After Japan and the European Union both convinced the Trump administration to lower their base tariff rates to just 15 percent, South Korea is anxious to do the same - and like its economic competitors, it is thinking about putting cash on the table to get what it needs. Seoul is pinning its hopes on the strength of Korean shipbuilding, and is proposing a multibillion-dollar Korean investment in U.S. shipyards in exchange for lower U.S. tariffs on Korean cars and other goods, according to multiple local media reports. 

The diplomatic effort is motivated in no small part by Korea's automotive sector. Its growth depends upon exporting crossover SUVs and sedans to North America, and it has built a strong market presence in the United States because Korean-made cars are cost-competitive - but with new U.S. tariffs, that edge could change.

After newly-announced trade deals with the White House, European and Japanese carmakers can look forward to doing business in the United States under a 15 percent tariff regime. If Seoul doesn't reach a similar deal with the Trump administration soon, South Korean automakers will be burdened by a 25 percent tariff while their competitors are paying 10 percentage points less. In this context, Korean lawmakers are anxious to secure a deal, and are said to be considering the EU and Japanese approach for a business deal with Washington: offer investment funding. 

To secure its trade deal, Japan pledged to put a total of $550 billion in foreign investment into strategic U.S. industries, including shipbuilding; the EU promised to buy $750 billion worth of U.S. energy commodities before the end of President Donald Trump's current term. For its own deal, Seoul is said to be contemplating an investment focused squarely on shipbuilding, valued in the range of $200-400 billion (local reports vary). This would be a generational change in American shipyards, and not only because of the high dollar value of the pledge. Seoul has pressed the case that South Korea is the best possible business partner in shipbuilding because Korean yards can transfer cutting-edge technology.  

Of course, analysts were quick to note that success requires more. "Even if they invest, securing productivity will be difficult in the United States given the shortage of skilled labor," Yang Jong-seo, a researcher at the Overseas Economic Research Institute, told Korea JoongAng Daily. "This is something the government needs to resolve during negotiations." 

Any bold headline numbers during dealmaking might be subject to future revision, based on the "nonbinding" values put forth in the Japanese and European agreements. Japan has emphasized that its $550 billion pledge is a verbal commitment, and the EU Commission acknowledges that its own $600 billion investment promise is based solely on private-sector European business decisions. The EU's $250 billion annual energy purchase commitment is worth further scrutiny: it exceeds the value of all U.S. oil and LNG exports by more than $100 billion a year, according to commodities research house Gakeval. "It’s a nice number but it’s just not realistic," Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING Bank, told the Wall Street Journal. "You’d essentially have to divert all energy trade. That’s just not possible."

[By Bureau Veritas]

Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore (BV) and Bureau Veritas Solutions Marine & Offshore (BVS) are delighted to announce their participation in Wind for Shipping (W4S), a European research and development initiative funded by the Interreg North-West Europe programme. Launched in January 2025 and running through July 2028, the project brings together twelve partners — including shipyards, shipping companies, research institutions, and regional authorities — from across the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and France, with the shared goal of accelerating the maritime sector's transition toward low-emission shipping.

Wind for Shipping focuses on the development, scaling, and adoption of wind propulsion technologies —specifically rotorsails and wingsails. These innovative systems harness wind power and have the potential to reduce fuel consumption by an estimated 20% to 40%, significantly cutting greenhouse gas emissions from commercial vessels. The project’s total budget is €5.7 million, of which €3.4 million is co-financed by the European Union.

The initiative plays a key role in supporting European climate ambitions by addressing some of the main barriers to the commercial deployment of wind-assisted propulsion. It seeks to lower production costs, optimize manufacturing processes, and strengthen the entire value chain, from design and production to installation and operation. The project also aims to strengthen regional maritime innovation ecosystems by fostering collaboration among coastal regions. By aligning research, production, and logistics capacities, Wind for Shipping contributes to building Europe’s position as a Maritime Centre of Excellence for Green Shipping.

BV and BVS will bring to the project their extensive technical expertise in performance assessment. Specifically, BVS will provide CFD and weather routing calculations as well as project customized on-board measurement data. BV, through hydrostructure and energy efficiency simulations, will develop modeling methodologies to evaluate the intrinsic performance of wind propulsion technologies and their effect on the performance of the vessel. In addition, BV will support the project’s exploration of composite manufacturing processes to enable large-scale production of wind propulsion systems, a crucial step in making these solutions viable for widespread commercial use.

“By contributing to Wind for Shipping, we reinforce our commitment to the maritime energy transition and to enabling the safe, effective deployment of sustainable technologies across the industry. This collaboration is another example of how Bureau Veritas is actively supporting innovation while upholding the highest standards of safety, reliability, and environmental stewardship,” said Matthieu de Tugny, President of Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore.

Robbert van Hasselt, Wind for Shipping's project leader, said: “Upscaling rotors and sails in both size and number marks a decisive step toward making wind-assisted ship propulsion economically viable. By combining technical innovation with scalable solutions, we aim to accelerate the green transition in maritime transport and make wind a central force in sustainable shipping.” 

 

For the shipping community, the Red Sea route between the West and East using the Suez Canal remains a dangerous choice. Attempts at the beginning of July to test the viability of the passage ended in the loss of two Greek-owned bulk carriers, Magic Seas (IMO 9736169) and the Eternity C (IMO: 9588249), with multiple fatalities. Shipowners have been forced to revisit their calculations, though many remain willing to take the risks.

The Houthis are the only members of Iran’s original Axis of Resistance whose fighting spirit appears to remain undiminished. Although it was a Houthi initiative to propose the May 6 ceasefire with the United States, the Houthis did so in search of a tactical pause in which to recover from significant losses inflicted by both American and Israeli airstrikes, not as an act of surrender. The Houthis have frequently used ceasefires in the past as an opportunity to regroup. Consistent with this, Houthi missile and drone strikes against Israel have continued, albeit at reduced levels. The aggressive rhetoric has also continued.

Given then that the Houthis are still standing as a fighting force and their determination to fight Israel over Palestine is undiminished, how is the Houthi threat to shipping likely to evolve? Is the Red Sea route likely to reopen to shipping anytime soon?

The Houthis may not have it all their own way of course. While the United States appears to have pulled back from confronting the Houthis, Israel has been urging the United States to re-engage, but faces opposition from within the wing of the Republican Party that seeks to avoid overseas confrontations. Israel itself, not previously having given the Houthis a high priority, are clearly now re-evaluating the threat, particularly having achieved dominance elsewhere. The use of drones to suppress Houthi activity from afar may signal a new surveillance-led approach to tackling the Houthi threat that is likely to get more and more effective as the Israeli intelligence services improve their understanding of Houthi military structures. As used in the context of Iran, Israel has a Mizrahi community which it can leverage to achieve high-level understanding and penetration of the target environment. Certainly, looking at previous attempts to take down Houthi military effectiveness, a new approach and a new level of determination will be necessary if military means are to be successful.

