Vessel Hunter · Daily maritime briefing

Saturday, 26 September 2026

Maritime Briefing of 26 September 2026

Hormuz, the Caroline Bezengi salvage, Navios at HJSC, TotalEnergies' Ima FID and the week's fleet and offshore news

9 stories6 sections5 min readVessel Hunter newsroom

Security and casualties

5 stories

A seafarer was killed on the Cape Dao in the Strait of Hormuz

Two projectiles hit the 2002-built capesize off Musandam on 23 September, killing a 26-year-old Indian wiper and setting the engine room on fire; Oman's navy evacuated the other 27 crew.

Seafarer killed as capesize Cape Dao is struck and left adrift in HormuzFull story · Incident

A ship's master was killed in a Russian strike off Odesa

The Antigua and Barbuda-flagged cargo ship caught fire after the attack on 23 September near the Greater Odesa port complex. Border guards evacuated 15 crew but could not recover the body of the master, a Ukrainian citizen. Ukrainian officials say 232 civilian vessels have been attacked since the start of the war.

An offshore support vessel working alongside a tanker at sea

Salvage has started on the Caroline Bezengi

Pumps are being flown aboard from EDT Kennedy, with Duqm as the shore base, after the Khareef monsoon eased off southern Oman.

Salvage under way at the Caroline Bezengi wreck off Oman as the monsoon easesFull story · Incident

Satellites tie most chronic oil pollution to ships

A global analysis by SkyTruth estimates that about 1.58 million square kilometres of ocean are covered by oil slicks each year, more than 90% of them inside national waters and often close to coastlines.

Seafarer abandonment hit a record in 2025

The International Transport Workers' Federation counted 410 abandoned vessels and 6,223 seafarers affected, more than 30% up on 2024. The Seafarers' Charity has released guidance on warning signs in six languages.

Tankers and markets

4 stories

Onex DMCC is linked to five VLCC purchases

They run from a record $200m for the near-new Pinios to about $40m for the 2000-built Dennie.

Onex DMCC linked to five VLCC purchases as supertanker values climbFull story · Vessel sales

Volare Shipping raised $500m before its Oslo listing

The Trafigura-backed VLCC owner placed 30.7 million new shares at NOK154 each, putting a post-money value of about NOK11.5bn ($1.2bn) on the company.

The Marshall Islands has pushed Panama into third place

Registry data dated 1 September puts the Marshall Islands fleet at 212.7m gt against 196m gt for Panama.

Russia plans a levy on seaborne exports to pay for icebreakers

A draft decree would charge RUB20.07 per tonne of export cargo carried by 27 Russian companies, raising more than RUB200bn ($2.35bn) for the nuclear icebreakers needed on the Northern Sea Route.

Containers and liners

5 stories

A container ship moored alongside under a clear sky

Navios is linked to four 10,100 teu ships at HJ Shipbuilding

The KRW679bn order delivers in April 2029 and gives the yard eight ships of the class this year.

Navios linked to four 10,100 teu boxships at HJ Shipbuilding worth $500mFull story · Industry

BIMCO sees container capacity outrunning demand in 2027

It expects fleet capacity to grow 4.6% this year and 9% next, against volumes up 5.1% in the first seven months of 2026, and says a full return to Suez routings could leave ship demand as much as 10% below capacity.

Offen is negotiating its first containership newbuildings in more than a decade

Claus-Peter Offen is in talks with Guangzhou Shipyard International for two firm and two optional 7,000 teu ships, with 2030 slots pencilled in; no contract has been confirmed.

A container ship under way with stacked boxes on deck

Hapag-Lloyd is preparing a revised offer for ZIM

Chief executive Rolf Habben Jansen is due in Israel before a new proposal to the government. The current plan leaves the Israeli carrier to be carved out for FIMI with 16 ships and three routes, two to Greece and one to the United States; Israeli officials want at least six and possibly ten, including one to the Far East.

