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DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 Number 317 *** COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS *** Thursday 13-11-2014 News reports received from readers and Internet News articles copied from various news sites. Rohde Nielsen’s shoalbuster RIMFAXE R off Vlissingen Photo : Wim Kosten – www.maritimephoto.com (c) Distribution : daily to 31475+ active addresses 13-11-2014 Page 1 DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 Your feedback is important to me so please drop me an email if you have any photos or articles that may be of interest to the maritime interested people at sea and ashore PLEASE SEND ALL PHOTOS / ARTICLES TO : [email protected] If you don't like to receive this bulletin anymore : To unsubscribe click here (English version) or visit the subscription page on our website. http://www.maasmondmaritime.com/uitschrijven.aspx?lan=en-US EVENTS, INCIDENTS & OPERATIONS 11-11-2014 : The ANL WARRAIN inbound at Port Phillip Heads (the Rip) for Melbourne Photo : Bill Barber © Port Hedland tugboat threat remains despite Teekay pay deal A new pay deal has not completely removed the threat of strikes for Port Hedland tugboat operator Teekay. Port Hedland tugboat operator Teekay Shipping has struck a pay deal with tugboat deckhands and skippers but still faces the prospect of its operations coming to a halt as mechanics continue to press for better conditions.The Maritime Union of Australia said its members unanimously voted in favour of a new Enterprise Bargaining Agreement that will give workers, who are paid about $140,000 a year, four weeks of paid leave each year. They currently work a four week on and four week off roster.Teekay said on top of additional leave, there would be no salary increase in the first year but salaries would rise by 2 per cent in the second, third and fourth year of the new EBA.Teekay said these pay rises would be offset by the removal of travel day and other allowances and penalty rates. Yet the union representing the mechanics, or engineers, the Australian Institute of Marine Power Engineers, is continuing to press for better wages and conditions and its members plan to walk off the job on Wednesday morning. Distribution : daily to 31475+ active addresses 13-11-2014 Page 2 DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 It wants to address fatigue issues and cap shifts to 12 hours, a move that would require Teekay to employ more tug boat crews. It has recommended its members reject Teekay's pay offer.There are also concerns that mechanics are not being fairly compensated for increasing maintenance demands on the tugs.It is understood BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group have not sought an intervention by the Fair Work Commission to prevent the strike, suggesting the four-hour industrial action would not have a significant economic impact on their operations.But it is believed BHP has been forced to write to concerned customers, underscoring the sensitivity major steel mills have to potential industrial disputes.Teekay is attempting to stop the strike and has requested an urgent meeting with AIMPE before the Fair Work Commission. Right : Teekay’s RT TOUCH – Photo : Marijn van Hoorn © The AIMPE says the strike will disrupt port users but the impact has been minimised by being just four hours long and timed with a low tide. A Fair Work conference was scheduled for 10am in Perth on Tuesday.MUA WA branch secretary Christy Cain said agreeing to a deal with Teekay demonstrated the union's ability to negotiate. "Strike action is always a last resort for the MUA and we are pleased to have won a great outcome for our members without having to take one days' industrial action," Mr Cain said.Earlier this year the MUA took steps to take protected action, a move that prompted federal Employment Minister Eric Abetz to call on Opposition Leader Bill Shorten to step in to prevent a potential strike by the "rogue union".The MUA agreed to suspend industrial action. Bulker off Port Hedland Photo : Marijn van Hoorn © "Despite political interference from both the Barnett (WA) and Abbott governments, the MUA has been able to sit down with Teekay and reach an agreement that is in both the national interest and the interest of workers," Mr Cain said.BHP has previously warned more than $100 million of iron ore exports are at risk if the port was to shut. A spokesman for BHP said it was pleased pay deals had been reached and hoped negotiations with the AIMPE could continue without industrial action."BHP Billiton iron ore is pleased that new agreements have been reached between Teekay and members of the Maritime Union of Australia and the Australian Maritime Officers Union," the spokesman said."This is a positive step forward that will help to bring stability to our industry after more than 17 months of negotiation." Fortescue declined to comment. Source : Sydney Morning herald ALSO INTERESTED IN THIS FREE