Positioning (DP) simulator in Mumbai. This significant extension to the established Bibby Training Institute Mumbai represents the first KOVS in India and was commissioned to strengthen Bibby’s ability to conduct advanced training courses for Indian seafarers.

The Bibby Training Institute Mumbai has already helped to grow the number of certified Indian DP operators, from 60 when it opened in 2006 to over 1000 today. The new simulator delivery will meet a similar growing demand for trained and certified crew, especially for anchor handling and other specialist operations.

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What remain the same are the type-approved performance and Alfa Laval’s full global backing.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

Almi Tankers continues to evolve efficient Lloyd’s Register Suezmax tanker design with latest LR introduces guidance classed ships to assist with the safer management of asbestos in ships Asbestos remains a problem in shipping. Despite better management and reduced production of asbestos, there remains considerable room for improvement, primarily to reduce the number of deaths. It is still estimated that more than 107,000 people die each year from mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis - the three major asbestos-related diseases – as a result of occupational exposure.

Almi Sun and Almi Explorer have been delivered by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Shipyard, Geoje Island, Korea and have commenced their operational lives These ships are a further development of Almi Horizon delivered back in 2011. A significant development is that the latest deliveries have electronically controlled main engines, each turning a slightly larger propeller and they benefit from pre-swirl stators to further enhance energy efficiency.

Operators, Almi Tankers, based in Greece, said: “We welcome these even more ecofriendly tankers to our fleet. Both Almi Sun and Almi Explorer are designed to meet our responsibility to safeguard the environment. Almi Tankers recognises the need to consistently and continuously improve performance, especially with regards to environmental issues.”

The ships have been verified by LR in accordance with the voluntary energy-efficiency requirements of the IMO’s Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) for new ships. They are equipped with a UV ballast water treatment system and feature an Inventory of Hazardous Materials (IHM) in accordance with LR’s IHM service.

The design complies with IACS’s Common Structural Rules and the ships were constructed in accordance with ShipRight Construction Monitoring procedures, while the accommodation arrangements comply with the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006).

Almi Sun and Almi Explorer were also designed to be built to LR’s Environmental Protection ‘EP’ notation, which recognises their enhanced features and demonstrates the operator’s commitment to, and investment in, environmentally friendly ships. The ships have also been enrolled in LR’s Ship Emergency Response programme.

Almi Tankers has been certified by LR for compliance with the OHSAS 18001, ISO 14001, ISO 9001 standards which recognise companies dedicated to excellence in relation to health and safety, the environment and quality. Almi Tankers also gained recognition according to the Investors in People standard, which demonstrates commitment to growth and to improving business performance through the development and recognition of people on all levels.

“Everyone at Almi Tankers strongly believes that a tanker management company needs to be totally trusted to deliver a reliable service that is safe, environmentally responsible and punctual. This is why Almi Tankers has adopted the value of operational integrity as its guiding principle,” said Captain Panayiotis Drosos, CEO of Almi Tankers.

The report’s author, Robin Townsend, Lloyd’s Register’s Regulatory Affairs Lead Specialist, says: “Far from being a problem of the past, asbestos is still produced in many countries and is still widely used, and it is present in many existing buildings and structures, including ships. Most countries still do not have effective prohibitions and global production is still over 40% of peak values. It is imperative that we see further and substantial improvements in regulatory enforcement and a reduction in asbestos related mortality.”

The guide takes a wider look at asbestos, exploring its history, composition and health effects to underline the vital importance of correct management. It also details asbestos-related regulation and suggests tools that can be used to achieve best practice in asbestos management.

Ships often have an increased risk of asbestos exposure. The use of asbestos in shipbuilding has been unusually high over the years and some of the most dangerous asbestos application methods have been particularly prevalent in ship construction.

A UK study estimated a 61% increased incidence of asbestos related illness in shipyard workers. A similar study in Trieste, Italy, showed that of 153 men who had died of malignant mesothelioma 99 had worked in shipbuilding 19 had been in the navy/ merchant marine and 7 had been dockworkers.

“What is vital is that we continue to guard against the risks that asbestos presents within the maritime industry, and we very much hope this publication will further in this aim,” added Robin.

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L27/38-Powered Anchor Handling Tug SupplyVessels to Operate for BP and Topaz Marine

INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

Martek revolutionises electronic chart updates

Leading manufacturer of maritime electronics and safety systems, Martek Marine, will launch its iECDIS in the coming months with unique built-in GSM mobile connectivity technology. iECDIS provides wireless updates ranging from simple daily Notices to Mariners to the full chart downloads Aft ship view: Topaz Dignity on the slipway just prior to launching, with the Topaz required each month by law. This is the first ECDIS Triumph underway to the right. The 2.8-metre MAN Alpha CP Propellers operate in system which doesn’t rely on time-consuming and AHT nozzles – delivering a bollard pull in excess of 80 tons logistically challenging physical disc updates or expensive VSAT or broadband downloads.

MAN Diesel & Turbo’s medium-speed propulsion packages have gained another foothold in Middle Eastern offshore operations. After successfully completed seatrials, Abu Martek’s chart correction service takes Notices to Dhabi-based Adyard has earlier delivered the ‘Topaz Dignity’ – which is now followed Mariners and applies them to a chart overlay, which by the ‘Topaz Triumph’ AHTS. is automatically downloaded and updated. These Topaz Energy and Marine, a subsidiary of Oman-based Renaissance Services SAOG then appear on the iECDIS within minutes, giving and a regional leader in providing offshore support vessels and engineering services, the navigator the most comprehensive and up-tohas passed yet another milestone in its 35-year history by building two Anchor Handling date information available at all times.

Tug Supply vessels. The two 67-metre, ’80-ton bollard pull’ vessels are ready for anchor handling tug supply services and the transportation of dry and liquid cargo to and from Port State Control (PSC) legislation requires that pipe-laying barges, drilling platforms and production platforms for offshore operations. ships have the most up to date charts on board, as The Topaz Dignity will operate on behalf of BP. well as be able to show how they intend to have the next set of up to date charts. When full chart Propulsion package updates are issued each month, the iECDIS autoThe twin-screw propulsion package for each vessel consists of 8-cylinder, mediumspeed matically downloads and installs these. iECDIS MAN L27/38 engines of 2,720 kW each, horizontal offset reduction gearboxes also time-stamps chart downloads and provides with an CPP servo oil distribution unit, and a 1,500 kW shaft alternator PTO. The proof that the ship has been carrying the latest vergearboxes drive approximately 18-metre intermediate shafting, and 13 metre propeller sion, as well as showing the next date of download tailshafts in oil-lubricated stern tubes. The MAN Alpha CP Propellers are 2,800 mm to show full PSC chart compliance. diameter ducted, turning 198 r/min at MCR. The propeller thrust and pulling power is boosted by Alpha High Thrust nozzles, customised to hull integration with a length/ Martek’s innovative GSM modem update service, diameter ratio (L/D) of 0.6. The Alphatronic 2000 Propulsion Control System is config- filed under UK patent application GB1301714.0, ured with twin control stations on both main bridge, aft bridge and in the engine control will use 2G and 3G connectivity to provide a costroom – including interfaces to joystick and dynamic positioning systems. effective alternative to expensive VSAT data transfer charges and time-consuming manual installaPerformance tion.

Upon completing seatrials for the Topaz Triumph – Topaz Marine, Project Manager, Martek’s ECDIS product specialist Bentley Stewart Smith, expressed his satisfaction with the propulsion system and vessel Strafford-Stephenson explains that an ECDIS sysperformance in general: “Everything fulfilled our expectations. Compared to the tem with a GSM connection is not only a great estimated design speed of 13.5 knots for the vessel, we even achieved a radical choice for shipowners upgrading their ECDIS sysincreased top speed of 15 knots”. Additionally, a bollard pull test verified the vessels’ tem but is also a significant incentive for those still pulling power specification by achieving a test result of 87 tons. using paper charts to adopt ECDIS.

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Σύστημα διαχείρισης ποιότητας στην Κρουαζιέρα Τη θέσπιση και εγκατάσταση Συστήματος Διαχείρισης Ποιότητας και Περιβάλλοντος στην παροχή υπηρεσιών Κρουαζιέρας, ανακοίνωσε ο ΟΛΠ Α.Ε., θεμελιώνοντας έτσι μία ακόμη σχέση εμπιστοσύνης με την αγορά κρουαζιέρας και τις εταιρίες που τη στηρίζουν. Το σύστημα εφαρμογής υποστηρίζεται σύμφωνα με τις απαιτήσεις των διεθνών προτύπων EN ISO 9001:2008 και EN ISO 14001:2004 και έχει ανασκοπηθεί από τους Φορείς Πιστοποίησης LRQA και BV. Η επίτευξη του παραπάνω οράματος βρίσκεται στον πυρήνα της ποιοτικής και περιβαλλοντικής πολιτικής του OΛΠ Α.Ε η οποία διαρθρώνεται πάνω στις ακόλουθες θεμελιώδεις αρχές: • Εφαρμογή όλων των απαιτούμενων νομικών και κανονιστικών απαιτήσεων.

• Να αναγνωρίζει και αξιολογεί τις περιβαλλοντικές πλευρές των δραστηριοτήτων του.

• Ικανοποίηση των απαιτήσεων των πελατών σε ποιότητα, χρόνο και κόστος θεμελιώνοντας σχέσεις εμπιστοσύνης με την εταιρεία και τα στελέχη για την ανάληψη κοινών πρωτοβουλιών με στόχο τη βελτίωση της περιβαλλοντικής επίδοσης των διεργασιών.

• Ευελιξία και προσαρμογή των υπηρεσιών του O.Λ.Π. Α.Ε στις νέες τάσεις με υιοθέτηση συστημάτων και διαδικασιών που περιορίζουν τις αρνητικές περιβαλλοντικές επιπτώσεις. Για την επίτευξη των παραπάνω ο OΛΠ Α.Ε δεσμεύεται: • Να εφαρμόζει και να διατηρεί το Σύστημα Διαχείρισης Ποιότητας & Περιβάλλοντος συμφώνα με τα πρότυπα EN ISO 9001:2008 και ISO 14001:2004.

• Να θεσπίζει και ανασκοπεί τους αντικειμενικούς στόχους Ποιότητας & Περιβάλλοντος με στόχο την συνεχή βελτίωση της Ποιότητας των Παρεχομένων Υπηρεσιών και τη μείωση του περιβαλλοντικού αποτυπώματος της λειτουργίας του.

• Να χρησιμοποιεί, λύσεις, προτάσεις και διαδικασίες οι οποίες να έχουν περιορισμένο περιβαλλοντικό αντίκτυπο στους άμεσα ενδιαφερόμενους και παράλληλα να συμβάλλουν στην επίτευξη του στόχου της αειφόρου επιχειρηματικότητας.

• Να εξασφαλίζει τους απαιτούμενους πόρους για την εκπαίδευση του προσωπικού, ώστε αυτό να διατηρεί τις απαραίτητες γνώσεις και δεξιότητες που θα απαιτούνται από την φύση των δραστηριοτήτων τους.

INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

Λειτουργία επιλιμένιου σιδηροδρομικού σταθμού στο car terminal

Τη λειτουργία και εκμετάλλευση του νέου επιλιμένιου σιδηροδρομικού σταθμού στο car-terminal του ΟΛΠ Α.Ε., συνεξέτασαν σε σύσκεψη η οποία έγινε στα κεντρικά γραφεία του ΟΛΠ Α.Ε. οι διοικήσεις του ΟΛΠ Α.Ε. και ΤΡΑΙΝΟΣΕ Α.Ε. με τις σημαντικότερες εταιρίες μεταφοράς transit αυτοκινήτων. Από τη σύσκεψη προέκυψε το ενδιαφέρον όλων για τη διασύνδεση του εμπορικού λιμένα Πειραιώς (Ν. Ικόνιο) με το εθνικό σιδηροδρομικό δίκτυο και τις δυνατότητες μεταφοράς αυτοκινήτων transit σε όλες τις ευρωπαϊκές χώρες και ιδιαίτερα στις χώρες της βαλκανικής. Για όλα τα θέματα της σύσκεψης (δίκτυα, τροχαίο υλικό, χρονικά όρια μεταφορών, τελωνειακά θέματα, τιμολόγηση κ.α.) αποφασίσθηκε η συγκρότηση Κοινής Επιτροπής (ΟΛΠ, ΤΡΑΙΝΟΣΕ, εταιρείες) η οποία θα αποτυπώσει το σύνολο των λειτουργικών και οικονομικών θεμάτων, καθώς επίσης θα προβάλει στη διεθνή αγορά μεταφοράς αυτοκινήτων τις νέες δυνατότητες του Πειραιά. Όπως έγινε γνωστό από την ΕΡΓΟΣΕ και την ΤΡΑΙΝΟΣΕ, το έργο θα είναι ολοκληρωμένο για την εμπορική του εκμετάλλευση το Σεπτέμβριο 2013. Σύμφωνα με τη Συμφωνία ΟΣΕ-ΟΛΠ (2006) αποκλειστικός διαχειριστής του επιλιμένιου σιδηροδρομικού σταθμού αυτοκινήτων για κάθε εργασία φόρτωσης, αποθήκευσης και μεταφόρτωσης θα είναι οι υπηρεσίες Logistics του ΟΛΠ Α.Ε. Όπως δήλωσε στη σύσκεψη ο κ. Γιώργος Ανωμερίτης: «Μετά την ολοκλήρωση της σιδηροδρομικής γραμμής Θριάσιου-Ν. Ικονίου και την αναμενόμενη λειτουργία του επιλιμένιου σιδηροδρομικού σταθμού εμπορευματοκιβωτίων (85.000 τ.μ., η οποία έχει παραχωρηθεί και ανήκει στον ΟΣΕ), προγραμματίσθηκε και η ολοκλήρωση του επιλιμένιου σταθμού αυτοκινήτων στον χώρο Γ2 του εμπορικού λιμένα, για τον οποίο έχει επίσης υπογραφεί συμφωνία ΟΣΕ/ΟΛΠ Α.Ε. Οι φιλοπεριβαλλοντικές πολιτικές διασύνδεσης πλοίου με τρένο, των δύο δηλαδή μέσων μεταφοράς με ελάχιστη επιβάρυνση του περιβάλλοντος, καθώς και η ταχύτερη και οικονομικότερη μεταφορά αντικειμένων σε τρίτες χώρες είναι ένα θετικό γεγονός για την ανάπτυξη και του λιμένα Πειραιά και της χώρας. Μία σειρά μακροχρόνιων ευρωπαϊκών πολιτικών (ship – rail link, short sea shipping, σιδηροδρομική διαλειτουργικότητα, διευρωπαϊκά δίκτυα) βρίσκουν έστω και με χρονικές υστερήσεις την πλήρη εφαρμογή τους.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

OOCL Berlin named in Korea At a christening ceremony held on Geoje Island in Korea today, OOCL marked the naming of the second 13,208 TEU mega vessel to join its fleet this year.

The m.v. OOCL Berlin was named by Sponsor Mrs. Sachiko Sano and was joined by our Guest of Honor, Ms. Makiko Sano, both from the Yamasa Co., who graced the stage to perform the ceremonies and unveiled the mega vessel in front of the much anticipated spectators.

In welcoming all the guests to the celebration, Mr. C. C. Tung, Chairman of Orient Overseas (International) Limited, thanked everyone who contributed to the success of the vessel and acknowledged the encouraging support by the Yamasa Co. to OOCL. “At a time when the container shipping industry is still facing great challenges in today’s market environment, we are very thankful to Yamasa for their confidence and trust in OOCL’s performance, to be providing the financial support we need to have this magnificent vessel built,” said Mr. Tung.

The mega vessel will be an important part to improving OOCL’s competitive edge as the new generation of ships are designed and built with efficiency objectives in mind to provide better economies of scale and sailing performance at sea.

By embracing innovative designs and the latest green technologies, the OOCL Berlin will also contribute to improving the environment. With a sophisticated hull form design to optimize the ship’s performance and by adopting state-of-the-art engine technologies, these important features contribute to lowering energy consumption levels and achieving the best EEDI (Energy Efficiency Design Index) value to exceed today’s internationally recognized standard.

In many of today’s environmentally conscious supply chains, customers are paying more attention to sustainability and their effects on the

environment. With these new mega vessels joining our fleet, OOCL can provide a greener transportation option to help meet their needs.

In his concluding remarks, Mr. Tung noted: “Our special thanks go to the team at Samsung Heavy Industries for their professionalism, dedication to quality, and partnership to helping us achieve our objectives. We really appreciate our synergies with Yamasa and Samsung, working together to bring OOCL Berlin to life, providing a Vital Link to World Trade.”

OOCL Berlin will be deployed on Loop 4 of the Asia–Europe service.

The port rotation is: Ningbo / Yangshan / Yantian / Singapore / Suez Canal / Le Havre / Southampton / Hamburg / Rotterdam / Suez Canal / Jeddah / Singapore / Yantian and back to Ningbo in a 77-day round trip.

Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed Orient Overseas (International) Ltd. Headquartered in Hong Kong, OOCL is one of the world’s largest integrated international container transportation and logistics companies, with more than 290 offices in 60 countries. Linking Asia, Europe, North America, the Mediterranean, the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East and Australia/New Zealand, the company offers transportation services to all major east/west trading economies of the world. OOCL is one of the leading international carriers serving China, providing a full range of logistics and transportation services throughout the country. It is also an industry leader in the use of information technology and e-commerce to manage the entire cargo process. (http://www. oocl.com/) Photo: (L-R) Mr. C. C. Tung, Chairman of Orient Overseas (International) Limited; Mrs. Sachiko Sano, Sponsor of OOCL Berlin and Director of Yamasa Co.; Ms. Makiko Sano, Guest of Honor and Executive Director of Yamasa Co.; and Captain Lee Kin Hung of the OOCL Berlin.

Tailormade Ballast Water Treatment Solutions Granted IMO Final Approval & Type Approval from Lloyd’s Register of Shipping In DESMI Ocean Guard we combine our experience from both operating marine equipment and our long history of supplying to the shipbuilding industry.

Our expertise is your insurance when selecting the right ballast water treatment system to fulfill your requirements.

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AP TYPE PR OV ED

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

Brand new OOCL Memphis to join fleet on FURUNO accredited anTrans-Pacific service other training centre for specific ECDIS training OOCL is pleased to announce the naming of the OOCL Memphis in Shanghai today, the newest 8,888 TEU vessel to join our fleet for the Super Shuttle Express (SSX) service on the Trans-Pacific trade, connecting Asian and North American markets.

The OOCL Memphis was designed and built with vessel operating efficiency and our customers in mind. By incorporating the latest state-of-the-art technologies, improved sailing performance at sea can be realized to enhance our competitive edge and reduced emission levels can be achieved to help contribute to our customer’s green initiatives in managing more environmentally conscience supply chains.

In his ceremonial address, Mr. Andy Tung, Chief Executive Officer of OOCL, thanked everyone for their support and expressed his gratitude to Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding (Group) Co. for the successful fourth delivery of another efficient vessel. “The OOCL Memphis can not only help lower energy consumption levels but also reduce emissions to improve our environment,” said Mr. Tung. “We look forward to continue working with Hudong-Zhonghua in embracing new technologies and designs that would help support our objectives to boost vessel performance, reduce our impact on the environment, and meeting the needs of our customers.”

Guests also shared a memorable moment as the vessel Sponsor, Mrs. Isabella Anna Schaefer, gave her blessings through her encomium: “I name you the OOCL Memphis. As a Vital Link to world trade, your mission is to promote commerce, peace and understanding. May God bless you, your cargo and all the people who sail with you!”

In our appreciation to our supporters, OOCL had the privilege to share the occasion with our Guest of Honor, Dr. Klaus Schaefer, President of Bayer MaterialScience China and husband to the vessel Sponsor. Bayer MaterialScience has been a long-time business partner with OOCL for well over a decade. At the beginning of our partnership, our liner services started with only about 3 thousand TEU of Bayer shipments and we have now grown to be their number one carrier of choice, handling a significant percentage of cargo for them this year.

Our relationship and synergy grew stronger year after year when we expanded our service offerings through our logistics arm, OOCL Logistics, to Bayer’s operations in Asia. In 2006, OOCL Logistics kicked off the export and re-import business for Bayer and later extended our quality services to other areas such as warehousing, custom clearance, and domestic transportation in China.

“Today, it is our privilege to be working side-by-side with Bayer after they had invited us to be an integral part of their family last year, to manage their China logistics operations with our customized supply chain solutions,” said Mr. Tung. “As we move forward, we hope to share more milestones together and deepen our partnership in the many more years to come.”

OOCL Memphis is the fourth of the eight 8,888 TEU vessels that OOCL has commissioned Hudong-Zhonghua to build. She will be deployed on OOCL’s Trans-Pacific SSX service and her 42-day port rotation begins in Yantian, calling Da Chan Bay, Hong Kong, Kaohsiung, Long Beach, and then completing the loop sailing back to Asia by calling Kaohsiung, Xiamen, Hong Kong and Yantian.

Orient Overseas Container Line (OOCL) Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Stock Exchange listed Orient Overseas (International) Ltd. Headquartered in Hong Kong, OOCL is one of the world’s largest integrated international container transportation and logistics companies, with more than 290 offices in 60 countries. Linking Asia, Europe, North America, the Mediterranean, the Indian sub-continent, the Middle East and Australia/ New Zealand, the company offers transportation services to all major east/west trading economies of the world. OOCL is one of the leading international carriers serving China, providing a full range of logistics and transportation services throughout the country. It is also an industry leader in the use of information technology and e-commerce to manage the entire cargo process.

VERITAS MARITIME TRAINING CENTER in Manila has joined the FURUNO NavSkills network of training centres.

Since December 2012, VERITAS MTC has provided FURUNO type specific ECDIS training to navigators under the FURUNO NavSkills training contract.

Under the NavSkills agreement VERITAS MTC will accommodate a total of six training workstations: Four ECDIS FEA-2107 workstations and two next generation, state-of-the-art FMD-3200 workstations with three training instructors certified by FURUNO to conduct FURUNO type specific ECDIS training.

VERITAS MTC is a part of Epsilon Hellas (Overseas) Ltd. and was established in January 2012. The company is engaged in providing training to Philippine shipboard personnel on seagoing vessels.

More specifically, the training centre is committed to provide quality training programs, facilities, instructors and other necessary resources that will ensure skill advancement of maritime professionals.

Under the NavSkills contract, the training centre is able to provide modern, state-of-the-art training equipment with constantly updated learning content and software to comply with current training standards and regulations. The type specific ECDIS training is provided in accordance with the standard set by FURUNO, which is in compliance with currently known requirements from various flag states and other stakeholders.

