SRTS News

The pro-scrubber lobbying group, Clean Shipping Alliance 2020 (CSA 2020), held its first technical conference yesterday in London during which it provided a 49-slide study, which claims the toxic nature of exhaust gas cleaning system washwater is not as severe as has been reported. A three-year study led by cruise ... read more

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) plans to add more than 25 vessels to its shipping fleet over the next five years. The fleet expansion plan will also include the acquisition of ADNOC’s first crude oil tankers. ADNOC believes its ambitious growth plan will enable the company to sell more ... read more

The shipping market is emerging into an upward trend cycle but is ever more impacted by external factors, argues Adam Kent from Maritime Strategies International. Despite appearances to the contrary, 2018 wasn’t too bad a year for shipping. Seaborne cargo growth for all the major sectors was positive while supply ... read more

Hyundai Heavy Industries’ (HHI) plan to take over Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) is hitting a bump with strong opposition from both shipyards’ worker’s unions. The leaders of the two unions staged a protest in front of Korea Development Bank (KDB) headquarters yesterday, expressing their opposition to the potential ... read more

California-based digital forwarder Flexport yesterday announced it has secured $1bn in a funding round led by the SoftBank Vision Fund with participation from existing investors Founders Fund, DST Global, Cherubic Ventures, Susa Ventures and China’s SF Express. Flexport, founded in 2013, said it will use the capital to deepen its ... read more

Next week sees the launch of the Smart Maritime Network in London. The initiative is the brainchild of Rob O’Dwyer and Cathy Hodge, two long-term names associated with the title Digital Ship who quit last month to pursue this new venture. The network is a cross-industry maritime technology harmonisation initiative. ... read more

Handysize specialist CSL Group has snapped up its first ship of the year, adding a 2003-built vintage handymax, sources tell Splash. The Louis Martel-led company has reportedly shaken hands with Greece’s Pioneer Marine, paying the bulk player just under $10m for the 45,000 dwt, , a Japanese built ship that ... read more

Shareholders of both Ensco and Rowan Companies have approved a $12bn all-stock transaction that will see the two companies combine. Rowan shareholders will receive 2.750 Ensco shares for each Rowan share they own, giving Ensco shareholders a stake of around 55% of the enlarged company and Rowan shareholders around 45%. ... read more

Norway’s DOF has been awarded contracts by Petrobras for the deployment of ROV support vessels Skandi Commander, Skandi Olympia and Skandi Chieftain. All the contracts have a firm duration of three years and can be extended for another two years. Skandi Olympia and Skandi Chieftain has been idle since November ... read more

It’s only February, but Shelf has done the deal of the year so far. And China gets some relief for their stranded jackup headache, writes David Carter Shinn from Bassoe Offshore. Shelf announced yesterday that it has entered into an agreement with China Merchants to buy two newbuild CJ46 jackups for ... read more

A senior executive from DNV GL has left the class society to head up a Norwegian climate group. Bjørn Kjærand Haugland, once tipped for the top post at DNV GL, has become CEO of Norway 203040, a business-led climate initiative aiming to accelerate the Scandinavian nation’s transition to a low-carbon ... read more

A consortium of Dutch maritime companies, supported by Maritime Knowledge Centre, have joined forces to further investigate the feasibility of methanol as a sustainable alternative transport fuel in the maritime sector. Shipowners Boskalis, The Royal Netherlands Navy, Van Oord and Wagenborg Shipping will take part in the consortium, together with ... read more

The United Arab Emirates has partially lifted a ban on transporting goods between it and neighbour Qatar. An Abu Dhabi Ports circular dated February 12, seen by Reuters, cancelled previous directives that banned cargoes of Qatar origin from UAE waters and ports and those of UAE origin from Qatar. The ... read more

Offshore survey specialist Shearwater GeoServices has been awarded a major exploration survey in Brazil via TGS. The project will be executed by the survey vessel Amazon Warrior and commence in the first quarter. The survey will provide contiguous 3D coverage over the highly prospective Brazil Round 16 blocks located in ... read more

CK Yoo is resigning as president and CEO at HMM, South Korea’s flagship carrier. In an internal note sent to employees and seen by Splash today, Yoo thanked his colleagues for the “reconstruction of HMM from the disarray for the last two and half years”. Yoo will take his leave ... read more

A salvage team is in place to remove the wreck of , which has now been declared a total loss, according to the charterer of the bulk carrier. Two barges are now alongside the stricken bulker, which ran aground 17 days ago on a reef near the world’s largest raised ... read more

Pillarstone has revealed to Splash that it has just purchased from Intesa Sanpaolo and Unicredit several non-performing loans related to five shipping companies in Italy, and is now ready to launch its first shipping investment platform focusing on distressed assets. This project has been named F.I.NAV by Pillarstone, and the ... read more

The tit-for-tat battle on the legitimacy of scrubbers has ratcheted up in recent days as member states of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) meet in London to discuss the technology while a batch of scientific evidence supporting exhaust gas cleaning systems is set to be unveiled today. The pro-scrubber lobbying ... read more

Brokers have confirmed a sizeable boxship order from France’s CMA CGM, first reported on Splash a month ago. Norwegian broker Fearnleys’ latest weekly report details how the ten-ship order has been broken down. CMA CGM has contracted China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) to build ten 15,500 teu boxships, split two ... read more

The shock plunge in the dry bulk market has tempered somewhat in recent days with sub-cape sized ships seeing some pick up in business, but nevertheless the market remains spooked with few owners willing to get their wallets out for more tonnage in these uncertain times. A brazen few however ... read more