The Shah Deniz consortium has reached an important milestone and approved the decision to commence Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) on the estimated $25 billion Shah Deniz Stage 2 project.
This was officially announced in Baku today during the meeting between the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan H.E. Ilham Aliyev and Bob Dudley, Group Chief Executive of BP, the Operator of Shah Deniz, who is on a working visit to Azerbaijan.
The Shah Deniz Stage 2 project will bring gas from the Caspian Sea to markets in Turkey and Europe, opening up the 'Southern Gas Corridor'. Achieving this important milestone allows the consortium to maintain its target for first gas exports around the end of 2017.
The Shah Deniz 2 project is set to produce 16 billion cubic metres of gas per year. The entry into FEED represents the start of a key phase in the project during which engineering studies will be refined, further wells will be drilled, commercial agreements will be finalised and key construction contracts will commence.
During the FEED phase of the project, the Shah Deniz consortium will finalise its selection of export routes across Turkey and into Europe.
Rashid Javanshir, President of the Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey Region of BP, said: ''We are pleased to announce this major step forward. Over the past two years we have made substantial progress on all the individual components of this mega-project. Engineering studies, commercial agreements and the support of the State of Azerbaijan and other governments give the Shah Deniz consortium the confidence to embark upon this FEED phase.''
''With over 30 trillion cubic feet of gas resources, Shah Deniz is truly a giant field. And with more than 26 wells, two new platforms, a terminal expansion and up to 4000km of new pipelines to Europe, this chain of major projects represent one of the largest oil and gas developments in the world,' he added.
Shah Deniz Stage 2 is expected to add a further 16 billion cubic meters per year (bcma) of gas production to the approximately 9 bcma from Shah Deniz Stage 1.
This Stage 2 development of the Shah Deniz field, which lies some 70 kilometres offshore in the Caspian, is expected to include two new bridge-linked production platforms; 26 subsea wells to be drilled with 2 semi-submersible rigs; 500 km of subsea pipelines built at up to 550m of water depth; a 16 bcma upgrade for the South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP); and expansion of the Sangachal Terminal. Further pipelines will be built and expanded to transport Shah Deniz gas through Turkey and Europe.
Gas sales and transit agreements were signed in October 2011 with BOTAS, the Turkish pipeline company, and the Turkish Government, - all within an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) signed by the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Turkey. Since that date, agreements have been signed to allow the Trans Anatolia Pipeline to commence engineering studies for potential gas transportation across Turkey. Three options are being considered to carry gas into Europe: the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) with a route to Italy; Nabucco West taking gas from Turkish-European border through Eastern Europe to the West and the South East Europe Pipeline (SEEP) taking gas through Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania. The Shah Deniz consortium will make a final route selection in 2013.
Source BP Press Office
MAN awarded order for 250 articulated CNG buses
MAN will deliver 250 MAN Lion's City G buses with CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) drive to the Turkish transport company EGO-Ankara by 2013. The MAN vehicles are the first natural-gas-powered articulated buses to go into service in Turkey. The first 50 buses will be delivered by September 2012. These will be followed by 25 vehicles every month up to the summer of 2013. An option has also been placed for a further 50 of these buses.
At the beginning of the nineties, EGO-Ankara started converting a large part of its fleet to gas in order to keep the city's air cleaner. Today, with 1,090 MAN Lion's Classic CNG vehicles, the company runs the world's largest fleet of gas-powered buses. The 18-metre long articulated buses that have now been ordered are equipped with four doors and a fold-out ramp for baby carriages and persons in wheelchairs. The vehicles have 36 seats and standing room for 116 passengers and will be built at the MAN plant in Ankara. They are powered by the E28 engine, a particularly eco-friendly 310-hp six-cylinder natural-gas unit. To take some of the load off the driver, EGO-Ankara chose a six-speed automatic transmission.
MAN is a leader in natural-gas buses and has already delivered more than 5,000 natural-gas-powered buses and bus chassis with natural-gas drive. MAN's share of the European market for these buses has averaged over 44 percent over the past eight years. This success is based solidly on MAN's modern natural-gas-fired engines, which are available with five ratings between 220 hp and 310 hp.
Source MAN SE
CA-NEWS (UZ) - The Government of Uzbekistan approved a programme on repairing roads of general and inter-economic use in rural areas for 2012.
Cabinet of Ministers of Uzbekistan adopted a resolution “On programme on repairing roads of general and inter-economic use in rural areas for 2012” on April 9.
