Maritime 1-2-2021 (GB) by Maritime Media Group

MARITIME .direct

February 2021 NO. 1-2 24TH YEAR

MOLTEN-SALT REACTORS:

THE POWER SOURCE OF THE FUTURE? Flensburg Shipyard re-surfaces The Next Era: How Biden Is Already Impacting The Maritime Industry

Danish Shipping

NO. 5 in the world

COPENHAGEN, MAY 18TH - 19TH 2022

•D anish Shipping is No. 5 in the world of global operator nations • The Danish maritime industry is the world’s 7th largest in terms of exports •M ore than 10 pct. Increase in operated GT from 2017 to 18 •D anish flagged merchant fleet has grown by 25 pct. from 2017 to 2018 •B iggest Danish export business (200 billion DKK) •6 .200 employed land-based – 17.000 seafarers •1 00.000 employees in the Danish Maritime Cluster •9 8% of the Danish operated fleet, managed from the Copenhagen area

EXCUSES FOR EXHIBITING

• Organized in cooperation with Bella Center - one of the most experienced and biggest organizers of fairs in Scandinavia • The Danish maritime industry is the 8th largest in scrapping • Free entrance. Registration in advance or on arrival • Free conferences and all other activities • Two event days to concentrate and using fewer resources of the exhibitors’ staff • All activities at Bella Center - no wasted time with transport • Activities are scheduled to avoid conflicts

• The Danish maritime industry is the 12th largest in ship repairs • Half-day conferences, workshops, etc. makes it easier for employees to get permission = more visitors • Tracks with professional agendas approved by the shipowners - focusing on approved submissions from the exhibitors • Included breaks in all events, giving time to visit the exhibitors • Possibilities for the exhibitors to brand themselves with relevant tracks - both on the stand and in a special overview in the Fair Guide • Visiting wonderful Copenhagen

MAGAZINE MARITIME 1-2-2021

TOPHISTORIE

MOLTEN-SALT REACTORS: THE POWER SOURCE OF THE FUTURE? Maritime talks to Troels Schönfeldt, CEO of Seaborg Technology — physicist, entrepreneur, visionary. Mercurial, and crackling with as much energy as one of his pint-sized reactors, Troels Schönfeldt believes his floating Compact Molten Salt Reactor (CMSR) will change the energy industry forever.

THORIUM REACTORS - A POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE? Molten salt breeder reactors look good on paper, but just how applicable are they to solving the problem of low-emission maritime propulsion?

HANSTHOLM HARBOR ON FAST-TRACK TO SUCCESS The first leases have been signed securing settlers on the large dammed area of 130,000 m2 in connection with Hanstholm Harbor’s 650 million DKK port expansion. The new area has been created by the Aarhus-based construction group Aarslev A/S, which completed its extensive work in the late fall of 2020.

FLENSBURG SHIPYARD RE-SURFACES Rising like a phoenix from the ashes, the Flensburg shipyard - FSG Flensburger Schiffbaugesellschaft - is re-emerging after leading a secluded life in recent years with a looming bankruptcy hanging over its head and subsequent mass redundancies.

As the Union Jack was raised to mark the UK’s exit from the EU, there was bustle in Scandinavian shipping offices to provide the necessary ferry capacity to transport freight and goods between Ireland and the EU. A few shipping companies such as DFDS and Stena Line already rounded Skagen with Ro/Ro ferries at midnight between 31 December and 1 January on their way to Dunkirk and further south to Cherbourg and out to the English Channel.

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL FOR THE SHIPPING INDUSTRY By the end of the third quarter, Europe’s third largest port, Hamburg, could still feel the effects of the worldwide corona pandemic. With a loss in volume of 16.2 per cent in comparison to last year’s second quarter, the latest statement shows that the city’s merchants have turned a corner and raised progress by 32 million tons (-8 percent) on total freight volumes. Container revenue in the third quarter was DKK 2.3 million. TEU (-4.9 percent). According to HHM - Hamburg port’s communications and marketing department, the increase is related to foreign demand for German industrial and consumer goods.

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ISSN 2246-5022 PUBLISHER Maritime Media Group ApS CVR.: 30712471 Tangen 9 8200 Aarhus N Phone: +45 70 20 41 55

IRELAND THE PROMISED LAND FOR SCANDINAVIAN FERRIES

RESCUE VESSELS FROM TUCO TO WEST AFRICA AND THE ARCTIC Before Christmas and New Year, there was more than speed at the South Funen boat manufacturer Tuco Marine Group in Faaborg. After extensive test sailings in the waters between Bjørnø and Faaborg, the shipyard faced the delivery of its latest creation.

THE NEXT ERA: HOW BIDEN IS ALREADY IMPACTING THE MARITIME INDUSTRY This is the story of how President Joe Biden took control of the White House during the weeks after the November 2020 election, and how he has already made a significant mark on the domestic maritime industry just days in office.

EDITOR René Wittendorff Phone: +45 70 20 41 55 rw@mmg.dk JOURNALISTS Jens Nørgaard, jens@fiskerbladet.dk Daniel Christensen, dc@mmg.dk Marc Allen, uk@maritime.direct Michael McGrady, america@maritime.direct DIRECTION AND ADMINISTRATION René Wittendorff Phone: +45 70 20 41 55 rw@mmg.dk

ADS Niels Hass D: +45 7610 1156 M: + 45 2933 6606 sales@maritime.direct LAYOUT Designunivers Print: Rosendahls, Esbjerg Advertorials are produced in cooperation with our partners.

MARITIME .direct

February 2021 NO. 1-2 24TH YEAR

MOLTEN-SALT REACTORS:

THE POWER SOURCE OF THE FUTURE? Flensburg Shipyard re-surfaces The Next Era: How Biden Is Already Impacting The Maritime Industry

Next edition: 6th April 2021

Hanstholm Harbor here in bird’s eye view with the 130,000 m2 large dammed area which amongst other things is to be used for the future business development.