The NavSkills training concept ensures that the training course is conducted in the same way, with the same content and duration and using the same teaching methods as employed by FURUNO in FURUNO’s own training centres, FURUNO INS Training Center, in Denmark and Singapore. This way the ship owner can use any accredited NavSkills training centre without having to worry about the quality of the training provided. It is the belief of FURUNO that the best training outcome is derived from classroom training provided by training centres where the trainees have the opportunity of having direct two-way communication with the instructor, who can guide and advise them on the various topics.

With the addition of this new NavSkills training facility, FURUNO is able to provide type specific ECDIS training in Germany, Turkey, Greece, Singapore, India, The Philippines, China and Denmark.

Further, FURUNO is currently working on further expanding the training network by establishing similar co-operations with training centres in the USA, Europe, Africa and Asia.

www.nafsgreen.gr - INDUSTRY NEWS

APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 65

Westgarth joins Seagull board Intertanko Chairman and former Teekay President Marine Services Capt.

Graham Westgarth has joined the board of Seagull AS, the well-known provider of complete training solutions for seafarers.

Capt. Westgarth, who becomes a non-executive Seagull Director, has over 40 years industry experience including 18 years at sea (five years as a Ship’s Master). From 2001 to 2010, he was responsible for Teekay’s 5,000 sea and shore staff and the technical management of 200 vessels, as the company extended beyond its conventional tanker interests to shuttle tankers, FPSOs, FSOs and LNG vessels.

He also oversaw development of Teekay’s industry accredited Competence Management System, working closely with Seagull. The training specialist provided the software platform to administer, track and manage the professional progress of all Teekay seafarers.

Seagull Chairman Oscar Johansen says: “Graham brings with him acknowledged insight into seafarer development and ship management, as well as unrivalled experience in competence management. His track record in seafarer management and training speaks for itself, while his straight-talking common sense, patience and commitment to excellence fit perfectly into Seagull’s ethos of facilitating best practice on all aspects of maritime training.”

Capt. Westgarth says: “My respect for the professionalism of the people working in our industry is immense, especially for those who man

Uni-Safe Electronics Acquired

by Daniamant

On 21st November 2012, Uni-Safe Electronics A/S was acquired by Daniamant. Daniamant is a leader in the global market for the production and sale of survivor location lights including lights for life jackets, life rafts and lifebuoys.

New Salinometer System SL8005

Daniamant Electronics will soon release their latest product within the Salinometer range of products: Salinometer SL8005. The SL8005 will replace the old Salinometers SL6000 and SL6005. A Salinometer is used in areas where fresh water generation or purification is taking place and level of salinity in the fresh water must be monitored as well as in areas where a set level of salinity is requested in a process.

Salinometers are used in Freshwater Generators, Boilers, Reversed Osmosis Fresh Water Systems (RO) and other systems where salinity has to be supervised. The new Salinometer is fitted with a new type of electrode (sensor); a 5-wire auto-referenced electrode with built in temperature-compensation. The new Salinometer SL8005 is currently undergoing Type Approval testing, but will soon be ready for sale.

ships day in day out in challenging conditions. I see joining Seagull as an opportunity to support their mandate of developing human resources, training, and the working environment for those at sea and ashore. Having worked closely with the seafarers behind Seagull for many years, I look forward to contributing to the wider industry’s need for training tools that address everything from how best to pass on seafarer experience to cultivating young talent.”

Capt. Westgarth also commands a reputation for encouraging cooperation between industry and legislative bodies, an attribute that Mr Johansen says is becoming ever more critical as the volume of regulations affecting seafarers increases.

Now in his second elected term as Intertanko Chairman Capt. Westgarth is also appointed director to the ABS Council, and is the Executive Vice President, Operations and Strategy, of GasLog.

BNWAS BW-800 Wheel mark Approved

One of the core products from Daniamant Electronics is the BNWAS BW-800 system. The system is developed to monitor bridge activity and detect operator disability which could lead to accidents. BNWAS BW-800 is now Wheel mark approved having obtained both MED B+D approval. The Wheel mark certificates along with all Type Approvals are available for download on www.unielec.dk. “At this stage, we have successfully delivered more than 3.400 BNWAS systems to all types of vessels” says Marketing Manager Heidi Ø. Larsen.

Secure your vessel and crew Install BNWAS before it’s too late

Now more than ever, focusing on safety on board ships is essential.

Baring in mind the colossal damages collisions and groundings can cause, maintaining a high standard of safety at the bridge is crucial.

The financial consequences to ship owners, due to ship loss or penalties can also be devastating. But with the installation of a BNWAS BW-800 system, the shipowner ensures that the officer on watch is alert and competent to carry out his duties.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

CAPITAL LINK’S 4TH ANNUAL GREEK SHIPPING FORUM DRAWS 950 DELEGATES More than 950 delegates attended Capital Link’s 4th Annual Greek Shipping Forum “Navigating through Challenges & Opportunities” which took place on Wednesday, February 27, 2013 at the Hilton Hotel in Athens, Greece.

Capital Link is organizing on an annual basis Shipping Forums in New York and London, where listed shipping companies, bankers and analysts address the international investment community, while at the Athens Forum the international financial community and market experts address the Greek and international shipping industry.

ORGANIZERS The Forum was organized by Capital Link, a New York based Investor Relations and Financial Communications firm, which amongst other specializes in the shipping sector, working with the majority of shipping companies listed in the European and US Stock Exchanges. The Athens Forum was organized in cooperation with NYSE Euronext and NASDAQ. SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS Traditionally Capital Link cooperates with a number of industry organizations which contribute to the success of the events. This year’s Supporting Organizations included the Association of Banking and Financial Executives of Hellenic Shipping, the Cass Business School, the Greek Shipping Co-operation Committee, the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping, the Hellenic Shipbrokers Associations, the Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association, the International Propeller Club of the United States - Port of Piraeus, the Piraeus Association for Maritime Arbitration, the Piraeus Marine Club and WISTA Hellas.

FORUM OVERVIEW & OBJECTIVE The Forum discussed the latest developments and trends in international trade, dry bulk commodities, and the energy markets-framed against the broader backdrop of the global economy-but also reviewed the various funding alternatives for raising capital among listed and private shipping companies. Experts additionally addressed effective investment strategies and risk management in today’s shipping industry.

Capital Link’s President, Mr. Nicolas Bornozis mentioned that weak shipping markers present significant challenges but also unique opportunities and that access to capital is a critical competitive advantage particularly in today’s market conditions. Capital Link’s Forums aim to raise the profile of shipping to a wider audience while presenting unique informational and networking opportunities.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS H.E. Konstantinos Moussouroulis, Minister of Shipping, Maritime Affairs & the Aegean, made brief remarks during the Luncheon.

Mr. John Platsidakis, Chairman, INTERCARGO was the Keynote Speaker at the Luncheon, and addressed the audience on “Navigating Through Challenges and Opportunities”.

CAPITAL LINK SHIPPING LEADERSHIPAWARD – HONORING CAPTAIN PANAGIOTIS N. TSAKOS This year we initiated the “Capital Link Shipping Leadership Award”, which aims to recognize the patriarchs of Greek Shipping, those pioneers who over a long period of time made a significant contribution to elevating Greek Shipping to its leadership position globally. The Award is presented in the context of the Forum.

The “Capital Link Shipping Leadership Award”, was presented to Captain Panagiotis N. Tsakos, a patriarch in the Greek shipping community, by Professor Costas Grammenos, Pro Vice-Chancellor, City University London, Cass Business School during the luncheon.

TOPICS AND PRESENTATIONS Mr. Nathanael Mauclair, Managing Director, International Listings, NYSE Euronext and Ms. Isabella Schidrich, Senior Managing Director NASDAQ OMX made the Introductory Remarks.

Throughout the day, there were presentations from the following: Mrs. Aline Schuiling, Senior Eurozone Economist, ABN AMRO presented on « Global Economic Outlook».

Professor Elias Karakitsos, Chairman - Global Economic Research (LLC) and Director & Partner - Twintop Consultants presented on « Outlook for the Dry & Wet Shipping Markets & Global Commodities».

Dr. Anil Sharma, Founder, President & CEO - Global Marketing System presented on « Ship Recycling in Today’s Market Conditions».

Mr. Shawn N. Frost, Partner, US Capital Markets - Ernst & Young Greece, presented on «Sustainability as a Competitive Advantage in Shipping» DISCUSSION PANELS A series of panel discussion debated critical industry topics, including: «Shipping & Bank Financing» Moderator: Mr. Jasel Chauhan , Senior Associate, Ship Finance, Holman Fenwick Willan International LLP Panelists: Mr. Dagfinn Lunde, Head of Investment Strategy, Member of the Board of Managing Directors, DVB Bank, Mr. Shreyas Chipalkatty, Director, Citigroup’s Global Shipping Mr. George Arcadis, Country Executive and Chief Representative, Energy, Commodities & Transportation - ABN AMRO «Shipping and the Capital Markets» Moderator: Mr. Steven Hollander, Counsel, Corporate Group - Watson Farley & Williams Panelists: Mr. Nicholas Stillman, Clarkson Investment Services Mr. Philippe Chryssicopoulos, Managing Director, Head of Shipping EMEA, Merrill Lynch Bank of America Securities Mr. Albert Ganyushin, Managing Director, NYSE Euronext Mr. Erik Helberg, Chief Executive Officer – RS Platou Markets AS

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«Restructuring: Opportunities for a New Beginning» Moderator: Mr. Robert G. Burns, Partner, Bracewell & Giuliani Panelists: Mr. Harold Malone, Senior Vice President, Maritime Group - Jefferies & Company, Inc. Mr. Bassam Latif, Senior Vice President - Moelis & Company Mr. Salil Shah, Vice President - Goldman Sachs «Private Equity & Shipping: Closing the Funding Gap & Investing at the Bottom of the Cycle» ?

Moderator: Mr. Emil Yiannopoulos, Partner, Territory Assurance Leader - PwC Greece Panelists: Mr. Adrian R. Dacy, Managing Director, Global Real Assets Group - J.P. Morgan Mr. Hamish Norton, Head of Corporate Development - Oceanbulk Maritime (USA) Inc. Mr. Sean Durkin, President - Northern Fund Management America LLC « Analyst Panel» Moderator: Mr. Nicolas Bornozis, President - Capital Link, Inc. Panelists: Mr. Ben Nolan, Director of Shipping Research, Knight Capital Americas, L.P. Mr. Herman Hildan, Shipping Analyst - RS Platou Markets AS Mr. Michael Webber, Senior Analyst | Vice President, Equity Research Global Shipping, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC GLOBAL SPONSORS • Global Lead Sponsors: ABN AMRO and Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd (TEN) • Global Gold Sponsors: DVB Bank CORPORATE SPONSORS Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Bracewell & Giuliani, Citi, Clarkson Capital Markets ,Credit Suisse, ERNST & YOUNG, GMS, Goldman Sachs, Holman Fenwick Willan International LLP, Jefferies, International Registries, Moelis & Company, PricewaterhouceCoopers, RS Platou Markets, Watson, Farley & Williams, Wells Fargo Securities.

