Vessel Hunter News
Maritime, in motion
US targets Mexican cartel fuel smuggling
The US Treasury has sanctioned individuals and entities tied to a cartel-linked fuel smuggling network that uses shadow-fleet vessels and falsified customs documents to move illicit fuel between the US and Mexico.
UK carbon market extends to shipping from today
The UK has extended its emissions trading scheme to domestic shipping, bringing cargo and passenger vessels of 5,000 gt and above into the carbon market and adding to operators' compliance burden.
Barrelet takes the helm at ONE
Till Ole Barrelet has taken over as chief executive of Ocean Network Express, succeeding founding boss Jeremy Nixon at the world's sixth-largest containerline.
Diana keeps pressure on Genco with tender extension
Diana Shipping has extended its hostile $27.34-per-share tender offer for Genco Shipping & Trading to July 18, prolonging a closely watched dry bulk takeover battle.
Alcoa moves for South32 aluminium assets
Alcoa has agreed to buy South32's bauxite, alumina and aluminium assets in Australia, Brazil and South Africa for $4.1bn upfront, a deal with implications for dry bulk's fast-growing bauxite trade.
Mercuria and Eni form global energy trading venture
Eni and Mercuria have agreed a 50:50 global energy trading joint venture covering oil, biofuels, gas and LNG, marking the Italian major's return to a market it exited in 2019.
COSCO orders 24 bulkers in $1.27bn leasing play
COSCO Shipping Development has ordered 24 dry bulk vessels worth RMB8.66bn ($1.27bn), deepening its leasing business with long-term charters back into the COSCO group.
Swedish county backs offshore wind after policy reversal
Sweden's Skane county has reversed its opposition to the Sjollen offshore wind site in the Oresund Strait, now backing its designation as a national interest area amid rising electricity demand.
Landlocked Kyrgyzstan readies ship registry
Landlocked Kyrgyzstan has passed its first Merchant Shipping Code, paving the way for a national ship registry and a Kyrgyz-flagged fleet registered in Bishkek.
Shipping struggles to stamp out illegal recruitment fees
Research by IHRB and TURTLE finds 31% of seafarers have been asked to pay illegal recruitment fees, prompting a new industry toolkit backed by more than 30 organisations.
Keyfield wins 13 charter deals across Asia and Middle East
Malaysia's Keyfield International has won 13 new offshore charter contracts worth RM229m ($55.7m) across Malaysia, Thailand and the Middle East, lifting its first-half wins to 21.
Nissen Kaiun closes in on double-digit bulker sell-off
Japan's Nissen Kaiun is nearing double-digit vessel sales for the first half of 2026, with the 183,000 dwt Lady Deena reportedly sold to Chinese buyers for around $70m.
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%.
MSC pays $1.4bn for 49% stake in Adani's Vizhinjam port
MSC's terminal arm TiL is acquiring a 49% stake in Adani Ports' Vizhinjam transhipment terminal for $1.4bn, in what the partners call the largest foreign private investment in Indian port infrastructure.
Maersk goes from red to black
A.P. Moller-Maersk has sharply upgraded its guidance, now expecting an underlying operating profit of $2bn to $4bn this year, the clearest sign yet that 2026 is shaping up as another profitable year for container shipping.
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.
Troubled shadow VLCC closes in on endgame
The 2002-built VLCC Era — formerly Marinera and Bella 1 — has reappeared under the Comoros flag with a demolition-linked manager, suggesting the much-renamed shadow-fleet tanker may be nearing its final voyage.
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.
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