Within Yemen, the Houthis’ political position for the moment remains strong. The Houthis, once confined to the north-west, have successfully formed broader tribal and political alliances, then consolidated these allies into their core structure. With Iranian assistance, they have developed a highly effective security structure able to identify and quickly suppress dissent. The surveillance and counter-intelligence equipment intercepted by National Resistance Forces en route to the Houthis on June 27 are worthy of the most sophisticated internal security organization; that the Houthis managed to procure such equipment from leading edge Israeli and Western sources is highly impressive of itself, and indicative of the caliber of the Houthi internal security apparatus.

Forces theoretically loyal to the recognized government of Yemen pose little threat to the Houthis. Most of the Yemeni anti-Houthi warlords are concerned primarily with securing personal economic benefits from foreign backers, and these sponsors have little interest in burying their differences so as to achieve a reunified Yemen. The viability of the recognized government as an alternative to the Houthis expired several years ago, if it ever existed, and what unity of purpose there was appears to be fraying. This is evident on the ground, where the front line between the Houthis and their adversaries has barely changed in years.

If there is a dynamic and a potential for change in Yemen, putting aside change that an Israeli initiative might engender, it is that the Houthis ideologically are still on the advance, their enthusiasm for taking the war to Israel over the Palestinian cause boosted by popular Arab support. The Houthis are reveling in being now the only active member of what was the Axis of Resistance, and of being the vanguard of populist anti-Israeli views quietly curbed within the Arab monarchies. So it is not inconceivable that the Houthis will attempt more ambitious anti-Israeli actions than hitherto. Western nations generally, and in particular the United States and Britain, are regarded as targets by association.

In the short term, Houthi drone and missile attacks on Israel will continue, as will attacks on targets of opportunity should they present themselves in the Red Sea or further afield. Indeed the Yemeni military spokesman Brigadier Yahya Sare’e on July 27 threatened such an expansion of Houthi anti-shipping activities.  But in the longer term, ambitious new attack options are likely to be pursued. Brigadier Bakil Saleh al Wahbi, commander of a Houthi-allied tribal force in the Al Bayda region, has warned that ‘upcoming military options will be painful for Israel and its allies’, and that the closing the Bab al-Mandeb Strait is on the table if the war on Gaza continues.

Reports continue to suggest that the Houthis are supporting Al Shabab operations on the western side of the Red Sea, threatening the Mogadishu government and the East African littoral. The popular center-right newspaper Israel Hayom has published a report that the Houthis have graduated a third batch of ‘special force’ soldiers for their Tufan al-Aqsa unit, trained to launch raids into Israel. Any such raid would require some innovative thinking - but the Houthis have proved resourceful in coming up with new attack options.

There is a gap between such aspirations and a realistic threat, but suffice to say Houthi ambitions are not yet blunted, and nor is their tactical ingenuity. The Houthis generate considerable support domestically with their pro-Palestinian stance, and as yet nothing has persuaded them to adopt a less aggressive posture. A ceasefire over Gaza is unlikely to satisfy the Houthis or quell their enthusiasm, and they need that aspirational cause to shore up their political base. The maritime community meanwhile has adapted to the risks of plying the Red Sea, and it looks for the foreseeable future as if greater use of routes around the Cape makes a sound commercial and practical alternative.

The first of a series of unique vessels, the commissioning service operation vessel Windcat Rotterdam, recently completed sea trials and is nearing delivery. According to CMB.TECH, its Windcat division, and Damen, which is building the six ships, they represent advances in efficiency, performance, and comfort and will be the first capable of being powered by hydrogen.

CMB.TECH reported the order for two vessels in 2022 and later expanded it to a class of six ships as it looks to continue to drive the deployment of alternative fuels. Windcat, the group’s offshore service company, was the first to deploy a hydrogen-powered crew transfer vessel and is now set to take delivery of Windcat Rotterdam.

At approximately 6,700 gross tons, the vessels are billed as an advancement in the CSOV sector when compared to the earlier designs for offshore wind farm support vessels. Each ship is 87 meters (285 feet) in length, with 90 cabins and accommodations for up to 120 people and a capability to remain onsite for up to 30 days.

The vessel is fitted with a diesel-battery hybrid power generation system, and a secondary dual-fuel (diesel and hydrogen) genset with hydrogen storage located at the rear of the open main deck. An additional 2MW electrical connection is provided for green shore power, green offshore recharging, or additional sources of green power installed on the deck (e.g., battery or H2).

The vessels are being built at Ha Long Shipyard in Vietnam. Windcat Rotterdam was launched on October 12, 2024.

“The hybrid-electric propulsion system coupled with an efficient power distribution system means that there will be no need to run a backup diesel generator and the vessel will never use more power than necessary,” said Joost van der Weiden, Damen Sales Manager Benelux. “We have optimized the thruster configuration, enhancing dynamic positioning during transfer operations. These innovations are expected to substantially reduce fuel consumption and emissions.”

 

The vessel floated in October 2024 (Windcat)

The ships incorporate CMB.TECH’s dual fuel hydrogen technology. They will be capable of using hydrogen as a fuel and CMB.TECH reports the potential to increase hydrogen use as the energy market evolves. Called the Elevation Series, Windcat says they are designed with future-proof technology.

Windcat and Damen report that Windcat Rotterdam underwent more than a week of rigorous testing at sea and validated every element of the advanced ecosystem design. Final outfitting is being completed, and the vessel will be delivered shortly.

 

On Monday, a small sailing vessel from a summer-camp program in Miami was involved in a deadly accident with a barge tow in the port's inner harbor. 

At about 1100 hours, Coast Guard Sector Miami received notice from Miami-Dade Fire Rescue of a vessel collision between a sailboat and barge. The call reported that six people had gone into the water near Hibiscus Island, a residential development in Miami's inner harbor.  

The sailboat was a small sail training launch with one camp counselor (aged 19) and five children on board, all of them female. Early reports indicate that the sailboat and its occupants were hit by a construction barge, and the boat and some of the personnel ended up underneath the barge's hull. 

Miami Beach Fire Rescue crews were first on scene, and were later joined by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, City of Miami Fire Rescue, Florida Fish and Wildlife, and Coast Guard Station Miami Beach. All six people were recovered from the water; unfortunately, two of the children - aged seven and 13 - were declared dead upon arrival at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Two more remain in critical condition. The counselor and one other child were evaluated at the scene and released. 

