Category Archives: Shipping industry

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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China criticises Hong Kong firm’s sale of majority stake in Panama ports

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Commentary urged CK Hutchison to ‘think twice’ about ‘what position and side they are on’ in sale to US investors

China has criticised the sale of the business that controls ports in Panama to US investors, saying the Hong Kong-based parent company should “think twice” and that the $22.8bn deal is “power politics” that is not in the country’s national interest.

Shares in the Hong Kong-based conglomerate CK Hutchison fell more than 6% on Friday after a critical commentary appeared in the Beijing-backed newspaper Ta Kung Pao in Hong Kong.

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Brazil asks UN to ditch proposed levy on global shipping

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Those supporting the deal hope it will raise billions to help poor countries deal with climate breakdown

Brazil has asked the UN to throw out plans for a new levy on global shipping that would raise funds to fight the climate crisis, despite playing host to the next UN climate summit.

The proposed levy on carbon dioxide emissions from shipping will be discussed at a crunch meeting of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) that begins on Monday. Those supporting the deal, including the UK, the EU and Japan, are hoping the levy will raise billions of dollars a year, which could be used to help poor countries cope with the effects of climate breakdown.

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‘Eyewatering’ £100m spent on repairs in Scotland’s ‘ferry fiasco’ over past decade

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Government plans for publicly funded operator CalMac have been mired in controversy, with replacement vessels delayed and costs spiralling

Almost £100m has been spent over the past decade on repairs for eight of the largest publicly owned ferries in Scotland.

The figure has been described as “eye-watering” by Sue Webber, transport spokesperson for the Scottish Conservatives, who obtained details of the repair bill from ferry operator CalMac.

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Russian cargo ship sinks in Mediterranean after explosion in engine room

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Two crew members from Ursa Major are missing and 14 have been rescued, Russian foreign ministry says

An engine room explosion sank a Russian cargo ship called Ursa Major in the Mediterranean Sea between Spain and Algeria and two of its crew are missing, the Russian foreign ministry has said.

The vessel, built in 2009, was controlled by Oboronlogistika, a company that is part of the Russian defence ministry’s military construction operations, which had previously said it was en route to the Russian far-eastern port of Vladivostok with two giant port cranes lashed to its deck.

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Ministers urged to cut ties with P&O Ferries owner over links to Russia

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The government is facing calls to cease trading with DP World because of its partnership with Putin’s northern sea route

Ministers are facing calls to review the UK’s financial ties to the multinational logistics company DP World over its business deals in Russia.

The business announced a £1bn expansion of the London Gateway port earlier this month, despite a row over the transport secretary, Louise Haigh, calling its ferry subsidiary, P&O Ferries, a “rogue operator”.

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Spanish shipbuilder Navantia in exclusive talks to buy Harland & Wolff

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Deal to rescue owner of four UK shipyards, including Belfast shipyard that built the Titanic, could save up to 1,000 jobs

Spanish shipbuilding firm Navantia is in exclusive negotiations to buy Harland & Wolff, the owner of the Belfast shipyard that built the Titanic, in a deal that could rescue up to 1,000 jobs.

It is understood the group could take control of the group’s four yards – in Belfast; Appledore, Devon; Arnish on the Isle of Lewis; and Methil, Fife – as early as next month.

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Starmer steps into cabinet row over P&O to rescue global summit in London

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The PM has backed transport secretary Louise Haigh after she called ferry firm a ‘rogue operator’, threatening investment summit

Keir Starmer expressed his full confidence on Saturday in the transport secretary, Louise Haigh, after an explosive cabinet row cast fresh doubt over his Downing Street operation and threatened to overshadow a key international investment summit in London.

Government sources said the prime minister and Haigh had spoken and made up on Saturday after Starmer appeared to rebuke her on Friday for branding P&O Ferries a “rogue operator” in a statement and then calling for customers to boycott the company in a subsequent media interview.

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New UK laws to stop repeat of P&O mass sackings scandal go before parliament

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Labour clamps down on poor working conditions at sea with laws on collective dismissal and minimum wage on cross-Channel ferries

Laws to ensure that the P&O Ferries mass sackings scandal can never recur will be laid before parliament this week as Labour clamps downs on poor working conditions at sea, with cruise and cargo ships also in its sights.

