Top Headlines

STX Finland to close Rauma cruise ferry yard, 700 jobs to be lost

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 16 September 2013 16 September 2013

STX Finland, the troubled shipbuilder in the STX Europe group in Oslo that again is part of the ailing STX Offshore & Shipbuilding group in South Korea, will close its Rauma shipyard, the company said in a statement.

The decision will result in a reduction of 700 jobs at the company, which after this move will only have one yard, in Turku some 60 miles south of Rauma.

“As part of the STX Finland restructuring, current operations at the Rauma Shipyard will be ramped down and functions shifted to the Turku Shipyard. The anticipated volume of future demand is not enough to sustain two shipyards at STX Finland. The Turku Shipyard is able to build all types of vessels. The restructuring will not limit the company’s offering or reduce the volume of its operations,” STX Finland said.

The Rauma shipyard has built several large cruise ferries in recent years and it has also constructed expedition type cruise liners.

“We regret having to make such tough decisions that will hit the Rauma Shipyard especially hard. But the alternative would have been the shutting down of the Finnish shipyard industry and the ending of our 300-year heritage of shipbuilding. These decisions will enable a healthy and profitable shipyard industry to flourish in Finland,” Jari Anttila, EVP & Deputy CEO of STX Finland, said in the statement.

“The restructuring will involve the entire company and its personnel in both Turku and Rauma. As a result, the Turku and Rauma Shipyards will be reducing their workforce by about 700 person-years by the end of June 2014. STX Finland is pursuing negotiations with personnel on how the restructuring is to be implemented, what its impact will be on the various personnel groups and what the timetable will be. The company will be offering concrete support and employment measures for employees who would be laid off as a result of the restructuring; these measures will be planned in cooperation with the employment authorities,” STX Finland said

UPDATE 4: Costa Concordia: parbuckling operation completed

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 16 September 2013 16 September 2013

UPDATE 4

The wreck of Costa Concordia now sits on an even keel, partly on the seabed and partly on a steel structure constructed on the seabed that slopes down. It took salvors 19 hours to complete the parbuckling operation to righten the wreck, much longer than the original 10 to 12 hour estimate.

The wreck sits in water almost up to the level of the bridge. Images taken from the starboard side of the wreck, which hit the seabed as it capsized, shows extensive damage to the superstructure.

However, this is of no consequence as the wreck will be refloated at a later date and towed away for scrapping.

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UPDATE 3

Work has continued all day to righten the wreck of Costa Concordia and it now seems that it could last until the early hours of Tuesday morning, reports say. The start of the work was delayed by three hours in the morning due to bad weather overnight. However, since then the work has progressed slowly and it seems unlikely that the wreck can be put on even keel in the original estimate of 10 to 12 hours.

UPDATE 2

It took a pulling force of 6,000 tons to make the wreck move from the wreck where it had lain for the past 20 months, Sky News, the British satellite broadcaster, reports on its website, citing Sergio Girotto, an engineer.

After 6,000 tons of pressure were applied, Girotto said, "we saw the detachment" using undersea cameras. This was reached some three hours after the start of the operation.

The rescue effort will see the wreck gradually rotated and hauled 65 degrees back to upright position. Later, it will be refloated for towing to a yet undisclosed Italian port. The wreck will be then scrapped.

UPDATE 1

The wreck of Costa Concordia, which is slowly being pulled to upright position, shows damage to the areas that have been under the water for the 20 months that have passed since the 114,000 gross ton ship capsized.

Live video footage streamed by the London based Daily Telegraph newspaper on its website shows e.g. smashed bridge windows that had become submerged when the ship capsized. The footage also reveals the massive anchor chains that have been attached to the bottom the wreck in order to use technique called parbuckling to righten the wreck.

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Work to bring the wreck of capsized cruise liner Costa Concordia to upright position has begun at 0900am this morning local time on the island of Giglio in Italy.

The start was delayed by three hours due to thunderstorms on the previous night. Parbuckling means applying pressure to a wreck to bring it back upright. In the case of Costa Concordia, this will be done through chains attached to the hull and operated by powerful jacks on shore. A sponson has been welded to the port side of the wreck that will be filled with water to apply further pressure.

“All is well,” with the operation, Sergio Girotto, a senior engineer from Micoperi, the Italian salvage company which together with an American firm, Titan, is leading the salvage effort, told the Daily Telegraph newspaper in London, which follows the operation from Giglio.

“Our estimate of 12 hours (for the completion of the job) remains valid, although it will depend on the behaviour of the wreck.”

The progress of the operation will be constantly monitored by cameras attached to remote-operated, unmanned submarines. Sulphurous gas is likely to be emitted from the wreck as it is rolled upright, produced by the vast quantities of rotting food, drink and other supplies inside the ship, said Franco Porcellacchia, a senior project manager with Costa Cruises, the Italian company that owned the cruise ship. “That’s something that we will keep a check on constantly,” he said.