"Our hearts are with the families of those lost and all who have been affected by this tragedy," said Capt. Frank Florio, Commander of Coast Guard Sector Miami. "Incidents like this leave a lasting impact on our maritime community and reinforce the importance of learning from every loss. The Coast Guard will conduct a thorough investigation to determine the causal factors." 

As of Monday evening, the sailing vessel remained submerged under the barge. Sector Miami kept a boat crew on scene to maintain a 250-yard safety zone. 

The U.S. Coast Guard and Florida Fish and Wildlife are jointly investigating the accident.  

The U.S. Coast Guard reported on July 26 that it has been tracking a Chinese-flagged research vessel that it contends entered U.S. waters in the Arctic, and this came after a similar report from the Canadians. China was quick to respond, through its Global Times newspaper, launching a broad range of accusations at the U.S., which it called a “rule-breaker” and “global troublemaker.”

The vessel Xue Long 2 (12,769 gross tons) was “detected,” the U.S. Coast Guard said in its statement, and that it had responded to the vessel. They reported dispatching a C-130J aircraft to locate and document the Chinese vessel. USCG released photos of the vessel.

The U.S. contends the vessel was on the U.S. Extended Continental Shelf, approximately 290 nautical miles north of Utqiagvik, Alaska. The U.S. said the vessel was 130 nautical miles inside the ECS boundary.

“The U.S. has exclusive rights to conserve and manage the living and non-living resources of its ESC,” wrote the USCG.

 

China lashed out at the U.S. reporting of its research vessel in the Arctic (USCG)

 

The U.S. sighting came days after Canada’s CBC revealed that Canadian forces had also been tracking the vessel as it moved in the Arctic. On July 22, the Canadian military, however, asserted the vessel was not currently in Canadian territorial waters.

According to CBC, the vessel, which was built in 2019, had left Shanghai on July 6, making its way along the western Pacific coastline. The ship, which is operated by the Polar Research Institute of China, is 122.5 meters (approximately 402 feet) in length. China reports it has a 20,000 nautical mile endurance and a capacity of 101 people. It can continuously break through ice of up to 1.5 meters (nearly 5 feet) at a speed of 2 to 3 knots.

In a highly ironic statement, China asserts the vessel is in international waters and accuses the U.S. of making the ECS “a self-drawn area, a unilateral claim of territory.” They claim the U.S. redrew the boundaries in December 2023 and said China opposes any country’s unilateral self-interpretation. They assert the U.S. has a “blatant disregard for international law.”

"China's position on Arctic maritime rights and interests has been made clear that they must be handled in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” writes the Global Times. 

The Chinese statement says that in addition to the U.S., nations including Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Russia have all made sovereign claims over sections of the Arctic seabed. They say it is motivated by the region’s vast resources.

The research vessel Xue Long 2 is on a repeat visit to the Arctic after having conducted a similar visit in 2024. In 2023, the Polar Research Institute highlighted that it was launching its 13th research expedition to the Arctic. They said the 2022 mission had lasted 79 days and covered 14,000 nautical miles. They predicted the 2023 mission would be more comprehensive, covering 15,500 nautical miles.

The Global Times said last weekend’s release by the USCG “is essentially about stoking anti-China sentiment at home and peddling the China threat narrative abroad to create confrontation.” They said it was more rhetoric from the United States.

Drew Marine is proud to introduce its newly launched New Build Program, a purpose-built initiative backed by a specialized team dedicated to supporting vessel construction from concept through commissioning. This program is designed to provide shipowners, operators, and shipyards with seamless, end-to-end technical support and advanced chemical solutions that are integrated early and effectively into the new build process.

“As maritime operations grow increasingly complex and global environmental standards continue to evolve, Drew Marine’s New Build Program offers a smarter, future-ready approach”, said New Build Director, Sam Manzolillo. The program bridges the gap between innovation and implementation, ensuring vessels are not only compliant and safe from day one, but also optimized for performance and long-term asset protection.

From vessel design to delivery, Drew Marine’s expert team works alongside project stakeholders to reduce risks, eliminate costly late-stage modifications, and accelerate crew preparedness. The program is engineered to deliver value through customized recommendations, pre-commissioning support, onboard training, and scalable chemical treatment programs tailored to each vessel’s design and mission.

Whether you’re preparing for vessel design or final sea trials, Drew Marine ensures your vessel is equipped to meet today’s challenges and tomorrow’s opportunities. The Drew Marine New Build Program is available now. Contact Drew Marine’s expert team for a complimentary consultation and learn how to streamline your new build process, protect your investment, and start your voyage on the right course.

This article is sponsored by Drew Marine. Discover more at: www.drew-marine.com/new-builds
 

 

In a world where shipping lanes are increasingly shaped by politics as much as trade, the question of where a vessel is registered is no longer just administrative — it’s strategic. From sanctions to supply chain disruption, global shipping is navigating choppier waters than at any point in recent memory. And in this landscape, Cyprus is fast emerging as the jurisdiction of choice for owners, investors, and financiers seeking not just tax efficiency, but legal resilience.

For decades, traditional “flags of convenience” — Panama, Liberia, and especially the Marshall Islands — offered shipowners low friction and low cost. But the recent Seanergy vs. Sphinx decision in the Marshall Islands, which saw the local court undermine investor rights, was a wake-up call for the industry. Legal certainty can no longer be taken for granted. And in a multi-trillion-dollar sector where contracts span continents and enforcement is key, credibility matters.

Shipping is no longer insulated from geopolitics. Red Sea attacks, Black Sea blockades, Western sanctions, and climate-linked regulation have all raised the stakes. Weak or opaque registries can expose shipowners to reputational, legal, and financial risk. In this climate, alignment with robust legal norms and transparent governance isn’t just prudent — it’s essential.

Cyprus stands apart. With a shipping registry dating back to 1963 and a legal system grounded in English common law, it combines maritime tradition with institutional credibility. As a member of the European Union, it offers access to EU courts, adherence to rigorous AML and transparency standards, and full regulatory alignment with international norms.

Its EU-approved tonnage tax regime, efficient ship registration process, and professional flag administration make it attractive on a practical level. But beyond that, Cyprus offers political stability, judicial independence, and a proven commitment to investor protection. It has become a hub not only for vessel registration, but for maritime legal services, arbitration, and financing — a full-service jurisdiction for a full-spectrum industry.

The calculus for shipowners is shifting. Where once tax savings alone might have justified a flag decision, today’s operators are looking for something more enduring: legal protection, geopolitical alignment, and institutional depth. Cyprus checks those boxes.

This isn’t theoretical. More owners are actively reflagging to Cyprus, not as a vanity project, but as a long-term hedge against uncertainty. In the same way that vessel operators diversify bunker suppliers and routing options, they are now diversifying legal exposure — and Cyprus is rising to the top of that list.

