MV Jean Anne Makes History as First U.S. Ro-Ro to Plug Into Shore Power

By VOICES Staff. The United States just hit a major clean-maritime milestone at the Port of San Diego, where Pasha Hawaii’s MV Jean Anne became the first roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) vessel in the nation to connect to shore power. This achievement also marks the first-ever shore-powered pure car/truck carrier (PCTC) in America, setting a new standard […]

Matson Partners with WhaleSpotter to Commercialize Breakthrough Whale Detection Technology

Humpback whale breaching. Credit: NOAA Fisheries

HONOLULU, Nov. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Matson, Inc. (“Matson”) today announced a product agreement with WhaleSpotter Corp. (“WhaleSpotter”) to purchase and deploy a groundbreaking whale detection system developed by the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), making Matson the first container shipping company to deploy this advanced marine protection technology. Developed at WHOI with support from […]

America’s Shipyards Are Working — and Winning

By VOICES Staff. Across the United States, the shipbuilding industry is booming.  According to WorkBoat’s 2024 Construction Survey, more than 925 vessels were either delivered, under construction, or on order in the past year alone. That includes everything from tugboats and training ships to advanced subsea installation vessels and LNG-ready containerships. Recent milestones in Pennsylvania […]

Jones Act Debate Takes Center Stage on Leading Podcast – Bloomberg’s Odd Lots

(From left to right) Cato Spokesperson Colin Grabow, Bloomberg's Tracy Alloway, Bloomberg's Joe Weisenthal, and the Transportation Institute's Sara Fuentes discuss the merits of the Jones Act.

By VOICES Staff. The Miracle Theatre, Washington, DC’s oldest movie theater, was packed with an engaged audience as one of the nation’s leading podcasts – Bloomberg’s “Odd Lots” – recorded its first-ever episode on the Jones Act. Hosted by analysts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway, this was also the show’s first live event in the […]

Column: Anti-Jones Act attacks don’t hold water

Newest Jones Act Vessel MV Janet Marie arrives at the Port of Long Beach

By Captain Ed Enos. It’s curious why some are pushing so hard against the Jones Act in Hawaii lately (“Jones Act hurts more than it helps,” Island Voices, Star-Advertiser, Feb. 23). Contrary to what Grassroot Institute-affiliated scholar Colin Grabow writes, the Jones Act doesn’t impact the cost of fuel in Hawaii because our island refinery […]

Does the Jones Act Raise Hawaii’s Fuel Prices? A Closer Look at the Data

By Sam Norton, CEO of Overseas Shipholding Group. Colin Grabow of the Cato Institute argues that the Jones Act is the primary cause of high transportation fuel prices paid in Hawaii. His reasoning: Hawaii’s sole refinery, operated by Par Pacific, sources crude oil from distant foreign countries. Without the Jones Act’s restrictions, he claims, crude […]

The Jones Act: Protecting Hawaii’s Economy from False Promises

By VOICES Staff Hawaii Congressman Ed Case is once again trying to weaken the Jones Act with a set of bills that claim to lower costs for Hawaii families. The real winners of Case’s bills wouldn’t be Hawaii’s families. Foreign shipping companies and countries like China, which already dominate global maritime trade, would take advantage. […]

El Coqui Crew Rescues 4

By Jordan Biscardo, Seafarers International Union. Four recreational sailors are safe, thanks in large part to the efforts of Seafarers International Union (SIU) members. According to the U.S. Coast Guard report, the sailboat Mariposa had struck a submerged rock in the shoal area of the Silver Bank waters, north of the Dominican Republic. As the […]

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Announces Matson Partnership to Protect Whales.

A WHOI-developed Whale Detection Camera is mounted on the deck of the Manulani. Matson vessels Manoa and Matson Kodiak have also installed WHOI’s Whale Detection Cameras to help reduce vessel strikes and gather the real-world use data WHOI needs for its research and continued technology development. (Image courtesy: Dan Zitterbart, ©Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)

By Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Ship-mounted camera systems provide real-time detection and increased response time, can reduce the number of whales killed by vessel strikes Woods Hole, Mass. (Oct. 15, 2024) – Vessel strikes and entanglement are some of the leading causes of injury and death to marine animals such as whales. Increasingly urbanized waterways, […]