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Maritime, in motion
Maritime Briefing of 29 September 2026
The MAIB's Argos Georgia report, the shadow fleet's move to the Russian flag, Global Car Carriers' 20-ship orderbook, Dunkirk's pick of TiL and a 60,000-tonne lift for Statfjord A.
Maritime Briefing of 4 October 2026
Four tankers struck around Hormuz, five seafarers killed on Honour 25, Israel closes the ZIM review, Damen's €4.7bn claim, CMES's Simandou deal and a deeper Panama Canal.
Kokuka Sangyo takes delivery of Kokuryu Maru, its first methanol-fuelled tanker
Kokuka Sangyo has taken delivery of the 498 gt chemical tanker Kokuryu Maru, its first dedicated methanol-fuelled ship, which will carry methanol and bunker other ships on charter to Mitsubishi Gas Chemical.
Panama Canal raises neopanamax draught to 49 feet and adds a daily slot
The Panama Canal has restored a 49-foot maximum draught in the neopanamax locks and will return to ten daily neopanamax transits from 15 October, as near-average rain eases its water deficit.
Yang Ming names YM Weight, its fourth 15,500 TEU LNG dual-fuel ship
Yang Ming has named YM Weight, the fourth of five 15,500 TEU-class LNG dual-fuel containerships from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, for its Asia-West Mediterranean MS2 service.
Damen claims nearly €4.7bn from Germany over cancelled F126 frigate order
Damen is claiming nearly €4.7bn in compensation from the German government after Berlin cancelled its order for six F126 frigates and simulators at the end of June.
Pioneering Spirit lift capacity raised to 60,000 tonnes for Statfjord A removal
Allseas has upgraded Pioneering Spirit's topsides lifting system from 48,000 to 60,000 tonnes to remove Equinor's Statfjord A topside in one piece, and appointed ABL as warranty surveyor.
COSCO Guangdong turns supramax Pu Tuo Hai into 2,528 TEU boxship Singapore River
COSCO (Guangdong) Shipyard has converted the 2007-built supramax Pu Tuo Hai into the 2,528 TEU containership Singapore River, chartered to X-Press Feeders, with a sister conversion under way.
Dunkirk picks MSC's TiL for its second container terminal, due in 2029
Dunkirk's port authority has confirmed MSC's Terminal Investment Limited as developer and operator of its second container terminal, with the quay due for completion in January 2029.
Capital Maritime Finance seeks €200m in Athens IPO for 36-ship boxship fleet
Capital Maritime Finance, linked to Evangelos Marinakis, is targeting up to €200m from Greece's first shipping IPO with an exclusive Euronext Athens listing, backed by 36 containerships on charter.
Sanctioned tankers move to the Russian flag as Europe cuts false flags by half
Europe's detentions have cut the shadow fleet ships flying false flags from 101 to 45, but 107 vessels have moved to the Russian registry since January 2025, most of them already sanctioned.
CMES signs $2.8bn, 25-year Simandou contract for six VLOCs
China Merchants Energy Shipping's dry bulk arm Hong Kong Ming Wah has signed a 25-year agreement worth at least $2.8bn to carry Simandou iron ore on six very large ore carriers.
Genco extends its poison pill to 2027 after Diana Shipping's bid collapsed
Genco Shipping & Trading has extended its shareholder rights plan to 30 September 2027 and eased the terms for a qualifying offer, after Diana Shipping's nine-month pursuit ended.
Israel closes its review of the Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI takeover of ZIM
Israel's Government Companies Authority has ended its review of the original $4.2bn Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI bid for ZIM, giving the parties until 6 October to file a revised structure.
Global Car Carriers adds eight PCTCs in China, taking its orderbook to 20
MSC-owned Global Car Carriers has ordered eight more 8,600 ceu LNG dual-fuel car carriers at three Chinese yards, lifting its newbuilding programme to 20 ships worth over $2bn.
Five crew killed on Honour 25 as Puntland forces retake hijacked tanker
Five crew of the product tanker Honour 25 were killed as Puntland forces retook the ship from Somali pirates on 29 September, while pirates holding the Eureka drove her ashore and fled.
