Jim Wilson

An act of crew-forgetfulness led to a gas tanker losing power for several minutes in the Port of Brisbane in March this year, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has found. Crew aboard the gas carrier Gaschem Homer forgot to switch two of the three ship’s generators to automatic mode. The ship’s power management system was...

Professor Momoko Kitada of the World Maritime University has been selected to receive the 2025 IMO Gender Equality Award. The Award is bestowed on individuals who have made significant contributions to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women in the maritime sector. The IMO Council endorsed Professor Kitada as the recipient during its 135th...

Protecting the marine environment must remain central to any marine geo-engineering project, countries have warned at the International Maritime Organization. At the recent meeting of the London Convention Contracting Parties (the London Convention as amended is the main regulatory instrument in this area) governments noted expert findings that marine carbon dioxide removal approaches are still...

Port of Townsville and Jet Zero have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to investigate storage and associated infrastructure needs to support the import and export of sustainable aviation fuel. An investigation committee will be established, with representatives from both organisations, which will meet to discuss and develop options. The committee will also consider the feasibility...

France has signed the Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct, a regional initiative to combat piracy, armed robbery against ships and other illicit maritime activities in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden. Her Excellency Ambassador Carné de Trécesson de Coëtlogon deposited the legal instrument with the International Maritime Organization (IMO)...

Ship strikes on whales, and underwater radiated noise, are both disturbing issues that the industry has taken measures to address. The World Shipping Council has released its Whale Chart 2025, a global planning aid to help protect whales. The initial 2023 Chart was the first global mapping of all known mandatory and voluntary government measures...

Eight African countries have agreed action to support the implementation of the Hong Kong Convention for the Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships, which entered into force on 26 June 2025. The Convention aims to have ships recycled safely with minimal risk to the environment or human health. An event held in Mombasa, Kenya,...

A slew of announcements have been made by the Australian Maritime College, part of the University of Tasmania, in areas as diverse as robot ships and watercraft, a new engineering hub, and a new research hub too. Robot ships collaboration AMC Search and Lloyd’s Register have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen collaboration in...

A consultation has been started by the US Trade Representative (USTR) into the suspension of the Section 301 penalties on  China-connected shipping and logistics assets. Following the recent trade talks between Presidents Trump and Xi, described as a “massive victory,” by the White House and which has also recently described the time so far of...

Biosecurity Act review The Minister for Biosecurity announced today that the Government will be progressing amendments to the Biosecurity Act 1993. The final proposals for the Biosecurity Act Amendment Bill have been released on our website:   Proposed amendments to the Biosecurity Act | NZ Government. At this stage, there is no proposal to change the...