The transport secretary, Louise Haigh, said the new laws would close the loopholes exploited by P&O when it fired 800 crew without warning in 2022, and any company would now face unlimited fines for acting in such a way.

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Financial markets could still avoid panic amid oil price risk in Middle East crisis

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Oil prices rose by more than 4% as Israeli troops moved into Lebanon and Iran launched missiles on Israel

As Israeli troops moved into Lebanon and Iran launched a missile attack on Israel, the risk of a jump in oil prices that could trigger another global inflation shock appeared to be materialising.

Oil prices rose by more than 4% to about $75 a barrel on Tuesday.

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Biden urges port operators to increase wages after 45,000 workers go on strike

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Strike – the first by port workers on US east coast since 1977 – threatens to shut down ports from Maine to Texas

Joe Biden has urged port operators to give workers a “meaningful increase” in pay after tens of thousands went on strike, prompting some of the busiest ports in the US to brace for crippling disruption.

About 45,000 port workers represented by the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) began walking off the job after their contracts expired at midnight, with 36 ports along the east and Gulf coasts affected. They typically handle about half of the nation’s ocean shipping.

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Southern Water considers shipping supplies from Norwegian fjords to UK

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Contingency plan using sea tankers to deal with future shortages would be paid for from customers’ bills

Southern Water, one of Britain’s biggest water companies, is drawing up contingency plans to tanker water from Norway to deal with future supply shortages and drought.

Southern, which has 2.7 million customers for drinking water supply in the south-east of England, could import water from Norwegian fjords to provide up to 45m litres a day, and would pay for it from customers’ bills.

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Houthis to allow access to stricken Red Sea tanker amid fears of huge oil spill

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The Yemen-based militants have denied an Iranian claim that they agreed to a temporary truce but will allow a tugboat to access the Sounion tanker

Yemen’s Houthi group has agreed to allow tugboats and rescue ships to access a damaged crude oil tanker in the Red Sea, Iran’s mission to the United Nations said, after the Iranian-aligned militants attacked the Greek-flagged vessel last week.

The Sounion tanker is carrying 150,000 tonnes, or 1m barrels, of crude oil and poses an environmental hazard, shipping officials said. Any spill has the potential to be among the largest from a ship in recorded history.

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Red Sea tanker attack: hopes rise that major oil spill can be averted

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Waters around vessel attacked by Houthi rebels last week appear to be free of oil, EU mission Red Sea says

The area around a Greek-flagged tanker attacked last week by Yemen’s Houthi rebels appears to be free of oil, the EU mission in the Red Sea has said.

The tanker came under fire last week off Yemen’s port city of Hodeidah. The Houthis, who control Yemen’s most populous regions, said they were behind the attack.

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Six feared dead and 14 rescued after fishing boat sinks off Falkland Islands

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Seven still missing as emergency teams scour south Atlantic after vessel experienced ‘uncontrolled flooding’

Fourteen fishermen stranded in lifeboats off the coast of the Falkland Islands have been saved in a dramatic rescue operation, but seven people remain missing and six others are believed dead.

Late on Tuesday, emergency teams were still scouring the choppy waters of the south Atlantic for survivors after the Argos Georgia, a Saint Helena-flagged fishing vessel experienced “uncontrolled flooding” on Monday evening.

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Business secretary confident of ‘market-led solution’ for Harland & Wolff

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Jonathan Reynolds says he expects Royal Navy ships will continue to be built at the struggling Belfast yard

The business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has said he is confident that the Harland & Wolff shipyard in Belfast will continue to build ships for the Royal Navy, despite ruling out government support for the struggling company.

Harland & Wolff is part of a consortium on a £1.6bn contract to build three naval fleet solid support ships to supply the Royal Navy’s aircraft carriers. However, it has faced months of uncertainty over its future.

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Large pod of pilot whales almost wiped out after stranding on Orkney beach

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Rescuers including vets rush to save 12 survivors from 77-strong group lying on Sanday shore

Dozens of long-finned pilot whales have died after a 77-strong pod came ashore on an Orkney beach in what could be the biggest mass stranding in decades.

Twelve of the animals at Tresness beach, on the island of Sanday, were still alive, but according to rescuers from the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR), it was thought unlikely they could be saved.

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