Μιλτιάδης Βαρβιτσιώτης, Βουλευτής Β’ Αθηνών, Νέα Δημοκρατία, Κωνσταντίνος Μουσουρούλης, Υπουργός Ναυτιλίας και Αιγαίου, Νίκος Τσάκος, Πρόεδρος, Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd

Νίκος Μπορνόζης, Πρόεδρος, Capital Link Ltd., Καπετάν Παναγιώτης Τσάκος, Καθηγητής Κώστας Γραμμένος, Αντιπρύτανης του Πανεπιστημίου City στο Λονδίνο, Διευθυντής του Τμήματος Προπτυχιακών Σπουδών της Σχολής Διοίκησης Επιχειρήσεων Cass, Ιδρυτής του Διεθνούς Κέντρου Ναυτιλίας, Εμπορίου και Χρηματοοικονομικών.

SUPPORTING SPONSORS Goldenport Holdings Inc., Hellenic Petroleum MEDIA PARTNERS The Media Partners of the Forum included: BUSINESS FILE economia.gr, Elnavi, IHT -Kathimerini, Maritech News, www.maritimes.gr, NafsGreen, SHIP to SHORE, Shipping International Monthly Review, Tradewinds και Worldoils.

CONFERENCE MATERIAL All conference material is available on Capital Link’s website, at: http://forums.capitallink.com/shipping/2013greece

Πάνελ Shipping and Bank Financing.

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ClassNK Releases New PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) Design Software for Latest Version of IACS Harmonized Rules Leading classification society ClassNK (Chairman and President: Noboru Ueda) has announced the release of a new version of its PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) ship design support software. In addition to a variety of new features, the new version incorporates included in the new second draft of the IACS Harmonized Common Structural Rules, or H-CSR, for bulk carriers and oil tankers released on 1 April 2013.

Initially released in July 2012, ClassNK’s PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) was the world’s first design support software to incorporate the requirements of the new IACS Harmonized Common Structural Rules, and is already used by shipyards and designers in China, Korea, and Japan.

The new version of the software not only incorporates the latest changes and amendments found in the second draft of H-CSR, but also features a number of new and improved functions to help ship designers evaluate and implement the new standards.

The new version includes new features to easily interface with and export HCSR calculations to commercial CAD software, among other features designed to greatly reduce the amount of time necessary to carry out the direct strength calculations of all the vessel’s cargo holds as required by the H-CSR. This latest version also incorporates the FEM Pre- and Post-processer from Altair Engineering’s HyperWorks software, one of the world’s leading Computer Assisted Engineering (CAE) software which is used extensively in the aerospace and automotive industries due to its high-performance meshing functions as well as its solver and construction optimization functions.

This new version of PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) also boasts enhanced modelling functions to simplify the creation of detailed hull construction models, as well as more efficiently carry out rule calculations for not only the central section, but also the bow and aft portions of the vessel. New tools to automatically generate evaluation reports and other improvements to support functions have also been included to improve usability.

Highlighting the importance of the new release, ClassNK Operating Officer Seiichi Gyobu, who has led development of the PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) said: “The new features in this version have been developed based on feedback from many of Asia’s leading shipyards and designers, and we hope these new and improved features will make it possible for ship designers to easily implement and evaluate the new rules, and more efficiently design bulk carriers and oil tankers in accordance with the H-CSR.” “As the revision and development of the H-CSR progresses, we will continue to update and improve PrimeShip-HULL (HCSR) in response to changes in the regulation, as well as the needs of shipyards and designers. The response so far has been impressive, and we are confident that this software will become the industry standard once the H-CSR enter force.”

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ClassNK Acquires Safety Management Systems LLC; Expands Services to U.S. Flag & Inland vessels World leading classification society ClassNK (Chairman and President: Noboru Ueda) has announced that it has completed the acquisition of U.S. safety management consultancy, Safety Management Systems, LLC (SMSLLC). The acquisition marks the first time that ClassNK has acquired another company in its 113-year history, and comes as part of a broader expansion into the U.S. domestic and brown water shipping industries.

Portland, Maine-based SMSLLC is widely considered to be one of the United States’ top safety management consulting firms, most notably having been chosen by the New York Department of Transportation to assist the Staten Island Ferry to develop a world class safety management system following a fatal accident in 2003. Today, SMSLLC clients include a diverse range of U.S. commercial and public operators managing domestic and foreign flagged vessels.

ClassNK Chairman and President Noboru Ueda announced the acquisition during a press conference at the Connecticut Maritime Association’s Shipping 2013 exhibition. “Until now, ClassNK has focused primarily on the certification of safety management systems, but it is the development and implementation of safety management systems where owners face the most challenges and can secure the greatest benefits. With the acquisition of SMSLLC, we can now offer inland, coastal, offshore, and ocean going vessel owners full support throughout the safety management process.”

Bill Mahoney, Director of SMSLLC added: “We’ve worked alongside ClassNK for many years, and we greatly respect each other as leaders in our respective fields. With this new partnership we will be able to combine our expertise and reputation in the U.S. shipping industry with the resources and support of the world’s largest classification society. This is a partnership that will allow us to expand out services, not just for the benefit of our clients, but for the benefit of the entire U.S. maritime sector.”

The acquisition of the SMSLLC follows closely on ClassNK’s recognition by the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and authorization to carry out surveys for U.S. flagged vessels granted in December 2012.

Adding to the backdrop of the acquisition are recent USCG and industry led efforts to bring safety management practices, similar to those found in the International Safety Management (ISM) Code, to America’s inland river or “brown water” shipping sector.

According to industry sources, tugs and barges on the Mississippi and other rivers transport 20% of U.S. coal and 60% of U.S. grain

exports, making the sector an important component of international maritime trade. This point was highlighted by ClassNK Executive Vice President Yasushi Nakamura, who stated: “The brown water industry is not just essential to the maritime industry here in the U.S., it is essential to the world maritime industry. As we classify more than 35% of the world’s bulk carriers, a significant portion of U.S. grain and coal are transported on NK classed vessels, so we know this first hand.”

Mr. Nakamura also noted the benefits of safety management, and its potential to help the industry as it adjusts to new regulations: “Safety management is an important tool that can help owners and operators greatly reduce accidents caused by human error. ClassNK helped develop the ISM Code, and we are the world’s leading provider of ISM certification, and we believe our experience with ISM globally will contribute to the safety of the brown water industry, as well.”

Nevertheless, ClassNK recognized the need to adapt ISM systems used internationally to the specific scope and needs of the brown water industry, which is one reason for the acquisition of SMSLLC. “Working with SMSLLC we can utilize our experience and the expertise of SMSLLC to tailor safety management systems that are specific to the needs of inland and brown water operators. Our shared commitment is to provide high-quality and cost-effective solutions to the industry.”

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Με επιτυχία ολοκληρώθηκε ο φοιτητικός διαγωνισμός “The Negotiations Challenge” Με απόλυτη επιτυχία στέφθηκε ο Παγκόσμιος Φοιτητικός Διαγωνισμός Διαπραγματεύσεων «The Negotiation Challenge» (TNC) ο οποίος διοργανώθηκε από το ALBA Graduate Business School at The American College of Greece στις 5 & 6 Απριλίου 2013, με συμμετέχοντες ομάδες μεταπτυχιακών φοιτητών από επιλεγμένα Business και Law Schools από όλο τον κόσμο. Κατά την διάρκεια 2 άρτια οργανωμένων ημερών, οι καλεσμένοι φοιτητές είχαν την ευκαρία όχι μόνο να διαγωνιστούν αλλά και να πάρουν μια γεύση απο τη ζωή στην Αθήνα, φεύγοντας ενθουσιασμένοι, με αξέχαστες εμπειρίες και αναμνήσεις να τους συνοδεύουν. Το διαγωνιστικό επίπεδο ήταν υψηλότατο και η διαπραγματευτική δεινότητα όλων σχεδόν των ομάδων ήταν πραγματικά εντυπωσιακή. Οι συμμετέχοντες διαγωνίστηκαν σε διάφορα μέρη της Αθήνας και σε διαφορετικού τύπου ασκήσεις κατά περίπτωση. Η εναρκτήρια άσκηση πραγματοποιήθηκε στο campus του American College of Greece. Μετά ακολούθησε η δεύτερη άσκηση, ναυτιλιακού περιεχομένου,

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στο εμπορικό πλοίο-μουσείο Liberty, στον Πειραιά. Η τρίτη άσκηση, η οποία πραγματοποιήθηκε στο Μέγαρο Μποδοσάκη, μετά την ευγενική παραχώρηση του χώρου από την Eurobank Ergasias, ενώ η τελευταία άσκηση πραγματοποιήθηκε στην Εθνική Βιβλιοθήκη, η οποία για δύο περίπου ώρες, έλαμψε διεθνώς. Αν και το πρόγραμμα των συμμετεχόντων ήταν απαιτητικό, όλοι τους ανεξαιρέτως, αντιμετώπισαν τις δοκιμασίες με προσμονή και χαρά. Παρά τον έντονο συναγωνισμό, δύο ομάδες ξεχώρισαν: εκείνες του Πανεπιστημίου του Reykjavik της Ισλανδίας και του Γερμανικού HHL στην Λειψία, οι οποίες και συναντήθηκαν ξανά στο μεγαλοπρεπές και διεθνούς ακτινοβολίας, Μουσείο της Ακρόπολης για τον τελικό. Συμμετέχοντες και υποστηρικτές του διαγωνισμού είχαν την ευκαίρια λοιπον να θαυμάσουν, πέραν των μοναδικών εκθεμάτων του Μουσείου, τους φιναλίστ να διεκδικούν το τρόπαιο. Για την επιλογή του νικητή η οργανωτική ομάδα είχε επιστρατεύσει μία ομάδα εξεχουσών προσωπικοτήτων από την ακαδημαϊκή και επιχειρηματική κοινότητα. Ο κ. Alexander von Reden, εταίρος στην μεγαλύτερη δικηγορική εταιρία της Γερμανίας και πιστός υπέρμαχος του TNC, ο καθηγητής Will Baber, τους πανεπιστημίου του Κιότο στην Ιαπωνία, ο καθηγητής Peter Kesting, του πανεπιστημίου του Ααρχους στην Δανία, και από την Ελλάδα ο κ. Σπύρος Παππάς, μέλος του Συμβουλίου Διοίκησης του Οικονομικού Πανεπιστημίου Αθηνών και ο κ. Νίκος Σοφιανός, γ.γ. του ΕΒΕΑ. Όταν ο κ. Παππάς ανακήρυξε την ομάδα από την Ισλανδία ως νικήτρια του διαγωνισμού, για λογαριασμό της επιτροπής, όλοι γιόρτασαν την επιτυχία αυτή, συμπεριλαμβανομένων και σπουδαστών από την Λειψία, οι οποίοι, παρά την φυσιολογική απογοήτευσή τους απόλαυσαν την άκρως τιμητική δεύτερη θέση. Νικητές όμως ήταν, πέραν των φιναλίστ, όλοι οι συμμετέχοντες, οι ακούραστοι εθελοντές, το ALBA το οποίο απέδειξε πως για άλλη μία φορά μπορεί να καινοτομήσει παρά τις ενδογενείς και εξωγενείς αντιξοότητες, και φυσικά και η χώρα μας η οποία έλαβε μία υψηλού επιπέδου προβολή σε όλα τα μήκη και πλάτη της γης.