BY JENS NØRGAARD

HANSTHOLM HARBOR ON FAST-TRACK TO SUCCESS - AIMING TO BECOME EUROPE’S GREENEST The first leases have been signed securing settlers on the large dammed area of 130,000 m2 in connection with Hanstholm Harbor’s 650 million DKK port expansion. The new area has been created by the Aarhus-based construction group Aarslev A/S, which completed its extensive work in the late fall of 2020. Now focus it to secure future growth in the areas in the form of terminals and manufacturing companies. Among the first and largest tenants in the dam area is the fishmeal and fish oil group FF Skagen and a trawling company.

he ambitions are great for Hanstholm Harbor. With the expansion, even more emphasis is placed on commercial traffic and fishing among other points of interests. The potential is present, says port director Nils Skeby in this conversation with FiskerBladet. Therefore, I see great opportunities to attract new companies to the area as a processing industry within fishing, now that they have also completed the conversion and extension of Denmark’s largest fishery auction with a cooling auction facility that is simply “stateof-the-art”.

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In the dammed area, FF Skagen has settled on the first 20,000 m2. In addition, the company has an option of 20,000 m2. Finally, an existing trawling company in Hanstholm has settled on 4,000 m2. The following years, the idea is to move FF Skagen’s factory on Nordre Strandvej to the dammed area, which also houses the new unloading dock for industrial trawlers. The water depth at the dock is 11 meters. Regardless of the weather even the largest trawlers can go to the dock without going aground.

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For now, the journey continues by truck with fish from ship to factory. The plan is to establish a collection terminal and then later when FF Skagen moves to the new areas to establish a pipeline connection from ship to factory. The goal is to get a good flow without interruptions during unloading. The unit does not add anything new in relation to any existing activity but eases the pressure among the workers. With the new strategy that we are presenting, the Port of Hanstholm is first and foremost trying to attract new companies operating in green energy and cargo. We need to generate

PHOTO: HANSTHOLM HAVN

revenue! Container operations could be part of the solution. Therefore, I’m not planning on competing with Aalborg or Skagen – but instead create our own niche. This also applies to fishing. It is not about who is the biggest - Hanstholm or Skagen - but about giving customers and the port’s visitors the most optimal conditions, Nils Skeby says. The perspectives are interesting. “Power to X” - is the name of a new common term for how to take renewable energy and convert it into fuel – for example hydrogen. We simply take electricity from a process plant such as wind turbines and store the energy for use in the further process of transformation and use in other segments. In the long run, it can also be solar energy. The plan is to expand it in collaboration with Hanstholm Energiselskab.

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For this purpose, investments are made in new wind turbines which are placed partly at the piers and partly in the foreshore, as well as at the new pier near the dock and at Fjordline’s old customs building in the southwest. It takes a lot of money to design the new conversion, where we begin to leave the fossil fuels behind. We alone cannot do that, but with the help of funds and the right companies, it shouldn’t be impossible. The progress of the new times must also be discussed in detail with the fishermen who must “wave” goodbye to the use of the fossil fuels in favor of hydrogen or other fuel.

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PHOTO: JENS NØRGAARD

and our new operations manager and deputy director Søren Kanne Zohnesen. The latter has been promoted from within the business. With this aim, we show the outside world that we take the measures seriously. The port’s fleet of car and machines, for example, will in future run on new energy such as hydrogen. In this connection, the Port of Hanstholm is working with Thy-Mors Energi on a wind turbine project which should be approved by the authorities no later than the third quarter of 2021. Nils Skeby states that the start-up of the project itself will begin in January 2021. In June, production could start. This is the reason why, the port director continues, that on 13 January we have invited all companies at the port to a dialogue meeting about the future.

Hanstholm Harbor’s new dynamo, harbor director Nils Skeby, is planning an exciting future for the West Jutland fishing village.

To Hanstholm Harbor, the purpose of this process is for the harbor to be recognized as the greenest of its kind in the world. That is why we have hired one of the best specialists in the field of development and sales in Thy, Steen Harding Hintze, for business development. His previous results speak for themselves. For the past five years, he has been CEO of Energifonden Skive, which was behind the establishment of the

green business park Green Lab Skive. In the period 2016 to 2020, GreenLab Skive attracted investments of 1.6 billion DKK. According to Nils Skeby, Hanstholm is in the middle of a transformation process. We need to speed up this process. We do this, among other things, by adding new competencies to the organization such as Steen Harding Hintze

Four development projects are on the threshold. They are gathered in a steering group with a broad crowd of representatives of both port and city. The purpose is to raise Hanstholm’s image and give the area the right framework for growth. Therefore, they are planning to construct a “house of fishing”, a showroom for the fishing industry and new ideas will be brainstormed for an upgrade of the main road Kai Lindbergs Gade. Finally, the plan is for the Statens Kunstfond – The Danish Arts Foundation – to contribute with a project that promotes the fishing town - not only locally - but to the many tourists and others who want to study the fishing community of the future, where it is about a lot more than just fish!

PHOTO: JENS NØRGAARD

The dock North Sea Yard in the middle of the picture is a great asset for Hanstholm Harbor which has customers inside for class, inspection, painting and replacement of engines both from Norway or as here where French trawlers from the fishing town Boulogne Sur Mer out to the English Channel are visiting for an annual inspection. The ships usually operate in the waters northwest of Shetland.

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THORIUM REACTORS - A POSSIBLE ALTERNATIVE?

Molten salt breeder reactors look good on paper, but just how applicable are they to solving the problem of low-emission maritime propulsion?

