Skip to content

Vessel Hunter News

Maritime, in motion

An offshore support vessel working alongside a drilling unit
Industry

Ventura Takes On Deep Value Driller and Lands $58m Petronas Job

Ventura Offshore will manage the drillship Deep Value Driller for Eldorado Drilling and has secured a one-well contract with Petronas in Indonesia worth around $58m.

Read story
Aerial view of a bulk carrier loading cargo
Industry

Fujian Highton Seeks $295m Placement to Fund a 16-Ship Buying Programme

Fujian Highton Development is raising up to RMB2bn to fund 16 bulkers and multipurpose heavylift ships over three years, with the whole placement earmarked for vessel purchases.

Read story
A freight ship under way in coastal waters
Sanctions

Sanctioned Russian Roro Lady Mariia Reported Struck by Drones off Crete

The sanctioned Russian roro Lady Mariia was reportedly hit by drone-dropped munitions near Crete while heading east towards Syria. Neither side has confirmed the strike.

Read story
Container ships alongside in a major harbour
Port activity

Panama Canal Postpones Neopanamax Draft Cut for a Second Time

The Panama Canal Authority has again deferred a planned reduction in Neopanamax draft, holding the maximum at 14.63 metres as Gatun Lake levels stay steady.

Read story
Aerial view of a cargo ship under way at sea
Industry

Wallenius Marine Puts Two Oceanbird Wing Sails on Car Carrier Way Forward

Wallenius Marine will retrofit two Oceanbird wing sails to the 2024-built car carrier Way Forward in 2027, the first commercial multi-wing installation of the technology.

Read story
A large vessel under repair in a shipyard dry dock
Incident

Fire Breaks Out Aboard Icebreaker Admiral Makarov During St Petersburg Refit

A fire spread across roughly 80 square metres of the icebreaker Admiral Makarov while the 1975-built vessel lay under repair in St Petersburg. No injuries were reported.

Read story
Aerial view of a crude oil tanker loading at an export terminal
Industry

Rosneft Ships First Vostok Oil Cargo Through New Sever Bay Arctic Port

Rosneft has begun exporting crude from the Vostok Oil development through the newly built Sever Bay terminal on the Taimyr Peninsula, loading its first shuttle tanker on 5 September.

Read story
Aerial view of a liquefied natural gas terminal, illustrating global energy and trade flows
Industry

Maritime Briefing, 7 September 2026: Hormuz, Congestion, Yard Money

Two seafarers dead aboard the VLCC Sidr, Jebel Ali falling out of the top ten container ports, and US East Coast box rates breaking $10,000 per FEU for the first time since 2022.

Read story
An older passenger and cargo ship alongside, illustrating a historic liner
Vessel sales

The Gulf War Strands the Historic Liner St Helena and Costs Her a New Career

Terra Nova Expeditions has abandoned plans to bring the retired RMS St Helena back into service, chartering a former G Adventures expedition ship instead for its first Antarctic season.

Read story
Cruise ship alongside in port, illustrating cruise berth capacity limits
Port activity

Juneau Keeps Its Five-Ship Cruise Cap Voluntary After a 5 to 4 Vote

The Juneau Assembly postponed an ordinance that would have turned its negotiated five large cruise ship daily limit into local law covering downtown berths and Douglas Island.

Read story
Small cruise vessel at sea, illustrating luxury and expedition cruising
Industry

SeaDream Orders Its First New Yacht in 25 Years at a Chinese Cruise Yard

SeaDream Yacht Club will build a 151.2-metre newbuild at China Merchants Cruise Shipbuilding, its first new ship since the two vessels it has operated since the 1980s.

Read story
Ship transiting a canal, illustrating Suez Canal traffic and adjacent industrial investment
Port activity

Xi and Sisi Agree a Third Phase for the Chinese Zone Beside the Suez Canal

Egypt and China agreed on 2 September to expand Chinese investment in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, deepening Beijing's position beside the waterway as the Hormuz conflict continues.