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OLDENDORFF CARRIERS orders ultramax newbuildings at NACKS Shortly before Christmas 2012 OLDENDORFF CARRIERS concluded a newbuilding contract with Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering Co., Ltd. for 2 x 61.200 deadweight eco ultramax bulk carriers. The vessels will feature fuel saving devices such as semi-duct system with contra fins and a projected speed and consumption of 13 knots on 22.7 metric tons IFO on full draft. Further will both vessels be fitted with 35 metric tons cranes, A60 bulkhead, grain/cement holes and the ability to load steel coils up to full deadweight. Delivery is scheduled for mid 2014.

OLDENDORFF CARRIERS orders handysize and kamsarmax newbuildings at CSC Jinling Shipyard OLDENDORFF CARRIERS can disclose that the company has concluded a newbuilding contract with CSC Jinling Shipyard Co., Ltd. in Nanjing, Jiangsu province for 3 option 3 option 3 Bdelta 39.000 deadweight eco handysize bulk carriers and 2 option 2 option 2 Sdari 82.000 deadweight eco kamsarmax bulk carriers. The contract was concluded in September 2012 with expected delivery of the firm units mid/end 2014. The ground breaking Finnish Bdelta design is expected to perform on 14 knots on 22.75 metric tons of IFO on full draft and will be fully equipped with custom made fuel saving devices and extra strong propeller as well as being box shaped, logs fitted, 40 metric tons cranes, ice class 1c, uniform tank top strength of 22 metric tons/m2 and extra wide hatches. The kamsarmaxes will come with side mounted 40 metric tons cranes which allows the vessels to trade all standard panamax routes as well as being utilized for transshipment operation. The vessels will also be equipped with energy saving ducts and boss cap fin propellers and will be ice class 1 c strengthened.

Internaftiki Καθαρισμός δεξαμενών καυσίμων και λαδιών Λύσεις για αφαίρεση σωματιδίων, απορρόφηση νερού και προσρόφηση προϊόντων οξείδωσης από τα λάδια και τα καύσιμα. Κατάλληλο για: • Καύσιμα diesel • Υδραυλικά έλαια Νέα υπηρεσία από την ΙΝΤΕΡΝΑΥΤΙΚΗ είναι ο καθαρισμός δεξαμενών πετρελαίου με πολλαπλό φιλτράρισμα του καυσίμου ώστε να παρακρατηθούν τα αιρούμενα σωματίδια, η λάσπη και το νερό της δεξαμενής, πριν περάσουν στο σύστημα του κινητήρα. Καθαρίζοντας τη δεξαμενή κάθε 2 - 3 χρόνια, τη συντηρείτε και αυξάνετε το χρόνο ζωής της και επιπλέον αφαιρείτε τους συσσωρευμένους ρύπους από το κύκλωμα του καυσίμου. Ο καθαρισμός συνίσταται και σε μεγάλα υδραυλικά συστήματα όπου δεν είναι συμφέρουσα η αλλαγή του λαδιού.

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12th Maritime Conference “NAVIGATOR 2013” Athens, Wednesday, 20th November 2013, 09:00-17:00, at the Athenaum Intercontinental hotel, Athens

NAVIGATOR Maritime Conference is one of the most widely - recognized shipping events. Each year it attracts more than 500 prominent personalities of the Greek and International Shipping Com munity. NAVIGATOR Maritime Conference is the first Maritime Conference in Greece under private initiative that has been held has been held annually since the year 2001.

The Navigator Conference always aims to review, examine and discuss critical, topical issues faced by today’s maritime community, on the insight of experienced speakers, including widely-known and successful Shipowners and shipping specialists. It is widely covered in the Greek and International shipping press, supported by a range of important shipping organizations and generously sponsored a number of prestigious maritime companies involved in various sectors of the shipping industry.

NAVIGATOR Shipping Consultants Ltd accomplishments in NAVIGATOR 2012 Maritime Conference, held on 7th November 2012 : • The Minister of the Hellenic Ministry of Shipping and the Aegean, Mr. Kostis Mousouroulis, made the Opening Address.

• Mr. Pottengal Mukundan, Director International Maritime Bureau (IMB) / ICC – Commercial Crime Services, visited Athens especially to participate in NAVIGATOR Conference.

• A highly interesting debate between his Excellency the Ambassador of the United States in Athens, Daniel B. Smith and his Excellency Dr. David Landsman OBE, British Ambassador, moderated by Emmanuel Vordonis, a highly recognized Shipping specialist. This is the first time that a debate of Foreign Ambassadors is taking place in a Maritime Conference in Greece. The Ambassadors of Italy and Panama together with the Embassy of Spain were among the distinguished guests.

• The Ambassador of Australia, her Excellency Mrs. Jenny Bloomfield, addressed a key-note speech on the cooperation prospects between our countries.

• Many recognized and important Shipowners honored the Conference with their presence, like Mr. Leonidas Polemis, Mr. Harry Vafias, Mrs. Marigo Lemou-Patitsa, Mr. George Gourdomichalis, Mr. Spyros Capralos, Mr. George Souravlas, Mr. Stefanos Angelakos, Mr. George and Dimitris Dalacouras, Mr. George Tsavliris and Mr. Christos Georgantzoglou to mention a few.

Our goals for the 2013 Maritime Conference : • To have more Ambassadors participate in the Foreign Ambassadors’ Panel Session.

• To include a Shipping Organisations’ Panel Session, in which

Representatives of the most important International Shipping Organisations will address and analyze the critical issues concerning the Economy and the Shipping Industry today. They will also have the chance to answer to the Greek Shipowners’ questions and offer their insight and guidance. BIMCO, IMO, the International Maritime Bureau, the International Chamber of Shipping and Foreign Chambers’ representatives have been invited to honor the Conference with their participation and support.

The 12th Maritime Conference “NAVIGATOR 2013” is held Under the Auspices of: • The Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association • The Hellenic Ministry Of Shipping and The Aegean • University Of Piraeus, Department Of Maritime Studies • University Of The Aegean • The International Propeller Club • Masters’ And Mates’ Union Of Greek Merchant Marine • The Hellenic Shipbrokers Association • WISTA Hellas Principals employed in the Shipowning and Shipmanaging Companies are entitled to free entrance in the Conference Venue.

NAVIGATOR Shipping Consultants Ltd is successfully offering its services to all Greek-based Shipping Companies, exclusively representing a Network of the most distinguished Service Providers of the International Maritime Industry, such as Towing Companies, Fuel Analysis and Fuel Management (VISWA LAB), Underwater Hull Cleaning (ALFONS HAKANS) and DA’s processing and auditing Company (DIABOS).

In the field of Agency, NAVIGATOR Shipping Consultants Ltd has established a worldwide network of Agents that can serve your vessels’ needs in every port worldwide.

Its unique services and remarkable course rank NAVIGATOR LTD. as one of the Top Representation Houses in Greece.

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Norsafe continue to expand their global service network Norsafe is pleased to announce that they have opened a new service station in Perth, Australia. This offers their customers better access to service, maintenance, spare parts and training for lifesaving systems in the region.

The new establishment will strengthen after sales services and the supply of spare parts for Norsafe products in the Australasia region, with staff and facilities now located closer to existing and prospective clients. The new service office also has a 350m² workshop for refurbishment and repair of lifeboats, and is fully supported by the nearest Singapore service station.

Perth, Western Australia is the centre for the Australian offshore oil and gas industry. Ships are constantly passing through the busy ports of Fremantle, Kwinana, Dampier and Karratha. The navy and customs vessels also frequent this service area. This strategic location is the base for Norsafe’s Australian operations, and a flying squad of service engineers can reach other parts of Australia as needed.

Norsafe has recently delivered several free fall lifeboat systems type GES50 Mk III, many of which will be in operation in the North West

gas field of Australia. The company expects significant growth to occur in this booming Australian market in the future.

Norsafe Service stations are located in Mexico, USA, Brazil, The Netherlands, Greece, Korea, Japan, China, Singapore, Australia and Norway. In addition, Norsafe also has 30 authorized service partners strategically located worldwide.

Shell Marine Products launches new fuel efficient double hull barges in Singapore Shell Marine Products (SMP) has just christened its new double hull barge Enchant, with an environment-friendly engine, demonstrating its leadership in marine safety standards. Time chartered from Hong Lam Marine Pte Ltd, these barges are equipped with diesel electric (DE) propulsion systems and will be the first of its kind in lubricants barges in Singapore. “Compared with traditional mechanical systems, these DE systems provide higher fuel efficiency and operational flexibility while at the same time, reduce emissions, noise pollution and vibrations,” said Lim Teck Cheng, Chief Executive of Hong Lam Marine Pte Ltd. Responding to customers’ needs, these bulk barges are also designed to store pack products together, thus providing quicker delivery turnaround and reducing delivery complexity while improving SMP’s agility to meet urgent customer requirements.

Their large bulk capacity of 1000DWT each will further strengthen SMP’s supply advantages in Singapore.

“Shell Marine Products always strives to put our customers at the heart of what we do. We understand the challenges they face and the environments they operate in.

With the launch of our new double hull fleet, we hope to provide not just quality products, but also reliable delivery through safe, efficient and environment-friendly barges,” said Colin Chua, Regional Business Manager, Asia Pacific & Middle East of SMP. The christening ceremony was attended by Surinderdeep Singh, General Manager (GM) of SMP and Eugene Tan, GM of Shell Lubricants Supply Chain on 28 March 2013 at Marina at Keppel Bay. Following Enchant, other sister barges – Endear, Enliven and Enthral will be commissioned in the coming months.

OCEANFINANCE LTD successfully launched its brand-new MARSPY platform OCEANFINANCE LTD successfully launched its brand-new MARSPY platform, an integrated trading position tracking system aiming to support shipowners, ship-operators and charterers to efficiently monitor the exposure of their portfolio. MARSPY incorporates a set of formulas and shipping parameters to address complex trading problems such as effective fleet utilization, adequate Hedging, optimum position taking and cash exposure.

The system executes a set of calculations and crosschecks in order to generate an all-inclusive, analytical report on the Position of the shipping portfolio. Users have the choice of virtual Deal closing. This allows for multiple scenario-building processes and consequently for an optimum fixing schedule. Exposure Monitoring is the key objective of MARSPY. All previous functions are deliberately designed to feed the system with adequate data for a complete and accurate exposure tracking allowing the shipowner, ship-operator or charterer to cater for its clients in an efficient way.

The feedback received from our clients who incorporated MARSPY in their operating system, was more than satisfying and rewarding for our effort to introduce in the shipping market a user-friendly, handy tool for companies’ continuous improvement.

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Tsavliris Q1 Key Activities - 2013

In the first quarter of 2013 Tsavliris Salvage Group was kept busy with Bulk Carrier “RBD ITALIA” (GT 47,984, DWT 87,334), laden 43.380,86 M/T of grain (sunflower seeds, soyabean meal, soya bean pellets, etc.), which grounded at KM 452, Rio Parana, in the vicinity of San Lorenzo, on Wednesday 30th January. Our salvage master boarded casualty on the same day and refloating attempts, by using ship’s engine and rudder, commenced but with no success.

Tugs “ONA DON LORENZO” and “LUCIANO B” were promptly mobilized from La Plata and Buenos Aires respectively, to the assistance of the casualty. Attempts to refloat the vessel were immediately undertaken once tugs arrived on the scene. Local company “OSRO” was engaged to provide anti-pollution services. On the same day vessel was successfully refloated and anchored at San Lorenzo roads.

Both tugs remained alongside providing standby services.

On the 2nd February, mandatory post grounding inspection by the Coastguard and diving inspection on behalf of Class, were performed. Certificate of Safe Delivery was signed and following clearance by the Authorities the vessel sailed same day. The two tugs demobilized towards Buenos Aires providing shadow escort.

