• 2013 March 15 16:30

    Freeport of Riga authority opinion on the State Audit Office report

    Having reviewed the State Audit Office report, the FPRA have come to the conclusion that previous FPRA objections highlighting three main aspects, defined as incompliant with the legal enactments by the report, were not taken into account, Freeport of Riga authority's release reads.

    According to the State Audit Office report, the FPRA implemented the projects that do not comply with the Development Program, still, the port infrastructure development projects, that were implemented, are included as guidelines into the port Development Program, and therefore were planned. According to the FPRA, the port Development Program is the document that focuses on major development trends rather than specific projects. It should be noted that the port development trends include fairway dredging as well as other infrastructure object development and maintenance, and the Freeport Authority invested financial resources into implementation of those activities. Prior to implementation of those development projects, the Freeport Authority has carried out a special procedure in compliance with the requirements, stipulated by the Law on the Procurement of Public Service Providers. Moreover, dredging and infrastructure development activities, implemented on the port territory, are rather specific, and are related both to environmental legislation and seasonality, as well as depend on available technological solutions.

    The State Audit Office report indicated that establishment of the “RB flote” (Riga Freeport Fleet) does not comply with the procedure, stipulated by laws and regulations, and that the FPRA is engaged in commercial activities, violating procedures laid down by law. In compliance with the State Administration Structure Law, the FPRA as a derived legal body governed by public law may conduct commercial activities by setting up a subsidiary capital company. The FPRA attributes establishment of the said capital company to the fact that the company’s activity field is related to the sector of strategic importance, namely, port tugboat services are crucial to ensure safety and security at the port. With the aim to avoid a situation where a private towing service provider decides to stop doing business at the port, thus creating huge losses for the port, the FPRA decided to ensure provision of these services and eliminate risks. Therefore, in accordance with the Law on Ports, and the State Administration Structure Law the Freeport of Riga Authority is entitled to provide services and establish capital companies, so the State Audit Office’s comment in regards of this issue is not clear.

    As for the allegations related to the land lease contract terms for some companies, the FPRA disagrees with the statement that the lease terms are unduly long. According to the Civil law, the lease term must be at least 10 years, as this is the minimum time limit in which to start construction on the leased land. Furthermore, at present, many stevedores operating in the Freeport of Riga have acquired ownership rights for buildings and structures in accordance with the Law on Privatization of State and Municipal Property. That is why the FPRA is not inclined to set unreasonably short lease terms to avoid enforced lease. Given that a variety of laws and regulations were in force during the time period when the Freeport of Riga Authority was audited by the State Audit Office, and the fact that provisions of those regulatory enactments are not unambiguously applicable, in accordance with the standard procedure it would be useful to assess the SAO report at the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Latvia.


2024 May 18

15:24 SNAM's Q1 total revenues declined 1.9% to 895 million euros
14:17 KOTUG Int'l successfully pilots Tug Drone technology
12:04 Austal USA names Mark Santamaria as CFO
11:36 Silver Ships delivers four of seven coastal fast response boats
09:51 CMA CGM posts revenue of 11.8 billion for Q1 2024

2024 May 17

18:10 Bunker fuel sales at the Middle Eastern hub of Fujairah drop on a monthly basis in April 2024
17:52 Lloyd’s Register and Shandong Marine Group sign MoU
16:43 China reveals cooperation methods to protect and restore the Yangtze River
16:03 APM Terminals Barcelona holds the commissioning of 17 Konecranes NSC 644 EHY hybrid straddle carriers
15:13 Marine fuel demand in Panama declined in April 2024
14:43 MITSUI E&S and PACECO commence commercial operations of world's first hydrogen fuel cell zero emission RTG crane at Port of Los Angeles
14:23 ILWU Canada agrees to delay serving 72-hour strike notice on employer DP World Canada
13:31 Barge hits a bridge in Texas, damaging the structure and causing an oil spill
13:10 Container shipping costs on EU-S. Korea route surge over 30 pct amid Red Sea crisis
12:43 DP World invests €130m in Romania
12:21 Astrakhan hosts Russia-Iran talks on shipping cooperation on International North-South corridor
11:41 Seatrium awarded repeat FPSO integration contract from SBM Offshore
11:04 Bureau Veritas report highlights the potential of carbon capture technologies and the development of carbon value chains for shipping
10:41 Electramar christened in Helsinki
10:07 IMO Secretary-General spotlights seafarer safety amidst ongoing Red Sea attacks and resurging piracy
09:58 MABUX: Bunker Outlook, Week 20, 2024