Read story
Helicopter operating over the sea, illustrating offshore helicopter transport and rescue
Industry

Up to 800 North Sea Workers Still Exceed the November Helicopter Weight Limit

New offshore travel rules taking effect in November cap clothed passenger weight at 124kg so that anyone can be winched to safety, and hundreds of workers are still above it.

Read story
Maritime workers at a port, illustrating merchant mariner employment
Industry

Bipartisan Bill Would Extend the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion to US Mariners

Four House members have introduced legislation giving US merchant mariners in international trade the same tax treatment as other Americans working overseas.

Read story
LNG carrier design illustration, representing ice-class gas carrier construction
Sanctions

Putin Inspects the Arc7 LNG Carrier Pyotr Stolypin at the Zvezda Yard

The Russian president visited the Zvezda complex at Bolshoy Kamen on 2 September to inspect an icebreaking LNG carrier built for a project whose scale has been cut back by sanctions.

Read story
Offshore platform at dusk, illustrating North Sea offshore supply operations
Industry

North Sea PSV Spot Rates Pass £30,000 as Six Vessels Go on Project Work

Rates for North Sea platform supply vessels have risen sharply on a supply shortage, with spot fixtures above £30,000 in the UK sector and NKr300,000 in Norway.

Read story
Bulk carrier at sea seen from the air, illustrating dry cargo emissions accounting
Industry

NORDEN Issues the First Verified Maritime Emissions Reductions Under Book and Claim

NORDEN has delivered verified emissions reductions through the RSB Book and Claim registry, letting a cargo owner buy the benefit of sustainable fuel burned on someone else's voyage.

Read story
Delegates in a boardroom at night, illustrating international regulatory negotiations
Industry

IMO Ends Another Net-Zero Session Divided, With Three Meetings Left in 2026

The IMO's latest working group closed after four days without a finalised text, deferring the lifecycle framework and pushing key decisions to a run of sessions in late November and early December.

Read story
Large vessel at a terminal, illustrating nuclear propulsion proposals for merchant ships
Industry

Core Power Signs a Seven-Year MARAD Deal for 50 Nuclear-Powered Merchant Ships

A British nuclear energy company has agreed a seven-year programme with the US Maritime Administration to build a fleet of 50 nuclear-powered LNG tankers and container ships.

Read story
Cargo ship under way at sea, illustrating wind-assisted propulsion adoption
Product

Anemoi Courts Korean Yards as Rotor Sails Move Onto Container Ships

The British wind propulsion company says several major Korean shipyards have approached it about integrating rotor sails, as it prepares the first planned installation on a container vessel.

Read story
Cargo ship under way at sea, illustrating wind-assisted propulsion trials
Product

Horizontal Turbines in Containers Begin Sea Trials on an Iceland Feeder

Sea trials have begun on a hybrid wind and solar system fitted to the 909 TEU containership Helgafell, using horizontally mounted turbines packaged inside shipping containers.

Read story
Fast passenger craft under way, illustrating coastal passenger transport
Product

Regent's Viceroy Seaglider Makes Its First Flight With People On Board

Regent Craft says its Viceroy prototype is the largest all-electric wing-in-ground effect craft ever to fly with people aboard, marking the start of the programme's final stage of sea trials.

Read story
Aircraft carrier island seen from the flight deck, illustrating carrier operations
Industry

USS Abraham Lincoln Reaches Thailand After 286 Consecutive Days at Sea

The nuclear-powered carrier arrived in Thailand on 2 September after an extended deployment that included combat operations, with a crew that had gone more than 260 days without a full shore stop.

Read story
Vessel operating in northern waters, illustrating Arctic naval activity
Industry

USS Delaware Surfaces at Tromso as Four Russian Submarines Go to Sea

The US Navy publicised the arrival of a Virginia class attack submarine in northern Norway during a summer in which one Russian boat after another has left the White Sea yards for trials.

