Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

#Cattleships- Express 1, an Ireland-Libya serving livestock-carrier which was detained in February by the UK's Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has this week been on 'post-repair trails' in the English Channel, writes Jehan Ashmore. Having anchored overnight off the Cornish…

#PortRegulations - This week, MEP and Rapporteur, Knut Fleckenstein and the shadow Rapporteurs on the Ports Regulation Proposal have jointly decided not to vote on the Regulation before the EU elections. The EP key players on this proposal are stressing…

#ShipsRudder- A containership Arslan II (1991/3,125grt) that is understood to have got into difficulties involving her rudder off Arklow Bank in January, and has since remained in a Dublin Port for almost two months, is scheduled to depart today, writes…

#UnionRMT – The BBC reports that the union leader of the Rail and National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT), Bob Crow has died at the age of 52 of a suspected heart attack. Leading the RMT from…

#ShortSea14 – This year's ShortSea European conference will take place in the Portugese capital of Lisbon (12-13 May), and follows previous conferences held in Paris 2013 and Dublin the proceeding year. It will be supported by the Shortsea Promotion Centres…

#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below. Container Market: Carrier reliability declines once again - Global containership schedule reliability, the proportion of ships that arrive into port on time, decreased 3.5% in…

#GreenNewbuild - Arklow Bay was launched by a Dutch shipyard on Friday, she is the second newbuild of six 'B'class 4,800dwt multi-purpose cargoships on order to Arklow Shipping Ltd, writes Jehan Ashmore. The amidships or sideways launch of the vessel…

#ShippingReview - Over the last fortnight Jehan Ashmore has reported from the shipping scene where Express I, the first Ireland-Libyan serving livestock-carrier for nearly two decades was detained by the UK's Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA), leading to calls by the…

#ICGresults - The Irish Continental Group (ICG) which operates container operations and Irish Ferries, has recorded higher revenues and operating profits last year, as both passenger numbers and freight volumes increased, reports The Irish Times. The ferry group, which also…

#MaerskBananaBoats – The excellent high adrenaline Oscar nominated film 'Captain Phillips' about the pirated containership Maersk Alabama (1998/14,120grt), saw a fleetmate of the US flagged vessel dock to unload bananas in the Port of Cork, writes Jehan Ashmore. The Maersk…

#CleanFuels- The EU's parliament and council are to discuss in a meeting today the so-called "trilogue" on the Clean Fuel Strategy to reach a compromise and find a solution on the outstanding issues. If necessary, another trilogue is foreseen in…

#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below. Industry Sentiment: Improved shipping optimism -Current market conditions were described as 'positive' by 69% of shipping industry respondents to the latest Norton Rose Fulbright annual…

#TankerNewbuild- A newbuild oil products tanker, King Fisher departed Dublin Port this morning, she is a 7,072dwt vessel operated by James Fisher Everard of Barrow-In-Furness, Cumbria, writes Jehan Ashmore. The double-hulled 8,363m³ (10 epoxy coated-tanks) is of the '8000' design…

#Lockout1913voyage – Ben Maye (1979/548grt) the small cargoship chartered for last year's Lockout 1913 food-supply commemorative voyage as 'S.S. Hare' from Liverpool to Dublin continues to retain her Manx name despite her sale to new owners, writes Jehan Ashmore. The…

#CattleCarrier- Express I, the first serving Irish-Libyan livestock-carrier for nearly two decades as previously reported on Afloat.ie a year ago, is currently detained by the UK's Maritime Coastguard Agency (MCA), leading to calls to the Department of Agriculture to revoke…

#Ports&Shipping –The latest IMDO Weekly Shipping Market Review includes the following stories as detailed below. Container Market: World fleet supply growth to slow in 2014 - Global containership fleet growth is to moderate to its slowest rate in over a…