The Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS) is a U.S. cabinet-level interagency committee tasked to coordinate U.S. marine transportation policy.
Quantifying Arctic Shipping Risk through Case Studies
April 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Shipping activities in Arctic areas are certain to increase in the years to come and, as the Arctic is a challenging and diverse environment, knowing how to manage its risks will be crucial. Through case studies, DNV GL has estimated that the risk is nearly 30 per cent higher for a cruise ship and almost 15 per cent higher for a bulk carrier compared to more conventional routes.
Rosneft Starts Geophysical Surveys in Eastern Arctic
April 8, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Aerial gravity-magnetic surveys began at the Yuzhno-Chukotsky License Area in the Eastern Arctic to establish the field’s subsurface structure. Rosneft and ExxonMobil have agreed to a framework for jointly exploring six license areas in the Chukchi and the Laptev Seas, namely the Ust-Lensky, Ust-Oleneksky, Anisinsko-Novosibirsky, Yuzhno-Chukotsky, and Severo-Vrangelevsky 1 and 2 areas. Three airplanes carrying magnetometric and gravimetric equipment will by the end of 2014 survey all the six license areas with a total area of 440,000 square meters.
Legal Aspects of Arctic shipping
April 4, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Arctic navigation routes include the ‘Northwest Passage’ between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans along the northern coast of North America and the ‘Northern Sea Route’ (NSR) which includes all passages along the North coast of the Russian Federation. As a result of the continued melting of Arctic sea ice a new ‘Central Arctic Ocean Route’ may soon become an option alone or in combination with elements of the Northwest Passage or the NSR.
The Future of Arctic Shipping: A New Silk Road for China?
March 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Every time Arctic sea ice extent reaches a new record low a host of new reports and studies predict a rapid increase in shipping activities in the Arctic. Expectations are high that Arctic shipping routes, particularly the Northern Sea Route, will rival traditional shipping routes and complement the Suez Canal route as a key waterway for trade to and from Asia by the middle of this century. One of the drivers of Arctic shipping, as the logic goes, is China’s rapidly growing international trade. As China aims to diversify its trade routes and reduce its dependence on trade passing through the Strait of Malacca, the Arctic offers an alternative and shorter route to conduct part of its trade. How realistic are such scenarios?
DNV GL develops Arctic Risk Map
March 20, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Declining sea ice is creating new possibilities for industrial activities in the Arctic, yet the region is highly variable in its resources and conditions, creating a complex risk picture.
Ensuring Safe, Secure & Reliable Shipping in the Arctic Ocean
March 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Ships operating in the polar environments are exposed to a number of unique risks. Poor weather conditions and the relative lack of good charts, communication systems and other navigational aids pose challenges for mariners.
Arctic Sea Shipping: Emissions Matter More Than you Might Think
March 12, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Not so long ago, explorers risked their lives and the lives of their crews in search of the fabled Northwest Passage. Now the question is no longer if a route through the Arctic exists but how many ships will use the two routes now open each year along the northern coasts of Canada and Russia. Estimates for the possibility of making truly ice-free transits range from a few years to a few decades, but in the meantime, as evidenced by the hundreds of applications in 2012 and 2013 (495 successful applicants as of September 2013 to transit Russia’s Northern Sea Route, up from zero a mere five years ago), plenty of folks are willing to risk a little ice in pursuit of shorter shipping routes that were the goal of explorers since even before Lord Franklin’s famously lost expedition.
Arctic Drilling Design and Operation Standards
December 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The following information is an extract from PEW recommendations on Arctic Oil Spill Prevention, Response, and Safety in the U.S. Arctic Ocean published during September 2013. The design of the drilling rig, the blowout preventer, or BOP, and cementing practices are all essential to safe drilling operations and accident prevention. Drilling rigs must be designed and operated to meet the Arctic conditions they will encounter. Due to the remote nature of Arctic drilling operations, rigs must be self-sufficient and carry a minimum level of well control materials such as drilling mud, cement, and extra fuel.
Arctic Facilities Design and Operation
December 4, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The following information is an extract from PEW recommendations on Arctic Oil Spill Prevention, Response, and Safety in the U.S. Arctic Ocean published during September 2013. Once exploration drilling is complete and sufficient oil and/or gas resources are found to support year-round production, a more permanent offshore production facility may be installed with a pipeline connecting it to shore. Offshore production facilities typically include development drilling operations, wellheads, processing facilities, storage, and living quarters.
Officer of the Watch 