Read story
Naval vessels alongside, illustrating submarine and warship programmes
Industry

Japan's 2027 Budget Request Points to Submarine-Launched Hypersonic Missiles

A preliminary defence budget request presented to the Diet refers to an underwater-launched, high-survivability missile that can be fired at an early stage and at long range.

Read story
Warship alongside at a naval base at sunset, illustrating naval vessel disposal
Vessel sales

HMS Bulwark Becomes NDM Olapoque as Sister Ship Albion Awaits Disposal

The Royal Navy's retired amphibious ship HMS Bulwark has been sold to Brazil and renamed, while HMS Albion remains alongside at Devonport in condition too poor for a sale.

Read story
Container ship loading at a terminal, illustrating global terminal operations
Port activity

COSCO Shipping Ports Handles 80.16m TEU as Overseas Volume Rises 18%

COSCO Shipping Ports reported first-half throughput of 80.16m TEU, up 7.9%, with EBITDA climbing 20.6% to $536m and an interim dividend of 2.360 US cents per share.

Read story
San Francisco Bay waterfront, illustrating the setting of the Port of Oakland
Port activity

Oakland Signs for a $640m Turning Basin Widening to Take Longer Ships

The Port of Oakland has completed an agreement with the US Army Corps of Engineers to widen and modernise its inner and outer harbour turning basins by 2030.

Read story
Workers repairing a vessel in a shipyard, illustrating ship repair and conversion work
Industry

Den Breejen Shipyard Changes Hands After Almost Eighty Family Years

The Hardinxveld-Giessendam shipyard has been sold by the Den Breejen family to CCD, an investment vehicle formed by Ceylan Duzdusen together with Concordia and Damen.

Read story
Harbour tug at work, illustrating towage operations and tug newbuildings
Industry

Cochin Shipyard Cuts Steel on Four Battery-Electric Tugs for Svitzer

India's Cochin Shipyard has begun building four fully electric TRAnsverse 2600e harbour tugs for Svitzer, under an agreement signed in December 2025 covering a minimum of four vessels.

Read story
Container ships loading at a major port, illustrating liner fleet renewal
Industry

Yang Ming Signs for Six 13,650 TEU Dual-Fuel Boxships at Hanwha Ocean

Yang Ming has contracted six LNG dual-fuel container ships for delivery between 2028 and 2029, taking its next-generation fleet renewal programme towards 24 ships by 2030.

Read story
Large cargo vessel at sea, illustrating vehicle and cargo carrier newbuilding orders
Industry

CSSC Takes a $1bn Car Carrier Order and Two More PCTCs for SFL at SMM

Guangzhou Shipyard International signed for 10 LNG dual-fuel pure car and truck carriers worth more than $1bn, with market sources naming Ray Car Carriers as the owner.

Read story
Large ship under construction in a dry dock, illustrating shipyard output
Industry

CSSC Net Profit Rises 163% as Its Order Backlog Reaches 729 Ships

China State Shipbuilding Corporation recorded first-half revenue of RMB91.53bn and net profit of RMB9.95bn, on higher deliveries of high-end vessels and rising average prices.

Read story
Dry docks at a Japanese shipyard, illustrating shipbuilding capacity investment
Industry

Japan Puts $3.8bn Behind Imabari, JMU and Namura in Its First Yard Tranche

Japan's transport minister has unveiled the first investments under a plan to double national shipbuilding volume by 2035, with a total programme of about $6.4bn in public and private money.

Read story
An older ship alongside at a dock, illustrating end-of-life vessel tonnage
Industry

Indian Recyclers Are Bidding Into Losses as End-of-Life Tonnage Dries Up

High-standard Indian recycling facilities are bidding aggressively for the limited tonnage available even when the economics suggest a substantial loss at current steel prices.

Read story
Ships being dismantled at a recycling yard, illustrating ship recycling capacity
Industry

Six Shipping Bodies Back Two Indian Yards for the EU Recycling List

BIMCO, ECSA, ICS, INTERCARGO, INTERTANKO and the World Shipping Council have welcomed a European Commission proposal to add two Gujarat yards to the European List of Ship Recycling Facilities.