The preliminary cost of the programme makes up 222.794 billion soums. At the same time, Republican Road Fund will allocate 108 billion soums and other part (114.794 billion soums) will be financed from state and local budgets.
In particular, it is planned to conduct capital repair works at A-373 (Tashkent-Kokand-Andijan), A-380 (Guzar-Nukus-Kungrad-Beinau), M-34 (Tashkent-Chinaz-Gulistan), M-39 (Tashkent-Termez), M-39 b (Tashkent ring road), etc.
The document banned to conduct road repair works in parallel with designing process. The works should be conducted in line with design estimates and registrar of defects and expenses.
central asian news service
http://en.ca-news.org/news:468501/
CA-NEWS (UZ) - Management of the National Holding Company "Uzbekneftegaz" met with representatives of the oil company Foster Wheeler Intercontinental Corporation, where the parties discussed cooperation projects in the field of gas chemistry.
The sides discussed prospects of cooperation between companies, in particular within the framework of projects carried out in Uzbekistan for gas products, said the press service of Uzbekneftegaz on April 17. It is noted that the Swiss company Foster Wheeler has extensive experience in the design of such facilities. Foster Wheeler considers Uzbekistan as a promising area for opening an engineering center.
central asian news service
http://en.ca-news.org/news:468531/
CA-NEWS (TJ) - Kharkiv Open Joint Stock Company "Turboatom" shipped equipment for the hydroturbine of Rogun hydropower station that is under construction in Tajikistan, said the official website of the Ukrainian company.
"The enterprise carries on delivery of the equipment of two radiaxial hydroturbines of unit capacity of 640 MW (hydro aggregates number 5 and 6) set out in the 90s," said a statement.
This equipment may be delivered by air, as it was with the equipment for hydro power plants "Sangtuda-1" and "Sangtuda-2." Earlier, Uzbekistan said that it would allow the equipment for Rogun to pass through its territory, as Tashkent acts against the construction.
Construction of the station was launched in 1976, but after the collapse of the USSR, all work was suspended. The resumption of construction began in 2004.
The contract for the delivery was signed in March 2010. The station is built on Vakhsh River and is part of Vakhsh cascade, being its upper stage.
According to the project, the dam of Rogun will be the tallest in the world - 335 meters in height. Its design capacity is 3,600 MW.
Construction of hydropower is planned to be implemented in several stages, the power of the first stage should be 400 MW with annual output of 5 billion kilowatt-hours. In total, the station will have six generating units.
central asian news service
http://en.ca-news.org/news:468481/
Abu Dhabi - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called upon all parts of the aviation value chain in the Gulf region to work together on issues critical to aviation’s ability to serve as a catalyst for economic growth.
Aviation has been at the center of the economic transformation in the Gulf region over the past 25 years. A study by Oxford Economics shows aviation in the Middle East supports 2.7 million jobs and $129 billion in GDP. Aviation’s role is set to grow rapidly as international passenger numbers rise from 77.1 million in 2010 to 220 million in 2030.
“Aviation’s ability to play a leading role in GDP growth is not guaranteed. It depends on having the right conditions in place to support competitive sustainable businesses. Many of these are beyond the direct control of airlines, and most require industry and government to work together with a common vision and purpose,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s Director General and CEO in his address to the Global Aerospace Summit in Abu Dhabi.
Tyler identified a 4 point agenda for the region based on safety, security, infrastructure and the environment:
Safety: 2011 was the safest year in aviation history, with an accident rate of one Western-built jet hull loss for every 2.7 million flights, which is a 39% improvement on 2010. In the Middle East and North Africa, there was one hull loss for every 500,000 flights. “If aviation is to continue to deliver on its immense promise, safety must continue to be addressed as a community, working in partnership with governments and based on global standards, such as the IATA Operational Safety Audit,” said Tyler.
Infrastructure: The MENA region has invested more than $100 billion on airport projects. Tyler highlighted that this investment must be matched by similar commitments to efficient air traffic management (ATM) through harmonization and optimal routings. However Tyler warned that “Technology for technology’s sake and gold-plated solutions will not help us to reduce emissions, save fuel or increase airspace capacity. A better alternative is to work in close cooperation to develop operational procedures using existing and deployed technology that offer a sustainable business case for all,” said Tyler.
