Indian Navy destroys pirate ship in Gulf of Aden

Dubai: The Indian Navy destroyed a “mother vessel” engaged in piracy in the Gulf of Aden a day after pirates forced a hijacked oil supertanker to enter Somalia’s perilous waters.

The incident took place 285 nautical miles (528 km) southwest of Oman’s port of Salalah on Tuesday. According to the Navy, its warship INS Tabar spotted a ship which was similar to one of the vessels that was suspected of coordinating piracy in the Gulf of Aden. Two speedboats were accompanying the “mother vessel.” The ship threatened to blow up Tabar when it was asked to stop for investigation. Armed with guns and rocket propelled grenades, the pirates were seen roaming on the upper deck of their ship. The Navy said Tabar retaliated when the other ship opened fire. Consequently, the vessel caught fire. Loud explosions could be heard, possibly because ammunition stored in the ship went off. In its statement, the Navy added: “Almost simultaneously, the two speedboats were observed breaking off to escape. The ship chased the first boat, which was later found abandoned. The other boat made good its escape into darkness.” This is the second major occasion when the Navy encountered pirates in the Gulf of Aden. It prevented the hijacking of the Indian merchant ship, Jag Arnav, and a Saudi vessel on November 11.

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Platform P-51 leaves BrasFELS shipyard

Angra Dos Reis, Brazil: Floating production platform P-51 has left the BrasFELS shipyard in Angra dos Reis, Brazil, and set sail for the Ilha Grande Bay.

Ilha Grande Bay will undergo final testing and adjustments before starting operations in the Marlim Su field in the Campos Basin for Petrobras. After a 15-day testing period, P-51 will be anchored in the Marlim Su field, 150 kilometers (93 miles) offshore in 1,255 meters (4,117 feet) of water. The platform will be interconnected to 10 oil and gas producing wells and nine water injector wells and begin producing in January. The 480,000-ton platform will have a production capacity of 180,000 b/d of oil and living quarters for 200 personnel. The platform was built entirely in Brazil, with over 75 percent national content. Construction on P-51 marks the production of the first Brazilian semisubmersible hull, and the first deck-mating operation in Brazil, where the upper portion of the platform was connected to the hull. The P-51 was built and integrated by the FSTP consortium of Keppel FELS and Technip in the cities of Niteroi, Itagui and Angra dos Reis.

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Financial restructuring to rescue small Korean shipyards

The South Korean Government and creditor banks are to carry out a pre-emptive restructuring for smaller Korean shipyards, which are at risk of folding in the current global financial crisis.

Unlike yards such as DSME, SHI and HHI, smaller shipbuilders are less likely to secure loans from financial institutions, and may be unable to build vessels. A group of creditors have programs on offer, including Korea Federation of Banks (KFB)’s Fast Track program that would mimic the industry-wide restructuring program used successfully in its construction sector. Under these schemes, shipbuilders will enter into an agreement with creditor banks if they want to have their debts rescheduled or receive new loans. But in return, companies will be required to sell assets and take a range of self-rescue measures in a bid to stay afloat. Banks will then screen each firm and provide necessary financing to viable firms but stop extending credit to nonviable ones. Korean shipbuilders are said to have delivered nearly 45% of new ships across the globe last year, earning about 45 trillion won ($31bn). However, data is unavailable for the contribution of small and medium sized shipyards to this figure.

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