Category Archives: Offshore

In the 2017 State of the State, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo proposed an unprecedented commitment: to develop up to 2.4 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030, enough to power 1.25 million homes.

Benefits of offshore wind:

NYSERDA is the lead agency coordinating offshore wind opportunities in the State, which will support the ambitious Clean Energy Standard to meet 50 percent of New York's electricity needs with renewable sources by 2030. In support of the Governors proposal, NYSERDA continues to work closely with coastal communities and the fishing and maritime industries to identify offshore wind sites to be included in New York States Offshore Wind Master Plan.

Read the Offshore Wind in New York State Fact Sheet [PDF]

Like all energy resources, offshore wind must be developed thoughtfully and responsibly. NYSERDA is starting with a Blueprint, which outlines a process, steps, and timeline to develop the States Offshore Wind Master Plan. The Blueprint also describes how valuable stakeholder feedback will be pursued to inform the Master Plan. Activities listed in the Blueprint launch in the fall of 2016 and are expected to conclude with a completed Master Plan by the end of 2017.

Read the Blueprint for the New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan [PDF]

The New York State Offshore Wind Master Plan will be the comprehensive strategy for developing offshore wind resources in New York State. It will provide recommendations on the best solutions for maximizing the potential for offshore wind in the State. Elements of the Master Plan will include:

Sign up to receive all the latest news about offshore wind in New York State, including upcoming stakeholder meetings, relevant solicitations, and results of NYSERDA studies and surveys.

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Offshore Wind - NYSERDA

Bradenton Herald

Crosthwait begins 34th year with professional tournament and start of offshore event Bradenton Herald With less than 12 hours until Friday's start to the offshore competition of the Crosthwait Memorial Fishing Tournament, the Palmetto-based event had four boats enrolled. Winds forecast to be 15-20 knots through most of the weekend in the Gulf of Mexico ... and more »

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Crosthwait begins 34th year with professional tournament and start of offshore event - Bradenton Herald

Be careful what you wish for ...

So many young Australian soccer players, tempted by the prospect of big money or the chance to play in countries where football is the main sport, take their chances and move overseas to further their careers.

All seems well when they set out.

The ink on the contract has just dried, the coach has either told them or their agent that they are a crucial part of their new club's plans going forward, and the owner of the club is on hand to dispense warm greetings and a positive story about where his team is going.

And it's always up. To the top of the league, to promotion, to intercontinental competition.

Even though the young Australian may not be a star, he is assured that he will be a key component of the exciting journey they are all about to undergo.

If he's lucky, the player moves into an apartment, the club provide him with a car, and his salary arrives in his nominated bank account on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis.

The team does well, he gets plenty of minutes, begins to attract the attention of scouts and managers from bigger clubs in his new country or from more developed football markets, and his career takes off.

That happens quite often if a player is good enough, and if he goes to the right country, where basic legal frameworks and employment law cover his workplace conditions and rights.

If he is good enough, he can then make the leap to the big time as, in years gone by, players like Lucas Neill, Tim Cahill, Mark Schwarzer, Mark Bresciano, John Aloisi and Vince Grella, who started with lower tier clubs in England, Germany and Italy, did.

Sadly its not always the case.

Some agents are more diligent or simply have more staff and support than others and can smell a rat, or at least decide that the protagonists on the other end of a deal are too dodgy or dubious to work with.

Others, lacking those resources, may steer a young and impressionable player into a move that will quickly end up going sour and leave their career in limboand perhaps well out of pocket.

The downside works like this.

The player gets to a foreign country where he finds that, contrary to expectations, the apartment has not been hired, the car isn't there.

The coach, who seemed so keen in the negotiations, seems not to be bothered that much now, particularly as his attention is more focussed on keeping his job given a recent run of bad results.

The owner, who was so happy to talk the club up, is now reportedly in talks with interested consortia on selling out ostensibly to those with deeper pockets who can "deliver the sort of success the fans deserve".

The coach, who has given the young Australian a few outings off the bench but no starts in his first few weeks, pays the price for more disappointing results and is sacked. The owner is desperate to keep the team in the hunt so that it can be sold for a better price to would-be investors who are going cold now that relegation looks to be a real possibility.

Another older, more experienced coach, is brought in, a man who specialises in firefighting and getting teams out of the relegation zone.

He brings in his cadre of assistants and advisers, hardened men focussed on results and the short term.

