2001 Maritime Services Directory  Reserve your copy now! Also available on CD-ROM

GENE TAYLOR (D.-MS) TO KEYNOTE GULF OFFSHORE 2001 Biloxi, MS, June 5 & 6 May 18, 2001 Fredriksen set to bring LNG company to market Following delisting from the Singapore Stock Exchange of Osprey Maritime this week, Norwegian shipowner John Fredriksen looks set to list Golar LNG first on the Oslo Stock Exchange, then in New York. According to a Reuters report today, Golar LNG has already raised $240 million, at $5 a share, in a private placement, with Fredriksen buying half the shares. The IPO will follow and the proceeds will be used to buy the six LNG carriers owned by Osprey. Fredriksen has controlled Osprey, through his World Shipholding Ltd., since February this year. It seems likely that proceeds from the Oslo offering would be used to take up LNG newbuilding options that Osprey has with South Korean yards. Comsat inaugurates advanced Inmarsat-A service Comsat Mobile Communications today announced the inauguration of enhanced Comsat-A mobile satellite service. Inmarsat-A is the original Inmarsat analog satcom service used by ships since the inception of Inmarsat services. Comsat's modernized "A" service features a fully digital system, enhanced call quality and data throughput, improved control processors and software, and advanced Public Switch Telephone Network (PSTN) interconnections. The upgrades give Comsat-A customers significant performance advantages including enhanced data transmission, consistent connections, and improved throughput. Comsat-A accommodates a full range of data, high-speed data, fax, and voice communications. This service offers direct Internet access and also can be used with CMC's new prepaid calling card. Offering global coverage, Comsat Mobile's recent installation of fully digital Comsat-A systems in both its Southbury, Connecticut, and Santa Paula, California, land earth stations completes the digital conversion. The digital systems replace the older, slower and less reliable analog technology still used by many other mobile satellite service operators. Additionally, Comsat Mobile has implemented a new digital Automatic Level Control (ALC) to match the level of the PSTN signal that is required by the customer's satellite modem. This software upgraderesults in clearer calls and less time waiting for a connection. "CMC's modernized Comsat-A service provides customers with faster call setup, enhanced reliability, and improved call quality and data throughput compared to older analog systems. This investment in our stations will save our customers time and money," said Kathryn Y. Holman, vice president and general manager of Comsat Mobile Communications. HOME