PHOTO: WIKIPEDIA

fter the War, nuclear reactors were hailed as the energy source of the future and uranium became the world’s favoured nuclear fuel, but it was not the only option for nuclear power. Thorium also showed promise as a fuel source, offering cleaner, safer power with less potential for nuclear proliferation. An experimental thorium molten-salt reactor first ran at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for around 15,000 hours from 1965 to 1969, and in 1968, Glenn Seaborg announced to the US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) that a thorium-based reactor had been developed and tested. But, despite the benefits — greater safety, a greater abundance of fuel, superior physical and nuclear properties, and reduced nuclear waste — thorium reactors were side-lined and over time the technology faded from view. In 1972, the US government discontinuing research and development into thorium reactors altogether. There is a vital difference between uranium and thorium; the ability to be weaponised. The US government was interested in profitability and weapons first, and safety second. Yet many in the scientific community favoured thorium as a power source and the director of Oakridge, Alvin Weinberg, championed its greater safety. Recalling the period, Weinberg said: ’[Congressman] Chet Holifield was clearly exasperated with me, and he finally blurted out, ”Alvin, if you are concerned about the safety of reactors, then I think it may be time for you to leave nuclear energy.” I was speechless. But it was apparent to me that my style, my attitude, and my perception of the future were no longer in tune with the powers within the AEC’. Weinberg saw the potential for a new kind of reactor, one with a zero risk of meltdown, but he was forced out of the AEC and his work shelved. The arms industry had won, uranium became the nuclear fuel of choice, and the world was denied a source of safe, sustainable,

The NS Savannah, the world’s first nuclear-powered commercial ship. low-emission power. As a result, many in the scientific community have been unaware of the technology’s potential and new research has been slow in coming. The World Nuclear Association says there are seven types of thorium reactor, but molten salt reactors using a liquid fluoride salt/thorium fuel-mix show the greatest promise for marine use. Liquid fluoride thorium reactors (LFTR) are fundamentally different from uranium reactors. Their liquid salt coolant allows higher operating temperatures and if they malfunction, the salt simply solidifies and all fissile material is contained. So, on paper, at least, they would seem to be the perfect energy source for marine propulsion, offering sustainable, low-emission power and a fuel source that is three times as abundant as uranium. However, there are major hurdles

to the technology becoming commonplace. It needs funding, and that won’t happen until it can be demonstrated that thorium reactors offer a cheap alternative to fossil fuels. Investors and manufacturers want to know they will make a profit, so it’s going to take someone with capital and nerve to prove to the world that the technology works and is a viable marine power source. But an even bigger problem is the lack of a joined-up global response to climate change and the necessary international agreements that would allow nuclear-powered ships to ply the high sea and territorial waters, and to dock anywhere in the world. When those essential requirements are met, then, and only then, might we be on the lookout for thorium-powered ships on the high seas and in our harbours.

BY MARC ALLEN

MOLTEN-SALT REACTORS: THE PO Maritime talks to Troels Schönfeldt, CEO of Seaborg Technology — physicist, entrepreneur, visionary. Mercurial, and crackling with as much energy as one of his pint-sized reactors, Troels Schönfeldt believes his floating Compact Molten Salt Reactor (CMSR) will change the energy industry forever. In a Zoom conversation that ranged from the elegant simplicity at the heart of a salt-cooled reactor, to the pressing need for joined-up thinking on climate change, it soon became obvious that Schönfeldt is a man on a mission… Hi Troels, many thanks for taking the time — I’ll dive right in. One of the phrases that leapt out at me from your website was: ‘existential threats’. What do you mean by that? Climate change, pure and simple. That is the greatest threat we face. And that’s why I think it’s so vital we find a viable alternative to fossils fuels and find it fast. At Seaborg, we think the CMSR is a major part of the solution. You strike me as a man who cares deeply about the environment, but there’s an enormous elephant in the room here, isn’t there? How do people react when you say you’re going to moor a floating nuclear reactor in their city? They should look forward to cheap energy and if they want it in their back yard, they should buy some earplugs – a turbine is noisy! But seriously, there is a big difference in opinion between Europe and Southeast Asia, and our market is Asia. In developing countries, they typically don’t have that much money to spare, so they are more pragmatic: how much can we get and how fast can we get it? Right now, that means coal and gas. So, would you say that the threat of climate change is a bigger existential threat than any possible harmful effects or even the misuse of this technology? Humanity has never faced a greater threat than climate change. It makes the Cuban missile crisis look like a storm in a teacup. I recognise people’s concerns, but this new technology is very safe. We have enough climate opinions, what we need is climate action.

think it’s fair to compare it to conventional nuclear technology. Have you had any trouble getting investment? Well, the first investment came in 2018 and now we’ve got the big guys coming aboard, including Anders Holch Povlsen and Lukasz Gadowski. Is the military interested? Yes. A better question would be: are we interested in the military? The answer is no. If we get involved with the military, we may easily be excluded from the civilian market. And I sincerely hope we will need the military to solve climate change. If a foreign government said, ‘come here, we’ll fund you,’ would you go? Yes, I’ll consider anything that increases our chances of success. But actually, it’s hard to beat Denmark. We’re hiring a lot of people and we haven’t picked an easy challenge, so we need the world’s best. It would be odd if the world’s best team happened to live locally. Copenhagen is an attractive place to move to, so I’m confident we’ll attract the right talent. The fluoride salt, the crux of the whole process — where does it come from and what environmental issues are there? Fluoride salt is ubiquitous, it’s a rock, so mining is involved. Mining is always involved. But the good news is that we use way fewer resources than for example wind or solar, so we need less mining.

The difference from conventional reactors is profound. A conventional reactor has rods of fissile material and they generate energy; they also generate gases, and if there is a leak, then these gasses can escape.

Your website says three of you were drinking homebrewed beer when the idea for the CMSR struck. Whose idea was it? Well, probably mine, to begin with. I found some old research papers on the concept in about 2008 and I couldn’t get it out of my mind. The technology has been tried three times before, so it’s not new.