He has never heard of the young Australian player, knows little or nothing about him and, desperate to keep the team in the division, signs some local veterans who may not have much career upside but know how to kick, fight and claw their way out of a sticky situation.

Having little use for the young foreigner, who is being paid more than the locals, the owner now decides to cut his losses.

The fact that the player has a two-year contract can mean little in some jurisdictions.

The coach tells him he doesn't want him training with or near the first team, and the youngster has to go and train with the under 18s. His promising career is in limbo, his development stalled, and his match fitness fading.

Then suddenly the rent on his apartment isn't paid, his salary isn't arriving on time, and, alone in a foreign land, lacking language skills and any support, things start to look very bleak.

In the end he cuts his losses, tells his agent to find a new client, tells the club owner that he will leave if they pay his air fare home and forego all or part of the salary he is owed, reasoning that he can return to the A-League and, if he is lucky, reboot his career if coaches there haven't forgotten who he is.

Okay, this is a composite horror story.

But all the elements it contains are true, and have (and probably still are), happening to many young Australian players who think the grass is greener elsewhere.

It surely is, if you can make it to the top, in one of the bigger leagues in a stable, well-run country where employment practices and customs are in place. But it's something of which even experienced players have to be wary.

The PFA, the players union, has been dealing with such cases for donkey's years.

It used to largely be eastern Europe and the Balkanswhere Australian players would be lured to chase the dream at second-tier clubs in some of the bigger leagues in that region Greece, Turkey, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, Russia.

For some, like Mark Viduka and Josip Skoko 20 years ago, Mile Jedinak more recently, it might work out and prove to be a springboard to their dreams of a Premier League future.

For many, however, it presages a spiral of decline, disappointment and disillusion.

Where once it was eastern Europe, it is now the cashed-up leagues of south-east Asia where disappointment often lies.

The same cycle is being repeated there in boom-and-bust competitions where promises are made, and often broken.

Player unions around the world are left to pick up the pieces.

There was a stark reminder that this can happen to anyone here in Australia in recent days when Robbie Kruse and James Holland, two well-established internationals particularly the former walked out on their Chinese club, Liaoning Whowin, because their wages have not been paid.

Kruse had travelled to China as a Socceroo of several years' standing and with half a decade's experience in the German Bundesliga, most of it with one of the top teams, Bayer Leverkusen, under his belt. But it was to no avail.

In part the pair have been victims of China's new foreign player rules which changed as they arrived in the country, so that can't be laidback to them, or their agents.

But it's another example of what can go wrong if you are unlucky. They are now free agents and looking for other clubs. They have established track records, so should be successful. But for those who haven't, be careful what you wish for.

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Grass is sometimes greener, but offshore pitfalls abound for young players - The Sydney Morning Herald

ATHENS Greece's energy minister held talks on Friday with representatives of U.S. oil major ExxonMobil and France's Total about gas exploration opportunities off Greek shores, the energy ministry said.

A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a consortium of ExxonMobil, Total and Greece's biggest oil refiner Hellenic Petroleum are expected to submit an offer "in the coming period" for exploration south of Crete.

Friday's meeting focused on "prospects for exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbon deposits," the energy ministry said in a statement.

Greece has made several fruitless attempts over the last 50 years to find big oil and gas reserves, but its debt crisis has prompted it to step up those efforts.

Athens previously tendered blocks off Crete, its southernmost island north of Egypt and Libya and west of Cyprus, in 2013 but did not receive bids.

The country is also hoping to find gas off western Greece and last year named a consortium of Total, Hellenic Petroleum and Italy's Edison as the preferred bidder for an offshore gas drilling block in the Ionian Sea. Licensing is expected this year.

Exploring for gas in the Mediterranean has become more attractive since Italy's Eni discovered Egypt's offshore Zohr field in the Levant Basin in 2015, the biggest gas field in the Mediterranean and estimated to contain 850 billion cubic meters of gas.

(Reporting by Karolina Tagaris, Lefteris Papadimas and Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Susan Fenton)

NEW YORK/LONDON/SINGAPORE After the first OPEC oil production cut in eight years took effect in January, oil traders from Houston to Singapore started emptying millions of barrels of crude from storage tanks.

LONDON The London Metal Exchange (LME) started publishing its Commitments of Traders Report (COTR) in July 2014.

VIENNA An OPEC panel reviewing scenarios for the oil producer group's meeting next week is looking at the option of deepening and extending a deal to reduce crude output, OPEC sources said on Friday, in an attempt to drain inventories and support prices.

