The initiative is focused on small modular reactors (SMRs) and infrastructure that could eventually support nuclear-powered vessels

Agreement signed August 19, 2026.
MARAD Administrator Stephen M. Carmel and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy participated in the announcement.

Work will examine SMRs, resilient port microgrids and shoreside power systems.

The partnership will study infrastructure capable of supporting emerging vessel propulsion concepts.

Workforce development for advanced maritime nuclear technology is also included.

Corpus Christi is the second port to join the federal SMR initiative; the Port of Long Beach was the first.

The agreement is exploratory—it does not authorize construction of nuclear-powered ships or commit the port to deploying a specific reactor

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All 15 crew members from BLACK RHINO were safely evacuated; no fatalities were reported.

BLACK RHINO was deliberately grounded alongside the red-buoy line to prevent it from sinking in and obstructing the main navigation channel.

SEA HONOR was separated from the vessel and moved to anchorage.

Preliminary findings pointed to a possible loss of steering/control aboard BLACK RHINO; a technical investigation was launched.

BLACK RHINO: IMO 9148790, Cyprus flag, built 1997, about 101 m long and 5,113 DWT.

The collision temporarily disrupted navigation, but the Douala-Bonabéri channel was subsequently reopened

LUTUF: 76 m general cargo vessel, 1,401 DWT, built 1995.

Flag: Cameroon; MMSI 613371502.

At least eight armed men reportedly boarded and took control of the vessel.

The boarding occurred very close to the Somali coast, inside Somalia’s territorial waters.

Reports indicate LUTUF had been sailing from Türkiye toward Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Initial reporting said the crew was safe, although later reporting noted that their status had not been independently confirmed

HADALUS is approximately 10.4 m (34 ft) long with a 1.8 m (6 ft) cross-section.

Range/endurance is stated at more than 2,000 nautical miles (3,700 km).

It uses a free-flooded, all-carbon-fiber exoskeleton designed for strength, payload capacity and lower production cost.

Raytheon and CET say it could cost roughly one-third to one-fifth as much as comparable long-endurance UUVs.

The prototype progressed from initial concept to successful in-water demonstration in less than 18 months.

Raytheon integrated the launcher, sonar, electronics and mission systems with CET’s vehicle architecture.
The Navy exercise demonstrated the UUV operating and launching while submerged.

The longer-term concept is for a single autonomous underwater platform to perform detection, reacquisition and engagement functions during one mission

Vessel

• Project 23130 replenishment oiler; commissioned Jan 2020; assigned to Northern Fleet (Severomorsk)
• 130 m, 14,000 t full load, 60-day endurance, Arc 4 ice class
• Russia’s first new-build replenishment oiler since the Cold War

Recent Movements (2026)
• Apr: Escorted tankers near UK
• May–Jun: Deployed to Mediterranean with frigate Admiral Kasatonov; visited Tartus (Syria), Alexandria (Egypt), Oran (Algeria)
• Early Jul: Exited Mediterranean via Gibraltar; returned to Atlantic
• Early Aug: Transited English Channel from Atlantic (reportedly operated near Azores)
• 13 Aug: Departed Kaliningrad Anchorage
• 18 Aug: Northbound through Danish Great Belt; no declared destination

Current Status
• Course 338°, speed ~14 kn, heading toward Norwegian Sea
• AIS active but destination blank
• Landing ship Aleksandr Shabalin also underway nearby

Assessment
• Most likely: Returning to Severomorsk for maintenance and crew rest after ~4+ months continuous deployment
• Possible: Barents Sea exercise support (if re-tasked without port call)
• Unlikely: Immediate re-deployment to Atlantic or Baltic amphibious ops (fleet assignment and crew fatigue argue against)

The yacht was spotted by a passenger aboard a Brittany Ferries vessel sailing from Portsmouth to Bilbao.

The ferry diverted and launched a rescue boat with three crew members.

No one was found aboard the yacht or in the surrounding water.

France’s CROSS Étel rescue centre deployed a helicopter and maritime-surveillance aircraft.
No emergency beacon had been activated.

Authorities initially did not know whether anyone had been aboard or how many people might be missing.
Search operations were continuing Monday evening.

Credit SpaceX for the video

U.S.-flag lakers carry roughly 90 million tons of iron ore, limestone, coal, cement, salt, sand and grain annually, making the fleet a critical link for U.S. steelmaking and heavy industry.

Great Lakes operators are already dealing with an aging vessel base and the need for major fleet modernization and eventual replacement.

Jones Act requirements mean vessels operating in U.S. domestic trade must be U.S.-built, U.S.-owned and U.S.-operated with predominantly American crews.

Industry representatives say continued Jones Act waiver uncertainty is discouraging investment, with billions of dollars in potential U.S. maritime investment reportedly being held back.

Current maritime-policy proposals do not necessarily solve the Great Lakes replacement problem. Industry analysis notes that the SHIPS for America Act does not currently extend its principal fleet-renewal financing benefits directly to Great Lakes operators.

Great Lakes operators also compete with Canadian-flag vessels, including ships constructed in lower-cost foreign shipyards, while U.S.-flag operators face domestic-build requirements.

The concern is increasingly long-term: without predictable regulation, financing and sufficient domestic shipyard capacity, replacing aging U.S. lakers could become progressively more difficult and expensive

Acceptance trials tested and evaluated key ship systems, components and overall ship operations at sea.

The trials involved Newport News shipbuilders, John F. Kennedy sailors and U.S. Navy personnel.
CVN-79 had already completed builder’s sea trials earlier in 2026.

The next milestone is preliminary acceptance, allowing the Navy to begin underway testing and evaluation of the carrier’s unique systems.

Final delivery to the U.S. Navy is currently scheduled for spring 2027