With the CMSR, if there’s a problem, it just shuts down. The salt/fuel mix solidifies, and everything is contained. That’s the crucial difference. The CMSR is so different that I don’t

I was studying for my Master’s and I couldn’t let it go. We’d talk about the concept while brewing beer — my friends thought I was crazy because we were born and raised anti-nuclear.

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Ask, Esben and I talked about it for several years, then one night we got so drunk that we founded a company. And that’s how it started. So, we founded the company and soon realised we needed a CEO, and I drew the short straw. I had to learn all about running a business, dealing with red-tape, and being an entrepreneur. That was a long journey, a real struggle, from starting in 2014 to securing our first investment in 2018. Was there ever a day when you felt like giving up? Well, being a CEO needs nerves of steel, that’s all I can say. We took some body blows, but you have to be able to turn a defeat into a win, don’t you? Absolutely. I was amazed to read you use a co-working space. Is that still the case? Ha! That’s a good question! We moved into a small corner office in a co-working space early 2019. But today, we occupy several floors, in fact more than half of the building, and we are just about to start installing our fourth lab - which I believe will take up more space than all of the remaining startups together. So to be fair, I don’t know if it is really a co-working space anymore. Ever been worried about being snooped on? Well, we most likely are being snooped on, but I’ll leave it at that. Fair enough… Listen, this is massive. There is huge money in energy. It’s mind-boggling. As a rule of thumb, whenever a dollar is spent, twelve cent ends up in energy. And the market size will increase tenfold over the next 20 years, as developing countries get industrialised. It’s huge. That’s what makes de-carbonising so hard: all the money tied up in energy. Getting back to the tech, can this be scaled down? Hmmm… Yes, it can, but for power generation, 200MW units are the sweet spot. Obviously, you’re asking from a maritime perspective, so you’re interested in 50-80MW, about 70-100k horsepower, something you can run a ship on.

OWER SOURCE OF THE FUTURE? When will that be possible? It will be a while... Two reasons: firstly, the maritime industry is not going to adopt nuclear until we have modular reactors on barges, so we need to prove barge-to-shore power-generation first. Secondly, the regulatory system is not ready for it. Too many nations prohibit nuclear propulsion, so your route options are severely limited. If we can get power generation up and running by 2025, and the regulatory bodies, the governments, the powers that be — if they recognise the threat we face and seize the day — if they see the urgency, the dire need for fossil-free energy, then we might see nuclear propulsion on ships by 2035. From a technological point of view, it’s not that hard. Regulatory issues and financing are the real problems. That will be quite a sobering thought for many in the maritime world because of all the buzz around salt-cooled reactors in the press… It will come. Get the technology out there, see the benefits and the maritime application will follow. I’m convinced of it. What do you think will tip the balance, shift the agenda? Well, we’ve come full circle. Money makes the world go round — it’s as simple as that. If we can make this a cheaper alternative to oil, the concept will take off. Look at oil; does it have a good public image? No. It’s dirty and it drives climate change. But, for the moment, we need it. But if Seaborgs’ investors can make a return, if the manufacturers can make a profit, and if the end-user gets what they want, I know this will work; it will give us a solution. Troels, this has been fascinating. Let’s talk again in 2035… You bet.

Troels Schönfeldt, man on a mission.

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BY JENS NØRGAARD

FLENSBURG SHIPYARD RE-SURFACES

Rising like a phoenix from the ashes, the Flensburg shipyard - FSG Flensburger Schiffbaugesellschaft - is re-emerging after leading a secluded life in recent years with a looming bankruptcy hanging over its head and subsequent mass redundancies. Political ingenuity in Germany’s northernmost federal state of Schleswig-Holstein and new investors have made it possible to save the yard and its jobs from 500 to now 360 people.

t the same time, FSG has received its first order for the construction of a new Ro/Ro ferry for delivery in April 2022. In addition, a letter of intent has been signed for the construction of a sister ship. This secures the shipyard until 2024. Precisely Ro/Ro ships have been the shipyard’s breakthrough in the international shipping market after the turn of the millennium with interest from DFDS and Turkey.

The man who pushed the yard in the beginning of the 2000’s was the dynamic CEO Peter Sierk and the investment company Münchner Orlando Management GmbH. In 2008, the company took over the shipyard from the family-owned company Oldendorff Carriers in Lübeck. A new strategy was put forward, which took into consideration new transport routes and opportunities in shipbuilding. The transport of goods between countries and regions had

to be simplified and systematized. It was the introduction to the new freight ferry types Roll On/Roll Off. It happened in close dialogue with DFDS, the Turkish shipping company Ulusay Sealines and Canadian Oceanex. On top of that, a couple of heavy lift vessels followed to Roll Dock in the Netherlands. SERIES PRODUCTION IN FLENSBURG The fact that the businessman Peter Sierk dared to embark on the many projects is not least

Among the handful of successful ships from the 2000s at Flensburg shipyard are Ro/Ro vessels such as Ficaria Seaways from 2006. The ship sails today on the company’s freight route between Gothenburg, Brevik in southern Norway and Immingham UK. PHOTO: DFDS

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due to timely care in the 1980s under previous owners. Three large berths had to give way. In the area, the yard built the world’s largest covered shipbuilding hall with a total length of 275 meters for indoor hull production and engine installation. Accommodation including wheelhouse and more was built in a single module at a Polish shipyard and freight by barge to Flensburg for assembly. This form of innovation helped to renew the German shipyards in close competition with productions in Denmark and the Far East. In 2019, FSG changed ownership again now to the global investment company Tennor Holding B.V. (formerly Sapinda Holding, ed.). The then owner - the Norwegian conglomerate Siem Europe S.a.r.l., (“Siem Europe”) gave up. The Norwegians took over FSG in 2014 and, in their five-year ownership of the shipyard, managed to build no less than eight large Ro/ Ro vessels as well as a ferry for traffic between the Scottish mainland and the stormy island of Harris/Lewis and the town of Stornoway. The latter location is known in maritime circles for its rescuers. Many a sailor can thank these

people for being alive after rescuing from sea distress from a foaming sea between Orkney and Scotland. In addition, the Siem people, under the ownership of FSG, built a larger oil exploration vessel for their own shipping company.