Argos Georgia sank after a shell door opened in heavy seas, MAIB finds
The MAIB's final report on the longliner Argos Georgia traces the loss of 13 lives off the Falklands to a line-hauling hatch that opened in heavy seas and could not be closed.
Al Funtas and three more tankers hit in Hormuz as Gulf crude exports recover
Kuwait's VLCC Al Funtas and at least three other tankers were struck around the Strait of Hormuz in the last days of September, even as Gulf oil exports climbed back to near prewar volumes.
Maritime Briefing of 28 September 2026
Fire forces the crew off Blue Carrier 2 north of Mykonos, three blockaded VLCCs head for the US with Iranian crude, Puntland frees Sibu 1 and Iran plans to sell seized ships.
Ørsted and Nuveen inaugurate the 913 MW Borkum Riffgrund 3 off Germany
Ørsted and Nuveen Infrastructure have inaugurated Borkum Riffgrund 3, a 913 MW wind farm 72 km off the German coast, lifting Ørsted's German offshore capacity to about 2.5 GW.
Iran says it will sell seized ships including MSC Francesca and Epaminondas as compensation
An Iranian judicial official says commercial ships seized in the war and linked to the US and Israel will be sold to compensate fishermen. MSC Francesca and Epaminondas are held off Bandar Abbas.
NYK orders an Ulstein SX222 service operation vessel from PaxOcean for Asia-Pacific wind
NYK has ordered a 120-person service operation vessel from PaxOcean, to be built in Batam to an Ulstein SX222 design and deployed in Taiwan with IOVTEC and Hsin Chien Marine.
ARC Freedom joins the US flag and the Maritime Security Program as ex-Figaro
American Roll-On/Roll-Off Carrier has moved the 2011-built car carrier Figaro to the US flag as ARC Freedom, adding nearly 8,000 units of sealift capacity to MARAD's Maritime Security Program.
Russian cargo ship Yuriy Arshenevskiy sails from Tobruk to Turkish waters after arms delivery
The Russian-flagged Yuriy Arshenevskiy left Tobruk after a convoy delivered military vehicles to eastern Libya, passed the Dardanelles and turned for Tuzla short of the Bosporus.
Puntland forces free the tanker Sibu 1 from Somali pirates after five weeks
Puntland's navy and maritime police have freed the product tanker Sibu 1, seized off Yemen on 20 August, and arrested the pirates. Three hijacked ships remain off Somalia.
Three VLCCs stopped under the Iran blockade head across the Atlantic towards the US
Three VLCCs stopped by US forces under the Iran blockade, Tifani, Majestic X and Lenore, are sailing towards the United States with about six million barrels of Iranian crude.
Blue Carrier 2 abandoned after vehicle-deck fire north of Mykonos
Fire broke out on the Greek RoRo Blue Carrier 2 north of Mykonos with 166 trucks aboard; all 29 people abandoned ship and the vessel is listing under tow off Tinos.
Maritime Briefing of 27 September 2026
Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI revise the Zim Israel plan, the capesize Cape Falcon is refloated off Gladstone, the Netherlands dates its scrubber ban and MSC's Medlog enters Kazakhstan.
Huisman wins leg encircling cranes for Cadeler's two T-class installation vessels
Huisman will supply two leg encircling cranes and two auxiliary cranes for Cadeler's next-generation T-class wind installation vessels, under a contract from builder COSCO Shipping (Qidong) Offshore.
MSC's Medlog enters Kazakhstan with a stake in Sarzha Logistics at Kuryk
Medlog, the logistics arm of MSC, is to become an equal partner in Sarzha Logistics at Kazakhstan's Caspian port of Kuryk, building container flows on the Middle Corridor to Türkiye and Europe.
MARAD orders training ship Empire State to sail for Norfolk on 30 September
The Maritime Administration has issued a sailing order for SUNY Maritime College's training ship Empire State, which leaves the Bronx on 30 September for Norfolk and follow-on operations supporting the US Navy.
Brittany Ferries charters Vizzavona as Wexford for Rosslare-Cherbourg from 2027
Brittany Ferries has chartered the RoPax Vizzavona, to be renamed Wexford, for its Rosslare-Cherbourg route from March 2027, replacing the chartered freight ship Norbay.
