Category Archives: Shipping industry

French navy seizes Russia-linked oil tanker in Atlantic

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President Macron says ship subject to sanctions and posts video of operation that took place with UK support

A suspected Russian oil tanker has been detained in the Atlantic, France has announced, in the latest seizure aimed at combatting Moscow’s “shadow fleet” of vessels contravening international sanctions.

The Tagor was detained on Sunday morning in international waters more than 400 nautical miles (740km) west of Brittany with the help of the UK and other partners, said the French president, Emmanuel Macron.

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Belfast harbour operator to invest £1.3bn as NI economy grows

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Port has upgraded offshore wind facilities and is to expand quays, ferry terminals and cruise ship services

The operator of Belfast harbour plans to spend £1.3bn over the next 25 years to take advantage of strong economic growth in Northern Ireland, in what would be one of the largest non-governmental investments in the region’s history.

The Belfast Harbour Commissioners said the money would be spent on upgrading the port, with the possibility of residential property developments that could add another £750m in investment on top.

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Oman caught between US and Iran after Tehran’s claims of joint strait of Hormuz plan

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Muscat silent about plans – opposed by US – to charge fee and demand details on nationality of all transiting ships

Oman has been caught in geopolitical crossfire after Iran said it was coordinating with the Gulf state over the future management of the strait of Hormuz, including Tehran’s plans to impose fees on commercial shipping.

The Omani exclave of Musandam lies to the south of the contested waterway, which normally carries a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil traffic but has been blockaded for 10 weeks since the US-Israeli attack on Iran in February.

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Shipping firms question safety in strait of Hormuz despite Trump plan

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President says US navy will ‘guide’ stranded ships out of waterway but report says warship was hit by Iran

The world’s shipping industry has questioned whether vessels will be able to travel safely to and from the Gulf after Donald Trump announced his latest plan to open the strait of Hormuz.

Trump wrote on Monday that the US navy would “guide” stranded ships out of the waterway, writing on his social media site Truth Social that the operation, “Project Freedom”, would be a humanitarian gesture “on behalf of the United States, Middle Eastern Countries but, in particular, the Country of Iran”.

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US military seized Iranian-flagged container ship, Trump says

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Trump says cargo ship tried to get past US naval blockade near strait of Hormuz ‘and it did not go well for them’

The US military took custody of an Iranian-flagged container ship that attempted to get past an American blockade near the strait of Hormuz, Donald Trump announced on Sunday.

In a social media post, Trump said that an “Iranian-flagged cargo ship named TOUSKA” tried to get past the US naval blockade, “and it did not go well for them”.

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Collapse of US-Iran talks heightens fears of prolonged energy shock

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Oil prices and borrowing costs are expected to rise this week as tankers remain stranded in the Gulf

The failure of the US and Iran to reach a peace deal after marathon negotiations has put markets on alert for further oil and gas price rises.

With large numbers of oil tankers remaining stuck in the Gulf, the US vice-president, JD Vance, blamed the collapse of the talks on Tehran’s refusal to abandon its nuclear weapons programme, while Iranian sources hit back at “excessive” demands from Washington.

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Iran war threatens to delay large offshore wind projects in EU and UK

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Industry fears strait of Hormuz closure could disrupt shipping of crucial parts for UK and German North Sea projects

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A string of large offshore wind projects in Europe are facing potential delays as the Iran war threatens to disrupt shipping of crucial parts manufactured in the Gulf.

Industry sources are concerned that components ordered from suppliers in the United Arab Emirates could become trapped if shipping remains effectively blocked through the strait of Hormuz.

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West Point analysis warns that strait of Hormuz blockade will strangle US defense industry

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Report shows how minerals critical to defense readiness have seen a ‘near total’ disruption in seaborne trade

The closure of the strait of Hormuz is causing a “paralyzing, real-time problem” for any prospective manufacturing surge in the US defense industrial base, and even for the repair of defense equipment damaged by Iranian attacks, according to analysis published by West Point’s Modern War Institute.

In particular sulphur, a vital upstream input in the extraction of critical minerals including copper and cobalt, has seen a “near total” disruption of seaborne trade in the straits, which makes up half the world’s total shipments, and prices have spiked nearly 25% since the war began, and seen a 165% rise year on year, the report said.

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Iran war drives oil prices above $100 a barrel for first time since 2022

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Donald Trump insists surge in energy prices is ‘very small price to pay’ as Middle East conflict sparks fresh stock market sell-off

Oil prices surged past $100 per barrel for the first time since 2022 as fallout from the US-Israel war with Iran continued to rattle global markets and leading economies moved to tackle a worsening energy supply crisis.

A weekend of escalating violence in the Middle East intensified concerns around a sustained supply crunch, propelling oil prices to their highest level in four years and triggering a deep stock market sell-off.

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Great Britain has only two days of gas stored, while Iran war threatens to disrupt supplies

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National Gas insists storage broadly in line with levels for time of year despite disruption for tankers carrying LNG

Great Britain has only two days of fossil gas stored after a decline in energy reserves, as more tankers carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) are diverted from their course to Europe towards Asia because of the Iran war.

Great Britain had 6,999 gigawatt hours (GWh) of fossil gas stored on Saturday, according to figures from National Gas, which owns and operates the gas national transmission system. This compares with 9,105 GWh a year earlier.