Following this successful operation, on Thursday 14th February, we dispatched salvage tug “KAMARINA”, from her Singapore salvage station, to the assistance of oil products tanker “MAKO” (GT 60,504, DWT 104,000), laden with about 89,000 M/T Murban crude oil, experiencing technical problems and steaming at reduced speed, about 115 nautical miles south of Sunda Straits, Indian Ocean. The casualty required tug assistance/support prior to entering the Sunda Strait.

Motor tug “SWISSCO SUPREME” was also deployed from Singapore on Monday 18th February to assist in the escort, steering or towage of “MAKO”. “KAMARINA” arrived at rendezvous point on the 18th February and awaited the arrival of the second tug in order to proceed to the casualty’s position.

Following instructions from “MAKO”, the “KAMARINA” proceeded to the casualty’s position on the 21st February and arrived the same day. Attempts were made to connect the towline, however bad weather conditions did not allow for this. On the 22nd February, tug “SWISSCO SUPREME” arrived and attempted to connect the towline at the stern of the casualty. Once again due to bad weather it was difficult to connect the towline and once connected the towline parted.

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Salvage tug “GLOBAL SUCCESS I” (ex “SINGAPORE”) joins Tsavliris Salvage Group Fleet

In February 2013, the “GLOBAL SUCCESS I” (ex “SINGAPORE”) 189 Bollard Pull ocean going tug, joined the Tsavliris Salvage Group tug fleet.

The 13,500 BHP salvage tug was taken over from Svitzer Ocean Towage at Galveston Texas, USA, by the new owners GMS (Global Marketing Systems). Tsavliris will undertake the full management of the vessel. She will be deployed in Ocean Salvage and Towage. She is a traditional fully fledged salvage tug with some anchor handling capabilities.

Techcross: 1st Technical Workshop

Techcross successfully held the 1st Technical Workshop from March 19th to 22nd with 9 A/S agents from 9 countries.

As the sale of ECS increases rapidly, technical service will become more and more important. Therefore, Techcross invited A/S agents from all over the world to strengthen the technical skill and knowledge of their engineers. The attendees learned about the various ECS components, and commissioning and troubleshooting at the Busan office, Masan land/floating laboratory and Asan factory.

Through this technical workshop, Techcross further strengthens the relationship with A/S agents in order to provide better technical service to its customers for many years to come.

www.nafsgreen.gr - INDUSTRY NEWS

APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 75

Direct comparison of waterjets Two recent refits of waterjets are unique in one respect that they allow a direct comparison between waterjet brands, while everything else remains unchanged. Waterjets from Marine Jet Power were recently used to solve some significant propulsion issues and in one case the exchange even helped a yard to achieve its project goals leading to the fact that the yard finally was able to deliver the ships to the owners.

In the first case, the operator of a 10-year-old vessel decided to change to MJP DRB jets due to significant service and corrosion issues on the existing waterjets. The vessels were originally equipped with axial flow jets. MJP DRB mixed flow jets with intakes completely made of GRP were installed in one of the existing hulls with the rest of the equipment, including the engine, remaining unchanged. The GRP gives a smooth and efficient intake shape and eliminates any corrosion issues. The MJP DRB waterjets are otherwise completely made of stainless steel and have thus unmatched strength, resulting in a full five-year warranty, which per se is unique in the marine market.

Sea trial following the refit showed stunning results: Ship speed increased from 38 to 43 knots only thanks to the change of waterjets.

The vessel with its original water jets never achieved more than 38 knots – not even when the ship was new. The overall efficiency has increased from 57% to 67%. The difference in efficiency is incredible 18%, meaning that the vessel can obtain an 18% lower fuel consumption. The engines can operate at lower load, giving less wear and

longer service life.

Since the operator is very satisfied with both installation and function of the control system, more vessels are now being rebuilt accordingly.

In the second case a yard was in big trouble. Three brand-new vessels could not be delivered due to lack of performance. After long, it was decided to shift out the existing mixed flow jets to MJP DRB mixed flow jets on one of the vessels. Again, it was the MJP DRB jet with GRP intakes that were installed. Interestingly enough, when comparing the two jet systems on paper, they both claimed to deliver the same thrust. In reality, however, the MJP jets consumed 8,5% less power at the same operating speed. Power consumption was measured under the supervision of DNV, guaranteeing the accuracy of the measurements.

Wärtsilä opens a new services workshop in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil The workshop will be the largest of its kind in the state of Rio de Janeiro. It will feature, among other things, a laboratory for automation and electronic fuel injection, as well as a dedicated marine thruster facility.

Wärtsilä, a global leader in complete lifecycle power solutions and services, opens a new services workshop in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Wednesday February 27th 2013. The new facilities will strengthen Wärtsilä’s presence in Brazil and enable Wärtsilä to support its customers by offering a wide range of workshop services with rapid response times.

The new workshop will replace the company’s current premises in São Cristóvão, Rio de Janeiro, and is designed to bring logistical advantages for the company and its customers. With 4,600 square meters of built area, the workshop will be the largest of its kind in the state of Rio de Janeiro. It will feature, among other things, a laboratory for automation and electronic fuel injection, as well as a dedicated marine thruster facility.

“The location is strategic, both for receiving components as well as for our deliveries, as Niterói is a hub for offshore services in Brazil.

This upgraded facility enables us to support our customers even better and service the increased number of installations, as predicted by our customers as well as by the oil exploration industry of Brazil,” says Robson Campos, Managing Director for Wärtsilä Brazil.

In Niterói, the company will be able to provide services on a 24/7 basis, thus doubling its operational capability status. The scope of services will also be expanded to include repairs to large engines, and the maintenance of propulsion systems for ships. “Propellers can weigh up to 80 tons. We have invested in the equipment needed to service such very large components in the most efficient and safe way,” continues Campos.

About 200 employees will work in the new workshop, 120 of whom are able to work offshore. The team will be connected to Wärtsilä’s worldwide technical support and will join a network of international technicians able to support local projects all around the world.

Wärtsilä Brazil was established in 1990 and has operations in Rio de Janeiro and Manaus with complete offering for the total range of the Wärtsilä equipment portfolio.

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INDUSTRY NEWS - www.nafsgreen.gr

From left to right are: Adamantios Papapetros – General Manager (N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau), Erik Langenberg – Regional Manager Sales (NOV –FGS), Marco Zanelli – NOV Representative for Italy, Alexia Bogdanos – CEO (N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau), Juan-Carlos Marroquin – Senior Vice President Sales & Marketing (NOV – FGS), Nikolas Lascaris – Director (N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau), Ton Roovers – Regional Manager Sales (NOV – FGS)

N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau: Technical Symposium was completed with great success.

On the 16th of May 2013 N. Bogdanos Marine Bureau and NOV FiberGlass Systems held a Technical Symposium which was completed with great success at the Athenaeum InterContinental Hotel. The event hosted technical and new-building managers from numerous Greek-based shipping companies and contractors with the purpose of informing them on the applications of Glassfiber Reinforced Epoxy (GRE) piping systems. NOV executives and engineers from the U.S. and the Netherlands visited Athens to perform this presentation.

NOV-FGS is the market leader in the manufacture and supply of GRE piping, known under the trade name BONDSTRAND® (ex-AMERON), which Bogdanos Marine exclusively represents in Greece and Cyprus for over 30 years. GRE piping is corrosion-free and hence represents the supreme alternative to steel, principally for the ballast line system, the seawater cooling system, scrubbers and practically any piping system in a corrosive environment.

With a durability which outlasts the life span of the ship, a weight that is ¼ of traditional steel pipes and an attractive cost-benefit proposition, NOV-FGS pipes now account for almost 45% of the market share in ballast lines for the Greek fleet.

Other applications of NOV-FGS include chemical and industrial projects, such as the petroleum industry, firefighting systems, sewage treatment, etc. Moreover, it is almost considered the only solution for piping systems for the offshore industry.

In the marine sector, NOV-FGS has a global team of experts covering all shipyards and every major port. With the supervision of the NOV-FGS team, Owners can be assured that their piping systems will be maintenance-free for the lifetime of their vessels.

NOV-FGS PIPES INDUSTRIAL

NOV-FGS PIPES OFFSHORE

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APRIL - MAY 2013 - ISSUE 92- 77

Μετά τον κίτρινο χρυσό έρχεται ο...ηλεκτρονικός . ΕΥΧΗ Ή ΚΑΤΑΡΑ ΤΟ ΚΙΤΡΙΝΟ ΜΕΤΑΛΛΟ ΓΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΑΝΘΡΩΠΟΤΗΤΑ; .ΠΩΣ ΔΗΜΙΟΥΡΓΗΘΗΚΕ Ο ΧΡΥΣΟΣ ΣΤΗΝ ΓΗ .ΤΙ ΥΠΟΚΡΥΠΤΕΙ Η ΧΡΥΣΟΦΙΛΙΑ ΚΑΙ Η ΠΡΩΤΟΦΑΝΗΣ ΑΠΟΘΕΜΑΤΙΚΟΠΟΙΗΣΗ ΤΟΥ ΑΠΟ ΤΙΣ ΗΠΑ, ΡΩΣΙΑ, ΚΙΝΑ, ΓΕΡΜΑΝΙΑ ΚΑΙ ΑΛΛΕΣ ΧΩΡΕΣ .ΤΙ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΤΟ BITCOIN (BTC) ΚΑΙ ΠΩΣ ΥΠΟΤΙΘΕΤΑΙ ΟΤΙ ΠΡΟΣΤΑΤΕΥΕΙ ΤΟΥΣ ΚΑΤΑΘΕΤΕΣ ΑΠΟ «ΚΟΥΡΕΜΑΤΑ» ΚΑΙ «ΜΑΚΡΥΧΕΡΗΔΕΣ» (ΚΡΑΤΗ,ΤΡΑΠΕΖΕΣ , ΕΦΟΡΙΕΣ) .ΝΑ ΠΡΟΣΕΞΟΥΝ ΟΙ ΕΛΛΗΝΕΣ ΠΟΥ ΞΕΠΟΥΛΟΥΝ ΑΣΥΛΛΟΓΙΣΤΑ ΤΟΝ ΧΡΥΣΟ ΤΟΥΣ ΠΑΡΑ ΤΙΣ ΑΝΑΓΚΕΣ ΤΟΥΣ ΤΙ ΑΝΑΦΕΡΕΙ Ο ΟΜΗΡΟΣ ΓΙΑ ΤΟΝ ΧΡΥΣΟ ΚΑΙ ΠΩΣ ΕΤΥΜΟΛΟΓΕΙΤΑΙ Η ΛΕΞΗ Γράφει ο Κώστας Δούκας