In a global economy increasingly defined by systemic shocks and regulatory scrutiny, shipping needs legal homes that can weather the storm. Cyprus offers more than convenience; it offers confidence. And in a sector where credibility is currency, that may be the most valuable asset of all.

Leandros Papaphilippou is Managing Partner of L. Papaphilippou & Co. LLC, a leading law firm based in Nicosia, Cyprus, with a longstanding focus on maritime law and international commercial arbitration.

This article is sponsored by L. Papaphilippou & Co. LLC.

 

The Iranian Navy (Nedaja) has finally returned to port in Bandar Abbas, six weeks after evacuating its homeport in a hurry on June 16. During the 12-Day War, after the ships had evacuated, a Nedaja ammunition store in the port area was struck, as was an IRGC Navy (Nedsa) dockside warehouse used to store drones on the western side of the harbor.

During the intervening period, a number of the Southern Fleet’s ships have come back to port singly, staying in port briefly probably to replenish. Although several vessels were easily identifiable anchored outside the Naval Harbor in the Bandar Abbas roads for short periods, it is not clear to where most of the ships dispersed. They did not displace to other naval district harbors, such as at Jask and Chabahar, and hence were probably dispersed across coastal anchorages.

In medium resolution satellite imagery taken early on July 28 (top) and requiring some guesswork, most of the Southern Fleet ships appear now to have returned to Bandar Abbas.

Two Alvand Class frigates and two Moudge Class frigates can be seen tied up in harbor, the full complement of operational Nedaja Southern Fleet frigates. Also in harbor is the intelligence collection frigate IRINS Zagros (H313). Two Hengam Class landing ships are tied up at their normal berths, namely IRINS Tonb (L513) and Lavan (L514), with a third vessel of the class IRINS Larak (L512) positioned in a floating dry dock where it has been undergoing long-term repair. Close by is the Bandar Abbas Class replenishment ship IRINS Bushehr (K422), as are four of the seven-strong Delvar Class fleet of cargo and ammunition ships.

The forward base ship IRINS Makran (K441) has not however returned yet to its normal pier berth in the Bandar Abbas outer harbor. Nor apparently is the single Kilo Class submarine believed currently operational - IRINS Tarek (S901) - located at its regular berth on the submarine flotilla pier. There is also normally a complement of Sina and Kaman Class fast attack craft in the harbor, but only three such vessels are identifiable in the available satellite imagery.

Still outside in the Bandar Abbas roads is the drone carrier Shahid Bagheri (C110-4) from the IRGC Navy (Nedsa), anchored at 27.0722N 56.1982E, where it has been since mid-June. The Nedsa catamaran vessel Shahid Nazeri is close by.

Politically and socially, Iran remains in a state of paralysis since the 12-Day War, with widespread shock that the clerical leadership could push the nation to war without having the adequate means to defend itself. The leadership elite itself is divided within itself between hardliners and reformists on what direction to take the country, and its internal security apparatus is on high alert for signs of popular discontent. The return of the Nedaja to port is one of the first indications that the country could be recovering its equilibrium.

Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense released details on what they said was the first violation of Estonia’s maritime border by a Russian ship this year. The incident comes as tensions remain high in the Baltic following several incidents with undersea infrastructure and concerns over the dangers associated with the shadow fleet of tankers.

The Russian Svetlyak class border guard ship, Sochi 500, the Ministry of Defense reports, entered Estonian territorial waters without permission Saturday morning, July 26. The Navy monitored the situation, including identifying the vessel, but no attempt was made to intervene, and after nearly 35 minutes, the patrol boat left Estonian waters. The vessel was as deep as approximately half a kilometer (a third of a mile) inside Estonian waters.

“The violation of Estonia’s maritime border by Russia is a serious and unacceptable incident,” said Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna. He reported that “This message was also conveyed to the chargé d’affaires of the Russian Federation,” who the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported was summoned on July 28 and given a formal notice.

According to the details released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Soviet-era patrol boat was east of the island of Vaindloo when it crossed the border. They highlighted that foreign vessels are required to give 48 hours' notice before crossing the maritime border, and it is only permitted for an “innocent passage.”

The patrol boat design dates to the 1980s and is reported to be approximately 375 tons displacement. The ships are approximately 161 feet (49 meters) in length, carrying up to 28 crew at speeds of around 30 knots.

While it was the first time a patrol boat entered Estonian waters this year, the country’s Public Media reports Russian aircraft have twice this year entered Estonia’s airspace. One of the incidents was directly related to Estonia’s efforts to inspect a shadow tanker, and it also created an international incident.

Estonia has been proactive in its efforts to crack down on the shadow fleet of tankers after its undersea pipelines and cables were damaged. It also pushed NATO to increase its efforts to safeguard the Baltic.
 

To photo of one of the vessels of the class by Sasha Krotov - CC BY 3.0

 

The environmental group Extinction Rebellion renewed its protests against cruise ships docking in the Netherlands during an incident that resulted in a confrontation and arrests in Amsterdam. Last year, the same group staged several protests blocking one of the locks to enter the port, but this year they took to small boats and proudly said they were able to delay the cruise ship Celebrity Eclipse from docking.

Approximately 30 individuals positioned themselves in canoes, boats, and inflatables between the cruise ship and the dock in the heart of Amsterdam. Pictures showed some of the small boats surrounding the bow of the large cruise ship, while others were between the ship and the dock.

“They should not be allowed in Dutch waters,” the group said in a statement on social media. “We will continue the actions like this until this harmful tourist industry is banned from Amsterdam and the rest of the Netherlands.” The group cites the environmental impact of the cruise industry on “humans, nature, and the climate.”

The 121,878 gross ton cruise ship was completing an 11-day trip and was docking at the Passenger Terminal Amsterdam. According to reports, there were 2,850 passengers and approximately 1,200 crewmembers aboard.

The protestor began at approximately 4:30 a.m. local time before the cruise ship arrived, and police responded by sending launches to clear the waterway. The protestors are contending that the police ran over their inflatable boats. The incident is reported to have lasted about two hours on July 26.

The police said that five people were arrested for assault, blocking the cruise ship, and refusing to show identification. Newspaper reports said two of the individuals were quickly released.

A spokesperson for the port authority cited the dangers of this type of protest. They said these types of small boats should not have approached the 1,040-foot (315-meter) cruise ship. They cited the dangers as well as the potential that the vessel’s propellers or bow thrusters could have created dangerous conditions for the small boats.

Last year, the group was successful in getting several cruise ships to turn around or reschedule their port stops, docking outside the heart of the city, and busing passengers to Amsterdam. City officials responded by putting a limit on the number of cruise ships permitted to come to the port and said their longer-term plan is to move the cruise ship terminal outside the center of the city.