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Iran has largely halted oil and gas exports through strait of Hormuz

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At least four tankers have been struck by drones and maritime traffic has dropped by 80%, reports say

Iran has in effect closed the strait of Hormuz to oil and gas exports for the past four days with a mixture of drone strikes and fear that has halted commercial maritime traffic despite intense US attacks on Iran’s navy.

At least four tankers have been struck and Lloyd’s List Intelligence reported that seaborne traffic had dropped by 80% on Sunday, with little sign of a return as key maritime insurers cancelled cover the next day.

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China calls for vessels in strait of Hormuz to be protected amid soaring shipping costs

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Beijing’s foreign ministry urges ‘all parties’ to avoid escalation as number of crossings drops 60% in one day

The Chinese government has called for vessels passing through the strait of Hormuz to be protected by all sides in the escalating Iran conflict, as shipping freight rates soared.

Maritime traffic through the strait – a narrow channel on Iran’s southern border that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman – has effectively been closed since the US and Israel launched missile attacks on Iran at the weekend, prompting a retaliation from Tehran.

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Ferries emit ‘more sulphur pollution than cars’ in several EU capitals

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Dublin, Helsinki, Stockholm and Tallinn among port cities more choked by sulphur oxides from ferries, analysis shows

Fume-belching ferries spew more sulphur pollution than cars in several EU capitals, analysis has found.

Dublin, Helsinki, Stockholm and Tallinn are among 13 of Europe’s 15 biggest port cities choked more by sulphur oxides (SOx) from ferries than road vehicles, data shared exclusively with the Guardian shows.

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Maritime insurers cancel war risk cover in Gulf as Iran conflict disrupts shipping

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Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed and vessels rerouted, sending some freight costs surging

Leading maritime insurers have cancelled war risk cover for vessels operating in the Gulf as the escalating Iran conflict disrupted shipping and sent some freight costs surging.

At least 150 vessels including oil and liquefied natural gas tankers have dropped anchor in the strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters, and at least three tankers were damaged and one seafarer killed over the weekend.

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Suspected Russian ‘shadow fleet’ tanker seized in North Sea

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Belgian special forces boarded the Ethera, which was sailing under the flag of Guinea, on Saturday night

Belgium has seized an oil tanker believed to form part of the so-called “shadow fleet” used by Russia to circumvent western sanctions over the war in Ukraine.

Special forces assisted by French helicopters boarded the ship in a clandestine operation in the North Sea on Saturday night, Belgium’s defence minister, Theo Francken, said on Sunday.

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Treasure hunters discover $1m in silver and gold coins off Florida coast

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Valuables were being transported in 1715 from American colonies when a hurricane wrecked a Spanish fleet

Hidden beneath the turquoise waters off a stretch of Florida known as the “treasure coast”, a team of divers from a shipwreck salvage company have uncovered exactly that – a load of long-lost Spanish treasure they estimate is worth $1m.

More than 1,000 silver and gold coins thought to be minted in the Spanish colonies where Bolivia, Mexico and Peru now sit were uncovered this summer off Florida’s Atlantic coast, 1715 Fleet-Queens Jewels LLC announced this week.

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Seafarers from cargo ship attacked by Houthis rescued after 48 hours in water

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Four more people rescued, with 11 still missing and six believed kidnapped, after Eternity C sank in Red Sea

Four seafarers have been rescued after spending more than 48 hours in the waters of the Red Sea, as the search continued for the remaining crew of the Greek ship Eternity C, which was sunk by Houthi militants in an attack that killed at least four people.

Thursday’s rescue brought the number of those saved to 10 – eight Filipino crew, one Indian security guard and a Greek guard.

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Seven crew rescued from cargo ship that sank in Red Sea after Houthi attack

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Search goes on for 14 people missing from Eternity C after assault in which at least four were killed

Seven crew members of a cargo ship that sank in the Red Sea after an attack by Houthi forces have been rescued but at least four were killed and 14 others are still missing.

The seven seafarers from the cargo ship Eternity C spent more than 24 hours in the water before being rescued, according to security firms involved in the operation. Rescuers are still searching for missing crew members.

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Low water levels push up shipping costs on Europe’s rivers amid heatwave

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Vessels on Rhine in Germany and Danube in Hungary forced to sail partially loaded

Low water levels after heatwaves and drought are limiting shipping on some of Europe’s biggest rivers including the Rhine and the Danube and pushing up transport costs.

As much of Europe swelters in hot temperatures, water levels in its main rivers have fallen. This is affecting shipping along the Rhine – one of Europe’s key waterways – south of Duisburg and Cologne in Germany, including the choke point of Kaub, forcing vessels to sail about half full.

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Oil tanker involved in North Sea collision to be towed to Port of Tyne

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About 200,00 barrels of jet fuel to be transferred before Stena Immaculate is taken to north-east coast for inspection

A US oil tanker that was hit by a container ship in the North Sea is to be towed to the north-east of England after more than 200,000 barrels of jet fuel are removed over the weekend, a maritime company has said.

The Solong collided with the anchored tanker Stena Immaculate about 12 miles off the coast of East Yorkshire on 10 March, leaving one man missing, presumed dead. Crowley, which manages the Stena Immaculate, said salvage and recovery operations are moving into the next phase.

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