For the border city of Flensburg between Denmark and Germany, the shipyard’s rescue is the “pat on the back” that was needed to regain focus on the city, as the place where, with global eyes, Ro/Ro technology is once again seen as a brand for international shipbuilding.

THE NEW SHIPS The new Ro/Ro ships from Flensburg will have a length of 210 meters. The width will be 26 m. The pile pull is 4,007 tons. The two sister ships are equipped with ship engines of 2x 9,600 kW. The engine manufacturer is not stated. Each vessel is equipped with 35 cabins, of which 12 are for drivers and 34 are for crew members.

NAZIS SUBMARINES Flensburg City Council and especially in the state parliament of Schleswig-Holstein, they hope for peace around the border town’s large workplace. The shipyard was founded in 1872 and has had a tumultuous existence ever since. Between 1941 and 1945, the Nazis built 28 submarines. English bombing raids at the shipyard could not disrupt the construction of the submarines until May 19, 1943. At that time, 22 bombs fell on the equipment yard and 48 on the shipyard itself. The two units were located a few kilometers apart in the outer part of the Port of Flensburg.

The yard has not stated a speed range nor a shipping company that takes the vessels in bareboat charters. On the other hand, the shipyard says that the new Ro / Ro Ships are equipped with the most innovative technology seen so far in Germany. It also includes a further development of the unique loading and unloading system, which already characterizes the first generation of Ro/Ro units from FSG World Wide.

As in the case of the incorrect bombing of the French school in Copenhagen, the violent bombing also affected the Danish kindergarten as a neighbor of FSG. Two teachers and 15 children were killed in the bombing.

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BY JENS NØRGAARD

ELBE CROSSING RESUMED WITH LNG FERRY From March 2021, a new attempt will be made to re-establish the ferry crossing between Brunsbüttel between the outlet of the Kiel Canal in the Elbe and Cuxhaven on the opposite side of Lower Saxony at the mouth of the river in the North Sea. The newly established shipping company Elbeferry GmbH is deploying the Norwegian LNG and fjord ferry Fanafjord in a charter event. For financial reasons, the shipping company Elb-Link had to abandon the crossing in 2017. The shipping company sailed on the route with two double-ended ferries which are currently operated on crossings in the Arctic area of Eastern Canada.

he initiators behind the shipping company Elbeferry GmbH believe in the possibilities and take the leap and re-establish the crossing, which since the closure in 2017 has been sorely missed. In the beginning only with a single double-tender ferry

like the one chartered from the ferry company Fjord 1 in Florø north of Bergen. This is an LNG ferry built in 2007 and deployed in the fjord systems and the near coastal areas such as Bjørnafjorden adjacent to Europavej 39. That road connects one of the most

FACTS Fanafjord has room for 150 cars as well as 28 trucks. In addition, there is room for 600 people. The ferry length is 129.80 m, the width is 18.7 m, the draft 4.7 m. Fanafjord is equipped with 2x 16cyl. 4T + 2x 112 cyl. 4T DM (Rolls-Royce Marine AS, Bergen), 16,832 HP

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important transport corridors in Western Norway between Stavanger and Bergen. Fanafjord sailed on the fjord until the layup in 2019. The ferry is currently being upgraded in the home port. The crossing between the two port cities on the Elbe has been a major shortage, the head of Cuxport port development and logistics, Roland Schneider, tells Maritime. The move, when it now gets underway, will mean big savings for one of Cuxport’s biggest customers, Siemens Gamesa. In future, transports of Nacelles, tower elements and rotor blades can again be transported directly by block wagon from the production site in the ”wind town” Brande in central Jutland, and sailed in direct line with the ferry from Brunsbüttel to Cuxhaven and continue into the Electronics Group’s own storage area. Crossing with potential The development manager for the Cuxport port division, Roland Schneider, also

expects tourists from Schleswig-Holstein, Denmark, Norway and Sweden to this often-overlooked corner of Germany, where large public investments have improved infrastructure. Motorists avoid the eye of the needle Hamburg and the continued long drive towards Bremen on the Hansa line. It makes it easier to get to Holland and the Benelux. The chartered ferry for the future crossing is as created for the crossing. With a service speed of 21 knots, the ferry can make the crossing between the two cities at the mouth of the Elbe in 60 minutes. TRAFFIC CLOSE TO COLLAPSE Whether the newly established ferry company can survive depends on the economy, but all forecasts points to a potential success. The traffic on the northern German motorways is close to collapsing, says the parliamentary secretary of state in the Lower Saxony Parliament in Hanover, Enak Ferlemann, from the Christian Democratic

Union CDU. Due to the traffic intensity, the shuttle ferries between Wischhafen on the southern side of the Elbe near the town of Stade and Glückstadt on the northern part of Holstein are no longer enough. The waiting time is often between 2 to 3 hours to the great annoyance of road users. The crossing is operated by three ferries. The “old” Flensburg shipping company, Förde Rederei Seetouristik FRS, has just taken over the route. The traffic development of the road network in northern Germany is the reason why we are politically interested in the ferry connection between Cuxhaven and Brunsbüttel having optimal conditions for the start of the route across the Elbe. The initiative is backed by the shipping company Erwin Strahlmann and the Holstein energy group MTB New Energy, both Brunsbüttel and a member of the board of the new ferry company.

The LNG ferry Fanafjord during entry to a ferry berth in Bjørnafjorden in Hordaland on the west coast.

