Moose Boats delivers first ‘M1-44′

Moose Boats, an aluminum boat manufacturer, recently delivered a new model named the ‘M1-44′ to the Naval Militia in New York.

This vessel is the first of its kind and was designed to meet mission-specific needs for New York State’s Division of Military Naval Affairs (DMNA) headquartered in Latham, NY. The vessel is presently berthed at the United States Coast Guard Sector 1 on Staten Island, NY. DMNA took possession of the vessel, which is operated by the New York Naval Militia’s Emergency Boat Service. The ‘M1-44′ is a robust offshore 13.5-metre aluminum catamaran powered by twin Cummins QSC 8.3 ltr 447kW turbo diesels and is propelled by Hamilton 322 water jets. This vessel features BlueArrow fly-by-wire controls, which is an innovative electronic steering system manufactured by Hamilton Jet. The waterjets’ proven maneuverability is enhanced by the ease of the ‘mooseboat’ control device mounted at the helm, which allows the operator directional and speed control for low speed and docking maneuvers. The vessel’s mission will include maritime safety, security, environmental response and protection of high value assets in the ports and waterways of New York State in co-operation with the United States Coast Guard and other state, local and federal agencies.

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Yacht company turns focus to super-sizing

Yacht solutions plans to upgrade its customization service by modifying and refitting old commercial vessels into super-yachts.

Yacht Solutions plans to upgrade its customization service by modifying and refitting old commercial vessels into super-yachts. I would like to enlarge this business in Thailand. So my company will set up a big facility in Bangkok in order to complete our objective,’ managing director Gareth Twist said last week. The company started by retrofitting a 52-metre vessel and converting it into a super-yacht in Bangkok last year. It recently received an order to renovate a 60-metre vessel into a floating palace with a swimming pool, elevators, Jacuzzis, theatres, karaoke rooms and 12 bedrooms.  ”Super-yachts worldwide are being sold for US$6 million [Bt200 million] to $120 million, according to their size. The target customers are the wealthy, agents and brokers of super-yachts, but the company does not anticipate much local business in the beginning. There is some interest from Southeast Asia, particularly Hong Kong and Singapore, in having the company decorate super-yachts. Yacht Solutions offers yacht management, project management, yacht agency and yacht charter services.

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Philippines to ban single-hull vessels in April

The Philippines will ban single-hull oil tankers from its waters from April, two years earlier than planned, after the worst oil spill in the country’s history and a separate leak in South Korea.

Vessels carrying “black” petroleum products such as crude oil and bunker fuel won’t be allowed to dock at ports from April 1 without a double hull, said Transportation Undersecretary Len Bautista in a phone interview from Manila. The single-hull crude oil supertanker Hebei Spirit caused the worst spill in South Korea’s history last month after a crane causing it to lose 66,000 barrels of crude oil, about 1/3 the size of the Exxon Valdez spill of 1989, struck it. In August 2006, the tanker Solar 1 leaked 2.19 million litres of marine fuel, killing marine life and fouling the coastline of the Philippines’s Guimaras islands. The spills “dramatize the urgent need to impose stricter safety standards and regulations on tankers to protect our environment,” Bautista said, adding the country’s previous plan was to ban such ships from 2010.

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