Displaying items by tag: Tankers

15th May 2020

International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation Announce Research & Development Award 2021

The crude oil tanker Braer during a storm in 1993 foundered in the Shetlands Isles off Scotland spilling almost 85,000 tonnes. The disaster was one of the major oil spills in history and is ranked the 15th worst out of 20 indicents in terms of oil spill size tonnes according to the ITOPF's Oil Tanker Spill Statistis 2019 - see download link below. As for above the tanker is seen at Garths Ness where it broke-up on the rocky shore.

The not-for-profit organisation the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) is as a source of objective technical expertise in the area of accidental spills of oil, chemicals, and other cargoes and substances in the marine environment.

As the federation is a not-for-profit basis is it supported and maintained by the world’s shipowners and their insurers and the ITOPF cite it is their mission to promote effective spill response.

Each year, up to £75,000 is made available by ITOPF to fund R&D projects to improve our knowledge and understanding of issues related to accidental marine pollution from ships. The award is intended to support a combination of PhD projects and/or short-term projects which have the potential to lead to improvements in all spill related matters. This funding typically supports research costs, plus a student stipend and university fees in the case of a PhD project.

The purpose of this initiative is to facilitate and encourage organisations worldwide to develop ideas that can potentially provide solutions to some of the challenges faced by the spill response community.

For more information on the 2021 ITOPF R&D Award, please visit the ITOPF website.

The closing date is 30th November 2020.

Afloat adds the ITOPF was established in 1968 following the first major oil spill from a supertanker, the Torrey Canyon which took place more than 50 years ago.

As the BBC recalls the tanker spilled more than 100,000 tonnes of crude oil having hit the rocks in Cornwall, UK causing enormous damage to wildlife and also affecting the shore of northern Brittany in France.

Arising from the Torrey Canyon disaster, technical services functions for tanker owners and P&I insurers were developed during the 1970s and extended to other shipowners in 1999. For statistics of oil spills in 2019 click the ITOPF here and for a download of historical data for the past 50 years.

Published in Ports & Shipping

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IMDO Shipping Review: Tanker Activity Dips, Cleaner Shipping in Europe

#Shipping - The latest Weekly Shipping Market Review from the Irish Marine Development Office (IMDO) reports of a strong rise in earnings in the tanker market despite a reduction in activity for December 2012.

Demand for VLCC and Aframax tankers in the Arabian Gulf experiences the steepest decline, of 37% and 45% respectively - though the market as a whole was still able to finish above the two-year average.

The dry-bulk market is also expected to exceed fleet growth in the latter half of this year, with day rate for Panamax class vessels set to increase by 12.5%.

Closer to home, plans are in the works to extend a Finnish scheme to support investment in cleaner shipping in the European Union.

Amendments to the scheme are aimed at stricter rules that will apply to marine fuel when the Sulphur Emission Control Area - comprising the English Channel, North Sea and Baltic Sea - comes into force in 2015.

The complete Shipping Markets Review for week 4 is available as a PDF to read or download HERE.

Published in Ports & Shipping

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National Yacht Club Facilities

Facilities include a slipway directly accessing Dun Laoghaire Harbour, over eighty club moorings, platform parking, pontoons, fuelling, watering and crane-lifting ensure that the NYC is excellently equipped to cater for all the needs of the contemporary sailor. Berths with diesel, water, power and overnight facilities are available to cruising yachtsmen with shopping facilities being a short walk away. The club is active throughout the year with full dining and bar facilities and winter activities include bridge, snooker, quiz nights, wine tasting and special events.

National Yacht Club History

Although there are references to an active “club” prior to 1870, history records that the present clubhouse was erected in 1870 at a cost of £4,000 to a design by William Sterling and the Kingstown Royal Harbour Boat Club was registered with Lloyds in the same year. By 1872 the name had been changed to the Kingston Harbour Boat Club and this change was registered at Lloyds.

In 1881. the premises were purchased by a Captain Peacocke and others who formed a proprietary club called the Kingstown Harbour Yacht Club again registered at Lloyds. Some six years later in 1877 the building again changed hands being bought by a Mr Charles Barrington. and between 1877 and 1901 the club was very active and operated for a while as the “Absolute Club” although this change of name was never registered.

In 1901, the lease was purchased by three trustees who registered it as the Edward Yacht Club. In 1930 at a time when the Edward Yacht Club was relatively inactive, a committee including The Earl of Granard approached the trustees with a proposition to form the National Yacht Club. The Earl of Granard had been Commodore of the North Shannon Y.C. and was a senator in the W.T.Cosgrave government. An agreement was reached, the National Yacht Club was registered at Lloyds. The club burgee was created, red cross of Saint George with blue and white quarters being sky cloud, sea and surf. The Earl of Granard became the first Commodore.

In July of 1950, a warrant was issued to the National Yacht Club by the Government under the Merchant Shipping Act authorising members to hoist a club ensign in lieu of the National Flag. The new ensign to include a representation of the harp. This privilege is unique and specific to members of the National Yacht Club. Sterling’s design for the exterior of the club was a hybrid French Chateau and eighteenth century Garden Pavilion and today as a Class A restricted building it continues to provide elegant dining and bar facilities.

An early drawing of the building shows viewing balconies on the roof and the waterfront façade. Subsequent additions of platforms and a new slip to the seaward side and most recently the construction of new changing rooms, offices and boathouse provide state of the art facilities, capable of coping with major international and world championship events. The club provides a wide range of sailing facilities, from Junior training to family cruising, dinghy sailing to offshore racing and caters for most major classes of dinghies, one design keelboats, sports boats and cruiser racers. It provides training facilities within the ISA Youth Sailing Scheme and National Power Boat Schemes.

Past Commodores

1931 – 42 Earl of Granard 1942 – 45 T.J. Hamilton 1945 – 47 P.M. Purcell 1947 – 50 J.J. O’Leary 1950 – 55 A.A. Murphy 1955 – 60 J.J. O’Leary 1960 – 64 F. Lemass 1964 – 69 J.C. McConnell 1969 – 72 P.J. Johnston 1972 – 74 L. Boyd 1974 – 76 F.C. Winkelmann 1976 – 79 P.A. Browne 1979 – 83 W.A. Maguire 1983 – 87 F.J. Cooney 1987 – 88 J.J. Byrne 1988 – 91 M.F. Muldoon 1991 – 94 B.D. Barry 1994 – 97 M.P.B. Horgan 1997 – 00 B. MacNeaney 2000 – 02 I.E. Kiernan 2002 – 05 C.N.I. Moore 2005 – 08 C.J. Murphy 2008 – 11 P.D. Ryan 2011 – P. Barrington 2011-2014 Larry Power 2014-2017 Ronan Beirne 2017 – 2019

At A Glance - National Yacht Club 2024 Events