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Pan Ocean keeps VLCC push rolling
South Korea's Pan Ocean has ordered two more VLCC newbuildings, ammonia-ready and priced at about $122m each, extending a rapid crude tanker expansion.

Machine guns spotted on Russian LNG carrier in the Baltic
An OCCRP investigation reports that Russia has fitted the Gazprom-owned LNG carrier Marshal Vasilevskiy with heavy machine guns in the Baltic, an apparent first for a merchant vessel on a commercial route.

Hapag-Lloyd strengthens terminal network with Hamburg and Tangier Med deals
Hapag-Lloyd's terminal arm HGT is acquiring a 20% stake in Eurogate Container Terminal Hamburg and doubling its holding in Morocco's TC3 terminal at Tangier Med to 20%.

Skov to step down as Hafnia chief executive
Product tanker giant Hafnia has named Soren Steenberg Jensen as its next chief executive, with founding CEO Mikael Skov stepping down on September 1, 2026.

SBM Offshore closes $465m funding for Mexico-bound FSO
SBM Offshore has closed $465m of project financing for the FSO Chalchi, a suezmax-hulled unit bound for the Woodside-operated Trion field off Mexico under a 20-year lease.

Equinor pulls out of Japan offshore wind market
Equinor is ending its offshore wind activities in Japan and will close its Tokyo office by the end of 2026, citing a strategic refocus on integrated power markets.

Eldorado finalises $257m acquisition of Vantage Drilling
Eldorado Drilling has completed its roughly $257m acquisition of offshore drilling contractor Vantage Drilling, combining their fleets into a five-rig platform spanning drillships and jackups.

Lightning strike sparks fire at offshore platform off Malaysia
Vestigo Petroleum, a Petronas Carigali subsidiary, has confirmed a fire at its West Lutong platform off Sarawak after a lightning strike; the blaze is under control and no injuries were reported.

Hormuz is a test of trust for shipmanagers
In a contributed piece, InterManager president Sebastian von Hardenberg argues the Strait of Hormuz crisis is a direct test of trust between shipmanagers, owners, crews and their families.

U-Ming signs for newcastlemax newbuilds in China
U-Ming Marine Transport has signed for up to four newcastlemax newbuildings at Jiangsu Hantong Ship Heavy Industry, part of a plan to grow its fleet beyond 100 vessels.

Norway is about to tunnel a shipping lane through a mountain
Norway's Coastal Administration has awarded AF Gruppen a NOK 5.6bn ($564.5m) turnkey contract to build the Stad Ship Tunnel, the world's first tunnel for maritime traffic.

Korean shipyard moves closer to revival after nine-year hiatus
South Korea's dormant Gunsan Shipyard is edging back to production, signing a letter of intent for four aframaxes that could restart full shipbuilding after almost nine years.

Livestock carriers remain shipping's worst-performing fleet
A new report by Robin des Bois, the Animal Welfare Foundation and Tierschutzbund Zurich finds livestock carriers ranked shipping's worst-performing fleet, with 88% of inspections yielding deficiencies.

MSC returns to megaship ordering with up to 20 new giants
MSC has reportedly returned to the newbuilding market with an order for up to 20 20,000 teu LNG dual-fuel containerships at China's Hengli Heavy Industry.

Hormuz security in tatters as US and Iran trade fresh strikes
The fragile Strait of Hormuz ceasefire has effectively collapsed after US and Iranian forces exchanged fresh strikes, with a drone attack on the tanker Kiku the latest hit on commercial shipping.

Liner networks shift away from Asia's mega hubs
Container carriers are permanently restructuring their networks away from Asia's largest transhipment hubs towards secondary regional ports, according to Sea-Intelligence analysis of UNCTAD connectivity data.

California prepares legal challenge over offshore wind buybacks
California is preparing to sue the Trump administration over the federal buyback of offshore wind leases, including the Golden State Wind project, warning it threatens the state's 25GW target.

Modec bags work on Mozambique's next FLNG development
Modec will supply the SOFEC internal turret mooring system for Eni's Coral Norte FLNG project off Mozambique, which is set to double the Coral hub's capacity to 7m tonnes a year.

IMO and Oman orchestrate phased reopening of Hormuz
A US-Iran memorandum and a temporary Oman/IMO corridor are lifting Strait of Hormuz transits to their highest since the February closure, though Allianz warns of a structural shift in maritime risk.

AD Ports tightens grip on Global Feeder Shipping
AD Ports Group has raised its holding in Dubai-based Global Feeder Shipping to 81% after a $300m stake purchase, deepening its push into global feeder container shipping.

Container shipping is thinking small again
The containership orderbook is nearing 13m teu, but Alphaliner data shows carriers shifting decisively toward smaller feeder and mid-sized ships, with 74% of recent orders below 6,500 teu.

New dry bulk outfit emerges in Dubai
A new Dubai-based dry bulk venture, Mayborne Bulk, has launched under industry veterans Jesper Lollesgaard and Parikshit Sial, with an asset-light model focused on the handy, supramax and ultramax sectors.

Yasa tipped for debut VLCC order
Turkey's Yasa Holding is being linked to its first VLCC newbuilding order — four 319,000 dwt units in China at $125m each — amid one of the busiest supertanker ordering spells in years.

Asiatic Lloyd signs up for three LR2 tankers
Singapore's Asiatic Lloyd is linked to three LR2 newbuildings at HD Hyundai's Philippines yard, marking its return to the larger product tanker segment after exiting LR2s in 2023.

