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Two corporations that operated the 'PS Dream ', the Prive Overseas Marine LLC and the Prive Shipping Denizcilik Ticaret, were sentenced in a federal court in New Orleans on Sep 27, 2024, to pay a $2 million criminal penalty and complete four years of probation. The companies pleaded guilty in May to charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS). Separate charges were filed against Captain Abdurrahman Korkmaz, 37, a Turkish national who was the ship’s master. On Sep 10, the court sentenced him to eight months in prison for an APPS offense and obstructing the U.S. Coast Guard’s investigation. The charges pertained to the investigation of the 'PS Dream' when it was heading to New Orleans in Jan 2023. Senior corporate managers were aware that Korkmaz had arranged to discharge oil-contaminated waste from a residual tank on deck into the water. The captain ordered the crew to pump the waste overboard and clean the tank with soap. The seamen rigged a portable pump to empty the contents overboard over three days. The defendants falsified the vessel’s oil record book by omitting the discharge. One of the crew members alerted the Coast Guard and shared videos of the discharge and resulting oil sheen. When the ship arrived in Louisiana, another crew member came forward and gave the Coast Guard a recording of an officer discussing the discharge.

The family of the 8-year-old Daniel Jiang, who was airlifted from the 'Royal Princess' due to a medical emergency was able to resume their family vacation when their ship docked in Los Angeles. The boy was on a two-week trip from Vancouver to Hawaii with his mother and brother when he began to feel sick. As the boy’s condition worsened, it was eventually discovered he was suffering from appendicitis which would require emergency surgery. Far from their next stop and with foggy conditions proving to be challenging for the crew of the Royal Princess, the U.S. Coast Guard was called to the scene to airlift Daniel and his family to a hospital so he could undergo emergency appendix surgery, which was a success and on Sep 28, after he was given the medical “all-clear,” he and his brother and mother were able to continue their cruise to Hawaii by re-boarding the 'Royal Princess' in Los Angeles. Coincidentally, the resumption of their cruise also coincided with Daniel’s birthday. The family was “greeted with an outpouring of excitement and warm wishes from the crew” when they stepped back onto the cruise ship.

The 'Glen Sannox' has started its final round of sea trials ahead of being handed over to CMAL next month. The overdue and overbudget ferry was spotted sailing on the Clyde on the morning of Sep 30, as its belated handover to the Scottish Government's ferry procurement body CMAL was coming nearer. The ship is due to finally be handed over in mid-October, more than six years later than her original delivery date. Ferguson Marine, who have been working on the 'Glen Sannox' and her sister ship 'Glen Rosa' for close to a decade, had previously stated that they intended to hand over the ship on Sep 30, but this date was pushed back by two weeks due to a last-minute hitch. After the trials have been completed, the yard will also have to carry out a review of the findings , a demonstration of the engine overhaul carried out on the vessel, final sign-off on all of its components and approval from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and marine firm Lloyds Register. The ferry is being constructed for the Scottish Government asset company CMAL to lease to its ferry operator CalMac and it is set to serve the Ardrossan to Brodick crossing to the Isle of Arran. Report with photo: https://uk.news.yahoo.com/ferry-glen-sannox-starts-final-101059584.html

The 'Berge Shari' has been immobilized for three months at the port of Annaba. It arrived at the port on June 27, 2024, carrying 25,000 tons of logs from Argentina. The ship was initially supposed to unload its cargo within days of its arrival. However, a series of complications extended its stay. The main problem was the poor cargo stowage, which has significantly slowed down unloading operations. The mobilization of staff with adequate handling equipment has exacerbated the situation, preventing any rapid progress in processing the ship. After three months of immobilization, the accumulated demurrage now exceeds 1.2 million dollars. Initially, the ship was to unload its cargo at the port of Skikda, but it was diverted by the EP Annaba team to Annaba. This change, supposed to be a better solution, faced logistical problems. In an attempt to limit losses, the client was authorized to introduce its own handling equipment to speed up unloading. The Minister of Transport has sent a strict instruction to the port managers to speed up cargo processing operations and reduce the time ships spend in port on Sep 8, 2024, the purpose of which is the implementation of the instructions of the Council of Ministers of June 2, 2024. The lack of modern handling equipment, as well as insufficient maintenance capacity during the night, were slowing down the implementation of this directive. The minister has tasked the Serport group with supervising the improvements. The port of Annaba, once a major player in non-hydrocarbon exports, has been suffering for several years from a deterioration of its infrastructure and is facing significant structural problems. Several quays are partially out of service, and some are showing signs of weakness. Two of its five main quays are currently unusable, severely limiting the port’s ability to meet the growing needs of maritime trade. Many customershave turned to competing ports, which threatens not only the local economy, but also the port’s position on the national and international scene. Report with photo: https://elwatan-dz.com/le-navire-berge-shari-immobilise-depuis-trois-mois-au-port-de-annaba-deja-plus-de-12-million-de-dollars-de-surestaries

The 'EM Longetivity', reported to be scrapped three years ago, took on the identity of an actual ship that is no longer in service in an attempt to evade economic sanctions. The ship decommissioned in December 2021. At the time, the ship was reportedly sent to a scrapyard. Aship with the same IMO as the tanker appeared at a port in Dalian on Sep. 23, 2024, where it partially unloaded its cargo before sailing across the Yellow Sea. On Sep 30, the ship docked at the port city of Yantai. While there is the possibility that the 'EM Longevity' was retrieved from the scrapyard where it was left several years ago, experts of the University of Copenhagen’s Ocean Infrastructure Research Group estimated it like a vessel that’s signaling that it’s legitimate just so that it can sail under the radar. There were other concerning signs that indicated the vessel was posing as the retired ship. Specifically, data compiled by VesselTracker found that the ship sails under the flag of Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland. During its 20 years of service, the 'EM Longevity' had sailed under the Singaporean flag. The IMO registration number for the 'EM Longevity' reportedly does not list a current manager, owner, or insurer. These patterns are eerily similar to those used in the “dark fleet". Russia has been accused of using a massive shadow fleet, filled with these vessels to get around European Union sanctions amid the yearslong war in Ukraine. Reports indicated that China has been importing crude from such dark fleets as it remains the world’s largest importer of oil. While the United States has issued sanctions on crude exports from nations like Russia and Iran, China has remained a consistent customer. Identified dark ships have been known to travel to and from Iran in recent months. Similarly, the ship appearing to pose as the 'EM Longevity' also sailed in waters near Iran around Aug. 11 before making its way to China.