2024 May 16

18:11 Kongsberg and Torghatten to develop self-driving ferry service linking Trondheim and the Fosen peninsula
17:42 “K” Line сonducts first trial use of B100 biofuel for carbon-free operations on car carrier
16:35 Deltamarin and ECOLOG unveil LP LCO2 carrier design
15:40 Seadrill enters agreement to sell its Qatar jack-up fleet
15:24 Scan Global Logistics and Hapag-Lloyd enter into major biofuel agreement in a new Green Collaboration
14:48 Edison Chouest feeder fleet for U.S. offshore wind market to be built to ABS Class
14:03 The Australian Government announces a funding package of $7.1 billion for budgeted programs to be administered by ARENA
13:54 The share of the idle container vessel fleet was 0.9% in April - Sea-Intelligence
13:25 The European Commission grants PCI status to CO2 value chain project developed by MOL with partners
12:14 HHLA's revenue decreased by 0.3 percent to € 363.6 millions in Q1 2024
11:42 MOL and TotalEnergies sign time charter contracts for 2 newbuilding LPG-fueled LPG carriers
10:40 Kalmar and Uniport Livorno agree on new terminal tractor order to enhance reliability, safety and service quality at Italian terminal
10:04 AMSA collaborates on a trial providing more recycling options for visiting foreign ships
09:59 SunGas Renewables and C2X announce strategic partnership

2024 May 15

18:07 MOL holds naming ceremony for newbuilding LNG carrier Greenergy Ocean to serve China National Offshore Oil Corporation
17:30 ClassNK and StormGeo mark significant collaboration to advance maritime decarbonization
17:02 Newly certified methanol valves to improve dual-fuel shipbuilding
16:45 HD KSOE to lease Subic shipyard in Philippines
16:25 Eidsvaag receives two forage carrier vessels designed and equipped by Kongsberg Maritime
15:58 ADNOC delivers first ever bulk shipment of CCS-enabled certified low-carbon ammonia to Japan
15:35 World's 1st wind challenger-equipped coal carrier achieves fuel savings of 17%
14:57 LR to support the retrofit of two Stena Line ferries to methanol
13:52 Port of Los Angeles nets record $58 million for harbor maintenance
13:32 CMA CGM to launch MCX - West Coast Central America
12:51 Port of Long Beach cargo volumes up 14.4% in April
12:21 First Ro-Pax vessel receives DNV Silent notation following successful sea trials with Wartsila propellers
11:41 Hapag-Lloyd transport volumes increased by 6.8 percent to 3 million TEU in Q1 2024
11:10 Cavotec signs two-year service agreement with Port of Salalah
10:41 China overtakes Korea in global shipbuilding competitiveness
09:58 The ports of Rotterdam and Delft join the CLARION project

2024 May 14

18:02 ICTSI to invest in new Southern Luzon gateway
17:31 ACL, BG Freight Line and Peel Ports Group start container service between Ireland and North America
17:10 Port of Hamburg is the first port in Europe to offer shore power for both container and cruise ships
16:31 Port of Gothenburg launches the platform "Digital Port Call"
16:18 NS United, NSY, Imabari Shipbuilding and Japan Marine United Corporation sign MOU for the construction of Cape-size bulk carriers using dual methanol fuel
15:56 Port of Antwerp-Bruges launches the world's first methanol-powered tugboat
15:29 The Ports of Barcelona and Shanghai will work together on innovation and decarbonisation projects
13:55 AD Ports Group announces Q1 results
12:58 NYK, NBP, TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING and Drax sign MOU to develop ‘bioship’ technology and plans to construct the world’s first biomass-fuelled ship
11:30 Maris Fiducia team up with HAV Hydrogen, Norwegian Hydrogen and Ankerbeer for zero emission bulk shipping
11:05 ABS and HD Hyundai Group sign MOU to advance medium-voltage power systems on ships
10:43 Finnlines’ new freight-passenger Superstar-class vessel Finnsirius awarded by Shippax
10:23 Kongsberg Maritime to design and equip two new salmon farm forage carrier vessels for Norwegian coastal cargo carrier Eidsvaag AS
09:48 Yara International and Kongsberg Digital enter collaboration on digital twin technology

2024 May 13

18:00 Capital dredging commences for Lowestoft Eastern Energy Facility
17:06 Berlin’s oldest passenger vessel enters a new green era powered by Torqeedo
16:22 Russia’s seaborne diesel trading partners shifted after Feb 2023 sanctions
16:18 Denis Manturov: Russian shipyards to deliver more than 110 civil ships this year
16:05 CMA CGM and China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology plan to set up joint venture