Netherlands to enforce scrubber washwater ban in ports from 1 July 2030
Open-loop scrubber washwater may no longer be discharged in Dutch ports and inland waters from 1 July 2030, the Dutch infrastructure minister has told parliament.
Jiangnan delivers Lilac Cove, second 93,000 m³ ammonia carrier for Eastern Pacific
Jiangnan Shipyard has delivered Lilac Cove, the second of six 93,000 m³ very large ammonia carriers for Eastern Pacific Shipping, three months after her sister Ivy Cove.
Capesize Cape Falcon refloated off Gladstone after a week aground and detained
The fully laden capesize Cape Falcon floated free off Gladstone on 24 September after six days aground near the port's dredge spoil ground, and has been detained while her hull is examined.
Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI add a Far East route to their revised plan for Zim Israel
Hapag-Lloyd and FIMI have handed Israel a revised framework for the Zim takeover, adding a weekly Far East service for Zim Israel and tighter golden-share terms while keeping the $35 a share price.
This Week in Maritime: freight takes a quarter of the barrel
The week freight reached a quarter of the price of a barrel, a 15-year-old VLCC sold above newbuild, a seafarer was killed in Hormuz, an MSC feeder was left adrift and China took 82% of new orders.
Maritime Briefing of 26 September 2026
A seafarer killed on the Cape Dao in Hormuz, salvage begins on the Caroline Bezengi, Onex's five VLCCs, Navios at HJ Shipbuilding, and Ima gas for Nigeria LNG.
Dong Fang Offshore takes delivery of SOV Orient Inspirer for Vestas in Taiwan
Taiwan's Dong Fang Offshore has taken delivery of its first newbuild service operation vessel, Orient Inspirer, from Vard Vung Tau, two months early and ahead of a 12-year Vestas charter.
Grimaldi takes delivery of Grande Egitto, its second 9,800 CEU car carrier
Grimaldi Group has taken delivery of the 9,800 CEU car carrier Grande Egitto from China Merchants Heavy Industry Jiangsu, its 14th ammonia-ready ship and joint largest PCTC in its fleet.
Ambassador buys Oceania's Sirena to launch German brand and Semester at Sea ship
Ambassador Cruise Line has bought the 670-guest Sirena from Oceania Cruises. Renamed Ambella, she will launch a German adults-only brand in 2028 and serve as Semester at Sea's campus.
TotalEnergies and AMNI sanction Ima gas field to feed Nigeria LNG Train 7
TotalEnergies and AMNI have taken the final investment decision on the Ima gas field off Nigeria, which will supply about one-third of the gas for the Nigeria LNG Train 7 expansion from 2028.
Navios linked to four 10,100 teu boxships at HJ Shipbuilding worth $500m
HJ Shipbuilding & Construction has signed four 10,100 teu containerships worth KRW679bn for an undisclosed Oceania-based owner, which shipbrokers identify as Navios Maritime Partners.
Onex DMCC linked to five VLCC purchases as supertanker values climb
Dubai trading house Onex DMCC is now linked to at least five VLCC purchases, from the record $200m Pinios to the 26-year-old Dennie, as the benchmark Gulf-China rate passed $1m a day.
Salvage under way at the Caroline Bezengi wreck off Oman as the monsoon eases
Salvors are now working on the deck of the stranded tanker Caroline Bezengi off Oman, with pumps flown aboard by helicopter and a floating hose being run out, after the Khareef winds abated.
Seafarer killed as capesize Cape Dao is struck and left adrift in Hormuz
A 26-year-old Indian wiper was killed when two projectiles hit the capesize Cape Dao off Oman's Musandam peninsula on 23 September, setting her engine room on fire and leaving her adrift.
Maritime Briefing of 25 September 2026
The MSC Hermes III is adrift and unmanned off Vietnam, Aramco restarts part of its East-West Pipeline, and five container lines have more ships on order than in service.
PIL names Temasek's Wan Chee Foong to succeed Lars Kastrup as chief executive
Pacific International Lines has appointed Wan Chee Foong deputy CEO from 5 October, to succeed Lars Kastrup as chief executive in April 2027 after a tenure in which EBITDA almost tripled.
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