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ExxonMobil, Total discuss offshore drilling opportunities in Greece ... - Reuters

PortCityDaily.com is your source for free news and information in the Wilmington area.

Video: The 2015 Hands Across the Sand event. (Courtesy Hendy Street Produxions)

CAROLINA BEACH People from across the Cape Fear area will join hands Saturday in opposition to President Trumps offshore drilling plans.

In late April, Trump signed the America-First Offshore Energy Plan, an executive order directing the Department of the Interior to review policyon drilling and seismic testing for oil along the Atlantic Coast.

Upon signing the order, Trump cited the desire to create jobs and wealth from American energy resources.

Our country is blessed with incredible natural resources, including abundant offshore oil and natural gas reserves, Trump said. But the federal government has kept 94 percent of these offshore areas closed for exploration and production. And when they say closed, they mean closed.

According to Ethan Crouch, chairman of the Cape Fear SurfriderFoundation, the risks to coastal Carolina from such activities are profound and twofold: economic and ecological.

Our community has a thriving recreation and tourism economy the relies on clean beaches and a healthy ocean, Crouch said. It makes no sense from a business perspective to put all that at risk for the sake of profits for some huge multinational corporation that is not invested in our community.

The ecological threats are equally important, and would threaten the region, according to Crouch.

Spills happen, its not a matter of if but when, Crouch said. The oil and gas industry has proven this over and over again, from large scale disasters like the Deepwater Horizon in the gulf, to regular low level spills from normal everyday operations. The Atlantic Ocean and Gulf Stream [are] home to one of the most biodiverse areas in the world. A spill would devastate our sea turtles, whales, and our vibrant fisheries here in N.C.

The Cape Fear Surfrider Foundation is holding an event on Saturday, May 20, to protest Trumps actions and to raise awareness about the risks of both drilling and seismic testing. The testing process involves high-pressure air blasts which, if implemented, would threaten over 100,000 marine mammals, according to Oceana USA, an environmental advocacy group. The Department of the Interior under the Obama administration had already begun moving in that direction with at 2014 report considering testing surveys in the Atlantic, the first in 26 years

Starting at 11:30 a.m. as many as 400 people plan to gather at Carolina Beach at the Harper Avenue beach access. At noon, participants will join hands on the beach to form a metaphorical and actual line in the sand. The Surfrider Foundation encourages visitors to come early, enjoy the beach and beat the traffic, and suggests participants carpool or ride bikes. For more information, you can visit the Cape Fear Surfrider Foundations event page.

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Carolina Beach event will protest Trump's offshore drilling plans - Port City Daily

What happened

Shares of Teekay Offshore Partners (NYSE:TOO)plunged on Thursday, down more than 15% at 3:15 p.m. EDT. Driving the sell-off was the company's first-quarter report, during which earnings fell versus last year because of a contract dispute with Brazilian oil giant Petrobras (NYSE:PBR). That sell-off was a key contributor to itsparent company's double-digit plunge today.

Teekay Offshore Partners generated $141.3 million in total cash flow from vessel operations (CFVO) during the quarter. While that was a 4.8% improvement from last quarter, CFVO is down 14.9% from last year's first quarter. Meanwhile, distributable cash flow also increased from last quarter, up 41.6% to $30.6 million. However, thatmetric is still down more than 50% from the year-ago period.

Image source: Getty Images.

Driving the sequential increase was higher cash flows from the company's shuttle tanker and floating production, storage, and offloading fleets. That performance made the company's results come in better than its expectations.

But that's where the good news ended. CEO Ingvild Sther stated in the press release:

Our results for the quarter continued to be impacted by the non-payment of charter hire on the Arendal Spirit UMS. We were recently notified by the charterer, Petrobras, of its termination of the charter contract on this unit. We are disputing the termination and are reviewing our legal options, while at the same time actively marketing the unit for alternative employment.

The company expects to record a $12 million increase in vessel operating expenses next quarter relating to this ship. As a result of this and other items, cash flow will fall sharply next quarter.

Teekay Offshore Partners has run into its share of problems over the past year because of the oil market's downturn. Not only has it had more than one customer end a contract earlier than anticipated, but one of its growth projects has also experienced delays and cost overruns that will probably push its timeline into early 2018. This string of problems has rattled investors, who are losing their patience with regard to the company's ability to turn things around.