 

Russia's defense ministry has released new footage of what appears to be a previously-unseen drone attack boat, similar in concept to Ukraine's successful Magura V5. 

The test was performed during the large-scale "July Storm" exercise in the Baltic. The test footage's resolution is low, and it is difficult to determine the boat's dimensions, but it is clearly a small unmanned speedboat operated by remote control. The video shows it make contact with a stationary test barge, and a massive explosion follows. Russian reviewers suggested that the size of the explosive payload was significantly improved over other versions. 

There is no after-action footage to show the extent of the damage (or whether the barge stayed afloat), but it's clear that Russia is developing a bomb boat with comparable destructive power to Ukraine's Magura - assuming that Russian forces have similar command and control capabilities. 

Ukraine's forces have had so much success with sea drones because of access to secure, high-bandwidth communications links for command and control over the horizon (Starlink). The drones are remote-controlled by human operators during their final approach to target, and without satellite connectivity, they would not be possible to guide from hundreds of nautical miles away. Russia does not have (authorized) access to Starlink, but it is working hard to implement something like it - the Bureau 1440 project - by 2027. 

Russia's navy has been putting resources into the hardware side of the problem. In 2024, it stood up dedicated drone units to operate unmanned systems for a range of purposes, from reconnaissance to combat. It also set up an indoor, year-round test facility in St. Petersburg to support capability development. The Russian military has begun using these drone systems quietly, according to analyst H.I. Sutton, who warns that more activity may be to come. 

"We're not seeing large numbers of the same [Russian] drones used systematically, but I think that's coming. Expect them to be used more and more in the Black Sea, especially against the Odesa area," Sutton said in a video update. "This has actually been happening and has been reported in media a little bit, but it's probably more common than is reported."

 

Citing what it called “rapid developments,” the Houthis announced a renewed escalation of their blockade against ships and shipping companies supporting Israel. Hours after releasing its latest threats, the group released a six-minute propaganda video with the crew from the Eternity C dry bulk carrier, which the militants attacked and sank last month. It also issued a direct threat against three other vessels from the same management.

A spokesperson for the militant group said it was warning “all companies to cease their dealings with Israeli ports.” The group went on to say, “Otherwise, their ships, regardless of their destination, will be targeted anywhere that can be reached or within the reach of our missiles and drones.”

The Houthis said they were calling on all countries, “if they want to avoid this escalation,” to pressure Israel to stop the aggression and permit humanitarian aid to reach the citizens of Gaza. The group also said there was “shameful silence” among the Arab, Islamic, and international world.

The move came as the United States and Israel said they had walked away from negotiations with Hamas, with each side blaming the other for the latest failure in the ceasefire talks. Israel, however, said it would take a tactical pause and promised efforts to get more aid into Gaza. Speaking during his trip to Scotland, Donald Trump also called for more efforts to get humanitarian aid into Gaza.

The Houthis are calling this escalation the “fourth phase” of their naval blockade. They, however, have repeatedly said they would be blockading Israeli ports and targeting ships and the companies sending ships to Israel. 

 

?????? ?????? ??????? ??????? "ETERNITY C" ????? ??? ?????? ??????? ??????? pic.twitter.com/UGfG4usDwK

— ??????? ?????? ?????? (@MMY1444) July 28, 2025

 

In the so-called Yemeni War Media account on X, the group ratcheted up the threats specifically against Cosmoship Management, the operator of the Eternity C. With dramatic music, they flash the names and profiles of three other ships and highlight tracking of their moments.

In today’s other propaganda video, the reported crewmembers of the Eternity C are "interviewed" by their captors and heard to say that they were told by the master of the ship that they were going to stop in Eilat to load fertilizer. The undated video appears to have been shot in part in the hospital room of one of the individuals, the Russian crewmember, who is in bed, and several others can be seen with bandages. Another scene shows the crew given a cellphone to make video calls home.

The Associated Press is reporting that the Houthis have taken captive 11 crewmembers from the Eternity C, with the company having acknowledged the death of four crewmembers. The others were rescued by salvage vessels sent by the vessel’s operators and reportedly taken to Saudi Arabia. In the video, however, only ten people appear to be included. The Houthis have repeatedly asserted that they “successfully rescued” an unspecified number of crew, who were taken to a “safe location” and provided medical care. The group previously held the crew of the car carrier Galaxy Leader for 14 months despite repeated international calls to release the civilian crewmembers from the merchant ship, which was the first the Houthis attacked in November 2023.

 

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— ??????? ?????? ?????? (@MMY1444) July 28, 2025

 

After the two ships were sunk and the crewmembers killed aboard the Eternity C, there were reports that the Israelis asked the United States to resume its assaults on the Houthis. Donald Trump had declared that the group had been stopped when the U.S. suspended its attacks in May after two months. Trump has not responded to the killing of the crewmembers and the sinking of the two ships.

EUNAVFOR Aspides released another picture, this time of the Greek HS Psar, which it said has completed another protection mission for merchant ships in the Red Sea region. It continues to escort ships through the region as part of its defensive mission, which the EU extended till early 2026.
 

China's NewNew Shipping Line has agreed to pay billions of dollars to support the construction of new port facilities at Arkhangelsk, a key seaport at the western end of the Northern Sea Route, the Russian-administered waterway off Siberia's Arctic coast.  

Located near the mouth of the Dvina River on the White Sea, Arkhangelsk is just south of the Arctic Circle and is icebound in winter. In the navigation season, it is a gateway to consumers and industries in western Russia: though the city is itself remote, it is still the NSR's closest deep-sea port to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and the Severnaya Railway connects it with the rest of Russia's rail network. 

Last month, regional governor Alexander Tsybulsky told Russian outlet PortNews that planning is under way for a major expansion of Arkhangelsk's seaport. The new terminal will be able to welcome merchant ships with a draft of up to about 48 feet and capacity of 75,000 dwt. The objective is to triple the port's modest throughput by 2040. "Here we work closely with our partners - the state corporation Rosatom, the company Eurosib," he said. "The main investors have been identified, there is interest from foreign companies. In particular, we are actively working with the Chinese NewNew Shipping Line."

Last weekend, in a readout of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Tsybulsky elaborated that NewNew is ready to take a 30 percent stake in the port with an investment of up to $2.5 billion - far more than the value of NewNew's fleet.

"We are currently working on technical issues with them, but if you agree, we are ready to continue this work and sign a memorandum with them on the main directions that we would be ready to use in this port," Tsybulsky told Putin. 

NewNew Shipping Line started a container route along the NSR in 2023, and it added a round trip service from Shanghai/Ningbo to Arkhangelsk in 2024. Last year's 13 voyages were profitable, and the firm plans to use larger ships in this year's rotation. 