Hapag-Lloyd Gets 30 Days to Rework Its Zim AcquisitionFull story · Industry

PIL is launching a China-Singapore-Malaysia service

The weekly CSM loop starts from Tianjin on 27 October, and Pacific International Lines is revising its North China-Indonesia service from 8 November, dropping Tianjin and Xiamen and adding Shanghai and Nansha.

Fleet and orders

6 stories

Grimaldi took delivery of Grande Egitto

The 9,800 CEU ammonia-ready car carrier opens on the Asia to East Africa service with 4,150 cars aboard.

Grimaldi takes delivery of Grande Egitto, its second 9,800 CEU car carrierFull story · Industry

Höegh Autoliners signed for six more Aurora-class ships

The contract, signed in Naples on 22 September, takes its firm programme at China Merchants Heavy Industry Jiangsu to 18, of which eight have been delivered; options and reserved slots could take the series to 26.

Stena Line ordered two hybrid E-Flexers for Gothenburg to Frederikshavn

The 214.5-metre ferries, for 1,500 passengers and 2,750 lane metres, will be built at China Merchants Industry Weihai for 2030 and replace Stena Danica and Stena Jutlandica.

Ambassador bought Oceania's Sirena

She will become Ambella in 2028, sailing German adults-only cruises in summer and serving as the Semester at Sea campus for the rest of the year.

Ambassador buys Oceania's Sirena to launch German brand and Semester at Sea shipFull story · Vessel sales

DAB Group is moving into shipowning

Through its company Dassler Schiffahrts- und Handelsgesellschaft it has ordered two 64,500 dwt ultramaxes at Jiangsu Soho Innovation & Technology Shipbuilding, with an option for a third.

Lloyd's Register backs 200,000 m³ LNG carriers

A study for GTT found 88 LNG terminals worldwide able to take the larger design, against 97 for a conventional 174,000 m³ ship, with beam the deciding factor.

Offshore and energy

9 stories

An offshore platform at sea under an evening sky

TotalEnergies and AMNI sanctioned the Ima gas field

It will supply about one-third of the gas for Nigeria LNG's Train 7 from 2028.

TotalEnergies and AMNI sanction Ima gas field to feed Nigeria LNG Train 7Full story · Industry

Aerial view of ships and wind turbines in a harbour

Dong Fang Offshore took delivery of Orient Inspirer

The Vard-built SOV starts a 12-year Vestas charter in Taiwan on 1 November.

Dong Fang Offshore takes delivery of SOV Orient Inspirer for Vestas in TaiwanFull story · Industry

Rosetti Marino won the Hejre platform

The Italian fabricator's EPC contract from Ineos for the Danish North Sea development is worth between €250m and €300m.

Subsea 7 extended its Sakarya work

The added scope from TP-OTC covers towing and mooring line installation for the second floating production unit of Sakarya Phase 3 in the Black Sea.

Perenco plans power from shore off Brazil

A letter of intent with Porto do Açu covers a $110m scheme connecting the Pargo and Cherne clusters in the Campos Basin to the grid by an 80 km subsea cable.

Ventura Offshore added a well in Indonesia

Searah, the Eni and Petronas joint venture, exercised an option for the JKNE Upside-1 Dir well.

Fugro will survey pipeline routes off Timor-Leste

The programme supports the Greater Sunrise and Bayu Undan developments.

Siemens Gamesa chartered Purus Horizon long-term

The SOV Purus Horizon will support North Sea wind operations from early 2027.

CSL OWL SRI launched Rock Star

The first of two subsea rock installation vessels carries 17,500 tonnes of rock, has DP2 and can run on marine gas oil or methanol.

Insurance and people

3 stories

Hull premiums grew 9.4% but the market is softening

IUMI put global ocean hull premium at $10.5bn for 2025, driven by fleet growth, higher vessel values and exchange rates rather than rates, with the average merchant ship now 22.4 years old.

IUMI elected Sean M. Dalton as president

The Munich Re US marine underwriting head succeeds Frédéric Denèfle for a four-year term, with Tom Shinya of Tokio Marine & Nichido as vice-president.

Shubpreet Singh is the new chief executive of V.Ships

The master mariner previously led the V.Group business in Northern Europe and the Americas.

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