ORPC Delivers First US Tide-Generated Power
To Grid in Maine
Bangor Hydro Electric Co. (Bangor, Maine) verified last week that electricity is being delivered to its power grid from the TidGen turbine generator unit installed at the Ocean Renewable Power Co., or ORPC, (Portland, Maine) Cobscook Bay Tidal Energy Project. This is the first power generated from any ocean energy project, including offshore wind, wave and tidal, to be delivered to an electric utility grid in the U.S., and it is the only ocean energy project, other than one using a dam, that delivers power to a utility grid anywhere in North, Central and South America, according to ORPC. >> Read more

Shell Puts Arctic Drilling Plans on Hold
Royal Dutch Shell plc (The Hague, Netherlands) on Monday suspended drilling for oil offshore Alaska after it found in that the containment dome aboard the Arctic Challenger barge was damaged during final testing of its Arctic containment system. Shell will still begin to drill wells, known as "top holes," which will be capped and temporarily abandoned this year, as time remaining in this season allows. >> Read more

Mariscope Launches ROV Comander MK II SF
Mariscope Meerestechnik (Osdorf, Germany) launched last week the Comander MK II SF (Super Fast), one of the fastest observation-class vehicles on the market that can travel up to 7 knots. The Comander MK II SF was tested during trials carried out with the German Customs Brigade in Hamburg, Germany. This port is the biggest river port in the world, and since it is near the North Sea, it is influenced by tidal currents. >> Read more

Saab Seaeye Unveils New Cougar ROV Skid Design
Saab Seaeye (Fareham, England) has added a new skid design concept that enables its Cougar XTi ROV to carry out subsea Christmas tree installations and other tasks, meaning a small electric ROV can be deployed in the support role rather than a large hydraulic work-class vehicle. Skids can be fitted with work-scope tools, such as a class-1-to-4 torque tool, 350-bar seawater hot stab, manipulators, and high-pressure water jet and rotary brush for cleaning work. >> Read more

OceanWorks International Contracted
For FORCE Tidal Energy System
OceanWorks International (Burnaby, Canada) has been awarded a contract by the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy (FORCE) to instrument a cable termination for a tidal energy project in the Bay of Fundy. The project, which OceanWorks announced on Tuesday, includes the design, manufacture and integration of the subsea instrumentation, shore station and commissioning. >> Read more

Tesla Offshore LLC Names Director of Geoscience
Nathaniel "Nat" Usher has joined Tesla Offshore LLC (Prairieville, Louisiana) as director of geoscience at the beginning of September. For the past 30 years, Usher has worked for ARCO/BP (La Palma, California). He plans to assist Tesla in optimizing use of technology in its geophysical survey operations and to further develop geohazards interpretation services. >> Read more

Q&A: Jerry Bridges, Virginia Port Authority
Between now and 2020, investment needs in the nation’s marine ports and inland waterways sector will total $30 billion, while planned expenditures are about $14 billion, leaving a total investment gap of nearly $16 billion, according to a report released last week by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).

The “Failure to Act” report concludes that transporting goods will become costlier, prices will rise and the U.S. will become less competitive in the global market if the gap is unfilled. Aging infrastructure for marine ports, inland waterways and airports threatens more than 1 million U.S. jobs.

Sea Technology magazine asked Jerry Bridges, director of the Virginia Port Authority and chairman of the American Association Port Authority (AAPA), for his thoughts on the state of port infrastructure in the U.S.

As a port authority director, what's your reaction to this ASCE report and its findings?
I already knew that federal commitment for investing in America’s freight handling infrastructure, particularly on the waterside, is very low compared to what ports have committed to investing in their own facilities.

Yet, I was surprised at how large the impacts would be if the federal government were to only invest an additional $16 billion into waterborne infrastructure over the next seven to eight years: $270 billion more in U.S. exports overseas; nearly $700 billion more in Gross Domestic Product; and creation of 738,000 jobs. This equates to a $770 benefit for every household in the country, which you can also say is a $770 loss for every household if the investments aren’t made. I can’t think of any other investment with a return so substantial.

What are the most critical infrastructure needs at the Hampton Roads harbor? How much are these estimated to cost, and what are the barriers the port faces in funding these efforts?
The Port of Virginia has few of the infrastructure needs that many other ports face around the nation. Our navigation channels and our primary cargo berths are already dredged to 50 feet deep, which many in the industry consider to be the “gold standard.” >> Read more