In the long term, NewNew is planning a series of Arc7 ice class container ships in cooperation with Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom, operator of Russia's nuclear icebreakers and the managing agency for Northern Sea Route development. The Panamax-sized vessels would be capable of an extended navigation season in the ice-choked eastern stretch of the NSR - just like the Arc7-class icebreaking LNG carriers that serve Novatek's Yamal LNG plant. An expanded deepwater container terminal at Arkhangelsk would reduce these ships' transit times to western Russia by a week (when compared to a voyage to St. Petersburg). 

Year-round NSR navigation between Russia and China is a top priority for Putin's administration, in part for supply chain security and in part for the economic benefits of an active trade lane for other projects along Russia's remote northern shore. 

CK Hutchison issued a brief stock exchange announcement on Monday, July 28, confirming what had been expected: the exclusivity agreement has expired with BlackRock and MSC’s Terminal Investment (TiL). The expiration of the exclusive negotiations for the sale of the terminals in 43 ports in 23 countries clears the way for the terms to be reworked to be more acceptable to the Chinese, who have threatened to block the sale.

“Changes to the membership of the consortium and the structure of the transaction (the New Arrangements) will be needed for the transaction to be capable of being approved by all relevant authorities,” the company writes in the filing. It reiterates previous statements that it “will not proceed” with any transaction that does not have the approval of all relevant authorities.

Hutchison reports that it “remains in discussions,” with the consortium saying it is with a “view to inviting a major strategic investor from” China to join as a “significant member” of the consortium.  Hutchison declined to say if it is in discussions with a Chinese company, or to identify the company, which media reports have speculated is COSCO, which already has a large global portfolio of terminal operations.

It was widely reported that China had set as a precondition to approval of the deal the participation of COSCO with a role to block any actions that could be detrimental to Chinese interests. The Hong Kong government has said it would seek to review the deal, while China’s State Administration for Market Regulation is also said to be reviewing the sale.

CK Hutchison announced two parallel deals in March with BlackRock and TiL. BlackRock was to lead the deal to acquire the company in Panama that operates terminals at each terminus of the Panama Canal. A separate deal called for the sale of the global terminal portfolio, except the operations in China and Hong Kong, to the consortium with TiL believed to be the primary investor. The deals were valued at $22.8 billion.

It is widely believed that COSCO would join as a third investor in the deals, permitting China to save face and allaying fears that the sale would be detrimental to China’s economic trade. Reuters, however, quoting unnamed sources, says that with the exclusive period expired, CK Hutchison would be open to “bids from other parties.”

While saying there can be no certainty that a new arrangement would be reached, Hutchison says it “intends to allow such time as it requires for such discussions to achieve the new arrangement. Bloomberg had previously speculated that new terms could be reached within a month, giving COSCO the role required to gain China’s acceptance.

The Trump administration has not commented after previously saying the U.S. was regaining control over the Panama Canal. Hutchison has operated terminals in Panama since 1997 and recently won a no-bid long-term renewal of its concession. Separately, the new government in Panama has threatened to review the concession, while it has also taken steps to distance Panama from China to placate pressures from the Trump administration.
 

 

The head of United Shipbuilding believes that Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, will be decommissioned - a fate that Western analysts have long expected for the Soviet-era hulk. 

The Kuznetsov was built in USSR-era Ukraine at the Black Sea Shipyard, and she entered commissioned service in 1991, just as the Soviet Union collapsed. Shortly after her commissioning, the newly-independent Ukrainian government sent the commanding officer a letter of demand, claiming the ship as Ukrainian property and ordering that she be held in Sevastopol; the Russian Navy quickly ordered her departure and moved her out of reach. 

Kuznetsov is part of Russia's Northern Fleet, and has spent most of her service life in and around Murmansk. She made half a dozen training deployments to the Mediterranean over the decades, supported by Russia's leased base in Tartus, Syria.  

The carrier made a single combat deployment to the Eastern Mediterranean during the Battle of Aleppo in 2016, and she launched 400 sorties in support of dictator Bashar al-Assad's troops during a weeks-long fight. The Syrian campaign presented Russia's first opportunity to test out naval flight operations in combat conditions, with limited success; Kuznetsov lost two fighters due to failures of the ship's arresting gear during the campaign.

In 2017, after returning from the Syrian mission, Kuznetsov entered a shipyard period to replace her boilers and modernize her systems - and she never emerged. A long string of setbacks kept slowing down the project: in 2018, the floating drydock that supported the carrier sank out from beneath her. The dock's sinking left Russia without a facility large enough to drydock the carrier, so a pair of graving docks in Murmansk were combined and enlarged to create enough room to hold her. In 2019, while awaiting completion of the new graving dock, the ship suffered a major fire, which killed two and caused significant damage.  

In May 2022, four years after the floating drydock sank, Kuznetsov finally entered the enlarged graving dock. But by that point, Russia had begun its invasion of Ukraine, cutting off its supply chain for Soviet-compatible marine engines and spares - a niche that Ukrainian factories had filled for Russia's navy since the communist era.

Another fire in December 2022 set back the Kuznetsov's revival further, followed by crewing issues. Kuznetsov's crew was rumored disbanded in 2023, and officials publicly discussed a need to recruit replacements to fill out a 1,500-person roster. By late 2024, public records showed that many of Kuznetsov's crewmembers were reassigned to the front lines with the 1st Guards Tank Army, according to open source analyst David Axe. This prompted predictions from Western commentators that Kuznetzov - now approaching her fourth decade and increasingly obsolete - would be decommissioned. 

On Friday, the head of top Russian defense shipbuilder United Shipbuilding Corp. (USC) told state news outlet Kommersant that Kuznetov will likely be disposed of by sale or demolition. "We believe there is no point in repairing it anymore. It is over 40-years old, and it is extremely expensive," Andrei Kostin, head of shipyard owner VTB Bank, told Kommersant.

His comments followed earlier reports in Russian media that the project was under review. "The future belongs to carriers of robotic systems and unmanned aircraft," former Russian Pacific Fleet commander Adm. Sergei Avakyants told Izvestia in early July. "Carriers] can be destroyed in a few minutes with modern weapons."

Admiral Kuznetsov's sister ship, Varyag, was never completed at the Black Sea Shipyard; she was sold to Chinese interests as a hulk. Varyag was towed to Dalian and fitted out, and lives on in service today with the PLA Navy as the Liaoning. 

 

On Saturday night, the Israeli military intercepted and boarded an activist aid ship in international waters, preventing it from approaching Gaza with a cargo of food. 

The British-flagged vessel Handala (AIS reporting name Navarn) got under way from Italy in mid-July, carrying 21 passengers and crew. The vessel's holds were loaded with baby formula and food to provide symbolic relief for the ongoing food shortage in Gaza. 