Environment: Aviation’s ability to fulfill future global demand for connectivity is contingent upon sustainability. To address aviation’s 2% contribution to man-made global CO2 emissions, airlines, airports, ANSPs and manufacturers have committed to (1) improve aircraft fuel efficiency by 1.5% annually to 2020; (2) cap net CO2 emissions from 2020; and (3) cut net carbon emissions from air transport in half by 2050 compared to 2005.
Tyler recognized that Qatar Airways, Rolls-Royce and others have formed the Qatar Advanced Biofuel Platform consortium to develop the world’s first large scale algae bio-jet value chain. “This is a positive development. To move from large scale use of sustainable biofuels for aviation we need governments around the world to initiate policies that will attract investment and de-risk the scaling-up of production,” said Tyler.
Security: IATA is developing a Checkpoint of the Future that will differentiate screening using passenger information that is already being collected for immigration purposes. This will be combined with technology that allows passengers to walk through checkpoints without stopping, disrobing or unpacking. “We have received support from major stakeholders, such as the European Commission, the Chinese government, the US Department of Homeland Security and Interpol. Sixteen countries have also endorsed a statement of principles for the checkpoint. I hope to see Middle East states signing up to the principles soon,” said Tyler.
Source IATA
Additional synergies in commercial vehicle and engine production between Europe and Latin America operations
MAN is continuing its expansion in the Latin American market in 2012: the launch of the TGX heavy truck series will see MAN-branded trucks produced in Brazil and sold in Central and South America for the first time ever. More synergies between the European and South American commercial vehicle businesses can also be found under the hood: most of the new VW Constellation ADVANTECH trucks are now powered by MAN D08 engines. The European-designed engine model was customized to the local emerging markets' needs and is now going to be produced in Brazil for the first time. It meets the P7 standard, which has been in place there since January 2012. The P7 emission standard is comparable with the European Euro V standard.
MAN Latin America continues to make VW-branded vehicles and sell them. To start with, three TGX truck models boasting over 400 horsepower will now be produced locally for the Latin American market in Brazil for the first time. All MAN vehicles meet the recently introduced Euro V emission standard. The TGX premium series will enable MAN Latin America to expand its portfolio in the extra heavy segment and consolidate its standing as Brazil's market leader - a position which it has held uncontested since 2003.
The new VW Constellation ADVANTECH series, which has been available on the Brazilian market since January 2012, shows how joint cooperation between Europe and South America can go even further. In addition to a large number of innovations, the main advantages of the new vehicles are the MAN D08 engines they feature. Thanks to a built-in EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system, the MAN D08 also meets the P7 emission standard introduced in Brazil this year. The Brazilian versions of the engine in the VW Constellation ADVANTECH series range from 190 to 280 horsepower.
MAN has adapted the TGX series vehicles to local needs for production in Brazil, testing them over 6 million kilometers and making 200 product modifications so that they meet the requirements of the growth markets in Central and South America. Local development demanded investments of approximately €40 million, as well as the construction of a new training center and a parts distribution hub. The Brazilian Development Center is located in the Resende plant, where an exclusive MAN assembly line was also built in cooperation with European engineers. The manufacturing capacity per year is set to reach 5,000 TGX vehicles.
Source MAN SE
THE Port of Long Beach posted a 12 per cent year-on-year increase in March container volume to 461,600 TEU, port officials announced, giving rise to hopes of continued recovery, reports the Long Beach Press-Telegram.
After February's decline - attributed to the timing of this year's Chinese New Year - cargo bounced back in March, port officials said.
Imports boxes increased 18.3 per cent while exports were up 10 per cent year on year. Import containers accounted for 226,150 TEU in March, compared to 191,200 TEU in the same period last year. Export containers hit 144,850 TEU compared to 131,750 TEU in March 2011.
Year to date, volumes were down 2.9 per cent, compared to the first three months of 2011. Empties were stable, up 1.5 per cent to 90,600 TEU compared to 89,250 TEU a year ago.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
SWISS forwarding giant Kuehne + Nagel's net profit fell 14.2 per cent to CHF133 million (US$145.6 million) in 2011, having been slashed by an EU antitrust fine of CHF65 million, which led to "unsatisfactory financial results in the first quarter", the company conceded.
"Nevertheless, we achieved growth above market average," declared Kuehne + Nagel International CEO Reinhard Lange.
First quarter revenues were stable year on year at CHF4.83 billion, sustained by a 5.4 per cent year on year increase in freight volume being outweighed by cost increases and lower margins in the forwarding business worldwide.