PHOTO: FJORD 1

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BY JENS NØRGAARD

LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL FOR THE SHIPPING INDUSTRY

PHOTO: HHM/HASENPUSCH

By the end of the third quarter, Europe’s third largest port, Hamburg, could still feel the effects of the worldwide corona pandemic. With a loss in volume of 16.2 per cent in comparison to last year’s second quarter, the latest statement shows that the city’s merchants have turned a corner and raised progress by 32 million tons (-8 percent) on total freight volumes. Container revenue in the third quarter was DKK 2.3 million. TEU (-4.9 percent). According to HHM - Hamburg port’s communications and marketing department, the increase is related to foreign demand for German industrial and consumer goods.

/ PAGE 16

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ptimism south of the Danish-German border makes its mark on the Port of Aarhus, which on Wednesday 3. December set a Danish record for turnover by lifting container number 574,747 over the quay. This is the largest number ever on Danish ground. As in Germany, it is Danish consumer goods to the Asian countries such as pork to China that adorn the accounts. The People’s Republic’s own production has almost stalled due to African swine fever. In addition, the volume of containers has generally increased for both imports and exports. It paints a positive picture of the current situation in the Danish business community. Here, the Port of Aarhus has been chosen as the preferred shipping port, says the port’s CEO, Thomas Haber Borch. AARHUS AN IMPORTANT PARTNER In the first three quarters of the year, a total of 93.2 million tons of goods was unloaded and loaded in the Port of Hamburg. General cargo amounted to 65.2 million. tons (-9.9 pct.). In the area of bulk goods such as granules, in-

cluding liquefied gas, oil and petrochemicals in general, 28 million tons was handled (-12.4 pct.). In addition, 6.3 million was raised. TEU, (20-foot standard container), which is a decline of 9.9 per cent. Looking at the handling of containers with Hamburg’s 10 most important partners in the first three quarters of 2020, there are large differences, mostly in terms of volume, i.e. to China and vice versa. The People’s Republic is Hamburg’s most important trading partner but has seen a decline in turnover of -11.3 per cent. The decline could not be made up in trade with the other partners. Everyone had to note a minus including Denmark (-3.4 per cent), Sweden (-11.8 per cent), South Korea (-11.9 per cent) and Poland (-9.6 per cent). On the positive top ten list are trade with the USA (+0.1 per cent), Singapore (+7.1), the UK (+41.0 per cent) and Malaysia (+ 5.5 per cent). AMERICAN FIGURES ARE A BIG SURPRISE Based on the figures, it is especially the United States that surprises due to the lack of demand for goods from Western Europe, (Germany),

and based on the huge infection rates that the corona pandemic has left behind. In relation to the growth in container handling between Germany and the UK, the Brexit negotiations have had an impact. Merchants in the United Kingdom have been more than nervous about not being able to get their goods home from Europe before any new customs walls would result in a blockade and accumulated goods. All boxes in the UK were quickly sent as empty goods to Europe for loading. The inventories in the third quarter in Hamburg are an important incentive for where improvements can continue to be made. However, it is already clear that Hamburg will not reach last year’s record numbers when HHM’s CEO Axel Mattern makes the final figures up after the fourth quarter. The import-export side is currently decreasing due to lower steel production due to decline in iron ore and coal production. On the export side, the figures are increasing slightly due to improved sales conditions for agricultural products such as grain and fertilizers, but it is all worth counting, they say in the North German city of Hamburg.

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PHOTO: JENS NØRGAARD

The new environmental ship which was briefly presented in the latest issue of FiskerBladet 12/2020 has now been handed over to the Norwegian customer. The ship will operate on the world’s longest coastline from Oslo Fjord to Kirkenes in the north at the Russian border. On the test ride, it reached a top speed of 37 knots.

BY JENS NØRGAARD

RESCUE VESSELS FROM TUCO TO WEST AFRICA AND THE ARCTIC

Before Christmas and New Year, there was more than speed at the South Funen boat manufacturer Tuco Marine Group in Faaborg. After extensive test sailings in the waters between Bjørnø and Faaborg, the shipyard faced the delivery of its latest creation; a 15 meter long special boat for an environmental study of water quality on the seabed on the world’s probably longest coastline from Oslo Fjord to Kirkenes in the north close to the Russian border.

he vessel with a very low noise level is a so-called day boat with a top speed of 37 knots. The vessel is primarily going to be used at the large aquaculture farms for salmon farming in both fjords and the open sea. The crew of two or four men must investigate whether the breeders and thus the farms cause more pollution to the environment than allowed. The vessel was ordered by Akva Kompetence in the coastal town of Rørvik in Flotanger Municipality north of Trondheim. The company is private but works for the Norwegian environmental authorities with a special task of keeping an eye on the many aquaculture farms. The environmental ship is distinguished

/ PAGE 18

by extremely good seaworthiness. According to TUCO’s top manager, Jonas Pedersen, this can be attributed to the slim construction and the width of 3.5 m as well as the vessel’s deep V-profile. GOOD CRAFTSMANSHIP If you can use the term “a beautiful ship”, it is probably the closest you get to the description, when you look at the vessel for the first time and get on board for a test cruise. It is successful and good workmanship in every way. The decor is as it should be on a day boat. Nothing extra vagant but a bigger forepeak for stowage. This is followed by a large room

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with seats and worktables in the port side. On the starboard side, preparations have been made for the assembly of IT equipment for the preparation of analysis, a pantry and a coffee machine, as well as a mini laboratory for the study of water abstraction and samples from the seabed near the fish farms and below. Aft, there is a shower and toilet on the starboard side. From the afterdeck there is access to a small workshop for solving various tasks. SPECIAL WORK BOATS FOR STORSTRØM The ship design is part of TUCO’s ProZero series, which has been praised both abroad and in Denmark, where the latest production in the form of special work boats has been used in

In bedding in the construction halls, TUCO is now working on a set of triplets - three so-called daugther Crafts - Fast Rescue Boats - of 11 meters and thus four meters shorter than the environmental ship to Norway. These are lifeboats ordered by the Dutch shipping company Wagenborg, which are well known in most ports in Scandinavia. The company operates worldwide with both break bulk, bulk cargo and special vessels for the wind turbine sector as well as Ro-Ro-speed in the Baltic Sea. Most recently, the company has opened a route between Oxelösund northeast of Norrköbing to Riga - the gateway to Russia and Belarus.

