Q GLOBAL NEWS
CURRENTS Belize bans oil
exploration to protect reefs
Late last year, the small Central American nation of Belize placed an indefinite moratorium on oil exploration activity to protect its marine environment. The country is home to the
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largest barrier reef in the western hemisphere, and its economy is heavily reliant on tourism to natural attractions. It is estimated that tourism generates some $200 million for Belize annually, a number that constitutes more than 10% of the country’s GDP. The reefs also support around
190,000 livelihoods in the country of 370,000. While Belize produces just 3,000 barrels of oil per day — compared to the 1.5 million produced by the US in the Gulf of Mexico alone — oil still constitutes one quarter of its exports. The moratorium marks a
legislative turnaround for Belize’s government, which approved seismic testing for subsea oil deposits in the country’s Caribbean Sea waters in October 2016. However, the testing was suspended following a public
outcry by concerned citizens and conservationists alike. “The new legislation doesn’t
just prevent drilling within and around the World Heritage site reef, but in all of the country’s waters, which is a ground-breaking move for a country with a struggling economy,” says Nadia Bood, Mesoamerican Reef Scientist at the World Wildlife Fund
in Belize. “This is a huge step forward from authorizing — and then suspending — seismic testing for oil close to the World Heritage site just a year ago.” The ban, which was signed into
law on 29 December, came just days before the Trump administration unveiled a plan that will open up most US waters to oil and gas exploration.
Ponant orders world’s first hybrid icebreaker cruise ship
geographic North Pole, the Weddell Sea, and Peter I Island. The Ponant Icebreaker — which was
designed cooperatively by Stirling Design International and Aker Arctic — will measure approximately 30,000 gross tonnes, be 150 metres long, 28 metres wide, and will feature a cruise speed of 15 knots in open water. The vessel will accommodate 270
passengers in 135 staterooms, in addition to a crew of 180 persons. In a statement, Ponant indicated that the vessel will use Wärtsilä’s duel-fuel engines, ABB’s Azipod propulsion units, and LNG storage technology created by French supplier GTT. The project marks the first time LNG has
French cruise line Ponant has ordered a hybrid-electric polar expedition vessel with liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered
propulsion from Norwegian shipbuilder Vard. The cruise ship is designed to take tourists to little-seen polar destinations, including the
been deployed as a fuel on an icebreaking cruise ship. The hull will be built at Vard Tulcea in Romania and delivery is scheduled from Vard Søviknes in Norway in the second quarter of 2021.
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