MARITIME NEWSCLIPPINGS ? CLICK HERE AND REGISTER FOR FREE ! Distribution : daily to 31475+ active addresses 13-11-2014 Page 3 DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 11-11-2014 : The TIANLONG SPIRIT IMO 9378369, 2009/85037gt, in to Melbourne anchorage off Portsea Photo : Andrew Mackinnon – www.aquamanships.com © South Korea ferry verdict: Sewol captain sentenced to 36 years in prison The ferry captain who abandoned hundreds of schoolchildren when the Sewol capsized and sank off the coast of South Korea in April has been given 36 years in prison on the same day that divers abandoned the search for the bodies of six people still missing.Lee Jun-seok was sentenced after a court in the city of Gwangju found him not guilty of murder but convicted him of gross negligence causing death for abandoning the sinking ship with more than 300 passengers, most of them teenagers on a school excursion, on board.The court sentenced the Sewol’s chief engineer to 30 years after finding him guilty of homicide. The ferry’s first and second mates were given prison sentences of 20 and 15 years respectively. None of the crew members standing trial were found guilty of murder, according to South Korean media reports.Lee Joon- seok, the captain of the Sewol, arrives to hear the verdict. The sinking of the Sewol – and the realisation that more lives could have been saved had Lee and his crew acted differently – traumatised South Korea and prompted an angry backlash against the administration of President Park Geun-hye.Many asked if South Korea, having risen from the ashes of war and estrangement from its neighbour to the north, had sacrificed the safety of its citizens in favour of its rapid rise to become Asia’s fourth-biggest economy.Lee had told the court that he “deserved to die” but denied that his decision to abandon the ship with passengers still on board had effectively condemned them to their deaths.Faced with a fierce public backlash led by grieving families, President Park quickly helped turn Lee into a figure of hate.At times it appeared that she and other senior government officials had decided the captain was guilty before his trial had even begun. In one outburst soon after the tragedy, Park described Lee’s actions as “tantamount to murder”.Video footage showing Lee climbing on to a coastguard lifeboat while his young passengers fought for their lives only added to the public opprobrium directed at him and his Distribution : daily to 31475+ active addresses 13-11-2014 Page 4 DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 crew.Video shows the captain and some crew of the Sewol being hauled to safety as the ferry sank.Grief at the sudden loss of so may young lives turned to anger when it became clear how the tragedy had unfolded. Before leaving his ship ahead of most of the passengers, it emerged that Lee had instructed the remaining passengers to stay put, even as the vessel began to list dramatically. Prosecutors argued that decision alone contributed to the heavy loss of life.The tragedy also exposed serious safety flaws that contributed to what many quickly came to see as a purely manmade disaster.The Sewol had undergone an illegal redesign and was carrying more cargo than it was designed to accommodate – flaws that did not come to light until it was too late, due to cosy ties between ferry operators and regulators.Lee, 69, admitted during the trial that he had panicked and failed to take “appropriate measures”. But he added: “I swear from my heart that there was never any intention to murder.”It was not immediately clear whether defence lawyers would appeal the verdict.The 6,825-tonne Sewol had been en route to the resort island of Jeju on the morning of 16 April when it suddenly listed after executing a sharp turn.Only 172 of the 476 passengers and crew were rescued. Of the 304 confirmed dead or still missing, 250 were schoolchildren. On Tuesday South Korean officials said they were calling off the search for victims with nine people still unaccounted for. “As the search prolonged for a long term, the chance of discovering missing people has become slim while [rescuers] have voiced safety risks,” Yonhap quoted the oceans and fisheries minister, Lee Ju-young, as saying.“The government decided that the underwater search has reached its limit.” Source : Ferries outside Europe A fully loaded TSHD NILE RIVER at the Westerschelde – Photo : Henk de Winde © ERMA FIRST signs up for 9 ship sets with DSME in favor of Tsakos Shipping Distribution : daily to 31475+ active addresses 13-11-2014 Page 5 DAILY COLLECTION OF MARITIME PRESS CLIPPINGS 2014 – 317 DSME shipyard and the Greek owner Tsakos, have committed with ERMA FIRST’s technology in Ballast Water Treatment by signing contract for the Next Generation ERMA FIRST Ballast Water Treatment Systems to be installed on 9 Crude Oil Tankers, the company said in its press release.27 systems in total -featured by ERMA FIRST‘s unique technology- are due for delivery between 2015 and 2016.