Matt DiLallo has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Here's Why Teekay Offshore Partners LP Is Plunging Today - Motley Fool

Mary Ann Bragg @MaryAnnBraggCCT

FALMOUTH As three offshore wind energy developers move closer to preparing construction plans for areas south of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, each will spend time this summer exploring where to install transmission cables to connect their turbines to the grid.

We started mobilization last week, Bay State Wind permitting project manager Pernille Hermansensaid Tuesday at a regional stakeholder task force meetingin Falmouth. That was one vessel, and we just mobilized another vessel yesterday.

The company has leased 187,000 acres south of the Islands from the federal government, alongside competitors Vineyard Wind, with 167,000 acres, and farther west, Deepwater Wind with 165,000 acres.

Deepwater Wind, which already has five turbines installed and in operation off the coast of Block Island in Rhode Island, is the furthest alongthe federal regulatory permitting path. The government expects to make a decision on the companys plans for assessing the lease site by year-end. With that approval, the company could erect meteorological towers or buoys to collect specific information about the area.

Bay State Wind has submitted a complete site assessment plan, which is now under review, and federal officials are reviewing the Vineyard Wind plan for completeness.

Vineyard Wind is estimating 2020 as a construction start date, according to a recent announcement about its new partner, Avangrid Renewables. Bay State Wind will be looking for the best transmission cable corridor this summer, mostly likely at the soon-to-close Brayton Point power station in Somerset.

Vineyard Wind is also looking for the best place to connect onshore.

We do know were going to interconnect onto the Cape, said Vineyard Power Cooperative President Richard Andre, representing Vineyard Wind at the task force meeting. Theres several locations from Barnstable to Falmouth.

Vineyard Power partnered with Vineyard Wind in 2015 on the project.

The company has worked with town leaders on the Cape, and the survey company is working with groups that might have concerns, including about the effect on fishing fleets, Andre said.

The survey for Bay State Wind will likely take three weeks, with a start date depending on the weather, Hermansen said. The company is considering the coal-fired Brayton Point station because the existing switch yard doesnt need a lot of upgrades.

Cost wise it makes pretty good sense because its in pretty good shape, said Lauren Burm, spokeswoman for Bay State Wind.

Deepwater Wind will be doing more analysis, with on- and off-shore surveys and talking with community members before deciding on a transmission cable route, said Deepwater Wind spokeswoman Meaghan Wims.

It will involve input from many different stakeholders across Long Island, Wims said.

While the company will first develop one corner of its leased acres near New York, plans to expand.

We are planning that full buildout, said Aileen Kenney, vice-president of permitting and environmental affairs for Deepwater Wind.

All three companies will be focused, too, on a request for proposals expected at the end of June from the three electric distribution companies in Massachusetts, which will solicit bids from offshore wind power businesses that want to sell their energy under state guidelines. Bay State Wind is a collaboration between utility giant Eversource Energy which distributes electricity on the Cape and Vineyard, as well as in other parts of the state and New England and DONG Energy, which has built more offshore wind turbines than any other company in the world, with 21 offshore wind farms in operation and another seven under construction.

Each company has also hired at least one person to reach out to local fishing interests, as part of the best management practices recommended by the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

They do not attend meetings so people like myself are critical, James Kendall, who has been hired by Vineyard Wind to reach out to the fishing community, said about fishermen.

Federal officials are also preparing for an auction of two unleased areas south of the islands, given that two other companies have expressed interest in one of the areas. While one person at the task force meeting suggested fewer companies could increase the chances of cooperation in the overall offshore wind energy effort, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center Offshore Wind Director William White advocated for more developers.

More competition drives down rates for ratepayers, White said.

Follow Mary Ann Bragg on Twitter: @maryannbraggCCT.

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Offshore wind energy gears up to hook up - Cape Cod Times (subscription)

Houston Business Journal

Update: Houston offshore co. files Ch. 11 to eliminate $430M of debt Houston Business Journal GulfMark also filed a series of first-day motions, including a request to enter into a $35 million interim financing facility. If approved, that financing is expected to sufficiently support GulfMark's operations during the bankruptcy process. GulfMark ... GulfMark Offshore plans bankruptcy filingFuelFix (blog) GulfMark Offshore to file for Chapter 11Splash 247 all 8 news articles »

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Update: Houston offshore co. files Ch. 11 to eliminate $430M of debt - Houston Business Journal

The twist to this story? Rkke has decided to give "the lion's share" of his estimated $2.7 billion fortune towards building a 596-foot marine research vessel, the Research Expedition Vessel (REV), that's also designed to scoop up a major oceanic threatplastic pollution.