Most recently, the Dutch shipping company has frequented several of the West African countries such as Côte d’Ivoire as well as Gabon in western Central Africa just to name a few of the countries that are now part of the network at Wagenborg.

PHOTO: JENS NØRGAARD

the current construction of the new Storstrøm Bridge. With the vessels, you are able to quickly transport employees such as concrete finishers and engineers. The latter have their very own boat filled with various IT equipment. In a matter of moments, it can arrive at critical locations and ensure help.

ON MISSION IN THE ARCTIC One of the new lifeboats will sail in West Africa under the flag of the British container shipping company PO Nedlloyd. The second rescue ship will receive a Daughter Craft for a Russian icebreaker, which will be delivered during 2021. The ship will be deployed in the Arctic Ocean north of Svalbard. There is no information about the third ship yet, Jonas Pedersen tells FiskerBladet. Common for the three vessels is that they are hermetically sealed for water penetration. They are reinforced according to the latest sets of rules, which makes it exciting to follow the ships in their various work areas in order to give Faaborg Værftet experience in future production.

From the toilet on the environmental ship there is a good view as here in Faaborg Marina before delivery to the Norwegian environmental experts.

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BY JENS NØRGAARD

IRELAND THE PROMISED LAND FOR SCANDINAVIAN FERRIES As the Union Jack was raised to mark the UK’s exit from the EU, there was bustle in Scandinavian shipping offices to provide the necessary ferry capacity to transport freight and goods between Ireland and the EU. A few shipping companies such as DFDS and Stena Line already rounded Skagen with Ro/Ro ferries at midnight between 31 December and 1 January on their way to Dunkirk and further south to Cherbourg and out to the English Channel.

egardless of the massive amount of already undergone preparations for both shipping companies, there was still a bundle of paperwork that needed to be in place. They managed in every way to solve the tasks of reorganizing ferries and chartering ferry capacity to the new crossings to the south-east ferry port in Ireland Rosslare which Stena Line already sails with the former Frederikshavn ferry - now “Stena Europe” - on the crossing to Fishguard in Wales. During the autumn months, Stena operated its regular ferry route between Rosslare and Cherbourg with the former Bornholm ferry “Hammerodde” now “Stena Vinga”. That ferry has these days been deployed between Gothenburg and Kiel while the shipping company’s large ferry “Stena Germanica” is at the shipyard at Fayyard on Lindø. In addition, Stena has also moved around on other vessels in its fleet. “Stena Horizon” now supports the crossing between Cherbourg and Rosslare where Gotland Bolaget is also chartered by DFDS with the available ferry “Visby”. The ferry usually sails on the Oskarsham and Visby crossing.

/ PAGE 20

However, nothing is normal anymore since Brexit came into force. On top of that, the Irish have now seen for themselves the possibilities after Brexit. They have launched their newest ferry “W.B Yeats” based in Dublin. On a side note, a few years ago the Irish shipping company received “W. B. Yeats” by FSG Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft. The ferry was severely delayed from the yard, and shortly after, the yard was declared bankrupt. Prior to that, FSG had become known for its successful ships - the Ro/Ro ferries to DFDS up through the 2000’s. Today, FSG has risen like a phoenix from the ashes and is launching a new series of Ro/Ro freight ferries. Through a rapid reorganization on the Baltic Sea, DFDS released the Ro/Ro ferry ”Optima Seaways” on the crossing between Karlshamn and Klaipeda. The ferry was replaced by ”Patria Seaways” which otherwise has a fixed route between Paldiski in western Estonia and the Swedish east coast port of Kapellskär.

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In addition, DFDS succeeded in chartering the Italian-owned Ro/Ro ship ”Kerry”, which has both been chartered in the Mediterranean, as well as crossings between the UK-Bilbao, Portugal-France and between Germany and the Baltics. Together with ”Optima Seaways”, the ferries now shuttle at a fixed weekly schedule between Dunkirk and Rosslare. The crossing takes almost 24 hours. For exporters and transport companies, the DFDS initiative enables direct and paperless truck transport between Ireland and the other EU countries. To this must be added reduced costs and less waiting time and the possibility of canceling the customs procedure that now applies to transport via the UK and the crossing of for example Dover to Calais or Dunkirk. DFDS route manager, Aidan Coffey, says that the ferries are an important alternative to the British ”land bridge” for Irish industry. In this connection, Dunkirk and the other port cities constitute an important strategic location with easy access to the French capital Paris. In addition, Dunkirk is also close to the Belgian border with further access to the Netherlands, Germany and Poland.

