Texas Gulf Coast News

Seaside LNG announced its liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering barge Clean Jacksonville delivered fuel to Carnival cruise ship Carnival Jubilee in Galveston, Texas, marking the first ship-to-ship LNG bunkering delivery along the U.S. Gulf Coast.The bunkering operation took place on December 30, 2023, after months of careful coordination with all parties involved, including the Port of Galveston, Seaside LNG said.The 2,200 cubic meter bunkering barge Clean Jacksonville, previously stationed in Florida…

Bay-Houston Towing has inked a deal with Port Neches, Texas shipbuilder Sterling Shipyard to build multiple new tugs to serve the Texas Gulf Coast region.The new vessels will be Robert Allan Ltd. designed RAstar 3200-W ASD ship handling and escort tugs for berthing/unberthing large ships and providing escort and emergency response in exposed coastal areas with demanding sea states.“The addition of the RAstar 3200-W further diversifies our fleet and provides an extremely powerful…

Seaside LNG and Carnival Corporation have entered into a term bunkering agreement to fuel the Carnival Jubilee, the first LNG-propelled cruise ship to call Galveston, Texas, its homeport.Seaside’s barge, the Clean Jacksonville, will move from Jacksonville, Florida, to operate out of Galveston and serve the Texas Gulf Coast with its first LNG delivery to the Carnival Jubilee in December 2023. With the assistance of the Port of Galveston, Seaside aligned all stakeholders to ensure the proper infrastructure is in place to begin the operation this winter.Initially…

Offshore service vessels, along with workboats serving harbors and inland rivers, have embarked on an industry-wide voyage toward reduced emissions of greenhouse gasses. Professor Craig Philip, a faculty member with Vanderbilt University’s Center for Transportation and Operational Resilience (VECTOR) and former CEO of Ingram Barge Company, provides this context: “The Maritime Sector has long provided shippers with the most fuel-efficient and sustainable freight transport option…

Freeport LNG pointed to deficiencies in safety valve testing and operating procedures as the root causes of a pipeline explosion that shut its export plant in Texas on June 8, according to a report released on Tuesday.The fiery explosion at the Texas Gulf Coast plant, the second-largest in the U.S., caused global liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices to spike amid falling Russian supplies to Europe and other outages. The report did not indicate when the plant, which supplies 20% of U.S.

The second-largest U.S. liquefied natural gas export plant, idled for five months by a fire, must receive full approvals before a planned November restart can begin, regulator Pipeline Hazardous Materials and Safety Administration (PHMSA) said on Wednesday.Full approval adds to the hurdles for restarting Freeport LNG, one of the earliest and biggest U.S. export facilities. The closely-held company aims to restore more than 85% of pre-fire processing capacity next month and complete…

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District in concert with the Philadelphia District and the Marine Design Center awarded a 11.4 million contract to Southwest Shipyard in Houston for a new crane barge on the St. Marys River.“The new crane barge will perform critical lock and hydropower facility maintenance at the Soo Project Office (Soo Locks),” said Justin Proulx, Chief of the St. Marys River Section. “Additionally, the new vessel will support channel maintenance and will be ready to respond to critical maritime incidents on the St Marys River…

The second-largest U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporter on Wednesday said it reached an agreement with a federal regulator that will allow it to resume some operations at its Quintana, Texas, plant in October.Freeport LNG shut the plant, which supplies about 20% of U.S. LNG exports, following an explosion and fire on June 8. Its closure helped to push up LNG prices in Europe and Asia, and dampening U.S. natural gas prices.The operator reached a consent agreement with the…

A explosion occurred on Wednesday at the Freeport LNG liquefied natural gas plant on the Texas Gulf Coast, according to police, and prompting an evacuation of nearby residents in Quintana, Texas.The plant can process up to 2.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day into a supercooled liquid for export.Freeport LNG acknowledged an incident occurred around 11:40 a.m. local time with providing further details. There were no injuries and all employees had been accounted for, a company spokesperson said.

The Training & Consultancy division of KOTUG International (KOTUG) and U.S. maritime education and maritime training provider the Seamen’s Church Institute (SCI) entered into a strategic partnership to offer exclusive training of tug masters, ships’ crews, river barge shippers, and pilots by certified KOTUG trainers at SCI training facilities across the United States. The partnership was officially kicked-off by hosting Moran Towing Corporation for a week of ASD operator training assisted by Riven Marine founder Captain Jay Rivera.Since 2019…

The first bulk U.S. soybean cargo from the Texas Gulf Coast in about six months was loaded and shipped last week from a Cargill Inc terminal, in a sign of shifting trade flows in the wake of Hurricane Ida, traders and shipping sources said.The vessel Spar Rigel was loaded early last week with about 55,000 tonnes of soybeans at Cargill's Houston terminal, an outlet that typically loads mostly wheat and sorghum grown nearby, according to a shipping vessel lineup seen by Reuters.The uncommon shipment is the first of several soybean cargoes expected to load at Cargill's Texas facility this autumn after one of the company's two terminals at the Louisiana Gulf Coast - the country's top outlet for corn and soy shipped down the Mississippi River - was severely damaged by Ida on Aug.

Conrad Shipyard said it has delivered the first of four ABS-classed spud barges to McDonough Marine Service, headquartered in Metairie, La.The identical spud barges each measure 180’ by 54’ by 12.5’, have deck strength of 2,500 pounds PSF, and four spud wells. The remaining barges are on schedule for delivery in the third and fourth quarters of 2021. The barges are being constructed at Conrad’s Deepwater South facility in Amelia, La., one of five Conrad shipyards located along the Louisiana/Texas Gulf Coast.Patrick M.

