⊗

The crew change crunch dominated the shipping news agenda once again with the crisis now making mainstream media headlines. The International Transport Workers’ Federation last week gave its blessing for seafarers who have completed their contracts to down tools in potentially one of the greatest crewing backlashes shipping has ever experienced. There are now around 400,000 seafarers waiting for aeroplanes. Dubai is set to reopen its airport for crew changes from July 7. Qatar Petroleum signed the largest commercial shipbuilding agreement in history, entering into agreements worth $19.2bn with three major South Korean yards to reserve slots for the construction of more than 100 LNG carriers. In April, the Qataris reserved slots at China’s Hudong Zhonghua Shipbuilding for the construction of another sixteen 174,000 cu m LNG carriers. Amid a severely declining global orderbook, the world’s largest shipbuilder has outlined plans this week to streamline operations by 20%. Hyundai Heavy Industries will merge its shipbuilding and offshore operations from July 1 as part of a group-wide restructuring that will cut its size by one-fifth. A total of 246 vessels have been reported ordered around the world in the year so far, representing a year-on-year decrease of 53% on an annualised basis, according to the latest Clarksons data. Norden and Diamond S Shipping shook up the product tanker markets by creating a mega MR pool called DiaNor in a bid to facilitate the commercial consolidation of the product tanker industry. Rival Hafnia responded with plans to create its own handy product pool. Unilever set out new climate goals that make it the most ambitious of any consumer goods company tackling carbon emissions. The maker of Dove skincare, Colman’s mustard, and Q-tips cotton swabs now aims to zero out all emissions from its own operations and those of its suppliers including shipping by 2039. Each of the company’s 70,000 products will show on their labels how much greenhouse gas was emitted in the process of manufacturing and shipping them to consumers. The Brazilian authorities decided to sink the 2016-built very large ore carrier Stellar Banner off the coast of Maranhao. The giant ship was declared a total constructive loss and sent to the ocean floor on June 13. The Polaris-owned ship, carrying iron ore to China, ran aground off the Brazilian coast at the end of February as the captain manoeuvred the bulk carrier onto a sand bank after it started taking on water. Singapore’s shipbuilding and repair yard group Sembcorp Marine proposed a recapitalisation plan through a S$2.1bn ($1.5bn) rights issue, which will be backed by parent Sembcorp Industries and state-run Temasek Holdings. The restructuring, with Temasek heavily involved, has renewed speculation that the shipyard could merge with Keppel, Singapore’s other top shipbuilding brand. Gerry Wang, the man that changed the face of container shipping, has set about transforming the gas trades. His company, Tiger Gas, has entered the gas shipping business, having signed contracts with China’s Yangzijiang Shipbuilding for the construction of up to ten novel LNG tank container carriers. The versatile ships can transport LNG tank containers as well as breakbulk cargo. Last month, Tiger Clean Energy, a unit of Tiger Gas, entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Petronas to deliver gas from Malaysia to remote locations in China. Oslo-listed MPC Container Ships warned on Friday it could go bankrupt and will face severe liquidity strains from as early as next month. In a presentation to bondholders, the company, one of the fastest growing boxship tonnage providers in recent years, said it will need to sell ships or risk going bankrupt unless it can seal a $200m loan soon. Abu Dhabi Ports teamed up with Bengal Tiger Line (BTL) to create Safeen Feeders. The new brand will introduce a feeder service through a vessel sharing agreement with BTL linking Abu Dhabi to nine ports serving the UAE, the broader Gulf region and the Indian Sub-Continent. Three BTL 2,700 teu ships will kick off a new 21-day rotation on June 27. Neighbouring terminal operator DP World has also got in on the feeder act, buying Denmark’s Unifeeder a couple of years ago. Lars Ebbesen resuscitated the Sokana brand, marking the third incarnation of this famous name in chartering, which the Dane originally co-founded with Arne Blystad 31 years ago. Based in Westport, Connecticut, the new Sokana is a joint venture commercial management company between Ebbesen and Greece’s Interunity Group. India’s largest private shipowner is planning to branch out into third-party shipmanagement. The board of Great Eastern Shipping has approved a proposal to incorporate a new subsidiary, Great Eastern Services, with a view to entering the shipmanagement sector – a business in India dominated by overseas firms such as Anglo-Eastern, Wallem and Fleet Management. Bob Burke-led Ridgebury Tankers has exited the VLCC trades with the sale of the company’s last two vintage supertankers. Ridgebury has sold two 2000-built VLCCs – Ridgebury Progress and Ridgebury Purpose - for $24m each to a Chinese refiner for storage purposes. After this VLCC exit, the Ridgebury fleet is made up of nine suezmaxes, six MRs and two handysize tankers. Stena Bulk, a Swedish owner with a history of ordering revolutionary new tanker designs, introduced the prototype of a next generation product and chemical tanker, the IMOFlexMAX, which is claimed to be able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 25% compared to modern product tankers. The vessels will be equipped with Flettner rotors and solar panels, and they will be powered by dual-fuel engines that can run on LNG as well as conventional low-sulphur fuels. In another pioneering move, the tanker player this month announced plans to offer low carbon shipping options to its customers following its recent biofuel trial on an MR tanker.

June 2020 Review

⊗

To continue reading, please login below or subscribe here.

Read Next

Owners advised to cash in

Measuring shipping hubs

April 2024 Review

The on/off risk premium for tankers

Curse of the dry cargo optimist

Owners advised to cash in

Measuring shipping hubs

April 2024 Review

The on/off risk premium for tankers

Curse of the dry cargo optimist

Maritime CEO Forum Singapore

Maritime CEO Forum Monaco

Advertising

Press Releases

Splash

Splash Extra

Splash Special Reports