Costa Concordia ran aground in the evening of 13 January 2012 and the wreck has laid at an 80 degree list to starboard on the shore of Giglio. The 114,147 gross ton Costa Concordia became by the far the largest passenger vessel to be lost, overtaking the title from the 83,673 gross register ton Seawise University – better known as the first Queen Elizabeth of Cunard Line – that was lost in a fire at Hong Kong in January 1972.

The wreck removal operation of Costa Concordia is estimated to cost in excess of $1 billion. The cost will be covered by P&I clubs, which are mutual liability underwriters. The Standard Club, based in London, is the lead underwriter of Costa Concordia. The 13 largest P&I clubs that have their central organisation in London cover large claims such as thus through a pooling arrangement of risk, while part of the risk is covered by reinsurance.

UPDATE: Costa Concordia: go ahead to bring wreck on even keel tomorrow due this afternoon

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 15 September 2013 15 September 2013

Parbuckling operations of the Costa Concordia will begin tomorrow, Monday 16 September; the Italian Civil Protection Department said

"Based on the weather-marine forecast for the Giglio Island issued by the Central Station of the Department of Civil Protection, in coordination with the Weather Forecast Station for the Tuscany Region at the LAMMA Consortium, Titan/Micoperi Consortium technicians confirm the possibility to go ahead with the operations tomorrow. In fact, the expected values for wind direction and force (inserire quello della previsione) and significant wave height (inserire quello della previsione) fall within the range of operating feasibility thresholds," it said in a statement.

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Decision regarding go ahead for work to bringi the wreck of the cruise liner Costa Concordia on even keel tomorrow will be made this afternoon, the Italian Civil Protection Department said in a statement.

The weather conditions will have to be right to allow the work to start at first dawn tomorrow morning. The wreck lies on its starboard side at an angle of about 80 degrees at the island of Giglio. The vessel ran aground there on 13 January last year.

"The first date useful for the rotation of the Concordia is fixed at six o'clock in the morning of Monday, September 16th. However, weather conditions have to be favourable. The final decision about the beginning of operations will be therefore communicated by 2 pm of the previous day," the Civil Protection Department said.

At this point, the aim is to bring the vessel on even keel on the seabed plus a metal structure built under the vessel. The plan is to refloat the wreck at a later stage, after a sponson has been built also on the starboard side of the wreck.

Carnival Cruise Lines launches groundbreaking new 'Great Vacation Guarantee'

Details: Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 12 September 2013 12 September 2013

Carnival Cruise Lines today unveiled an unprecedented new program that offers consumers a one-of-a-kind, hassle-free money-back guarantee when booking a Carnival cruise vacation. Designed to provide consumers with complete peace of mind, the “Great Vacation Guarantee” allows guests to end their voyage early and receive a 110 percent refund plus complimentary transportation home, along with a $100 shipboard credit for a future cruise, should they be dissatisfied with their cruise for any reason.

“We are proud to carry nearly 4.5 million satisfied guests each year and are very confident in the quality of the vacation experience we provide on board the 24 ships of Carnival Cruise Lines,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival president and CEO. “The ‘Great Vacation Guarantee’ is designed to provide an assurance to those consumers who may be considering a cruise that we stand behind our product and, if they are dissatisfied for any reason, they have a simple and hassle-free means for receiving a full refund and more.”

To exercise the “Great Vacation Guarantee,” guests simply notify the ship’s guest services desk within the first 24 hours of the voyage to receive a full refund of their cruise fare plus an additional 10 percent, along with complimentary return air transportation from the next port of call, and complimentary ground transportation and hotel accommodations (if necessary), along with a $100 shipboard credit to be used on a future Carnival cruise. Carnival will fully handle all the necessary travel arrangements to make it a truly hassle-free experience.

The “Great Vacation Guarantee” is valid on all three- to eight-day voyages to The Bahamas, Caribbean, Mexican Riviera, Alaska, Canada and New England departing through April 30, 2015. The program applies to U.S. and Canadian residents only and guests must possess a valid passport to return to the U.S. by air.

Carnival is promoting the “Great Vacation Guarantee” through its travel agent partners, as well as a special section on its web site at www.carnival.com/vacationguarantee, and through ads in major market U.S. newspapers and online.

RCCL shares leap, dividend increase “interpreted as signal”

Details: Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen; Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines; Published: 12 September 2013 12 September 2013

Shares in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (RCCL) staged strong gains in heavy trade in Oslo on Thursday morning after the company had more than doubled quarterly dividend to $0.24 per share from $0.12.

The shares had risen 3.7% to NOK238.80 at mid-morning, local time. Volume was heavy, with about 336,000 shares having changed hands, markedly more than the 240,000 three month average daily figure.

“RCCL is not a dividend case, but you interpret that (the dividend increase) as a signal,” Kenneth Sivertsen cruise industry analyst at Arctic Securtities in Oslo, was quoted by imarkedet.no business news website as saying. The higher dividend sends a strong signal that return on equity would be good going forward, he stated.