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BY MICHAEL MCGRADY

WASHINGTON — On January 20, 2021, Joseph R. Biden took his oath of office. After his inaugural address calling for national unity, the new president quickly signed several executive orders undoing years of policy implemented by his predecessor. Biden, a fixture of progressive politics and the oldest man ever to hold the office of president, was now at the zenith of power overlooking the District of Columbia and the rest of the country. As a city, Washington, D.C., was built at the mercy of wetlands and temperate forest biomes. Rivers and streams flow down towards Chesapeake Bay’s estuary — known for narrow shipping lanes to ports in Maryland to the north and Virginia at the bay’s mouth. Washington isn’t a city built on maritime trade. It’s a seat of lawmaking, regulation, diplomacy, and democratic traditions of the U.S. Given the city’s natural history and its national importance, it was no wonder former President Donald Trump called the mecca of American governance a literal swamp early into his administration in 2017. Of course, it’s not a swamp. However, the derivatives of Trump’s so-called ”outsider” persona he cultivated on the 2016 presidential campaign trail reach their apex when reviewing his dealings with long-standing regulatory precedents set by preceding administrations. By following this policy, Trump fell under constant scrutiny for every action he took. So is the case for the tangled, interlinked design of the domestic and global maritime sector. For many, Trump was viewed as a devout proponent of heavy industries, including shipping and maritime-oriented economic segments. That sentiment could soon change, though. A few days into his presidency, Joe Biden has quickly proven himself as a supporter of the maritime industry. In the eyes of industry groups and leaders, this is the case as many observe the new president with eagerness and reserved optimism.

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CHANGING TIDES Biden, and his running mate, Kamala Harris, won most of the U.S. popular vote and the electoral college during the November 3rd presidential election last year. That victory came months after Biden was selected as the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee to compete against Trump. Nevertheless, Biden successfully campaigned and organized a coalition of politicians and high-profile government officials to serve him in a would-be Biden presidency. After polls closed nationwide on Election Day, it became clear to the majority of the American public that the former Vice President and U.S. Senator from Delaware would replace the controversial Trump. Following the election results, the Electoral College of the United States confirmed Biden’s victory and forwarded their certification to the Congress. There, amid an insurrection by pro-Trump rioters and the temporary occupation of the U.S. Capitol Building, the vast majority of the Congress confirmed the win once more, legitimizing the incoming Biden administration. For those who don’t understand the complexities of the U.S. government, the winner of the presidential election is entitled to the outgoing administration’s support to facilitate a peaceful and efficient transition of power to the next. Involving a variety of contributing factors, the Trump White House blocked Biden’s transition team. Under election laws, a president’s transition team cannot fully access government agencies and computer systems without the confirmation of the head of the General Services Administration (GSA). This cabinet member, appointed by the outgoing president, holds the responsibility to certify the election results and approve the transition activities. This applies to all government agencies in the executive branch, including the Department of Transportation

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and the agencies responsible for regulating transit infrastructure. Trump’s GSA head, Emily Murphy, declined to confirm the election results and begin the transition between the two administrations. Murphy eventually accepted the results, with much bitterness and at the sake of her career, by opening up the government to the new Biden-backed bureaucrats and beginning the transition of power. DOWN TO BUSINESS, SETTING THE TONE, AND THE JONES ACT The Biden Administration made it clear that things will change, and quickly. After a few full days into his presidency, Biden issued an executive order affirming his support for American shipping as defined under the Jones Act. The Jones Act is a U.S. shipping regulation that was signed into law in 1920. The act requires goods that are shipped from one American port to another to be transported on a US-built vessel that is US-owned, US-flagged, and crewed by U.S. citizens and legal, permanently residing noncitizens. ”The President will continue to be a strong advocate for the Jones Act and its mandate that only US-flag vessels carry cargo between U.S. ports, which supports American production and America’s workers,” reads a statement issued by the White House on January 25. ”With the signing of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act, the Jones Act has also been affirmed as an opportunity to invest in America’s workers as we build offshore renewable energy, in line with the President’s goals to build our clean energy future here in America.” Adopting this policy stance has signaled the domestic maritime industry a sign of protection and legitimacy from the White House. Mike Roberts, the American Maritime Partnership president, applauded the president’s support for the Jones Act in the president’s ”Buy American” order.

”With this order, American maritime will have greater confidence for the next several years to make investments in American vessels and maritime infrastructure while furthering environmental stewardship, efficiency, and support of our homeland and national security objectives,” Roberts said. Industry leaders also applauded the order. For instance, Tom Crowley, the chief executive of the Crowley Maritime Corporation, said that he praised the ”administration for moving aggressively to grow the U.S. maritime industry” and putting ”America on a road to recovery and prosperity.” The White House has yet to release the official text of the executive order. BUTTIGIEG AND THE FUTURE OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Former Mayor of South Bend, In., Pete Buttigieg, was named the U.S. secretary of transportation designee by Biden soon after the democrat won the November 3 election. Buttigieg has appeared before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation for the constitutionally-mandated confirmation process for new political appointees in the

executive branch. After several days of mostly positive cross-examination, the committee voted 21 to 3 in favor of Buttigieg’s nomination. Now, the final vote will advance to the entire Senate for one more confirmation vote. The Senate Democratic Leadership confirmed that a final vote is expected as early as this week. Buttigieg thanked the Senate Commerce Committee for its vote of support and said that he would join with members of the committee to “get to work on infrastructure and building our economy back, better.” Once he overcomes the Senate’s final vote, Buttigieg will assume control over the Department of Transportation.

A PANDEMIC-SIZED ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM This magazine asked a spokesperson for the White House if the administration could comment on the impact of COVID-19 on the maritime industry. The spokesperson, who asked to remain anonymous, referred us to the Department of Transportation with our inquiry. However, per the spokesperson’s direction, the department sent us back to the White House press office. Despite the promise reported here, Maritime has yet to hear back from federal public health and industry officials.

In the U.S., the department regulates virtually every component of the American transit infrastructure. This includes the shipping industries through the U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD), a crucial element in its overall regulatory toolbox.

From an industry standpoint, the new president has done much to support shipping and maritime transit in a short time. Time will be the deciding factor, though, when it comes to passing judgment on how well Biden and his cabinet secretariats will work.

The administration named Lucinda Lessley as deputy administrator for MARAD.

All we can do now is wait and see.

Until a political appointee is determined to serve as the agency’s permanent administrator, Lessley will serve as the acting administrator.

Michael McGrady is the Americas Correspondent for Maritime and Maritime Direct online. He can be reached by email at america@maritime.direct.

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