"In the first quarter, we had to cope with a number of adverse factors," Mr Lange said. "Our investments resulted in cost increases. Profit margins declined in sea and air freight. In addition, there are one-off charges due to a high antitrust fine," he said.
But he added: "We will counteract this trend with strict cost control and measures to improve productivity. In addition, there are one-off charges due to a high antitrust fine.
Kuehne + Nagel container volume increased nine per cent while the global grew between three and four per cent, the company said. Kuehne + Nagel also increased growth in the transatlantic and transpacific trades.
Despite a decline in air freight in the first three months of the year, Kuehne + Nagel raised tonnage four per cent. Besides the ongoing positive demand in South America, the intra-Asia business developed well and volumes increased in the trades from Asia-Pacific to the Middle East, partly due to the acquisition of an Australian company specialised in perishables logistics.
Investments in growth initiatives and IT resulted in a decline of the EBITDA to-gross profit margin from 32.3 per cent to 26.5 per cent. At CHF 54 million, EBITDA was 14.3 per cent below the previous year. Due to the antitrust fine a loss of CHF11 million was recorded.
Kuehne + Nagel employs 63,000 at more than 1,000 locations in more than 100 countries.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
THE stranded Taiwanese-flagged, 3,860-TEU YM North, run aground off Karachi, has been refloated by four tugs from the Karachi Port Trust (KPT), announced port officials.
The containership had run aground on Friday evening outside the harbour's navigational channel after engine failure and was pulled out at 5am at high tide, they said, reports Pakistan's Business Recorder.
"Four tugs of KPT participated in the rescue efforts and six pilots conducted the operation to pull out the vessel," said port officials.
They said the ship was pulled out of the breakwater area off the outer navigational channel successfully, adding that neither the vessel nor the cargo was damaged.
"It took KPT an hour to refloat the vessel through an operation, which commenced at around 4am," they said.
After the ship was pulled off, it docked normally at berths 26 and 27 of Karachi International Container Terminal (KICT) - West Wharf of Karachi port.
The ship was carrying 1,740 containers, of which 1,553 were bound for Pakistan and will be discharged at KICT berths after which it will continue its rotation to Port Pipavav, north of Mumbai.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
ABU DHABI Terminals (ADT) at Mina Zayed port has posted a 47 per cent increase 2011 container volume year on year to 767,713 TEU, reports Dubai's Gulf News.
"In five years we have more than tripled volumes, from 250,000 TEU in 2006 to more than 767,000 TEU last year. Growth has been impressive, but the most exciting years are ahead as we work on the opening of the new container terminal at Khalifa Port," said ADT chief executive Martijn Van De Linde.
"When this opens in the fourth quarter of 2012 it will be the region's first semi-automated container terminal," he said.
ADT manages and operates the three leading ports in Abu Dhabi: Mina Zayed, the main gateway for cargo in Abu Dhabi; Mina Freeport that caters to smaller vessels, tugs and barges and Mina Musaffah in the industrial area.
Diversified services include a container terminal, container freight station, warehousing, cold store and a general cargo terminal.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
PREVENTING pirate ransom money from being invested is like refusing to pay ransoms, thus making seafarers less willing to put to sea along the world's busiest trade lane that needs them so badly, argues Rhys Clift, marine insurance partner with the London law firm, Hill Dickinson.
"Who would wish to go to sea if ransom for detainment at sea were to be prohibited, or if shipowners and operators were threatened with prosecution? Few, one imagines. And if they did, one can imagine the consequences," warned Mr Clift, who was short listed as Lloyd's List 2009 Lawyer of the Year. .
"It is a short step from tracking the illicit funds to prohibiting the payment of ransoms. Realistically there is no real, safe alternative to the payment of ransom and indeed such payments have been made for decades. Is maritime piracy to be the exception? And if so why?" he said.
An estimated 2,700 seafarers have been held by pirates off Somalia or in the Indian Ocean, 70 per cent of whom vowed not to go back to sea. "One would think that the percentage of those willing to go back to sea will decline as the average duration of detention lengthens and the risk of physical abuse increases," Mr Clift said in an article posted on his firm's website.
"This is the major hidden cost of piracy, and many in the industry are utterly baffled that the appalling plight of seafarers on the one hand is relatively invisible in the press in contrast say to the plight of the Chilean miners trapped underground, which featured daily at the top of news bulletins until their release," he said.