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Οι αστροφυσικοί και οι αστρονόμοι πιστεύουν (όχι όλοι βέβαια), ότι το Σύμπαν γεννήθηκε πριν από 13,7 δισεκατομμύρια χρόνια. Σύμφωνα με μία τελευταία εκτίμηση, οι επιστήμονες έπεσαν έξω κατά...80 εκατομμύρια χρόνια, οπότε το Σύμπαν έγινε τώρα πιό... σεβάσμιο αφού έχει ηλικία 13,8 δισεκατομμυρίων ετών. Αν συνέβη αυτό ποτέ, τότε, με βάση την θεωρία του λεγομένου «πληθωριστικού μοντέλου» ή του «καθιερωμένου προτύπου», γεννήθηκαν τα στοιχεία, από τα οποία στην συνέχεια γεννήθηκαν οι γαλαξίες και μέσα σ’ αυτούς δημιουργήθηκαν τα άστρα, που εξακολουθούν να δημιουργούνται ακατάπαυστα. Μαζί με τους αστέρες δημιουργήθηκε μεταξύ άλλων και ο χρυσός, που ανέκαθεν ταλαιπωρούσε το γένος των ανθρώπων σαν κύριο αίτιο μεγάλων δυστυχιών και πολέμων και σήμερα εξακολουθεί να το ταλαιπωρεί, καθώς η ανθρωπότητα του 21ου αιώνα έχει προσβληθεί από τον... κίτρινο πυρετό και συλλέγει μετά πρωτοφανούς μανίας τον χρυσό προς αποθεματοποίηση. Ωστόσο ο χρυσός δεν δημιουργήθηκε στην Γη, μολονότι υπάρχει σε λιγοστά επιφανειακά αποθέματα στον στερεό φλοιό της και σε μεγάλα αποθέματα στον πυρήνα της, όπως πιστεύουν οι επιστήμονες, όπου καταβυθίστηκε λόγω του βάρους του. Σύμφωνα με τον διαπρεπή αστρονόμο Καρλ Σαγκάν και τον Ρώσο αστροβιολόγο Ιωσήφ Σκλόφσκι στο κοινό πολύκροτο βιβλίο τους « Το Σύμπαν», οι θερμοκρασίες του Ηλίου ουδέποτε έφθασαν στο ύψος εκείνο που θα επέτρεπε την «συγκόλληση» πρωτονίων και νετρονίων σε ένα πυρήνα γιά την δημιουργία βαρυτέρων μετάλλων, μεταξύ των οποίων και ο χρυσός. Κατά την γνώμη των επιστημόνων αυτών, σε προϊστορική εποχή θα εξερράγη πλησίον του ηλιακού μας συστήματος (το «πλησίον» βέβαια είναι σχετικό, πάνω από 20 με 30 «παρσέκ») κάποιος σουπερνόβα αστέρας, η θερμοκρασία του οποίου υπερβαίνει τα 150 εκατομμύρια βαθμών Κελσίου, πράγμα που επιτρέπει την δημιουργία βαρυτέρων στοιχείων, μεταξύ των οποίων και ο χρυσός. Η «αύρα» και μόνο του σουπερνόβα θα έφθασε μέχρι το νεαρό τότε πλανητικό μας σύστημα του Ηλίου, όταν οι πλανήτες ακόμη ήσαν σε ρευστή κατάσταση και θα εναπόθεσε τις ποσότητες χρυσού που ανακαλύπτουμε ακόμη σήμερα. Σύμφωνα με άλλους επιστήμονες, ο χρυσός μας ήλθε από το διάστημα με την μορφή βροχής μετεωριτών, που κράτησε γιά μεγάλο χρονικό διάστημα. Μαζί με τον χρυσό μας ήλθαν και άλλα πολύτιμα ή και ραδιενεργά μέταλλα, όταν ο πλανήτης μας βρισκόταν σε πολύ νεαρή ηλικία. Συγκεκριμένα, σύμφωνα με βρεταννική επιστημονική μελέτη, η Γη δέχθηκε βροχή διαρκείας μετεωριτών, που έστρωσε με πολύτιμα μέταλλα τον πλανήτη στις πρώτες φάσεις σχηματισμού του ηλιακού μας συστήματος. Αναλύθηκαν πανάρχαια πετρώματα της Γροιλανδίας ηλικίας 3,8 δισεκατομμυρίων ετών και το συμπέρασμα είναι ότι τα σημερινά

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προσβάσιμα αποθέματα πολυτίμων μετάλλων στην Γη αποτελούν συνέπεια βομβαρδισμών μετεωριτών περίπου 200 εκατομμύρια χρόνια μετά την δημιουργία της (ερευνητική ομάδα με επί κεφαλής τον Ματίας Γουΐλμποντ της σχολής Γαιοεπιστημών του Πανεπιστημίου Μπρίστολ). ΤΙ ΕΙΝΑΙ, ΑΛΗΘΕΙΑ, Ο ΧΡΥΣΟΣ; Σύμφωνα με την επιστημονική ορολογία, ο χρυσός είναι στερεό μέταλλο μαλακό, αστραφτερό, ελατό (σφυρηλατείται σε λεπτά φύλλα) και όλκιμο (γίνεται πολύ λεπτό σύρμα. Η διεθνής του συμβολική χημική ονομασία είναι aurus και κατά συγκοπή au εκ της λατινικής ονομασίας, που είναι παραφθορά της ελληνικής λέξεως «χρυσός». Γιά την ετυμολογία της λέξεως θα αναφερθούμε εκτενέστερα στην συνέχεια. Ο χρυσός έχει ατομικό αριθμό 79, ήτοι γύρω από τον πυρήνα του περιφέρονται 79 ηλεκτρόνια που τον καθιστούν βαρύ, και ατομικό βάρος 169,966569. Τήκεται στους 1064,43 βαθμούς Κελσίου και δεν οξειδώνεται από τον ατμοσφαιρικό αέρα ή το νερό. Βρίσκεται σε κόκκους ανάμεσα σε πετρώματα, σε «φλέβες» ή σε προσχώσεις, ενώ συλλέγεται και σε ποταμούς, τα νερά των οποίων κατά την ροή τους συμπαρασύρουν μικρούς κόκκους διαβρώνοντας τα πετρώματα της κοίτης τους. Ωστόσο ο χρυσός διαβρώνεται από το λεγόμενο «βασικό ύδωρ», που αποτελεί πυκνό μείγμα υδροχλωρικού οξέως (HCI) και πυκνού νιτρικού οξέως (HNO3). Και λέγεται αυτή η χημική ένωση έτσι, βασιλικό ύδωρ, επειδή ακριβώς διαβρώνει τον χρυσό, που θεωρείται ο βασιλιάς των μετάλλων.

165.000 ΤΟΝΟΙ Ο ΧΡΥΣΟΣ ΟΛΟΣ ΚΙ ΟΛΟΣ Η σπανιότητα και η ομορφιά του μετάλλου έχει καταστήσει τον χρυσό από αρχαιοτάτων χρόνων έμβλημα επιβολής της εξουσίας στους λαούς και της διάκρισης των τάξεων. Ήταν ανέκαθεν τόσο περιζήτητος, ώστε έχει μείνει στην ιστορία η περίπτωση τον Μήδα, ο οποίος ό,τι έπιανε γινόταν χρυσός και η «λυδία λίθος» των αλχημιστών του μεσαίωνα, που προσπαθούσαν ματαίως να δημιουργήσουν χρυσό, αφού δεν γνώριζαν ότι χρειάζεται θερμοκρασία από σύντηξη των άστρων 150 εκατομμυρίων βαθμών γιά να μεταστοιχειωθεί η ύλη σε χρυσό. Υπολογίζεται ότι από την αρχή της γνωστής ανθρώπινης ιστορίας μέχρι το 2009, εξορύχθηκαν συνολικά μόλις 165.000 τόννοι χρυσού, εκ των οποίων 1000 τόννοι βρίσκονται σήμερα στο θησαυροφυλάκιο των Ηνωμένων Πολιτειών, που έχουν συγκεντρώσει την μεγαλύτερη ποσότητα χρυσού στην ιστορία τους. Οι 165.000 τόννοι χρυσού αντιστοιχούν σε περίπου 8.500 κυβικά μέτρα χρυσού. Η παγκόσμια κατανάλωση είναι 50% σε κοσμήματα, 40% σε επενδυτικά αποθέματα και σε 10% σε βιομηχανικές εφαρμογές. Επίσης ο χρυσός έχει εφαρμογή στην οδοντιατρική, στην ηλεκτρονική και σε άλλες δραστηριότητες της σύγχρονης τεχνολογίας. Η αξία του χρυσού αυξάνεται λόγω της μεγάλης οικονομικής (πλην

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συμβατικής) αξίας του, καθώς χρησιμοποιείται στη κατασκευή νομισμάτων, κοσμημάτων, τεχνουργημάτων κλπ. Η νομισματική πολιτική των χωρών και κατ’ επέκταση του κόσμου, στηρίζεται, κατόπιν διεθνών συμφωνιών, στα αποθέματα του χρυσού. Ο χρυσός άρχισε σταδιακά να υποκαθίσταται από σκληρά νομίσματα από την δεκαετία τοι 1930. Η ΕΤΥΜΟΛΟΓΙΑ ΤΗΣ ΛΕΞΕΩΣ Η λέξη «χρυσός» απαντάται στην ελληνική γλώσσα από τα πανάρχαια χρόνια. Στο 4.000 π.Χ. οι άνθρωποι του ελλαδικού χώρου γνώριζαν την εξαγωγή και την κατεργασία του χρυσού, του αργύρου, του σιδήρου, του χαλκού και του μολύβδου, όπως μας πληροφορούν τα ομηρικά έπη. Οι σύγχρονοι γλωσσολόγοι εικάζουν ότι η καταγωγή της λέξεως έχει χαιττική προέλευση και κατά δεύτερον σημιτική, αλλά μάλλον έχουν άδικο. Η λέξη «χρυσός» έχει αποκρυπτογραφηθεί με βάση το συλλαβάριο Βέντρις από την Γραμμική Γραφή Β´, όταν σημιτικά φύλα δεν υπήρχαν ή δεν είχαν εμφανιστεί στην ιστορία. Η ηχητική αξία της λέξεως ήταν ku-ru-so, ήτοι χρυσός. Δεν είναι τυχαίο ότι ακόμη και σήμερα στην Κέρκυρα τον χρυσοχόο τον λένε «κουρούση» (Ξ. Λίβας, ΑΙΓΗΙΣ, Η ΚΟΙΤΙΣ ΤΩΝ ΑΡΙΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΤΟΥ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΣΜΟΥ). Επομένως, η λέξη «χρυσός» είναι αρχαιοτάτης ελληνικής καταγωγής,

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κατά την γνώμη μου εκ του ομηρικού ρήματος χρίμπτω = εγγίζω, επιψαύω, επειδή η ευχαρίστηση που προκαλεί το μέταλλο αυτό ολοκληρώνεται με την αφή. Δεν ευσταθεί κατά την γνώμη μου η άποψη του Κουρτίου που παραβάλλει την λέξη με την σανσκριτική hir-anam, hir-anyan και με την ζενδική zar-ann και zar-anya, αφού καμμία από τις φθογγικές αυτές εκφορές δεν προσεγγίζουν καν την ελληνική λέξη «χρυσός». Γοτθικά ο χρυσός είναι gulth, από όπου η αγγλική gold και εβραϊκά charuts, που κι αυτή δεν έχει σχέση με την λέξη «χρυσός» (Λεξικόν της Ελληνικής Γλώσσης των Λίντελ και Σκότ). Αντιθέτως, πολλαχού στον Όμηρο ο χρυσός αναφέρεται ως «τιμήεις», «πολύτιμος». Ο Πρίαμος προσφέρει στον Αχιλλέα 10 τάλαντα χρυσού γιά να πάρει πίσω τον νεκρό του Έκτορος. Οι Μυκήνες εκθειάζονται ως πολύχρυσες. Όλα τα όπλα των θεών και κάθε σκεύος που χρησιμοποιούν είναι χρυσά. Οι λέξεις «χρύσεος», «χρυσάορος», «χρυσηλάκατος» (που έχει χρυσή ρόκα) «χρυσόρραπις» (που έχει χρυσό ραβδί), «χρυσίθρονος», «χρυσοπέδιλος» κ.ά. είναι λέξεις της αρχαιοτάτης ομηρικής και αρχαιοελληνικής γραμματείας. Στην Οδύσσεια (ε 36) ο Νέστωρ καλεί τον χρυσοχόο Λαέρκη να περιχύσει με χρυσό τα κέρατα βοδιού πριν θυσιασθεί στην θεά Αθηνά. Οι Φαίακες είχαν μεγάλα αποθέματα χρυσού, αφού κατασκεύαζαν από ατόφιο χρυσάφι φωτοδότες κούρους και διακοσμητικούς σκύλους του ανακτόρου τους.

