It’s happening! The future is upon us! Shipbuilding Contract Signed for Unmanned, Zero-Emission Container Ship ‘Yara Birkeland’
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Roro built in Kenya and transported by road to Uganda
Southern Engineering Co Ltd (SECO) partnered with Damen to build and deliver MV Albert Nile 1 to Uganda National Roads Authority from their shipyard in Mombasa, Kenya. MV Albert Nile 1 is a roll on roll off (RoRo) modular ferry specially designed to safely transport passengers and vehicles across Lake Albert in Uganda. The hull […]
Department of Transport highlights seafarer wellbeing
The Department of Transport (DoT), together with the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA), hosted stakeholder engagements in Durban, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth where industry had the opportunity to raise concerns and address issues related to training, selection and wellbeing of seafarers. During the roundtable sessions, delegates heard that the DoT had committed to […]
SA Training vessel SA Agulhas takes on ratings
The SA Agulhas, South Africa’s dedicated training vessel has taken on its first group of 20 deck and engine rating trainees in a pilot program aimed at growing the pool of employable South African Seafarers. this new pilot project is a first and takes on board rating trainees who are able to climb the ranks […]
‘Autonomous’ does not necessarily mean ‘unmanned’
I was assured last week in Houston that “autonomous doesn’t mean unmanned”. The expert who offered me his wisdom is a senior player in the energy shipping sector and heads a team of techno-wizards who should know about these things. So it wasn’t an idle statement and has deep relevance for shipping. It’s not the […]

Maritime Training opportunities on board third SA registered vessel
The multipurpose platform supply and support vessel Greatship Manisha – operating out of the port of Mossel Bay – became the third ship to be registered on the South African Ships Registry. The vessel was registered on the 14th March 2017. It is the first ship to be registered by the Cape Town-based Marine Crew […]
Rufus Lekala suspended
South Africa’s Chief Harbour Master has suspended. No reasons have been given at this stage. The following as an extract from Brand South Africa’s article: “From taxi driver to South African and world maritime history-maker – this is how Captain Rufus Lekala’s life story would read if it were written today. Appointed as the first […]
BMC attends VDES conference in Cape Town
We recently attended the VDES (VHF Data Exchange System) conference in the Lord Charles Hotel in Somerset West near Cape Town, South Africa. The event was organised by Stone Three Venture technology. It was very gratifying the founder of BMC, Captain Keith Burchell, was publicly recognised as one of the founders of the AIS technology. […]
Macuse gets the go-ahead in Mozambique
Macauhub reports that the Portuguese construction group Mota-Engil has been hired to build a rail-road between Moatize in Tete province Mozambique, and Macuse on the Zambezia province coast in Mozambique, where a deep-water port will be built for the export of coal. The announcement was made by the president of the Zambezi Integrated Development Corridor […]
Mozambique’s LNG dreams falling apart
By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com Mozambique is heading towards a major default on outstanding loans related to offshore natural gas infrastructure, symbolizing the deflating hopes for a major source of new natural gas production from East Africa. The state-owned Mozambique Asset Management is set to default on $535 million in loans, which it took out […]