The Baltic Exchange’s main sea freight index continued its decline for the eighth consecutive session on Wednesday, reaching its lowest point in over a month due to reduced demand for capesize vessels. The overall index, which factors in rates for capesize, panamax and supramax shipping vessels, dropped 61 points to 1,799 points and hit its lowest since August 28. The capesize index dipped 203 points to 2,786 points. The index hit its lowest since late August. Average daily earnings for capesize vessels, which typically transport 150,000-ton cargoes such as iron ...

With the Indian ship recycling market waking up, sentiment is beginning to improve. In its latest weekly report, Best Oasis (www.best-oasis.com), one of the world’s leading cash buyer of ships, said that “this week in the ship recycling industry, India’s market displayed steady performance, maintaining its previous week’s trends, although future developments remain uncertain. In Bangladesh, activity was minimal, with buyers remaining cautious and the Ministry continuing its firm stance on issuing No Objection Certificates (NOCs), which are essential for recycling operations. Pakistan mirrored this inactivity, showing no significant market ...

The forecast period up to 2027 suggests a mixed outlook across different vessel types. We anticipate that orders for Bulkers and Tankers will gain momentum, while demand for Containers and LNG/LPG vessels will decline. Despite the expected rise in Bulker and Tanker orders, the overall orderbook will likely shrink due to a surge in deliveries for Container and Gas vessels. Geopolitical tensions, such as the Houthi attacks in the Bab Al Mandeb Strait, are creating both risks and opportunities for shipping. The rerouting of vessels has supported various shipping segments, ...

As the curtains close on the highly anticipated 82nd session of the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC82) in London, the 6PAC+ alliance – comprising of Pacific and Caribbean Island nations – has stood united and unwavering in their call for the adoption of a mandatory universal levy on emissions from international shipping. Their leadership and persistence throughout the week were pivotal in amplifying the voice of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), advocating for an equitable transition toward decarbonization. Their advocacy was ...

BIMCO’s Documentary Committee has adopted the AUTOSHIPMAN agreement in response to a growing number of remotely controlled ships. The AUTOSHIPMAN agreement provides a standard contractual foundation for third-party ship managers to deliver services for the operation of remotely controlled or fully autonomous ships. Remotely controlled ships are currently used primarily in inland waterways and coastal trades, but the sector is growing. “Currently, remotely controlled ships are operating commercially in several parts of the world. We are seeing growth in this sector with several companies emerging and offering remote control management ...

The Platts KMAX 9 Index, which tracks the earnings of Kamsarmax class bulk carriers, collapsed to below previous years’ levels in the third quarter, driven by the perpetually overtonnaged Atlantic basin and a summer-induced slump in demand for dry bulk commodities. This occurred despite a resilient Atlantic Panamax market in Q2, with earnings remaining above last year’s levels, and market sources had expected this performance to continue into Q3. The Platts KMAX 9 is a weighted average global shipping index of nine key Panamax routes. The Atlantic Panamax markets entered ...

Norway-based maritime technology business, Shipnet, has strengthened its senior leadership team with the appointments of a new finance director and HR director. Paula Summers, who joins as HR Director, boasts over 15 years’ experience within HR roles partnering with business leaders in the retail, manufacturing and nuclear energy sectors. This includes Ethel Austin, Glen Dimplex Consumer Appliances (including brands like Stoves, Belling, Morphy Richards and Roberts Radios) and Cavendish Nuclear. Having departed Cavendish Nuclear in September 2023 to relocate to Queensland, Australia, Paula returned to the UK this year and ...

The first version of the fuel-agnostic Bunker Operations Audit tool has been published in October for IAPH members only and is available for ports to meet the growing demand for license applications in multiple fuels such as methanol, hydrogen and ammonia. Looking ahead, operators applying for licenses to operate bunkering facilities in multiple locations will also be able to benefit from this new IAPH tool. The toolkit ensures that, at the front-end, the responsibilities of the bunker facility operator with respect to safe and sustainable operations are clearly defined and ...

New standards for bunkering methanol and ammonia will be developed by 2024 and 2025 respectively, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said on Wednesday. The world’s largest vessel refuelling hub is preparing for higher uptake of alternative bunker fuels, which shippers are considering using to help lower carbon emissions. “The standards will cover custody transfer requirements, safety procedures and crew competencies, to ensure safe bunkering operations and handling of these fuels,” MPA said in a statement issued during SIBCON 2024. There are currently no detailed standards or established ...

Spot premium for very low sulphur fuel oil (VLSFO) extended a climb for a second session on Wednesday, though expectations of more incoming supplies capped gains. The premium rose to $8.05 a metric ton after stronger bids and trades emerged for spot parcels. Some prompt supply tightness is expected to linger into the first half of this month, but incoming supplies are underway into the second half, market sources said. Meanwhile, high sulphur fuel oil (HSFO) benchmarks also firmed slightly on Wednesday, with backwardation widening for both 180-cst and 380-cst ...

Northwest Europe Prompt availability across all three grades is currently very tight in Rotterdam and in the wider ARA hub, a trader told ENGINE. While LSMGO tightness has continued into its second week, HSFO and VLSFO began experiencing tightness last week. Product loading delays are leading to this tightness in prompt availability. Lead times for all three grades have stretched to 5–7 days now as several barges are stuck in long queues awaiting product loading, two sources confirmed. The region has been experiencing good demand, a trader confirmed. The ARA’s ...

Iceland’s largest marine insurer has found that encouraging its customers to use an AI -driven ‘digital assistant’, designed to assist decision making at the helm stations of fast craft, looks set to enhance loss prevention strategies. TM Insurance, founded in 1956, has established itself as Iceland’s premier marine insurer. Initially created by companies in the Icelandic commercial marine industry, TM has maintained its leadership in that sector, now accounting for around a 46% market share. Since 1965, TM has diversified its offerings to include insurance products for the private sector, ...

Alfa Laval is working hard on the task of decarbonizing the marine industry to meet net zero targets. The marine sector, which accounts for nearly three percent of global carbon emissions, has seen the emergence of a new fuel landscape, with ammonia destined to become one of the future low-carbon fuels of choice. As a front-runner in enabling the use of ammonia, Alfa Laval announces it will be ready to supply its first fuel systems for ammonia-fuelled vessels by the end of 2025. Leveraging its extensive expertise with fuels such ...

Every year, around five million crew changes take place in commercial shipping worldwide with a total travel spend of eight billion US dollars. Over 70 percent of all business travel is handled digitally, while in the shipping industry, the majority of crew changes across the globe are done manually with general purpose tools such as emails, telephones, notes, and spreadsheets. Lacking any modernization over the past two decades, crewing processes in the shipping industry are inefficient, stressful, and miss out on delivering on a huge optimization potential for the shipping ...

Vaisala today announced it has joined the WiSP 3 project, a joint industry collaboration initiated by Maritime Research Institute Netherlands, MARIN, to advance wind-assisted shipping as a viable solution for reducing emissions and improving fuel efficiency in the maritime industry. As the global leader in measurement instruments and intelligence for climate action, Vaisala is delivering its state-of-the-art wind lidar systems for critical sea trials that will test and validate wind-assisted ship propulsion technologies. In addition to performance validation, the WiSP 3 project aims to update the regulatory framework — including ...