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Αλλά και οι θεοί του Ολύμπου χρησιμοποιούν πολύ χρυσό, αφού ο Ήφαιστος έχει κατασκευάσει χρυσές κοπέλες που σκέπτονται και μιλούν και κάνουν όλες τις δουλειές, δηλαδή ρομπότ! Επίσης ο Όμηρος μας περιγράφει μία ασπίδα κατασκευασθείσα από τον Ήφαιστο γιά λογαριασμό του Αχιλλέως με στρώσεις διαφόρων μετάλλων και χρυσού σε συγκεκριμένη αναλογία, που ήσαν αδιάτρητες, κι αυτό επιβεβαιώθηκε ύστερα από έρευνα του Πανεπιστημίου των Πατρών. Η ΣΥΓΧΡΟΝΗ ΧΡΥΣΟΦΙΛΙΑ Στα χρόνια που διανύει η ανθρωπότητα και ύστερα από την μεγάλη κρίση χρέους που αντιμετωπίζει η Ευρώπη, αλλά και άλλες μεγάλες και μικρές χώρες, η τιμή του χρυσού έφθασε στα ύψη, από τα 300 περίπου δολάρια η ουγγιά όπου είχε σταθεροποιηθεί από την αρχή της δεκαετίας του 2000, στα 1350 δολ. σήμερα. Η δίψα γιά χρυσό, που δεν προοιωνίζεται τίποτε καλό γιά την ανθρωπότητα, έχει πάρει μορφή χιονοστιβάδος, τόσο στις αγορές με την δημιουργία ανταλλακτηρίων χρυσού με χαρτονομίσματα, όσο και στο διαδίκτυο, όπου προσφέρονται δελεαστικοί όροι και χρηματικά μπόνους γιά την σύναψη ηλεκτρονικής συμφωνίας πώλησης χρυσού. Γιατί όμως ανέβηκε τόσο πολύ η τιμή του χρυσού τον τελευταίο καιρό; Οι Έλληνες μάλιστα, λόγω της μεγάλης φτώχειας της Ελλάδος, έχουν ανάγκη να πουλήσουν τα χρυσαφικά τους. Όμως πρέπει να το σκεφθούν καλλίτερα, αφού θυμηθούν το χαριτωμένο τραγουδάκι του μεσοπολέμου, που μιλούσε γιά τα κάλλη μιάς κοπελιάς:

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«Είσαι καράτια εικοσιτέσσερα κι έχω τα ματια δεκατέσσερα, να μη σε κλέψουν και φτωχύνω και τότε πες μου τι θα γίνω» Ας προσέξουν όσοι υποκύπτουν στις σειρήνες των ανταλλακτηρίων, διότι ο χρυσός είναι αναντικατάστατος ως συναλλακτικό νόμισμα, και όταν θα τον έχουν πραγματικά ανάγκη, και όχι να πληρώσουν τους λογαριασμούς των ΔΕΚΟ, των καρτών και της εφορίας, τότε δεν θα τον διαθέτουν. Σύμφωνα με τα σημερινά νομισματοχρηματικά δεδομένα, όταν το δολάριο εξασθενεί, η τιμή του χρυσού ανεβαίνει, καθώς υποβοηθεί σ’ αυτό και η αστάθεια των άλλων νομισμάτων. Η τιμή του χρυσού είναι απολύτως συνδεδεμένη με την τιμή του πετρτελαίου. Οι παραγωγοί πετρελαίου συχνά αγοράζουν χρυσό γιά να διασφαλίσουν τα χαρτοφυλλάκιά τους. Οι πετρελαιάδες τα τελευταία χρόνια έχουν αυξήσει τα κέρδη τους λόγω ανατιμήσεως του πετρελαίου και, καθώς διαθέτουν πολύ ρευστό, αγοράζουν χρυσό. Η αύξηση της ζητήσεως του κίτρινου μετάλλου αυξάνει με την σειρά της την τιμή του.

ΟΙ «ΣΚΟΥΡΙΕΣ» Μείζον θέμα έχει δημιουργηθεί με τον «Θησαυρό της Κασάνδρας». Όπου οι κάτοικοι αντιδρούν έντονα μετά την απόφαση του Ελληνικού Δημοσίου να παραχωρήσει τα μεταλλευτικά δικαιώματα μιάς εκτάσεως 317.000 στρεμμάτων στην Βόρεια Χαλκιδική, πλούσια σε χαλκό και χρυσό και σε άλλα μέταλλα, στην καναδική πολυεθνική Eldorado Gold. Οι κάτοικοι αντιστέκονται λόγω της ανεπίστρεπτης καταστροφής του περιβάλλοντος. Όπως λένε οι κάτοικοι, τα ωφέλη είναι λιγώτερα από τις απώλειες. Κάτω από τις Σκουριές υπάρχει κοίτασμα χρυσού και χαλκού αξίας 12 δισεκατομμυρίων δολαρίων. Η εταιρία θέλει να κατασκευάσει στην καρδιά του δάσους ένα

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σύστημα «από υπολογιστή σε υπολογιστή», δηλαδή με κρυπτογραφημένα ιντερνικά πρωτόκολλα επικοινωνίας τύπου Ρ2Ρ.

ανοικτό και ένα υπόγειο ορυχείο. Το ανοιχτό ορυχείο θα έχει διάμετρο 700 μέτρων και βάθος 200 μέτρων. Το υπόγειο θα έχει σήραγγες μήκους 25 χιλιομέτρων, που θα φθάνουν σε βάθος ακόμη και 700 μέτρων κάτω από την γη. Επίσης θα κατασκευασθεί ένα εργοστάσιο επεξεργασίας καθώς και δύο λεκάνες εναποθέσεως αποβλήτων. Το κράτος έχει εγκρίνει την περιβαλλοντική μελέτη και η αποψίλωση του δάσους έχει αρχίσει. Σημειώνεται ότι η προηγούμενη εταιρία χρεωκόπησε και τα παράτησε. Η νέα εταιρία «Ελληνικός Χρυσός ΑΕ» έχει βασικούς μετόχους τον «Άκτορα» της οικογένειας Μπόμπολα με 35% και την καναδική εκμεταλλευτική εταιρία Eurorean Goldfields με 30%.

Ο ΗΛΕΚΤΡΟΝΙΚΟΣ ΧΡΥΣΟΣ ΛΕΓΕΤΑΙ BTC ( Βitcoin ) Και ενώ ο χρυσός και η ρήτρα του εξακολουθούν να βασιλεύουν στην παγκόσμια οικονομία καθορίζοντας και τις δημοσιονομικές πολιτικές των χωρών όλου του κόσμου, με τις γνωστές παρενέργειες και τα «μακριά χέρια» τραπεζών, κρατών και εφοριών στις καταθέσεις πλουσίων και φτωχών, στο προσκήνιο παρουσιάστηκε ο «ηλεκτρονικός χρυσός», ή γιά την ακρίβεια το ηλεκτρονικό χρήμα, που ίσως ανατρέψει στο μέλλον το δοκιμασμένο σύστημα αιώνων του χρυσού. Είναι το Bitcoin, γνωστό με τα αρχικά BTC. Που δεν ελέγχεται από κανένα κεντρικό ηλεκτρονικό σύστημα υπολογιστή. Την ιδέα της δημιουργίας του είχε κάποιο πρόσωπο ή ομάδα ατόμων με το όνομα ή το ψευδώνυμο Sacoshi Nakamoto, με στόχο την ηλεκτρονική κυκλοφορία ενός αναρχοφιλελεύθερου χρήματος, που να μην υπόκειται σε κεντρικό ή άλλο έλεγχο από τράπεζες, κυβερνήσεις και φορολογικές αρχές. Πρωτοπαρουσιάστηκε το 2009 και έκτοτε λειτουργεί με το

Το BTC φυλάσσεται σε ηλεκτρονική μορφή κώδικα και σε εικονικό «πορτφόλιο» στον υπολογιστή, στο κινητό ή σε ένα στικάκι, ή όπου αλλού θέλει ο χρήστης. Η αγοραπωλησία μεταξύ δύο συναλλασσομένων γίνεται άμεσα με την χρήση κωδικών ή QR barcode, χωρίς μεσολάβηση τράπεζας, εφορίας ή άλλων κρατικών αρχών. Βασικό επίσης χαρακτηριστικό είναι ότι το BTC δεν υπόκειται σε πληθωριστικές πιέσεις, σε «κουρέματα» ή σε αφαιμάξεις της εφορίας. Η παραγωγή του είναι περιορισμένη από ένα πολύπλοκο πρόγραμμα «εξορύξεως». Σήμερα παράγονται παγκοσμίως 25 εκατομμύρια νέα BTC κάθε 10 λεπτά τηςώρας και, όσο αυξάνεται το συνολικό απόθεμα, τόσο θα μειώνεται ο ρυθμός παραγωγής, κατά τα πρότυπα του φυσικού χρυσού, με την διαφορά όμως ότι υπάρχει εκεί ένα τελικό πλαφόν στην συνολική παγκόσμια παραγωγή στα 21 εκατομμύρια «τεμάχια» μέχρι το έτος 2140. Μετά την ημερομηνία αυτή θα σταματήσει η παραγωγή. Αυτό σημαίνει ότι, όσο η ζήτηση αυξάνει, τόσο θα μεγαλώνει η αξία τους. Σύμφωνα με ιντερνικές πληροφορίες που περιγράφουν το νέο σύστημα, πολλοί σπεύδουν να μετατρέψουν τις καταθέσεις τους από τις κοινές τράπεζες σε BTC, ώστε να απαλλαγούν από το άγχος μιάς κατάσχεσης ή ενός «κουρέματος». Κάποιοι αγόρασαν BTC όταν ακόμη η αξία του τεμαχίου ήταν λίγα δολάρια και τώρα πουλάνε προς 170 δολάρια με τεράστια κέρδη. Πού θα καταλήξει άραγε το BTC; Ο χρόνος θα το δείξει, αλλά και η διάθεση του αποταμιευτικού κοινού, που δεν θέλει τράπεζες και κυβερνήσεις με μακριά χέρια να τους κουρεύουν τις καταθέσεις. Όμως, με τον νέο τρόπο συναλλαγής και αποταμίευσης, χτυπιέται το παραδοσιακό οικονομικό σύστημα στην ρίζα του και η αντίδραση κρατών και τραπεζών αναμένεται να εκδηλωθεί σύντομα. Η αξία του χρυσού είναι συμβατική. Το ίδιο συμβατική είναι και η αξία του ηλεκτρονικού χρυσού. Ποιός άραγε θα επικρατήσει τελικά; Κ. ΔΟΥΚΑΣ