In today's adverse tanker market conditions, which are characterized by oversupply of tonnage and mediocre crude oil demand, ship owners and charterers are presented with the opportunity to work together, in an attempt to reach mutually beneficial solutions for both parties' profitability. In its latest report, US-based

In the last week of March 2013, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final Vessel General Permit regulating discharges from commercial vessels, including ballast water, to protect the nation's water from ship-borne pollutants and reduce invasive species in US waters. The VGP will enter into force on 19

GPS satellites have become the new lodestar for lost drivers and modern navigators, but things are not always so simple if you live in South America. An atmospheric kink caused by the interplay of solar flares and Earth’s magnetic field called ionospheric scintillation can scramble satellite signals and leave travelers at sea. Literally.

A flurry of newbuilding ordering activity since the start of the year, has seen the ordering of 17 Capesizes, 7 Panamaxes, 42 MR product tanker and 10 LR2 Product tankers. According to the latest report from shipbroker Intermodal, "on one side we see giants like Maersk trying to delay their behemoths entering into service and

A new paper has been completed outlining the key information that should be contained in safety data sheets for chemical tankers.
INTERTANKO, the International Parcel Tankers Association (IPTA), the Chemical Distribution Institute (CDI), the European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC) and the Dangerous Goods Advisory Council (DGAC) collaborated on the

Tsakos Energy Navigation Limited, a leading product, crude and LNG tanker operator, yesterday announced the time-charter employment with profit-sharing provisions for three product tankers, two LR1 panamaxes and one MR handysize, to major international end-users. The new charters, two years for the LR1s and 12 months for the

It seems that tanker owners can't catch a break these days, as for each positive news that could help turn market fundamentals towards their favor, comes another news flash, which turns the tide to the opposite direction. This time around, the latest news development which could potentially put a dent -- and a serious

While US shale gas is poised to impact the global LNG trades, beginning in 2015, it has already made its presence felt in the international LPG market. As a result of steadily increasing shale gas production volumes in recent years, the US has switched from being primarily an importer of LPG to a country rapidly rising up

During the past few years much has been reported about the transfer of manufacturing from Asia to countries located closer to western markets, but much of it appears to be hype over substance.Whilst many importers claim that near sourcing is increasing, the evidence seen by Drewry suggests that it is unlikely to affect

Although this week has seen limited reported ordering, the newbuilding market remains active with on‐going discussion across the majority of conventional sectors and a further tightening of available shipyard capacity for delivery next year. This was stated by Clarkson Hellas in its latest report, where it noted that "what orders

Ocean carriers’ failure to better match supply and demand between the Mediterranean and North America has cost them dearly, and there is little light at the end of the tunnel either.Westbound: As in the transatlantic tradelane between North Europe and North America, ocean carriers struggled to make

In 2012 US sales of electric and hybrid cars doubled, and we are told that before long more and more of us will be driving electric cars. The motor industry’s response to rising fuel costs and environmental legislation has been to develop new technology aimed at reducing emissions and fuel consumption. Sound familiar? What

The recent crisis in Cyprus and its much debated rescue plan will undoubtedly have an impact in the shipping industry as well, not so much in terms of Cyprus-based companies, but more importantly in the future prospects of the Eurozone economy, where a large part of the shipping community is based.

Drewry’s research shows that the average size of vessel deployed between Asia and North Europe now exceeds 10,000 teu for the first time. Orders for Ultra Large Container Vessels (ULCVs) have been quiet recently, but the pace of growth in vessel sizes will continue to outstrip cargo growth for the foreseeable

Six months ago, softening steel prices and weak demand meant that a pronounced cut in Chinese steel production seemed likely. Iron ore imports looked to be on course for a weaker period. However, December’s iron imports were a record 70.9mt and January imports were also pretty firm at 65.5mt. So is the worst now

It's been the usual story so far in the 2013 year for the owners of VLCC tankers; pressured spot rates, which are attributed to the usual culprit combination of tonnage overcapacity and relatively weak demand. According to the latest report from US-based consultantants of Mcquilling Services, weak demand "has been further exacerbated by seasonal refinery maintenance, particularly in the US. According to data from JBC

Over the last decade, China's dry bulk imports have rocketed to 1.3bn tonnes in 2013. Such has been the development of China's involvement in dry bulk trade that concepts such as the Baltic Dry Index are becoming common currency amongst laymen. Many non-traditional companies and investors have been showing interest in getting involved in shipping, and consequently, the nature of ownership of the Chinese dry bulk fleet is changing.

Dynamar has just published “INTRA-NORTH EUROPE (2013) CONTAINER TRADES”, the latest report in its Container Trades and Markets series. Salient details and some interesting findings of the new report are discussed here below. Intra-North Europe (2013) Container Trades … is all about the more than 160 services operated by 40 different shipping companies deploying container, Ro/Ro and multipurpose ships with

The recent rally of the Baltic Dry Index (BDI), coupled with renewed optimism, at least in some parts of the wet market, have prompted many ship owners to stage a come back in the second hand and newbuilding markets, during the course of the past week. According to the latest report from shipbroker Intermodal, "tankers and bulkers attracted equal interest in the secodnhand market. What we hadn't seen for a long time

The NATO Shipping Centre has issued new Weekly Piracy Assessment for the period from 21 to 27 March 2013. During this perido, there was no significant events to report. All masters are advised to maintain heightened vigilance when at anchor and when loitering/queuing as there may be a higher likelihood of these vessels being targeted by pirates. The uniform risk to merchant vessels throughout the HRA is a reminder