Jones Capital said it has acquired Rockport Terminals, one of the largest private intermodal terminals on the Texas Gulf Coast.Rockport Terminals is located within 28 miles of the fast growing Port of Corpus Christi, but outside of the Port's tariff zone. With more than 250 acres of industrial land, Rockport Terminals boasts access to the Intracoastal Waterway, nearby railways and many major highways. Today, the terminal specializes in bulk liquids storage, bulk and break bulk…

Nashville-based Ingram Barge Company announced Tuesday that its wholly-owned subsidiary Houston Fleeting Services has reached a deal to acquire the business assets Houston-based Cheryl K and San Jacinto River Fleet. According to Ingram Barge, the purchase allows it to expand its footprint into the Houston area and along the Texas Gulf Coast while simultaneously growing its logistics, dry barge and liquid barge businesses by adding critical infrastructure, vessels and personnel.

Scott Theriot has been named president and CEO of Southwest Shipyard L.P., effective August 12, 2020.Theriot takes over from Read Boles who has served as interim president and CEO since February, following the passing of the shipyard's previous president and CEO Martin DeCamp.Boles has returned to his advisory role on the company's board of directors.Theriot has more than 30 years of marine industry and executive leadership experience in vessel new construction and repair in the Gulf Coast region…

A Corpus Christi crew boat runs with renewed power and graceMiss Vivian has a commanding presence while plying the waters off the Texas Gulf Coast.Hardworking crew boat Miss Vivian serves offshore oil platforms and large ships moored in Corpus Christi Harbor. Owned by Sea Level Marine, Inc., in Aransas Pass, Texas, the 28-meter (91-foot) welded aluminum vessel is U.S. Coast Guard-approved for 50 passengers, and its 15x5-meter (50x15-foot) deck offers ample space to transport food provisions, equipment, and other supplies to offshore locations.There’s a rather heroic side to Miss Vivian, too.

American manufacturer Gulf Island Shipyards has completed the second of 10 Z-Tech 30-80 tugs, five of which were ordered by Suderman & Young Towing Co.Once completed, these tugs will be operated in ports on the Texas Gulf Coast by G&H Towing Co, said a press release from Robert Allan Ltd.The Z-Tech 30-80 tug Ted C. Litton evolved from the previous Z-Tech 7500 design for Suderman & Young. Designed and built with a sponsoned hull form, escort capability of the tug is significantly enhanced.The design incorporates the best handling and operational characteristics of both Z-drive tractor tugs, Azimuthing Stern-Drive (ASD) tugs and the unique RAstar series hull form.The new Z-Tech series tugs are intended for operation primarily in major ports and marine terminals.

Exxon Mobil and Qatar Petroleum announced a final decision to finance a $10 billion-plus project to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the Texas Gulf Coast.Construction of the Golden Pass LNG export project located in Sabine Pass will begin in the first quarter of 2019 and the facility is expected to start up in 2024, said a press release.“Golden Pass will provide an increased, reliable, long-term supply of liquefied natural gas to global gas markets, stimulate local growth and create thousands of jobs,” said Darren Woods, chairman and chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil Corporation.“The extensive experience of ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum provides the expertise…

Bill now heads to White House for President Trump’s signature.Today, the Senate voted 99-1 in favor of America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018/Water Resources Development Act, otherwise known as WRDA 2018. The Bill passed in the U.S. House by unanimous voice vote (435-0) in August.“The passage of WRDA 2018 is a win for the Nation’s towboat operators, freight shippers, ports and labor and conservation groups that rely on an efficient inland waterways system,” said Mike Toohey, President and CEO of the Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI).

Several ships carrying cargoes of sorghum from the United States to China have changed course since Beijing slapped hefty anti-dumping deposits on U.S. imports of the grain, trade sources and a Reuters analysis of export and shipping data showed.Sorghum is a niche animal feed and a tiny slice of the billions of dollars in exports at stake in the trade dispute between the world's two largest economies, which threatens to disrupt the flow of everything from steel to electronics.The supply-chain pain felt by sorghum suppliers on the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans underscores how quickly the mounting trade tensions between the U.S.

The Port of Corpus Christi lives up to its moniker ‘Energy Port of the Americas,’ as the movement of energy in and out dominates the port’s history and future. John P. LaRue, Executive Director, Port Corpus Christi recently visited Maritime Reporter’s headquarters in New York to discuss the nearly $50 billion in investment projects driving the port forward. “Let’s just start with what we are and what we are not,” said LaRue. “We are not a container port. Up until a few years ago we were an oil import port (serving) three refineries: Citgo, Valero and Flint Hills Resources.

Christopher J. Wiernicki, Chairman, President and CEO of ABS, was recognized for his distinguished career of excellence, innovation and service to the maritime industries by the Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) as this year’s recipient of the Maritime Person of the Year Award on September 21, 2017 in New York City. The honoree is presented with the Captain Emery Rice Medal and awarded annually to a civilian or military leader from around the globe. Named for an 1895 MMA graduate and World War I hero…

The Texas Gulf Coast was getting ready for the tropical storm Harvey to make landfall by Friday, bringing with it strong winds, heavy flooding and torrential rains. Hurricane, tropical storm and storm surge watches were in effect for counties on the eastern coast of Texas as the storm moved across the Gulf of Mexico, where it may strengthen into a hurricane. Winds up to 75 mph (120 kmh) and 15 inches of rain (40 cm) were forecast, according to the National Weather Service. "Now is the time to check your emergency plan and take necessary actions to secure your home or business. Deliberate efforts should be under way to protect life and property," the weather service said in an statement early on Thursday.