IMO backs mineralisation pathway for onboard carbon capture
The IMO has given in-principle support to recognising carbon mineralisation as permanent storage, potentially opening a new pathway for onboard carbon capture and storage systems.

ADES acquires Saipem's Saudi drilling business in $285m deal
Saudi driller ADES has agreed to acquire Saipem's Saudi subsidiary and its five jackup rigs for $285m, expanding its fleet to 88 units and entering the Mexican market.

Prysmian bags $1bn contract for Greek power links
Prysmian has won a roughly EUR910m ($1.03bn) framework agreement with Greek grid operator IPTO to design and install submarine and land cables for Dodecanese and North Aegean island interconnections.

TGS grows Asia-Africa footprint with Brunei and Sierra Leone work
TGS has won a multi-client 3D seismic survey contract in Brunei and is starting 2D and 3D reprocessing projects offshore Sierra Leone, expanding its Asia-Pacific and Africa footprint.

Simon Møkster secures new PSV frame deal with Aker BP
Simon Møkster Shipping has signed a new four-year PSV frame agreement with Aker BP, extending a partnership that dates back to 2019.

Trump adds Duke Energy to offshore wind buyout campaign
The US Department of the Interior has agreed a $129m settlement with Duke Energy to terminate its Carolina Long Bay offshore wind lease, extending the Trump administration's buyout campaign.

SBM Offshore places new FPSO hull order with Chinese yard
SBM Offshore has ordered its seventh Fast4Ward FPSO hull, the MPF7, at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, the 13th multi-purpose floater hull it has commissioned to date.

MPCC moves up in size with $340m boxship buy
MPC Container Ships is buying four 7,000 teu boxships for $340m, moving into a larger segment while selling two older vessels and lifting its backlog to $2.2bn.

HMM moves on $1.1bn bulker and gas carrier haul
HMM has unveiled a KRW1.7trn ($1.1bn) order for eight bulk carriers and two gas carriers, the latest step in the Korean major's drive to diversify beyond containers.

Hormuz moves from shutdown to managed recovery
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is recovering under heavy restrictions as the IMO oversees the evacuation of more than 11,000 stranded seafarers, in what Windward calls the clearest sign yet of returning normalcy.

Officer shortage risks exceeding 100,000 by 2030
The shipping industry needs over 113,000 additional certified officers by 2030, according to the BIMCO/ICS Seafarer Workforce Report 2026, which warns of a widening structural shortage.

Integrated Wind Solutions boosts 2026 backlog with new charter awards
Integrated Wind Solutions has secured new charter work for its Skywalker-class CSOVs, adding about 120 days and EUR6m to its 2026 backlog and taking charter cover to 94%.
Ocean Installer bags one of its largest-ever contracts
Ocean Installer has won a fast-track EPCI contract from Var Energi for the Balder Next New Wells project in the North Sea — among the largest in the Moreld subsidiary's history.

Aker Solutions lands long-term offshore services deal in Canada
Aker Solutions has signed a five-year engineering and maintenance agreement with Cenovus Energy for the White Rose field off Newfoundland, valued at up to around $152m.

Carbon pricing is becoming a compliance maze
Overlapping carbon schemes — EU ETS, FuelEU Maritime and the IMO framework — risk duplicated reporting and double charging for shipowners. EmissionLink's Philippos Ioulianou on navigating the maze.

France boards another Russian shadow fleet tanker off Sicily
France has intercepted the Russia-linked tanker Deliver off Sicily, stepping up Europe's campaign against the shadow fleet used to move sanctioned Russian oil.

Seized tanker tests the limits of shadow fleet enforcement
Russia has warned of legal action if the UK sells crude from the seized shadow-fleet tanker Smyrtos, in a case testing how far Europe will go to enforce sanctions at sea.

Hormuz reopening plans thrown into doubt after Evergreen boxship attack
A drone attack on Evergreen's Ever Lovely shortly after it transited the Strait of Hormuz has stalled the fragile reopening of the waterway and prompted the IMO to pause its evacuation of stranded vessels.

RWE takes control position in Amprion
German utility RWE has raised its indirect holding in transmission system operator Amprion to 55%, expanding into grid infrastructure to support Germany's grid build-out.

Engine shortage returns to haunt shipyards — now with AI bidding for the same parts
A shortage of marine engines is quietly capping shipyard output, echoing the 2007 boom. The new twist: AI data centres are now bidding for generator sets from the same supply chain.

Houthis impose Red Sea ban as Israel and Iran exchange missile strikes
Israel and Iran trade missile strikes and Houthis ban Israeli shipping in the Red Sea, lifting Brent crude and clouding tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Leadership reshuffle at MedcoEnergi as company names new chief executive
Indonesian oil and gas firm MedcoEnergi has appointed Ronald Gunawan as its new chief executive officer. The move follows a broader leadership reshuffle confirmed at the company's annual general meeting of shareholders.…

Panama Canal trims vessel draft, reviving memories of the drought crisis
The Panama Canal Authority will cut the neopanamax draft limit to 49.5 ft from 3 July, citing Gatun Lake levels and El Niño risk and reviving 2023-24 drought fears.

South Korea's Heung-A books up to six chemical tankers in China
Heung-A Shipping has ordered up to six stainless steel chemical tankers at China's Wuchang Shipbuilding in a roughly $280m deal - its first newbuildings since 2016.
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Vessel Hunter News is written with AI, working from maritime news reporting and the primary documents behind it, to fixed editorial rules. Every article passes an automated quality check before it is published, and Vessel Hunter is responsible for what it says. How our news is made. We correct what we get wrong. Mail contact@vesselhunter.io and tell us what to look at.