At a position about 70 nautical miles from Gazan shores, an armed Israeli boarding team came aboard the vessel. The first moments of the interdiction were captured on a social media livestream, which soon ended. After taking command of the vessel, the boarding team changed course and headed for Ashdod; on arrival, the activists were detained and questioned.

pic.twitter.com/gEnomcTTxL

— Prof Zenkus (@anthonyzenkus) July 27, 2025

"The vessel is safely making its way to the shores of Israel. All passengers are safe," the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement. "Unauthorized attempts to breach the blockade are dangerous, unlawful, and undermine ongoing humanitarian efforts."

A spokesperson for the vessel's operator, the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, said that the unauthorized boarding in international waters was a violation of international law. 

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani spoke with Israel's foreign minister on Sunday to discuss the fate of two Italian activists who were aboard the vessel. According to Saar, the detainees have two options: sign a prewritten declaration and leave voluntarily, or stay in detention and be forcibly repatriated.

It is the second time this summer that Israel has intercepted and seized a Freedom Flotilla vessel in international waters. The first, the Madleen, was interdicted in June; the passengers on that voyage included activist Greta Thunberg and a member of European Parliament, Rima Hassan. The Madleen's crew reported a suspected drone attack off Malta in May, which delayed its departure for Gaza. 

Israel's government has prohibited inbound vessel traffic to the shores of Gaza for 18 years, part of its attempt to prevent foreign armament from reaching terrorist group Hamas. In light of the current food shortage emergency in the territory, the naval blockade has taken on new meaning, and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition has renewed long-dormant attempts to break it. 

Gaza's Hamas-linked health ministry - the only source of statistical information on population-level health in the Gaza Strip - says that more than 130 people have died of starvation in the territory since the start of the Israeli operation in 2023. More than half were children, according to the ministry. 

Amidst rising diplomatic pressure, Israel announced Sunday that it is allowing more UN aid convoys into Gaza, partially reversing food-delivery restrictions that it has had in place since March. 

 

As Port of Lomé grows its transshipment role in West Africa, major global powers including the U.S and Russia are moving to secure access to the important maritime hub. The increase in volume of trade between Asia and West Africa has seen Lomé port transform into a key regional container port. Major ocean carriers, specifically MSC, have responded by redeploying ultra-large container vessels (ULCVs) to the route. This has come as a major boost for liner connectivity of West African ports including Lomé.

In view of these trade advantages, the U.S has pledged to expand its African market access through Lomé port. Last week, the U.S Embassy in Lomé led by the Chargé d’Affaires Richard C. Michaels conducted a tour of the port facility. The delegation also held a meeting with the management of Lomé Container Terminal (LCT) to explore commercial opportunities for U.S businesses.

“With advanced deep-water capabilities, cutting-edge equipment, and an annual throughput exceeding 30 million tons, Lomé offers U.S businesses unmatched access to African markets. Ongoing infrastructure expansion, including a dry-port and industrial zone further enhances the port’s role as a growing gateway,” commented U.S Embassy in Togo.

The port tour follows shortly after U.S President Donald Trump met five African leaders in Washington. The African leaders were largely from countries in West Africa including Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania and Senegal. The meeting with Trump concentrated on trade opportunities for both sides, at a time the U.S government is cutting aid in Africa and other regions.

Meanwhile, Russia has ratified its military cooperation agreement with Togo, which was initially signed early this year. As per the agreement, Russia and Togo will jointly hold military exercises, training exchanges and weapons and military equipment support. Notably, the agreement also covers support in hydrography, navigation and combatting piracy.

According to some observers, the agreement will give Russia unfettered access to Togo’s strategic seaport of Lomé. Visit by Russian military ships to ports in Togo is covered by the cooperation.

“Togo is considered the most organized and equipped in Tropical Africa. For example, the busiest seaport in the West African region is located on its territory,” said Vladimir Gruzdev, a member of the Russian Government Commission on Legislative Activity, which drafted the ratification law of the defense cooperation.

Top image: Container terminal at Lome, Togo (Houaito Affo Daniel / CC BY SA 4.0)

 

Authorities in Greece have busted a group of six stevedoring employees for allegedly smuggling drugs through the Port of Piraeus, the third time in three years that workers or officials at the port have been detained in connection with cocaine imports. 

According to local media, the personnel were employed by a private firm that runs cargo operations at Piraeus. They have been charged with participating in international organized crime, and have denied the charges. 

The narcotics were allegedly loaded into reefer containers of bananas departing Ecuador, a common cover cargo for cocaine shipped out of South America. Ecuador's banana producing region near Guayaquil is a major transshipment area for the drug: bananas are a high-volume cargo, so the contaminated shipments are difficult for customs officers to single out. Banana cargoes are commonly shipped to destination markets for cocaine (Europe and North America), making them a convenient carrier. 

Greek police said that they obtained surveillance of the group's communications, and that the scheme was led by an Albanian crime group. The overseers of the scheme used the employees' port access, and would direct them to retrieve drugs out of "dirty" containers. Albanian mafia organizations are among the leading players in cocaine shipping, and are believed to have close ties with Italy's Ndrangheta, an acknowledged leader in European cocaine trafficking.

The arrest follows after a high-stakes raid in the Neo Ikonio sector of Piraues on Monday. Authorities caught four stevedoring employees in the act of recovering cocaine from a shipping container, and a chase ensued: the suspects attempted to get away in a Porsche mini-SUV, and the police shot out its tires to halt their escape. 

 

The fifth generation to run the family business, Randall Crutchfield is both humbled and challenged by his new role.

Welcome, Randall, and congratulations on 150 years of achievement! Let's start with a brief history of the company, in your own words, and some of the milestones along the way.

Yes, sure thing. So my great-great-grandfather, Charles J. Colonna, was a ship's carpenter who settled in Norfolk, working for another gentleman who owned a shipyard, which was just a marine railway. That was the technology back then.

He decided to set out on his own but needed some money to do so. Meanwhile, his older brother, Benjamin A. Colonna, who went to Virginia Military Institute and was the only Colonna of that generation to be able to go to school, had made an agreement with their father that, because he had the opportunity to go to college, he needed to look out for his other siblings. So part of living up to that deal was a $2,000 loan to his brother Charles to build a marine railway here in Norfolk.

And that's how the shipyard started.

A lesser known piece of that history was that the $2,000 was actually not enough to get the shipyard off the ground, and Charles had to borrow another $2,000 a couple of years later. But it all worked out.

In 1891, the Colonnas put in a second and third marine railway. Amazingly, the #3 Marine Railway is still in operation today and is booked solid. So it's very cool to be able to walk folks around and show them that piece of equipment that's been around for 135 years.