The REV, a collaboration with Norway's World Wildlife Fund (WWF), will be able to suck up to 5 tons of plastic a day from the waters and melt it down, Norway's Aftenposten newspaper reported.

"I want to give back to society the bulk of what I've earned," Rkke told the publication. "This ship is a part of that."

According to Business Insider, the mega-yachtwhich will be the world's largest once builtcan carry 60 scientists and 40 crew. The REV will be equipped with modern laboratories, an auditorium, two helipads, a hangar for a remote operated vehicle, an autonomous underwater vehicle as a multifunctional cargo deck aft of the ship, and high-tech equipment for monitoring and surveying marine areas. It is also available for private charters for up to 36 guests and 54 crew, which will help generate extra funding for research.

Rkke, a former fisherman, said the oceans "have provided significant value for society" and directly to him and his family.

"However," he noted, "the oceans are also under greater pressure than ever before from overfishing, coastal pollution, habitat destruction, climate change and ocean acidification, and one of the most pressing challenges of all, plasticization of the ocean. The need for knowledge and solutions is pressing."

While onboard, the researchers will attempt to answer some of the most pressing questions facing our seas:

What impact does CO2 emissions have on the oceans and ocean acidification, and what can we do to reduce the effects?

How can we overcome plastic pollution, which is causing extensive damage throughout the marine food chain?

What can we do to save endangered species?

How can we reduce bycatch and make harvesting of marine resources more sustainable?

Are there untapped resources in the oceans, which through sustainable harvest could provide new sources of food or energy for future generations?

"The REV will be a platform for gathering knowledge," Rkke told Business Insider. "I would like to welcome researchers, environmental groups, and other institutions on board, to acquire new skills to evolve innovative solutions to address challenges and opportunities connected to the seas."

Yachts, especially one of this size, of course have some environmental drawbacks but here are some of the ship's green credentials:

Diesel electric with additional 3MW lithium ion battery pack for peak shaving ensuring optimum efficiency, with silent running under batteries alone for limited periods of time at biomass sampling speeds 2 kts during research missions.

Medium speed generators compiling with the latest Marpol Tier III regulation with additional DPF (Diesel Particulate Filters)

High efficiency frequency controlled research winch package with energy recovery system, so that power can be harvested on winch release and re-directed into battery pack

Heat recovery on all main generators and incinerator for feeding back into hot water circuits and HVAC, reducing power demands from generators. Heat recovery system used for generating free fresh water through evaporator plant 30 m3/24 hrs

"Free cool" system for air conditioning system in sea water temperature below 10 degrees, reducing power consumption.

Hi-tech incinerator system allowing all materials including plastics but not metal or glass to be incinerated in an environmental way without producing any noxious gases and limited char, meaning the ship does not have to off load plastic waste to shoreside facilities in countries with limited ability to then dispose of plastics. Every 1 kg of waste burnt puts 110kgs thermal power back into ships systems

Latest LED lighting systems throughout vessel to reduce power consumption

VARD SeaQ "Green Pilot" system for monitoring COx, SOx and NOx emissions plus other environmental parameters to allow crew to run the ship in the most environmental way keeping the carbon footprint to a minimum.

Latest ballast water treatment system to prevent species cross contamination across ocean zones

Vessel built under DNV-GL SILENT-R notation for maximum prevention of underwater noise pollution

Hull construction built to ICE PC6 for navigation in ice infested water, medium first year ice with old inclusions, machinery specified to ICE 1C

Decks covered in either synthetic deck covers or WWF FSC certified woods

The ship is expected to be operational by summer 2020. Not only will it be the largest in the world once built, the REV will be the world's heaviest, at 16,000GT.

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Offshore Oil Well Leaked for Months, Public Kept in Dark for a Year - EcoWatch

WorkBoat (blog)

GulfMark Offshore Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection Wall Street Journal (subscription) GulfMark Offshore Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Wednesday after reaching a deal with bondholders on the terms of a debt-for-equity swap as the shakeout in the offshore support industry continues. The Houston-based offshore-support provider ... GulfMark Offshore to file for bankruptcyWorkBoat (blog) GulfMark Offshore commences bankruptcy caseSplash 247 GulfMark Offshore Commences Chapter 11 ProceedingsMarine Log OSJ Magazine -TradeWinds (subscription) -Maritime Herald all 37 news articles »

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GulfMark Offshore Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Protection - Wall Street Journal (subscription)