Read story
Container cranes at the port of Rotterdam, illustrating North European port operations
Port activity

German Port Strike Deepens Congestion Already Holding 160,000 TEU at Anchor

A 48-hour warning strike at Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Bremen, Wilhelmshaven, Emden and Brake landed on top of North European congestion already absorbing about 5% of deepsea containership capacity.

Read story
Dock worker beside a container ship, illustrating container terminal and inland logistics
Industry

Samsung Seeks $186m From CMA CGM Over Store Door Delivery Failures

Samsung Electronics America has filed one of the largest post-pandemic regulatory claims against a container carrier, alleging unjust practices in inland transport and detention billing between 2020 and 2023.

Read story
Container ship at an export terminal seen from the air, illustrating port throughput
Port activity

Jebel Ali Falls Out of the Top Ten as Hormuz Rewrites the Port Ranking

The ten largest container ports finished 2025 in the same order as a year earlier, but 2026 returns covering 76% of the ranked volume show one port leaving the top ten entirely.

Read story
Container ship seen from above in a port, illustrating container fleet growth
Industry

The Container Fleet Is About to Pass 34m TEU After Adding 10m in Five Years

Global containership capacity stood 8,000 TEU short of 34m at the start of September, having taken five and a half years to add the 10m TEU that previously took more than a decade.

Read story
Aerial view of a loaded container ship, illustrating container freight markets
Industry

US East Coast Box Rates Break $10,000 as Panama Cuts Daily Transits Again

The Shanghai Containerized Freight Index reached a 25-month high of 3,509.53 points, with Shanghai to US East Coast rates breaching $10,000 per FEU for the first time since 2022.

Read story
Offshore support vessel under tow, illustrating a marine salvage operation
Incident

SMIT Salvage Refloats the Anchor Handler Skandi Amazonas Off Macae

The stranded anchor handler Skandi Amazonas has been patched, refloated and towed clear off the coast of Macae in Brazil after striking a rock and being beached to save her.

Read story
A ship passing beneath a road bridge, illustrating bridge transits by commercial vessels
Incident

Bunker Tanker Drifts From Its Tugs and Wedges Against a Johor Road Bridge

A small Malaysian product tanker being relocated at a Johor shipyard escaped the tug moving her, drifted down the Johor River and came to rest against the Sungai Johor Bridge.

Read story
Containers lost overboard from a ship, illustrating container loss at sea
Incident

Navigation Warning Issued After a Feeder Loses 46 Containers Off Batangas

The Philippine Coast Guard has warned shipping in one of its busiest lanes after the 564 TEU Span Asia 39 lost 46 empty containers overboard in rough weather.

Read story
Container handling cranes at a port terminal, illustrating container terminal operations
Port activity

Chemical Leak at Mersin Port Affects 35 People After Machine Topples on a Box

Heavy equipment fell onto a container at Mersin International Port before dawn on 4 September, releasing what is believed to be ethyl acrylate and halting terminal operations.

Read story
Chemical tanker at sea seen from the air, illustrating tanker operations in busy waters
Incident

Master and Third Officer of the Tanker Alsu Arrested Over the Marmara Collision

A Turkish court has charged the captain and third officer of the tanker Alsu with negligent homicide after the cargo ship Tugberk Imamoglu sank within ten minutes with ten crew aboard.

Read story
Container terminal at sunset, illustrating port security and container handling
Port activity

Rotterdam Terminal Workers Face Prison After a Controlled Cocaine Delivery

Dutch prosecutors are seeking up to 3.5 years for two men accused of using temporary terminal jobs in Waalhaven to retrieve cocaine first intercepted in St Maarten in April.

Read story

Never miss a move

Maritime, in motion. In your inbox.

The vessel sales, incidents, and market moves worth knowing, sent as they happen.

We email a confirmation link first, and you can unsubscribe anytime. No spam.