What's a marine railway?

It's a way of hoisting ships out of the water so they can be worked on. They were originally powered by horses. Picture a king post in the ground with a chain attached to it and two horses pulling the chain around the post, hauling the ship up. That was our first marine railway, and it could lift 40 tons.

Fast forward to 1920, when the #4 Marine Railway was installed. It had a capacity of 4,000 tons, which we believe was the largest in the world at the time. It was in operation for nearly 100 years and finally retired in 2014.

Amazing! What came next?

We trace our history through different eras, and the first hiccup came during World War I.

We were having conversations with the Department of Defense, which needed more capacity. So we installed the infrastructure to be able to meet that need. But we were a little bit late getting there because the war wound down at the same time we were building out this infrastructure, and we ended up in pretty tight times.

Then came the Great Depression and things were really tight. But we always stayed true to our legacy customers – the fishing boats, the transportation companies locally, barges, dredges and Navy work where and when we could. World War II came and we were busy again, and it was after the war that my granddad took over.

He was a big idea guy, and he took this sort of laid-back shipyard and hired the right managerial staff to grow it successfully. And that led to a lot of expansion.

But there was one last wrinkle. And look, you don't stay around a long time without some hardship. We landed a really nice contract with the Coast Guard in the late '80s. We had just bought a 16,000-ton drydock, and the contract was going to be the next big thing for Colonna. But the government terminated the contract, and we wound up filing Chapter 11 and doing a workout.

But the really cool thing about it is there are still people around who remember those really lean times and can tell stories of how tight things were and the sacrifices people had to make to stay at Colonna's, including foregoing portions of their paycheck for some periods of time.

But they were committed to the vision of the leadership and ownership here, and it wasn't a hard decision for them because they knew we were going to keep our word. That was a really poignant message for me – that folks had faith we were going to do the right thing, even if it was hard. And we did.

A great lesson to learn at any age.

Yes, it was.

So we dug out of that under the leadership of my granddad and a gentleman named Tom Godfrey. We started being really successful in our legacy ship repair work with the marine railways and drydocks, and we became a lot smarter about both the commercial and government work we were doing. That allowed us to start investing heavily in our infrastructure and our corporate structure.

We started Steel America, which is our heavy fabrication machining business. We started doing what we call Down River services at government installations and larger shipyards in the port. And we also started a temporary staffing company called Trade Team, all around the year 2000 timeframe.

So with the shipyard doing well, the legacy ship repair business doing well, and then these other handful of businesses being largely successful from the outset, it allowed us to really expand in granddad's later years.

He bought back several parcels, probably 40 or 50 acres of land that we had gotten rid of over that previous 100 years. And now we're able to incorporate that into what has become a 120-acre waterfront facility.

We added more than 100,000 square feet of industrial shop space with heavy cranes inside to do structural fabrication and machining. We bought a 1,000-ton-capacity marine Travelift in 2009, the largest ever built at the time, and added a third drydock in 2016.

These investments were all successes because we took a long-term approach. We weren't looking for a payback in three years or five years or anything like that. We just felt it was the right thing to do even if it was the hard thing to do.

Well, it's worked for 150 years.

It has. For me, putting things in the context of 150 years and connecting that to the business approach that, if we do the right thing, it's going to pay off long-term, sums up how my granddad and his father and grandfather really thought about the place. They never thought about it as a way to make lots of money for themselves. They always thought about it from the perspective of a caretaker – taking care of the facility and taking care of all the families that have worked here. And that's my perspective too.

Tell us about your management team. Who are the key members?

Yes, so we'll start with Jordan Webb. He's my #2 – President and General Manager. Jordan came to us in 2007, fresh out of Virginia Tech, and he just worked his way up through deck plate repair management – the "school of hard knocks" here at Colonna's.

Chris Hartwig did the same thing. He manages Steel America. He came around 2007 as well, straight out of college. The rest of the leadership team includes Rebecca Wieters, our CFO, who does a great job, and Chris Bates, who runs a company in Owensboro, Kentucky called Accurity Industrial Contractors.

Accurity's an interesting story. We were looking to diversify and wanted companies that matched our culture and also understood the concepts of project management and craftmanship. We met Chris about four years ago and acquired his company two years later. They work in the industrial power market. They're process pipe experts, so think about combined cycle power plants, coal-fired power plants, gas power plants.

It's no different than what we do in the shipyard – project management work that relies on blue collar, skilled tradespeople We've been able to share work back and forth. We've gotten them involved in some Department of Defense work, and they've helped us with some pipefitting on ship repair contracts and ship construction contracts. We're starting to realize certain synergies, which is really positive.

How many employees are there overall?

We typically carry 700 to 800 employees. Accurity in Kentucky generally runs about 100. Our West Coast facility in San Diego, called Colonna's Shipyard West, is only about 30 people, and everything else is here on our Norfolk campus. It's all one big campus – Colonna's Shipyard, Down River, Steel America, Weld America and Norfolk Barge.

You have all of these different divisions, and yet the name of the complany is simply Colonna's Shipyard. Why is that?

Yes, my granddad was firm that that's always going to be the name. It's just part of who we are – being steady and holding true to the legacy. And that's why it's always going to be the name.

Is there a good workforce in your area?

We have some of the greatest people in the U.S. working right here in Norfolk. Unfortunately, too many people have been swayed by the notion that blue collar work isn't for Americans. So we've got some convincing to do to really get folks in the younger age groups to realize that these are great-paying jobs and you don't need a college degree to get them.

What's your biggest concern right now?

I think for the country to be viable for the next generation, the big concern for folks in my position is making sure people realize that shipbuilding and ship repair are necessary not only for our national defense but for how we operate commercially.

So we've got some decisions to make, and they're going to be hard decisions. Do we want to continue to outsource everything we can or do we want to have a domestic manufacturing capability? And if we make a bad decision there, that drives right to the heart of what Colonna's has always been about, which is a blue collar, project management organization. And if as a country we decide that's not important to us, I have to go find something else to do for a living, right? And so do the 800 people that we have employed here.

Heavy stuff! Any final words for our readers?

Yes, I love what I do, and it's humbling for me to have the opportunity to be able to do this and do it for my family and for all the families that have contributed to this place. Just think about the thousands and thousands of people who chose to work here. You can go do anything else in the world.

So I feel a sense of gratitude and also an obligation to those people to do the right thing, even if it's hard, to make the best decisions for all of us as much as possible. And I believe that over time, if you have that intention and that guiding principle, it's going to aggregate to making a lot of good decisions.

Are we going to make bad decisions? Yes, but can we make them fast and then fix them fast? That's really key for me. And that's how I look at things.

Tony Munoz is founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of The Maritime Executive.