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First Containership with Integrated Automation Systems Departs Korea

South Korea highlights that the first containership designed with an integrated automation system has completed its installation and testing and is now starting international service. The project which was supported by South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries is designed to advance and commercialize autonomous shipping. The automation systems for the vessel, POS Singapore (22,867 dwt) were designed in South Korea as part of a government-sponsored program to develop the new technologies. PAN Ocean, South Korea’s bulk shipping company, is participating in the program and worked to integrate the systems into the 1,800 TEU vessel.  POS Singapore was ordered in 2022 and built by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard in Ulsan. It measures 576 feet (172 meters) in length and is registered in Liberia. The ship was floated in March and delivered in April. Since then, it has been undergoing the outfitting and testing of the automation system. During today, September 23, sendoff ceremony, government officials highlighted that the ship will be used for the next year in testing and validation of the automation systems. The ship is currently underway bound for Shanghai. It will operate for…

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Denmark Sets Restrictions for Transit of Ammonium Nitrate Laden Vessel

The saga of the bulker Ruby, laden with a potentially explosive cargo, continues with the authorities in Northern Europe closely tracking the vessel’s movements. The resolution of the situation remains unclear as the ship continues to hold 20,000 tons of ammonium nitrate which is causing concern over the dangerous nature of the cargo under certain conditions. Reports say it has seven times the amount of the material that caused the devastating explosion in Beirut in 2020. The vessel arrived off Denmark on Friday, September 20, continuing to declare it is bound for Klaipeda, Lithuania where it was scheduled to undergo repairs. The vessel’s hull cracked in an Arctic storm in late August, which was confirmed in a Port State inspection in Norway. Media reports are saying the rudder and propeller are also damaged. Ruby has been holding near the entrance to the Skagerrak, the first leg of the passage around Denmark and into the Baltic. The vessel has been sitting there for approximately 24 hours with an anchor handler tug, Amber II, also registered in Malta, appearing to be escorting the ship. For a time earlier in the week, the vessel…

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Maersk Joins with LR and CORE to Study Nuclear-Powered Container Shipping

Maersk is joining in with a collaboration between Lloyd’s Register and CORE Power that could provide the long-term pathway for nuclear-powered commercial shipping. Using a feeder containership operating in a European port, the collaboration will determine the safety and regulatory considerations and necessary framework for nuclear-powered commercial shipping based on a fourth-generation nuclear reactor. “The initiation of this joint study marks the beginning of an exciting journey towards unlocking the potential of nuclear power in the maritime industry, paving the way for emissions-free operations, more agile service networks, and greater efficiency through the supply chain,” said Nick Brown, CEO of Lloyd’s Register. Lloyd’s Register has been at the forefront of the ongoing discussion on the potential of nuclear power in the future of commercial shipping. There was excitement about the potential for nuclear power in the 1950s with the United States leading the way by developing the cargo-passenger ship NS Savannah as a prototype to demonstrate the potential. Then as now, however, public perception and fears of nuclear power held back the development as well as rumored opposition from the U.S. Navy that feared commercial initiatives might interfere with its developing nuclear…

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