"Contrast their experience with the seafarers. They were not held in terror for months, in fear for their lives, their families were not to suffer the psychological ordeal of wondering if their father, their husband or brother would be killed or injured on whim," Mr Clift said.
International naval patrols of the Internationally Recognised Transit Corridor and the increasing deployment of "best management practices" have reduced the success of pirate attacks, he said.
"This much seems to be borne out by information on takings since last August. There also appears to be an emerging consensus that certain vessels should engage armed guards. No vessel with armed guards has been taken, it is said - a fairly compelling statistic," he said.
"Some vessels will still be taken. Navies simply cannot police the entire area. What then of vessels that are taken, and most particularly their officers and crew? How should they be recovered? Special forces have demonstrated courage and willingness to engage, but the catalogue of casualties is there to see," he said.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
AFTER 15 years of study, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has released final documents supporting the Savannah Harbour Expansion Project (SHEP).
"The study released today clearly shows that deepening the Savannah port will produce powerful economic benefits to the nation and to Georgia," said Georgia Governor Nathan Deal in a statement issued by port authorities.
Dredging of the river has been fraught with controversy with environmentalists and partisan interests backing the rival Port of Charleston, South Carolina, working jointly and severally to thwart the plan.
At first South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley opposed it, backing her state environmental regulator's opposition, but objections dissolved after a lunch with Georgia Governor Deal. Angry South Carolina state legislators, either fearful for the fate of the fish or the diminished prospects of the Port of Charleston, passed a bill to stop the dredging, but Governor Haley vetoed it.
Environmentalists say they oppose the scheme because the 38-mile line of dredging would deplete the river's dissolved oxygen needed by shortnose sturgeon as well as devastating hundreds of acres of swamp. But many opponents of the dredging want it done in Charleston to make their own port more competitive.
In the studies released by the Army Corps, the Savannah project is estimated to cost US$652 million and will provide $174 million in annual net benefits to the United States. For every dollar spent on infrastructure improvement, US$5.5 will be returned in benefits to the nation, the Corps' studies showed.
The Corps announced that the SHEP will increase the depth of the Savannah River by an additional five feet to 47 at low water. "We all know how critical this extra depth is to the ability of our nation to move cargo efficiently," said Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) executive director Curtis Foltz.
"The depth, along with an average seven-foot tide, strikes the right balance between the needs of our industry and the environment of the Savannah River. Nearly 40 per cent of the project cost is dedicated to environmental mitigation, preservation of cultural resources or the improvements to river access for the public."
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
THE Canadian National Railway has announced a steel-wheel interchange with CSX at Chicago which will give container imports moving over CN's network from Vancouver and Prince Rupert efficient access to Ohio Valley markets.
"Our new interchange service will give CN's customers efficient and cost-effective access to CSX's new Northwest Ohio Terminal and to the important markets of Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Louisville," said CN vice president Jean-Jacques Ruest.
Before this, CN and CSX exchanged container traffic in Chicago by truck, instead of directly at railyard facilities.
"Together, our interchange agreements with CSX and Norfolk Southern [NS] for container traffic moving over the Chicago gateway to northeast US markets underscore CN's commitment to improving the efficiency of supply chains," Mr Ruest said.
CN spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Alabama as well as Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Green Bay, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Memphis and Jackson, Mississippi.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
MUMBAI's Jawaharlal Nehru (JN) Port, made up of three units, one run by the state-owned port, another by DP World and the third by an APM Terminals and the Container Corp of India, ended a collective fiscal year with the best performance in five years.
Collectively, the facility is India's biggest container port and in the last fiscal year handled 1.17 per cent more containers to 4.32 million TEU year on year, reported India's Live Mint-Wall Street Journal.
The state-run unit handled 1.03 million TEU, up 17.3 per cent while at DP World's Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal, volume fell 8.8 per cent to 1.4 million TEU. At the APM T-Concor operation Gateway Terminals India run by the APMT-Concor, volume upticked 1.5 per cent to 1.89 million TEU year on year.
To boost productivity, the port management replaced three older cranes in June-July 2011 with new ones out of the eight in operation. This facility will replace four more of its older cranes that have been in operation for 20 years.
"We have placed orders for four more new cranes," said JN port operations chief SN Maharana. "These four new cranes will be installed in November-December this year and will further boost the capacity of our terminal."
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
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